Archived Meditations
6 September 2017
“Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God be glorified in him, God shall also glorify him in himself, and shall straightway glorify him.” John 13:31, 32
Glorified!
Exalted, honoured, and praised!
The Son of man is to be glorified. He is to be lifted up to a place reserved only for the most blessed and most exalted. He is to be brought to a position of dignity, majesty. There He is meant to receive the adoration and worship of all. He is Lord!
For “God is glorified in him.” Through the work of the Son of man, His Father will be glorified. In this work, will the Father’s glory, honour, power, and wisdom be shown. When the Father will glorify Him, it will be because this work of the Son brings all glory and praise to His Father in heaven.
Then follows the most wonderful circle of glory expressed: “If God be glorified in him, God shall also glorify him in himself, and shall straightway glorify him.” As God will glorify His Son, the Son will show forth more and more the glory of His Father. For that glory the Son brings to the Father, so will the Father glorify the Son even more. The union of the Father and the Son is a union that glorifies both, and all to the glory of God the Father and God the Son!
But, what about this “now”? What about this “straightway”?
These figures of time refer, of all things, to the treachery of Judas.
“Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, Now ...”
“Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, “. . . straightway . . .”
The treachery of Judas was to bring Jesus to His cross. The “now” was His hour, His time, the time of His suffering and death of the cross.
The glory of the Son is the glory of His cross. His glory is His death on that cross. His glory is the sacrifice of His own life and the shedding of His own blood on that cross. His glory is the offering up of His life to God as an atoning, reconciling, sacrifice. His glory is to be the sacrifice that satisfies the justice of God, that takes up the infinite wrath of God against sin, and that brings in the stead of that wrath all favour and grace.
That cross, though so deeply offensive and so greatly shameful to proud man, is the glory of the Son of man, to the glory of the Father.
Because that cross is alone the wonder of salvation. That cross alone is the wonder of the forgiveness of sins. It alone is the wonder of freedom from the guilt and the bondage of sin. It alone is the wonder of the mortification of sin. It alone is the wonder of free and full salvation, deliverance into all righteousness, eternal life, and the glorious kingdom of heaven.
In that cross is the glory of the Son of man. In that cross is the Father glorified by the Son. In that cross the Father glorifies the Son.
So let us always glory in that cross! In the glory of that cross, let us glorify the Son and the Father who gave His Son! Let us rejoice with great wonder to know that in our glorying the Son glorifies His Father, and the Father glorifies His Son!
“Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God be glorified in him, God shall also glorify him in himself, and shall straightway glorify him.” John 13:31, 32
Glorified!
Exalted, honoured, and praised!
The Son of man is to be glorified. He is to be lifted up to a place reserved only for the most blessed and most exalted. He is to be brought to a position of dignity, majesty. There He is meant to receive the adoration and worship of all. He is Lord!
For “God is glorified in him.” Through the work of the Son of man, His Father will be glorified. In this work, will the Father’s glory, honour, power, and wisdom be shown. When the Father will glorify Him, it will be because this work of the Son brings all glory and praise to His Father in heaven.
Then follows the most wonderful circle of glory expressed: “If God be glorified in him, God shall also glorify him in himself, and shall straightway glorify him.” As God will glorify His Son, the Son will show forth more and more the glory of His Father. For that glory the Son brings to the Father, so will the Father glorify the Son even more. The union of the Father and the Son is a union that glorifies both, and all to the glory of God the Father and God the Son!
But, what about this “now”? What about this “straightway”?
These figures of time refer, of all things, to the treachery of Judas.
“Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, Now ...”
“Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, “. . . straightway . . .”
The treachery of Judas was to bring Jesus to His cross. The “now” was His hour, His time, the time of His suffering and death of the cross.
The glory of the Son is the glory of His cross. His glory is His death on that cross. His glory is the sacrifice of His own life and the shedding of His own blood on that cross. His glory is the offering up of His life to God as an atoning, reconciling, sacrifice. His glory is to be the sacrifice that satisfies the justice of God, that takes up the infinite wrath of God against sin, and that brings in the stead of that wrath all favour and grace.
That cross, though so deeply offensive and so greatly shameful to proud man, is the glory of the Son of man, to the glory of the Father.
Because that cross is alone the wonder of salvation. That cross alone is the wonder of the forgiveness of sins. It alone is the wonder of freedom from the guilt and the bondage of sin. It alone is the wonder of the mortification of sin. It alone is the wonder of free and full salvation, deliverance into all righteousness, eternal life, and the glorious kingdom of heaven.
In that cross is the glory of the Son of man. In that cross is the Father glorified by the Son. In that cross the Father glorifies the Son.
So let us always glory in that cross! In the glory of that cross, let us glorify the Son and the Father who gave His Son! Let us rejoice with great wonder to know that in our glorying the Son glorifies His Father, and the Father glorifies His Son!
13 August 2017
“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” Psalm 133:1
Behold!
Stop! Gather the thoughts of your mind. Gather your attention together, eliminating the multitude of crowding distractions. Aim and focus. Prepare your mind to occupy itself with one thing alone.
What is it that must occupy your attention?
Brethren dwelling together in unity: how good and how pleasant!
All too often and all too sadly you can see the opposite. What an evil when brethren dwell together, but are divided against each other! Nothing good or pleasant is there. Divided in aim and goal. Divided between good and evil. Divided in direction, each going his own way, each thinking his way is best or right. Nothing good there. Nothing pleasant there. Only weakness, only trouble, only impending ruin.
But, brethren dwelling together in unity: Behold, how good and how pleasant it is!
Behold them dwelling together in that blessed unity in the house of God!
In the dwelling place of the Lord’s house together they dwell. There they hear the united truth of the Word of God, the gospel of Jesus Christ. Together they hear that Word. Together they rejoice to believe in that Word. Together they worship according to that Word. That Word shapes and molds them together more and more in the image of the Son of God, their Head. By that Word, according to that Word, they view themselves and one another. Together they are the children of God. Together they are the saints of the Lord, the church, the body of Christ.
So they dwell together in unity. There is simply no room for quarreling and bickering. There can be no space for resentment and bitterness of strife. There can be no quarter for schism or heresy.
So we pray in our churches. So we seek the Word of God in His house of prayer.
That we may dwell together in unity.
That we may see, and that we may say from our hearts:
“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!”
“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” Psalm 133:1
Behold!
Stop! Gather the thoughts of your mind. Gather your attention together, eliminating the multitude of crowding distractions. Aim and focus. Prepare your mind to occupy itself with one thing alone.
What is it that must occupy your attention?
Brethren dwelling together in unity: how good and how pleasant!
All too often and all too sadly you can see the opposite. What an evil when brethren dwell together, but are divided against each other! Nothing good or pleasant is there. Divided in aim and goal. Divided between good and evil. Divided in direction, each going his own way, each thinking his way is best or right. Nothing good there. Nothing pleasant there. Only weakness, only trouble, only impending ruin.
But, brethren dwelling together in unity: Behold, how good and how pleasant it is!
Behold them dwelling together in that blessed unity in the house of God!
In the dwelling place of the Lord’s house together they dwell. There they hear the united truth of the Word of God, the gospel of Jesus Christ. Together they hear that Word. Together they rejoice to believe in that Word. Together they worship according to that Word. That Word shapes and molds them together more and more in the image of the Son of God, their Head. By that Word, according to that Word, they view themselves and one another. Together they are the children of God. Together they are the saints of the Lord, the church, the body of Christ.
So they dwell together in unity. There is simply no room for quarreling and bickering. There can be no space for resentment and bitterness of strife. There can be no quarter for schism or heresy.
So we pray in our churches. So we seek the Word of God in His house of prayer.
That we may dwell together in unity.
That we may see, and that we may say from our hearts:
“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!”
July 22, 2017
“Then answered them the Pharisees, Are ye also deceived? Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him? But this people who knoweth not the law are cursed.”
“Nicodemus saith unto them, (He that came to Jesus by night, being one of them,) Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he doeth?” John 7:47-51
What hardness of heart is expressed in the above words from Holy Scripture!
The officers sent by the chief priests and Pharisees returned empty-handed. The bitter envy and deep hatred of the rulers sent these officers of the temple to arrest Jesus and bring Him to them. So they went, to carry out their orders. But when they heard Jesus’ preaching, they were so filled with awe and wonder at His teaching that they could not lay their hands on Him. They brought back their report: “Never man spake like this man.”
Their simple, straightforward report brought the exasperated retort: “Are ye also deceived?”
The disciples: deceived! The multitudes: deceived! The officers: deceived! Fools! Blind!
Believing on Jesus! Only one man! One, over against the rulers, the chief priests, the scribes, the Pharisees.
These are the educated. These are the trained and schooled. They know the law.
They do not believe. They will not believe. They are too well-trained to be taken in. They are too intelligent to be deceived.
“But this people who knoweth not the law are cursed.”
One among this gathering one speaks up. One of them. One of the rulers. One of them who know the law.
As Nicodemus knows the law, so he speaks of the law. “Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he doeth?”
And as he knows and speaks of the law, so he has done. He came to Jesus by night. Jesus he heard. Jesus he understood. Jesus he believed. By Jesus and in Jesus he was blessed.
By Nicodemus, this one Pharisee teetering between fear and boldness, is his company’s hardness of heart fully exposed.
“Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him?”
Yes! Nicodemus, who came to Jesus by night.
Who, then, is deceived? Who is so foolishly blinded? Who is truly cursed in their blindness?
The Pharisees and rulers, who know not the end of the law, Jesus Christ.
The Pharisees and rulers, who foolishly use the law to justify themselves, clinging to their own self-righteousness.
Let us forsake the foolish blindness and the deception of self-justification. Let us flee from the curse of knowing the law without knowing the end of the law.
Let us flee with Nicodemus, to believe on Jesus Christ, the end of the law. Redeemed from the curse of the law by His blood, and blessed with His righteousness imputed to us, let us walk humbly with our God in the way of His law.
“Then answered them the Pharisees, Are ye also deceived? Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him? But this people who knoweth not the law are cursed.”
“Nicodemus saith unto them, (He that came to Jesus by night, being one of them,) Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he doeth?” John 7:47-51
What hardness of heart is expressed in the above words from Holy Scripture!
The officers sent by the chief priests and Pharisees returned empty-handed. The bitter envy and deep hatred of the rulers sent these officers of the temple to arrest Jesus and bring Him to them. So they went, to carry out their orders. But when they heard Jesus’ preaching, they were so filled with awe and wonder at His teaching that they could not lay their hands on Him. They brought back their report: “Never man spake like this man.”
Their simple, straightforward report brought the exasperated retort: “Are ye also deceived?”
The disciples: deceived! The multitudes: deceived! The officers: deceived! Fools! Blind!
Believing on Jesus! Only one man! One, over against the rulers, the chief priests, the scribes, the Pharisees.
These are the educated. These are the trained and schooled. They know the law.
They do not believe. They will not believe. They are too well-trained to be taken in. They are too intelligent to be deceived.
“But this people who knoweth not the law are cursed.”
One among this gathering one speaks up. One of them. One of the rulers. One of them who know the law.
As Nicodemus knows the law, so he speaks of the law. “Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he doeth?”
And as he knows and speaks of the law, so he has done. He came to Jesus by night. Jesus he heard. Jesus he understood. Jesus he believed. By Jesus and in Jesus he was blessed.
By Nicodemus, this one Pharisee teetering between fear and boldness, is his company’s hardness of heart fully exposed.
“Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him?”
Yes! Nicodemus, who came to Jesus by night.
Who, then, is deceived? Who is so foolishly blinded? Who is truly cursed in their blindness?
The Pharisees and rulers, who know not the end of the law, Jesus Christ.
The Pharisees and rulers, who foolishly use the law to justify themselves, clinging to their own self-righteousness.
Let us forsake the foolish blindness and the deception of self-justification. Let us flee from the curse of knowing the law without knowing the end of the law.
Let us flee with Nicodemus, to believe on Jesus Christ, the end of the law. Redeemed from the curse of the law by His blood, and blessed with His righteousness imputed to us, let us walk humbly with our God in the way of His law.
18 July 2017
“He is near that justifieth me; who will contend with me? let us stand together: who is mine adversary? let him come near to me.
Behold, the Lord God will help me; who is he that shall condemn me? lo, they all shall wax old as a garment; the moth shall eat them up.” Isaiah 50:8, 9.
Let the challenge be issued!
“Who will contend with me?”
“Who is mine adversary?”
“Who is he that shall condemn me?”
The summons run through heaven and earth. So many hear them. So many are stirred up in their hearts.
Hatred brings them to answer their summons. They have their grounds. They have their strong arguments. The instruments of condemnation they have sharpened for just this purpose.
Let the devils of hell stand on the left, with the great accuser of the brethren ready to speak as their representative. Let the children of men assemble together on the right, with their testimonies and recollections, ready to present every ground for a sentence of condemnation.
Let them speak all their works out of their deep, bitter enmity. Let them declare every ground that demands certain condemnation. Let them demand for you the deepest shame and utter humiliation.
Every word they can speak is vain. No matter their hatred, they cannot prevail. No matter their words, condemnation and shame must flee away.
Why? How?
Because they are but creatures. Whether devil or man, whether spiritual or earthly, the sentence is upon them: “They all shall wax old as a garment; the moth shall eat them up.”
Who are they and what are they before the One whose testimony and declaration contradicts theirs? What can all their words and all their testimony mean before Him?
For, “He is near that justifieth me.”
The eternal, living God is near. He is near as the One that justifies. His Word overcomes. His Word triumphs. Not only does His Word overcome all the accusations of every enemy that draws near to condemn. His Word triumphs over all the ground of their condemnation. Over the sins and iniquities. Over the depravity that dwells so deep within.
Even more:
“He is near that justifieth me.”
“Behold, the Lord God will help me.”
The Lord God who justifies, is the very same that is near.
Near as your helper.
Near as your righteousness.
Such is the Son of God in His flesh, Head of the church.
Such is His nearness in your flesh as your Head, to take your sins upon Himself, to grant you His righteousness, by His glorious and blessed sacrifice on His cross.
In that righteousness you have no condemnation to fear. With that justification, every enemy must fall silent.
He is near!
“He is near that justifieth me; who will contend with me? let us stand together: who is mine adversary? let him come near to me.
Behold, the Lord God will help me; who is he that shall condemn me? lo, they all shall wax old as a garment; the moth shall eat them up.” Isaiah 50:8, 9.
Let the challenge be issued!
“Who will contend with me?”
“Who is mine adversary?”
“Who is he that shall condemn me?”
The summons run through heaven and earth. So many hear them. So many are stirred up in their hearts.
Hatred brings them to answer their summons. They have their grounds. They have their strong arguments. The instruments of condemnation they have sharpened for just this purpose.
Let the devils of hell stand on the left, with the great accuser of the brethren ready to speak as their representative. Let the children of men assemble together on the right, with their testimonies and recollections, ready to present every ground for a sentence of condemnation.
Let them speak all their works out of their deep, bitter enmity. Let them declare every ground that demands certain condemnation. Let them demand for you the deepest shame and utter humiliation.
Every word they can speak is vain. No matter their hatred, they cannot prevail. No matter their words, condemnation and shame must flee away.
Why? How?
Because they are but creatures. Whether devil or man, whether spiritual or earthly, the sentence is upon them: “They all shall wax old as a garment; the moth shall eat them up.”
Who are they and what are they before the One whose testimony and declaration contradicts theirs? What can all their words and all their testimony mean before Him?
For, “He is near that justifieth me.”
The eternal, living God is near. He is near as the One that justifies. His Word overcomes. His Word triumphs. Not only does His Word overcome all the accusations of every enemy that draws near to condemn. His Word triumphs over all the ground of their condemnation. Over the sins and iniquities. Over the depravity that dwells so deep within.
Even more:
“He is near that justifieth me.”
“Behold, the Lord God will help me.”
The Lord God who justifies, is the very same that is near.
Near as your helper.
Near as your righteousness.
Such is the Son of God in His flesh, Head of the church.
Such is His nearness in your flesh as your Head, to take your sins upon Himself, to grant you His righteousness, by His glorious and blessed sacrifice on His cross.
In that righteousness you have no condemnation to fear. With that justification, every enemy must fall silent.
He is near!
13 July 2017
“For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect.” Romans 4:14
Brutal honesty!
Brutal honesty is what this Word of God requires.
Yes, there are those who are “of the law.” The brutal honesty of this Word requires that we see who they are.
“Of the law” means that they are not “of faith.” Faith does not characterize their mind, their heart or their life. Law does. They have settled themselves in the way of merit. By the works of their hands, the words of their mouths and the thoughts of their heats they are working to establish their righteousness before God. They want their acceptance before God depending on what they do. They desire that their fellowship, their peace with God, their expectation and hope of good from God, be dependent on their good works.
On their good works, whether alone, or together with faith. On them, whether on the whole, or in part. On them, whether by God’s grace or not.
Whether of the law altogether, or whether of the law in part, they are “of the law.”
The brutal honesty of this Word considers these “of the law,” whether they could possibly be heirs.
Heirs of the kingdom of heaven. Heirs of God’s grace and favor in His fellowship and friendship. Heirs of salvation and eternal life. Heirs of all the good declared in Scripture.
Could they be? Could they be possibly? Could they be remotely?
Scripture answers with its brutal honesty: Absolutely not!
What would be the result?
“Faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect.”
Faith means absolutely nothing. Faith does not count. There is nothing approved and nothing good about it. It is a waste of effort. Believing is completely useless. It gains nothing.
The brutal honesty of the Word goes even further. Why is faith made void?
Because the promise that faith believes is “made of none effect.” The promise of God is an empty, hollow word. There is no power to it. There is nothing of substance to it. The promise is a word without significance or weight. In it is no comfort and peace. It leads to nothing good and provides no salvation.
This brutal honesty of God’s Word must thoroughly break your pride. It must turn you aside from that vast and swelling company that is “of the law.” No matter their numbers, no matter their piety or practicality, they are not heirs. With all their numbers, for all their piety and practicality, they are trying to make faith void and the promise of none effect.
Be not “of the law.” Trust not at all in your works, but always and only believe. Only believe in the promise of God. Only believe in the promise of God, sealed in the blood of Christ.
Being of faith, know that your faith is never void. Of faith know that the promise of God is powerful and efficacious to you.
Of faith, rejoice in the power of faith declared in the 16th verse: “Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all.”
“For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect.” Romans 4:14
Brutal honesty!
Brutal honesty is what this Word of God requires.
Yes, there are those who are “of the law.” The brutal honesty of this Word requires that we see who they are.
“Of the law” means that they are not “of faith.” Faith does not characterize their mind, their heart or their life. Law does. They have settled themselves in the way of merit. By the works of their hands, the words of their mouths and the thoughts of their heats they are working to establish their righteousness before God. They want their acceptance before God depending on what they do. They desire that their fellowship, their peace with God, their expectation and hope of good from God, be dependent on their good works.
On their good works, whether alone, or together with faith. On them, whether on the whole, or in part. On them, whether by God’s grace or not.
Whether of the law altogether, or whether of the law in part, they are “of the law.”
The brutal honesty of this Word considers these “of the law,” whether they could possibly be heirs.
Heirs of the kingdom of heaven. Heirs of God’s grace and favor in His fellowship and friendship. Heirs of salvation and eternal life. Heirs of all the good declared in Scripture.
Could they be? Could they be possibly? Could they be remotely?
Scripture answers with its brutal honesty: Absolutely not!
What would be the result?
“Faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect.”
Faith means absolutely nothing. Faith does not count. There is nothing approved and nothing good about it. It is a waste of effort. Believing is completely useless. It gains nothing.
The brutal honesty of the Word goes even further. Why is faith made void?
Because the promise that faith believes is “made of none effect.” The promise of God is an empty, hollow word. There is no power to it. There is nothing of substance to it. The promise is a word without significance or weight. In it is no comfort and peace. It leads to nothing good and provides no salvation.
This brutal honesty of God’s Word must thoroughly break your pride. It must turn you aside from that vast and swelling company that is “of the law.” No matter their numbers, no matter their piety or practicality, they are not heirs. With all their numbers, for all their piety and practicality, they are trying to make faith void and the promise of none effect.
Be not “of the law.” Trust not at all in your works, but always and only believe. Only believe in the promise of God. Only believe in the promise of God, sealed in the blood of Christ.
Being of faith, know that your faith is never void. Of faith know that the promise of God is powerful and efficacious to you.
Of faith, rejoice in the power of faith declared in the 16th verse: “Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all.”
12 July 2017
“Therefore speak I unto them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive. For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.” Matthew 13:13-15
What judgment!
Marvelous, wondrous, terrible, fearsome judgment!
Judgment through parables from the lips of the Saviour.
Parables are teaching devices. Their very nature is to clarify and explain. They are meant to make more difficult truths easier to understand. Especially is this true of the parables of Christ. How effectively and clearly they illustrated the nature of the spiritual and invisible kingdom of heaven. It must be said that every single parable He taught accomplished this effort and goal. Through His preaching and teaching, the kingdom of God was brought more near to His audience in its truth and reality.
Therefore we might well conclude: by His parables Jesus intended to bring His audience into the kingdom of God. He brought its truth and reality so near to them, that their entrance would be a very simple task. There it is: the kingdom! See it open! Enter!
Not so!
Hear His testimony: “Therefore I speak . . . because they seeing see not. . . . And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith.”
Jesus spoke these parables in judgment. His parables hardened their hearts. The nearer He brought the kingdom to them by His word, the more they closed their ears and eyes against it.
His judgment was the judgment of God. His purpose was to fulfill the judgment of God declared in Isaiah.
“By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand.”
“Seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive.”
So by the Word of Isaiah, spoken by God to His prophet at his commission.
Then, the sovereign explanation: “For this people’s heart is waxed gross . . . lest at any time they should see . . . and should be converted, and I should heal them.”
What judgment! Parables to close the eyes. Parables to harden the heart. Lest they should see and be converted.
But there, in the midst of marvelous, wondrous, terrible and fearsome judgment, is mercy!
How do you see? How do you understand? How are you converted and healed? How do you enter the kingdom of heaven?
By grace alone!
By the grace of your Saviour to take away your guilt by His death on the cross, the guilt that is the cause of your unbelief.
By the grace of your Saviour, always to give you with His parables ears to hear, eyes to see, a heart to understand.
By grace He converts you. By grace He heals you. By grace He leads you into His kingdom.
In that blessed grace, so mighty over judgment, rejoice, and give humble thanks to your God!
“Therefore speak I unto them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive. For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.” Matthew 13:13-15
What judgment!
Marvelous, wondrous, terrible, fearsome judgment!
Judgment through parables from the lips of the Saviour.
Parables are teaching devices. Their very nature is to clarify and explain. They are meant to make more difficult truths easier to understand. Especially is this true of the parables of Christ. How effectively and clearly they illustrated the nature of the spiritual and invisible kingdom of heaven. It must be said that every single parable He taught accomplished this effort and goal. Through His preaching and teaching, the kingdom of God was brought more near to His audience in its truth and reality.
Therefore we might well conclude: by His parables Jesus intended to bring His audience into the kingdom of God. He brought its truth and reality so near to them, that their entrance would be a very simple task. There it is: the kingdom! See it open! Enter!
Not so!
Hear His testimony: “Therefore I speak . . . because they seeing see not. . . . And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith.”
Jesus spoke these parables in judgment. His parables hardened their hearts. The nearer He brought the kingdom to them by His word, the more they closed their ears and eyes against it.
His judgment was the judgment of God. His purpose was to fulfill the judgment of God declared in Isaiah.
“By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand.”
“Seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive.”
So by the Word of Isaiah, spoken by God to His prophet at his commission.
Then, the sovereign explanation: “For this people’s heart is waxed gross . . . lest at any time they should see . . . and should be converted, and I should heal them.”
What judgment! Parables to close the eyes. Parables to harden the heart. Lest they should see and be converted.
But there, in the midst of marvelous, wondrous, terrible and fearsome judgment, is mercy!
How do you see? How do you understand? How are you converted and healed? How do you enter the kingdom of heaven?
By grace alone!
By the grace of your Saviour to take away your guilt by His death on the cross, the guilt that is the cause of your unbelief.
By the grace of your Saviour, always to give you with His parables ears to hear, eyes to see, a heart to understand.
By grace He converts you. By grace He heals you. By grace He leads you into His kingdom.
In that blessed grace, so mighty over judgment, rejoice, and give humble thanks to your God!
6 July 2017
“Woe unto the world because of offences! For it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh! Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire.” Matthew 18:7,8
Wherefore!
Oh, how we need that connecting word!
That connecting word is given us in order to take up a most severe and painful work: amputation.
Cut them off!
Shear through the skin. Slice through muscle and tissue. Cut through vain and artery. Sever nerve, tendon and ligament. Saw through bone if necessary.
That hand or foot, now severed and cut off, do not mourn it. Do not cleave to it. Be not sorry over it.
Cast it from thee!
Cast it from thee with loathing and abhorrence.
Wherefore?
Because that hand or foot, attached to your body, making you whole and able, was no asset. It was a horrifying liability.
That hand or foot was going to lead your whole body into everlasting fire. Yours was to be everlasting desolation and misery. Yours was to be indescribable torment, anguish and pain coursing through your whole nature without any letup or relief in sight. Forever in those eternally burning flames you should have known in every whole member the greatest pain as the punishment of your iniquity and sin.
All because of that offending hand or foot.
How much better, then, to enter into life halt or maimed.
Halt or maimed, in that life, how glad you should be for that handicap. How blessed you should be, because you went through that harsh, agonizingly painful procedure for the amputation of that offending member. Through that whole painful procedure you were able to enter into life, and escape the ravages of eternal fire.
So very painful is the discipline of the church of Jesus Christ, the pain of spiritual amputation. So painful is it to cut off and cast away the offending member. But it is for the body of Christ, that it might enter into life halt or maimed. So it is also for the entrance into life of that offending member of the body, that he might undertake the painful amputation of his sin that cleaves to him.
So very painful is the discipline of every child of God. The members of his flesh, the motions of sin in his members, are a cause of constant offense. Yielding to them would mean turning back to a walk in sin, the end of which is eternal fire. So he must cut off and cast away every offending member, a harsh and painful work.
So must we ensure that this difficult work is carried on in the body of Christ. So must we be zealous to carry on this work in our own hearts, minds, and lives.
Better to enter into life halt or maimed.
“Woe unto the world because of offences! For it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh! Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire.” Matthew 18:7,8
Wherefore!
Oh, how we need that connecting word!
That connecting word is given us in order to take up a most severe and painful work: amputation.
Cut them off!
Shear through the skin. Slice through muscle and tissue. Cut through vain and artery. Sever nerve, tendon and ligament. Saw through bone if necessary.
That hand or foot, now severed and cut off, do not mourn it. Do not cleave to it. Be not sorry over it.
Cast it from thee!
Cast it from thee with loathing and abhorrence.
Wherefore?
Because that hand or foot, attached to your body, making you whole and able, was no asset. It was a horrifying liability.
That hand or foot was going to lead your whole body into everlasting fire. Yours was to be everlasting desolation and misery. Yours was to be indescribable torment, anguish and pain coursing through your whole nature without any letup or relief in sight. Forever in those eternally burning flames you should have known in every whole member the greatest pain as the punishment of your iniquity and sin.
All because of that offending hand or foot.
How much better, then, to enter into life halt or maimed.
Halt or maimed, in that life, how glad you should be for that handicap. How blessed you should be, because you went through that harsh, agonizingly painful procedure for the amputation of that offending member. Through that whole painful procedure you were able to enter into life, and escape the ravages of eternal fire.
So very painful is the discipline of the church of Jesus Christ, the pain of spiritual amputation. So painful is it to cut off and cast away the offending member. But it is for the body of Christ, that it might enter into life halt or maimed. So it is also for the entrance into life of that offending member of the body, that he might undertake the painful amputation of his sin that cleaves to him.
So very painful is the discipline of every child of God. The members of his flesh, the motions of sin in his members, are a cause of constant offense. Yielding to them would mean turning back to a walk in sin, the end of which is eternal fire. So he must cut off and cast away every offending member, a harsh and painful work.
So must we ensure that this difficult work is carried on in the body of Christ. So must we be zealous to carry on this work in our own hearts, minds, and lives.
Better to enter into life halt or maimed.
24 June 2017
“Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.” I Peter 5:5, 6
All of you!
To this rule there are no exceptions. No exceptions of rank, of class, of privilege or wealth. No distinctions of authority, rule or power.
All of you be subject one to another.
Every relationship falls under this same rule.
Kings be subject to your subjects. Masters, be subject to your slaves. Presidents, prime ministers, be subject to your citizens. Employers be subject to your employees; elders, to your congregants; husbands, to your wives; parents, to your children.
Be subject to them. Let your words, attitudes, actions and behavior be shaped and molded by their character, their needs, their personalities. Sacrifice yourself in seeking what is best for them. Accommodate yourself to their flaws and frailties.
Iron-fisted authoritarianism and jack-booted despotism is arrogant and haughty pride.
Put off all pride.
Be subject to one another, and be clothed with humility.
Put it on like a garment. Wear it in all your transactions and business. Make humility the garb that everyone sees in all your dealings with them.
Why is this humility so important? Why is it so important to put off all pride, especially to be subject to one another?
Because God resisteth the proud!
Pride will make you an enemy of God. Pride will have you undermining His place, His rule from His holy throne. Pride will have you rob Him of His glory. Pride will have your rule substituting for His.
But God giveth grace to the humble.
Seek His grace, His blessedness, His favour and lovingkindness in all your ways. Seek His grace in the way of thorough humility, humility that shines even where you have authority.
In that way of humble sacrifice and service, look for His grace to you.
Look for it according to His Word: “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.”
As horrible to exalt yourself by your own hand, and find yourself resisted by God Himself, so blessed to humble yourself under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you.
Under that mighty hand of God, be that blessed servant, clothed with humility. Under that mighty hand, all of you be subject one to another. Wait upon Him in that humility. The time will come when He will exalt you to honour, glory, dominion and power unimaginable. The honour of eternal life awaits. The glory of heaven is coming. The dominion of victory over every enemy shall be your crown. The power of endless life shall be your gift.
He will exalt you in due time.
Humble yourselves therefore!
“Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.” I Peter 5:5, 6
All of you!
To this rule there are no exceptions. No exceptions of rank, of class, of privilege or wealth. No distinctions of authority, rule or power.
All of you be subject one to another.
Every relationship falls under this same rule.
Kings be subject to your subjects. Masters, be subject to your slaves. Presidents, prime ministers, be subject to your citizens. Employers be subject to your employees; elders, to your congregants; husbands, to your wives; parents, to your children.
Be subject to them. Let your words, attitudes, actions and behavior be shaped and molded by their character, their needs, their personalities. Sacrifice yourself in seeking what is best for them. Accommodate yourself to their flaws and frailties.
Iron-fisted authoritarianism and jack-booted despotism is arrogant and haughty pride.
Put off all pride.
Be subject to one another, and be clothed with humility.
Put it on like a garment. Wear it in all your transactions and business. Make humility the garb that everyone sees in all your dealings with them.
Why is this humility so important? Why is it so important to put off all pride, especially to be subject to one another?
Because God resisteth the proud!
Pride will make you an enemy of God. Pride will have you undermining His place, His rule from His holy throne. Pride will have you rob Him of His glory. Pride will have your rule substituting for His.
But God giveth grace to the humble.
Seek His grace, His blessedness, His favour and lovingkindness in all your ways. Seek His grace in the way of thorough humility, humility that shines even where you have authority.
In that way of humble sacrifice and service, look for His grace to you.
Look for it according to His Word: “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.”
As horrible to exalt yourself by your own hand, and find yourself resisted by God Himself, so blessed to humble yourself under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you.
Under that mighty hand of God, be that blessed servant, clothed with humility. Under that mighty hand, all of you be subject one to another. Wait upon Him in that humility. The time will come when He will exalt you to honour, glory, dominion and power unimaginable. The honour of eternal life awaits. The glory of heaven is coming. The dominion of victory over every enemy shall be your crown. The power of endless life shall be your gift.
He will exalt you in due time.
Humble yourselves therefore!
11 June, 2017
“Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him . . . but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth . . . But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.” Psalm 37:7, 9, 11
In these same verses that speak about the blessed peace of the Sabbath, we have words that tempt us to great turmoil and unrest of heart and soul.
Why does the man who brings wicked devices to pass prosper in his way? Why does he get what he wants, and more than his heart could wish? How does he make more and more secure his life, his wealth and his lands? How is his heart so much at ease?
So we might fret. So we might become bitterly angry. So we might be tempted to take matters into our own hands, to take away his rest and give him trouble instead.
But in our temptation we hear the call of our God to us.
Rest.
Wait patiently for him.
Be a servant of the Lord. Be as the redeemed of the Lord by the blood of Christ.
Belonging to Him, you have nothing to worry over. You have no cause for fretful anxiety.
He will abundantly care for all His own. He will care for you, His blood-bought servants.
As you hear the proclamation of the gospel today, feeding upon that Word of God, delight yourself in the abundance of His peace. Feed upon that gospel to fill your heart and soul with His peace, driving out all anxiety, all fear, all worries over the wicked.
His rest is yours. His peace is for your soul.
His blessed promises are yours.
“Those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.”
“But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.”
The rest and peace of the gospel of Christ that you enjoy this Sabbath day will be your everlasting rest. The promise you cling to today will be the fulfillment of God’s almighty, gracious power tomorrow, the Day of the Lord.
Yours will be the inheritance of the earth, the ground that you walk on this Sabbath Day, but cleansed, renewed and reconciled. It will be the inheritance of the new earth together with the new heaven, brought together under the glorious rule of Him that sitteth on the throne and of the Lamb of God.
So patiently wait in meekness this day of rest.
He will bring it to pass.
“Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him . . . but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth . . . But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.” Psalm 37:7, 9, 11
In these same verses that speak about the blessed peace of the Sabbath, we have words that tempt us to great turmoil and unrest of heart and soul.
Why does the man who brings wicked devices to pass prosper in his way? Why does he get what he wants, and more than his heart could wish? How does he make more and more secure his life, his wealth and his lands? How is his heart so much at ease?
So we might fret. So we might become bitterly angry. So we might be tempted to take matters into our own hands, to take away his rest and give him trouble instead.
But in our temptation we hear the call of our God to us.
Rest.
Wait patiently for him.
Be a servant of the Lord. Be as the redeemed of the Lord by the blood of Christ.
Belonging to Him, you have nothing to worry over. You have no cause for fretful anxiety.
He will abundantly care for all His own. He will care for you, His blood-bought servants.
As you hear the proclamation of the gospel today, feeding upon that Word of God, delight yourself in the abundance of His peace. Feed upon that gospel to fill your heart and soul with His peace, driving out all anxiety, all fear, all worries over the wicked.
His rest is yours. His peace is for your soul.
His blessed promises are yours.
“Those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.”
“But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.”
The rest and peace of the gospel of Christ that you enjoy this Sabbath day will be your everlasting rest. The promise you cling to today will be the fulfillment of God’s almighty, gracious power tomorrow, the Day of the Lord.
Yours will be the inheritance of the earth, the ground that you walk on this Sabbath Day, but cleansed, renewed and reconciled. It will be the inheritance of the new earth together with the new heaven, brought together under the glorious rule of Him that sitteth on the throne and of the Lamb of God.
So patiently wait in meekness this day of rest.
He will bring it to pass.
8 June 2017
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10
What a workmanship of God!
What makes this workmanship of God so great is its former condition. Before: “dead in trespasses and sins.” Before: walking “according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.” Before: “our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind.” Before: “children of wrath.”
But now: “his workmanship.”
Most evidently, then; most obviously, then: “by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves.”
What a workmanship of God!
A workmanship created in Christ Jesus!
Created! So great, so thorough, so radical is this workmanship of God that the Holy Spirit calls it a new creation. So different is the new from the old, so great is the transformation that the word “created” properly describes it.
Created in Christ Jesus!
Christ Jesus is the mold. Christ Jesus is the standard and rule for this creation. This workmanship is poured into the mold of Christ Jesus for his shape. This workmanship is so wrought upon with the instruments of God that it is made to conform to Christ Jesus. It must bear the impress and stamp of Christ Jesus. It must be renewed after His image and likeness. As the heart of Christ Jesus, so the heart of God’s workmanship. As the soul of Christ, as the mind of Christ, as the will of Christ, as the conduct and behaviour of Christ in all holiness and righteousness, so the soul, mind, will, conduct and behaviour of this workmanship of God.
This workmanship is wrought upon, fashioned, shaped and molded by God for a very particular purpose: “created in Christ Jesus unto good works.”
“Unto good works.”
To be sure, the good works of the law. These are the good works that are according to the law of God, performed out of true faith, and are directed to the honour and glory of God.
But these are also exactly the good works, “which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”
This good work. That good work. The good works that we do every day.
Each of them and all of them God has ordained. He has ordained them exactly according to what they would be, when and how we should do each one of them.
Amazing workmanship of God!
As we desire to do them out of gratitude for the complete salvation God has bestowed upon us, they have been ordained by God. As we turn to the law of God to show us what works are pleasing to Him, they have been ordained by God. As we delight to do them with our heart, our soul, our mind and strength, and as we do them with our lips and tongues, our hands and feet, they have all been before ordained of God.
As His blessed workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto all good works, let us every rejoice to walk in them, praising, blessing, and thanking our God for the wonder of His mighty grace to us!
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10
What a workmanship of God!
What makes this workmanship of God so great is its former condition. Before: “dead in trespasses and sins.” Before: walking “according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.” Before: “our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind.” Before: “children of wrath.”
But now: “his workmanship.”
Most evidently, then; most obviously, then: “by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves.”
What a workmanship of God!
A workmanship created in Christ Jesus!
Created! So great, so thorough, so radical is this workmanship of God that the Holy Spirit calls it a new creation. So different is the new from the old, so great is the transformation that the word “created” properly describes it.
Created in Christ Jesus!
Christ Jesus is the mold. Christ Jesus is the standard and rule for this creation. This workmanship is poured into the mold of Christ Jesus for his shape. This workmanship is so wrought upon with the instruments of God that it is made to conform to Christ Jesus. It must bear the impress and stamp of Christ Jesus. It must be renewed after His image and likeness. As the heart of Christ Jesus, so the heart of God’s workmanship. As the soul of Christ, as the mind of Christ, as the will of Christ, as the conduct and behaviour of Christ in all holiness and righteousness, so the soul, mind, will, conduct and behaviour of this workmanship of God.
This workmanship is wrought upon, fashioned, shaped and molded by God for a very particular purpose: “created in Christ Jesus unto good works.”
“Unto good works.”
To be sure, the good works of the law. These are the good works that are according to the law of God, performed out of true faith, and are directed to the honour and glory of God.
But these are also exactly the good works, “which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”
This good work. That good work. The good works that we do every day.
Each of them and all of them God has ordained. He has ordained them exactly according to what they would be, when and how we should do each one of them.
Amazing workmanship of God!
As we desire to do them out of gratitude for the complete salvation God has bestowed upon us, they have been ordained by God. As we turn to the law of God to show us what works are pleasing to Him, they have been ordained by God. As we delight to do them with our heart, our soul, our mind and strength, and as we do them with our lips and tongues, our hands and feet, they have all been before ordained of God.
As His blessed workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto all good works, let us every rejoice to walk in them, praising, blessing, and thanking our God for the wonder of His mighty grace to us!
6 June 2017
“Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.” 1 Peter 1:8, 9
The deep, abounding, wonderful love of faith!
Faith that does not need to see. Faith that does not see with the eye. Faith that does not need to touch or handle. Faith that does not need to hear for itself with the ear.
Faith that merely believes the testimony of God’s Word.
Faith that merely believes the testimony of that Word, to be burdened with the heavy guilt of sin and depravity. Faith that knows oneself to be a lost, helpless, depraved sinner, worthy only of condemnation and the everlasting wrath of God. Faith that merely believes the testimony of that same Word of a wonderful, mighty Saviour from the guilt of sin, and from sin’s condemnation and wrath.
So that faith receives its end: “even the salvation of your souls.”
How wonderful and how strong faith is! Full, complete, and final salvation, possessed, enjoyed by the believer forever and ever!
So faith begets joy.
Not just any emotion of joy. Not just any passing or rising and falling, some mere feeling of joy.
This is a joy unspeakable.
To be sure, this joy of faith can be explained and described. It is of this nature and it is of this character. This is its reason and cause. But it is a joy that is unspeakable according to its amazing strength, wonderful fullness and exalted measure. Its limit cannot be declared. Its end cannot be told.
What makes this joy unspeakable?
Because it is full of glory. This joy is full of the glory that belongs to the eternal life promised in the gospel, grounded in the righteousness of Jesus Christ, the righteousness received and embraced through faith alone. This joy is the joy of final salvation, the glory of final deliverance from every burden of pain, sorrow, loss, and heartache. This joy is the glory of final and complete victory, over the world, over sin and Satan, and over the flesh, the old man of sin. This joy is the sweetness of the glory of heaven, that must immediately swallow up every affliction and hardship of this present life.
This joy unspeakable and full of glory must also lead back by faith to its source: that blessed and dear Saviour, Jesus Christ.
“Whom having not seen, ye love.”
Who has given us this inheritance of glory? Who has given us this joy unspeakable? Who has given us this faith, whereby we receive and know this joy unspeakable and full of glory?
Who has given us so freely and graciously? Who has given us at the great cost of His own blood, shed on the shameful cross and under the wrath of God?
Our Lord Jesus Christ!
How great He is! How great His love for us!
So great, that without seeing, by faith alone we love Him.
May our joy unspeakable and full of glory strengthen us to love our Saviour, showing forth His glory, His truth, His righteousness and holiness in all our life!
“Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.” 1 Peter 1:8, 9
The deep, abounding, wonderful love of faith!
Faith that does not need to see. Faith that does not see with the eye. Faith that does not need to touch or handle. Faith that does not need to hear for itself with the ear.
Faith that merely believes the testimony of God’s Word.
Faith that merely believes the testimony of that Word, to be burdened with the heavy guilt of sin and depravity. Faith that knows oneself to be a lost, helpless, depraved sinner, worthy only of condemnation and the everlasting wrath of God. Faith that merely believes the testimony of that same Word of a wonderful, mighty Saviour from the guilt of sin, and from sin’s condemnation and wrath.
So that faith receives its end: “even the salvation of your souls.”
How wonderful and how strong faith is! Full, complete, and final salvation, possessed, enjoyed by the believer forever and ever!
So faith begets joy.
Not just any emotion of joy. Not just any passing or rising and falling, some mere feeling of joy.
This is a joy unspeakable.
To be sure, this joy of faith can be explained and described. It is of this nature and it is of this character. This is its reason and cause. But it is a joy that is unspeakable according to its amazing strength, wonderful fullness and exalted measure. Its limit cannot be declared. Its end cannot be told.
What makes this joy unspeakable?
Because it is full of glory. This joy is full of the glory that belongs to the eternal life promised in the gospel, grounded in the righteousness of Jesus Christ, the righteousness received and embraced through faith alone. This joy is the joy of final salvation, the glory of final deliverance from every burden of pain, sorrow, loss, and heartache. This joy is the glory of final and complete victory, over the world, over sin and Satan, and over the flesh, the old man of sin. This joy is the sweetness of the glory of heaven, that must immediately swallow up every affliction and hardship of this present life.
This joy unspeakable and full of glory must also lead back by faith to its source: that blessed and dear Saviour, Jesus Christ.
“Whom having not seen, ye love.”
Who has given us this inheritance of glory? Who has given us this joy unspeakable? Who has given us this faith, whereby we receive and know this joy unspeakable and full of glory?
Who has given us so freely and graciously? Who has given us at the great cost of His own blood, shed on the shameful cross and under the wrath of God?
Our Lord Jesus Christ!
How great He is! How great His love for us!
So great, that without seeing, by faith alone we love Him.
May our joy unspeakable and full of glory strengthen us to love our Saviour, showing forth His glory, His truth, His righteousness and holiness in all our life!
5 June 2017
“The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.” Proverbs 29:25
Caught in the snare!
How cleverly that snare was laid! Unwittingly you stepped right into it, and now you are caught. Unable to escape it is only a matter of time until the fowler comes to take you for his prey. The more you struggle the tighter the snare becomes around your leg. You see the knot, and try to undo it, but it is too tight.
Taking your attention from that snare wrapped around your leg for a moment, you look around you. The snare around your leg is not the only one. Now that you are caught you see that the whole area around you is thick with snares. If not this snare, you surely would have stepped into another. Your way was littered with them.
How did you get here, trapped in this snare?
The fear of man.
You loved the praise and the flattery of men. The honour they accorded you filled your heart with joy. Seeking and finding their company, you felt fulfilled. In need of moral support you turned to them, and they brought peace to your soul, and lifted your spirits. When you felt lost, they were there to give you guidance and direction. They encouraged you in your own direction, and praised you when you accomplished your goals.
So you began to direct yourself toward them. What would be pleasing to them? What direction would meet with their approval? What accomplishments would bring their honour and praise? How would your language and behavior keep you knit to them and them to you? Your clothing? Your possessions? Your entertainment? Your hobbies? What you follow?
And now you are caught in your snare. Trapped and helpless, you never felt so lonely. Your assets of friends and companions you now see as your liability. Your perceived strength was really your weakness. You calculated wisdom was truly your poor folly.
“The fear of man bringeth a snare.”
“But whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.”
Here is your escape from the snare. Here is your release from its fierce grip, the undoing of its knot.
Trust in the Lord.
See the Lord in all His glory and power, as the sovereign Maker of heaven and earth. See Him in the exaltation of His might, supreme over all His wide dominion. See Him in all the riches of His love, grace, mercy, and peace through the sacrifice of His Son on the cross.
Put your trust exactly where it belongs: in the Lord.
There is your salvation. There is your safety.
Who are men to fear, with the wonderful fear of the Lord in your heart?
What means the approval of men in comparison with the acceptance of the God of all grace in Jesus Christ?
Of what significance is the praise and honour of men before the honour of God?
Trusting the Lord alone, rejoice in your freedom from every snare of the fear of man.
“The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.” Proverbs 29:25
Caught in the snare!
How cleverly that snare was laid! Unwittingly you stepped right into it, and now you are caught. Unable to escape it is only a matter of time until the fowler comes to take you for his prey. The more you struggle the tighter the snare becomes around your leg. You see the knot, and try to undo it, but it is too tight.
Taking your attention from that snare wrapped around your leg for a moment, you look around you. The snare around your leg is not the only one. Now that you are caught you see that the whole area around you is thick with snares. If not this snare, you surely would have stepped into another. Your way was littered with them.
How did you get here, trapped in this snare?
The fear of man.
You loved the praise and the flattery of men. The honour they accorded you filled your heart with joy. Seeking and finding their company, you felt fulfilled. In need of moral support you turned to them, and they brought peace to your soul, and lifted your spirits. When you felt lost, they were there to give you guidance and direction. They encouraged you in your own direction, and praised you when you accomplished your goals.
So you began to direct yourself toward them. What would be pleasing to them? What direction would meet with their approval? What accomplishments would bring their honour and praise? How would your language and behavior keep you knit to them and them to you? Your clothing? Your possessions? Your entertainment? Your hobbies? What you follow?
And now you are caught in your snare. Trapped and helpless, you never felt so lonely. Your assets of friends and companions you now see as your liability. Your perceived strength was really your weakness. You calculated wisdom was truly your poor folly.
“The fear of man bringeth a snare.”
“But whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.”
Here is your escape from the snare. Here is your release from its fierce grip, the undoing of its knot.
Trust in the Lord.
See the Lord in all His glory and power, as the sovereign Maker of heaven and earth. See Him in the exaltation of His might, supreme over all His wide dominion. See Him in all the riches of His love, grace, mercy, and peace through the sacrifice of His Son on the cross.
Put your trust exactly where it belongs: in the Lord.
There is your salvation. There is your safety.
Who are men to fear, with the wonderful fear of the Lord in your heart?
What means the approval of men in comparison with the acceptance of the God of all grace in Jesus Christ?
Of what significance is the praise and honour of men before the honour of God?
Trusting the Lord alone, rejoice in your freedom from every snare of the fear of man.
4 June 2017
“And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” Revelation 21:2
Beautiful, wondrous and glorious day!
Day of the great wedding! Day of the great wedding feast!
On this day is one wedding, the wedding of all weddings. To this one, perfect wedding, all other weddings have pointed. No other wedding could be as magnificent or glorious as this. No other wedding as exalted, as joyful, as blessed and blissful as this.
For this is the wedding of the Son of God and His bride, His church.
This wedding has been long in coming. It is the hope of the ages.
For so long this bride has been in preparation by her God.
For so long has she been in gathering. Gathered one by one out of every nation tribe and tongue. Gathered by the Word and Spirit of Jesus Christ. Translated out of the darkness of sin and Satan into the kingdom of God’s dear Son.
For so long has she been in her washing and cleansing. Sinner after sinner, brought to the cross by faith, there to receive the cleansing blood of her bridegroom, given white robes of His righteousness to wear, covering her nakedness and desolation.
For so long has she been in conflict and pain, enduring trials and persecutions. For so long has she struggled in the battle of faith. For so long has she contended for the cause of truth and righteousness in the midst of a world blinded by the darkness of sin. For so long has she kept the faith, in the face of so many schisms and heresies.
All for the sake of this day, her blessed wedding day.
Her day to be joined forever to her Lord and Saviour. Her day to begin her everlasting life in perfection in the home of her husband.
May this sabbath day be for us a day of preparation for that blessed wedding day. May this day be a foretaste of that wedding day, as we hear the Word of our husband to us, to promise us again that day, and to make us more and more ready. In that word of promise let us be joyful and glad, knowing the certain coming of that day. May the word of our husband to us adorn us more and more for Him, our dear Saviour.
Rejoice this day in your wedding day!
“And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” Revelation 21:2
Beautiful, wondrous and glorious day!
Day of the great wedding! Day of the great wedding feast!
On this day is one wedding, the wedding of all weddings. To this one, perfect wedding, all other weddings have pointed. No other wedding could be as magnificent or glorious as this. No other wedding as exalted, as joyful, as blessed and blissful as this.
For this is the wedding of the Son of God and His bride, His church.
This wedding has been long in coming. It is the hope of the ages.
For so long this bride has been in preparation by her God.
For so long has she been in gathering. Gathered one by one out of every nation tribe and tongue. Gathered by the Word and Spirit of Jesus Christ. Translated out of the darkness of sin and Satan into the kingdom of God’s dear Son.
For so long has she been in her washing and cleansing. Sinner after sinner, brought to the cross by faith, there to receive the cleansing blood of her bridegroom, given white robes of His righteousness to wear, covering her nakedness and desolation.
For so long has she been in conflict and pain, enduring trials and persecutions. For so long has she struggled in the battle of faith. For so long has she contended for the cause of truth and righteousness in the midst of a world blinded by the darkness of sin. For so long has she kept the faith, in the face of so many schisms and heresies.
All for the sake of this day, her blessed wedding day.
Her day to be joined forever to her Lord and Saviour. Her day to begin her everlasting life in perfection in the home of her husband.
May this sabbath day be for us a day of preparation for that blessed wedding day. May this day be a foretaste of that wedding day, as we hear the Word of our husband to us, to promise us again that day, and to make us more and more ready. In that word of promise let us be joyful and glad, knowing the certain coming of that day. May the word of our husband to us adorn us more and more for Him, our dear Saviour.
Rejoice this day in your wedding day!
3 June 2017
“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. . . . But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” James 1:22, 25
Be not a hearer only! Do not deceive yourself!
Self-deception is such an easy matter. The word comes from outside, from God. He speaks His holy word of the law. He tells. He explains. He applies. All in so many words.
As He speaks, so you listen. You give His words a hearing, bending your ears to have them filled with His words.
Then you think you have well done. You were supposed to listen. It was your responsibility to hear. So you did listen, giving that law of God your attention.
Here is where you deceive yourself. You think you have finished, but you have not even begun. So you might suppose you are righteous, when you are still wicked and corrupt.
Terrible, fearful self-deception!
For all your hearing and listening, for all your thinking and pondering, you have done nothing.
For the word of God says in the law: “Do!”
“Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only.”
“Whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty and continueth therein . . . this man shall be blessed in his deed.”
It is only when you strive and struggle to be a doer of the word, and not a hearer only, that you come to realize the greatness of your sin and our misery. You cannot do what you must do. You find yourself inclined exactly to the opposite. You do not deceive yourself, but come face to face with your depravity and inability. You understand the greatness of your guilt before God, and your great need of the cross of Jesus Christ, His blood to cleanse you from your sin and His righteousness to be all your standing before God. By faith alone you receive that righteousness, by which alone you are reconciled to God. By that same righteousness of Christ, full and complete, you have your right standing before that law of God.
No longer can that law condemn you. Through Jesus’ cross it becomes a perfect law of liberty.
Freed from its guilt and condemnation, you are freed to look into and see all the perfection of that law of liberty. Strengthened in the grateful joy of your salvation, you seek no mere hearing of that perfect law. You aim to do it, to keep it in all its perfection. In that aim you rely not on yourself, but only on the mighty grace of God in Jesus Christ, to do all that he commands.
Still you fall far short, far from the perfection of that law.
But you do not give up on your doing, to become a hearer only, deceiving your own self. You do not deny the perfect law of liberty, nor do you judge the law.
No, in that perfect law of liberty you continue. Still you seek to be a doer, and not a hearer only.
You continue to seek the remission of every imperfection of your sins through the blood of Jesus Christ. You continue to know that grateful joy of your salvation. You remain strong to continue in that perfect law of liberty, fighting against sin, and seeking to please your God in all your ways.
In that way, being not a hearer of the law, but a doer, may you rejoice to hear the word of your God: “This man shall be blessed in his deed.”
“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. . . . But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” James 1:22, 25
Be not a hearer only! Do not deceive yourself!
Self-deception is such an easy matter. The word comes from outside, from God. He speaks His holy word of the law. He tells. He explains. He applies. All in so many words.
As He speaks, so you listen. You give His words a hearing, bending your ears to have them filled with His words.
Then you think you have well done. You were supposed to listen. It was your responsibility to hear. So you did listen, giving that law of God your attention.
Here is where you deceive yourself. You think you have finished, but you have not even begun. So you might suppose you are righteous, when you are still wicked and corrupt.
Terrible, fearful self-deception!
For all your hearing and listening, for all your thinking and pondering, you have done nothing.
For the word of God says in the law: “Do!”
“Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only.”
“Whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty and continueth therein . . . this man shall be blessed in his deed.”
It is only when you strive and struggle to be a doer of the word, and not a hearer only, that you come to realize the greatness of your sin and our misery. You cannot do what you must do. You find yourself inclined exactly to the opposite. You do not deceive yourself, but come face to face with your depravity and inability. You understand the greatness of your guilt before God, and your great need of the cross of Jesus Christ, His blood to cleanse you from your sin and His righteousness to be all your standing before God. By faith alone you receive that righteousness, by which alone you are reconciled to God. By that same righteousness of Christ, full and complete, you have your right standing before that law of God.
No longer can that law condemn you. Through Jesus’ cross it becomes a perfect law of liberty.
Freed from its guilt and condemnation, you are freed to look into and see all the perfection of that law of liberty. Strengthened in the grateful joy of your salvation, you seek no mere hearing of that perfect law. You aim to do it, to keep it in all its perfection. In that aim you rely not on yourself, but only on the mighty grace of God in Jesus Christ, to do all that he commands.
Still you fall far short, far from the perfection of that law.
But you do not give up on your doing, to become a hearer only, deceiving your own self. You do not deny the perfect law of liberty, nor do you judge the law.
No, in that perfect law of liberty you continue. Still you seek to be a doer, and not a hearer only.
You continue to seek the remission of every imperfection of your sins through the blood of Jesus Christ. You continue to know that grateful joy of your salvation. You remain strong to continue in that perfect law of liberty, fighting against sin, and seeking to please your God in all your ways.
In that way, being not a hearer of the law, but a doer, may you rejoice to hear the word of your God: “This man shall be blessed in his deed.”
30 May 2017
“Now Jehoshaphat had riches and honour in abundance, and joined affinity with Ahab. And after certain years he went down to Ahab to Samaria. And Ahab killed sheep and oxen for him in abundance, and for the people that he had with him, and persuaded him to up with him to Ramoth-gilead. And Ahab king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat king of Judah, Wilt thou go with me to Ramoth-gilead? And he answered him, I am as thou art, and my people as thy people; and we will be with thee in the war.” II Chronicles 18:1-3
How did it come down to this?
How did it come down to Jehoshaphat's ears filled with this rebuke? "Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the Lord? therefore is wrath upon thee from before the Lord."
How did it come down to Jehoshaphat, dressed in his royal robes, fleeing and crying out for peril of his life on the battlefield of Ramoth-Gilead? To Jehoshaphat’s witnessing wicked king Ahab, though disguised in battle, becoming the only casualty of the great battle, struck by a single arrow between the joints of his armour, though shot by bowman afar off at a venture?
How did it come down to that outcome of the battle as the fulfillment of the prophesy of Michaiah, the son of Imlah, his prophecy victorious over the prophecy of the 400 false prophets of Baal?
How did it come down to the king of Judah and the king of Israel sitting together in the gate of Samaria, uniting for this battle at Ramoth-gilead? How did it come down to Jehoshaphat’s answer, “I am as thou art, and my people as thy people; and we will be with thee in the war”?
Hear the Word of God declare its own answer.
“Now Jehoshaphat had riches and honour in abundance.”
Read a little further.
“And Ahab killed sheep and oxen for him in abundance, and for the people that he had with him, and persuaded him to go up with him to Ramoth-gilead.”
Wealth met wealth. Riches met riches. Honour met honour. Abundance met abundance.
All that meeting and all that accord was used by the devil’s tool of deceitful pride to cover over the one difference that should have kept Jehoshaphat far from Ahab: the difference between Jehovah and Baal, the difference between faithfulness and apostasy, the difference between the fear and love of the Lord, and contempt and hatred for Him.
What are the things that beckon us to join affinity? What are the things that persuade us to go up to Ramoth-Gilead?
Is it the honour and glory of victory in battle? Is it power and influence? Is it the praise and honour of men?
What is the ground of this desired affinity? Is it riches and prosperity? Is it honour and glory? Riches to combine for even more riches? Honour to join for even more honour?
How much needs to be swept aside! How many things are inflated in the eyes of men that are nothing before God.
How clear and strong must stand before us the only bond for union, the only ground for unity: the fear and love of God.
There is the strength of the people of God. Union with God in His grace through Jesus Christ. Affinity with Jehovah, blessed in His everlasting covenant of grace.
May that union determine all other affinities, all other unions, all other accords.
May our delight ever be only in faithfulness to our God!
“Now Jehoshaphat had riches and honour in abundance, and joined affinity with Ahab. And after certain years he went down to Ahab to Samaria. And Ahab killed sheep and oxen for him in abundance, and for the people that he had with him, and persuaded him to up with him to Ramoth-gilead. And Ahab king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat king of Judah, Wilt thou go with me to Ramoth-gilead? And he answered him, I am as thou art, and my people as thy people; and we will be with thee in the war.” II Chronicles 18:1-3
How did it come down to this?
How did it come down to Jehoshaphat's ears filled with this rebuke? "Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the Lord? therefore is wrath upon thee from before the Lord."
How did it come down to Jehoshaphat, dressed in his royal robes, fleeing and crying out for peril of his life on the battlefield of Ramoth-Gilead? To Jehoshaphat’s witnessing wicked king Ahab, though disguised in battle, becoming the only casualty of the great battle, struck by a single arrow between the joints of his armour, though shot by bowman afar off at a venture?
How did it come down to that outcome of the battle as the fulfillment of the prophesy of Michaiah, the son of Imlah, his prophecy victorious over the prophecy of the 400 false prophets of Baal?
How did it come down to the king of Judah and the king of Israel sitting together in the gate of Samaria, uniting for this battle at Ramoth-gilead? How did it come down to Jehoshaphat’s answer, “I am as thou art, and my people as thy people; and we will be with thee in the war”?
Hear the Word of God declare its own answer.
“Now Jehoshaphat had riches and honour in abundance.”
Read a little further.
“And Ahab killed sheep and oxen for him in abundance, and for the people that he had with him, and persuaded him to go up with him to Ramoth-gilead.”
Wealth met wealth. Riches met riches. Honour met honour. Abundance met abundance.
All that meeting and all that accord was used by the devil’s tool of deceitful pride to cover over the one difference that should have kept Jehoshaphat far from Ahab: the difference between Jehovah and Baal, the difference between faithfulness and apostasy, the difference between the fear and love of the Lord, and contempt and hatred for Him.
What are the things that beckon us to join affinity? What are the things that persuade us to go up to Ramoth-Gilead?
Is it the honour and glory of victory in battle? Is it power and influence? Is it the praise and honour of men?
What is the ground of this desired affinity? Is it riches and prosperity? Is it honour and glory? Riches to combine for even more riches? Honour to join for even more honour?
How much needs to be swept aside! How many things are inflated in the eyes of men that are nothing before God.
How clear and strong must stand before us the only bond for union, the only ground for unity: the fear and love of God.
There is the strength of the people of God. Union with God in His grace through Jesus Christ. Affinity with Jehovah, blessed in His everlasting covenant of grace.
May that union determine all other affinities, all other unions, all other accords.
May our delight ever be only in faithfulness to our God!
20 May 2017
“No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.” Luke 16:13, 14
The sentence could not be more clear: “Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”
“Ye cannot.” It is simply impossible. It does not work. It will not go. There is no way.
“Ye cannot.”
We like to think that we can. We have two eyes, two hands, two feet. We can easily think of a division of time and effort. We can think of having different projects to take up and do. We schedule, dividing our time between this and that. The more jobs we take up for ourselves the more efficient we believe we are. Our cares are divided up between home, church, and school. We might have two different jobs. So we might think we can easily serve two masters.
“Ye cannot.”
“No servant can serve two masters.”
“Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”
Why not?
Hear the word of Christ: “For either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one and despise the other.”
Though we have two eyes, two hands, and two feet, we have only one heart. Our heart cannot be divided. Our heart cannot serve two masters. It can only love one. Therefore it must hate the other.
The proper application must follow: “Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”
There is the division!
Mammon is all that is material. Mammon is what you can see with your eye, grasp with your hand, run with your feet in order to seize greedily in your hands. Mammon is of this earth, earthy. By your flesh mammon will be your lord and master, even your god.
“Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” You will love mammon and hate God.
Proof of the above immediately follows, proof to fill us with fear and dread.
“And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.”
The Pharisees!
These pillars of the church and religious communities! These men so devoted and dedicated to God and His law! These men whose lives were so exemplary, so filled with all the good works of the law!
Yes, covetous. Yes, servants of mammon. Yes, loving the one, mammon. Yes, hating the other, God.
All true. For, “they derided him.” They turned up their noses, sneering at this word of Christ. In their very act of derision, they proved the word of Christ. Covetous, lovers of mammon, they hated the Son of God, who spoke to them the truth.
Out of our love of Him who lovingly and faithfully served God His Father, redeeming us from our covetousness by His precious blood, let us repudiate the service of mammon. Let us cast off all covetousness for the sake of single-hearted grateful service of God our Redeemer. Let us forever love Him and hold to Him alone, despising all mammon.
“No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.” Luke 16:13, 14
The sentence could not be more clear: “Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”
“Ye cannot.” It is simply impossible. It does not work. It will not go. There is no way.
“Ye cannot.”
We like to think that we can. We have two eyes, two hands, two feet. We can easily think of a division of time and effort. We can think of having different projects to take up and do. We schedule, dividing our time between this and that. The more jobs we take up for ourselves the more efficient we believe we are. Our cares are divided up between home, church, and school. We might have two different jobs. So we might think we can easily serve two masters.
“Ye cannot.”
“No servant can serve two masters.”
“Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”
Why not?
Hear the word of Christ: “For either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one and despise the other.”
Though we have two eyes, two hands, and two feet, we have only one heart. Our heart cannot be divided. Our heart cannot serve two masters. It can only love one. Therefore it must hate the other.
The proper application must follow: “Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”
There is the division!
Mammon is all that is material. Mammon is what you can see with your eye, grasp with your hand, run with your feet in order to seize greedily in your hands. Mammon is of this earth, earthy. By your flesh mammon will be your lord and master, even your god.
“Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” You will love mammon and hate God.
Proof of the above immediately follows, proof to fill us with fear and dread.
“And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.”
The Pharisees!
These pillars of the church and religious communities! These men so devoted and dedicated to God and His law! These men whose lives were so exemplary, so filled with all the good works of the law!
Yes, covetous. Yes, servants of mammon. Yes, loving the one, mammon. Yes, hating the other, God.
All true. For, “they derided him.” They turned up their noses, sneering at this word of Christ. In their very act of derision, they proved the word of Christ. Covetous, lovers of mammon, they hated the Son of God, who spoke to them the truth.
Out of our love of Him who lovingly and faithfully served God His Father, redeeming us from our covetousness by His precious blood, let us repudiate the service of mammon. Let us cast off all covetousness for the sake of single-hearted grateful service of God our Redeemer. Let us forever love Him and hold to Him alone, despising all mammon.
12 May 2017
“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.” Ephesians 6:10
How much and how widely are celebrated the strength and power of men!
Certainly true is this of physical strength and power. Never mind prowess, grace, skill, or coordination, brute, raw displays of power are by themselves most impressive. From weight-lifting to moving large objects, muscles with their power capture the attention of men. Garnering perhaps even more admiration are powerful machines. How much speed, how much acceleration, is always the question. Every kind of vehicle known to man is placed in fierce competition, to see which vehicle and which driver are truly the fastest.
The same is true also of inner qualities. Admired among men are stories of courage and bravery. Where others shrink back with fright or flee from the danger, there the brave go forward to rescue or stop the menace. In difficult circumstances, which would cause so many to give up and yield in despair, others endure every difficulty and surmount every impossible obstacle in their path. Strength to overcome arouses deep wonder and awe.
All of that strength and power, though praised and revered by men, pales in comparison to the strength and the power described in Ephesians 6:10, “his might.” That might of God is His power displayed in the creation of the heavens and the earth. By the mighty Word of His power, He brought all into existence in six days. There is no power in all the universe that He did not bring into being. Every day, His might keeps the universe with all its power in existence and working. The might of God is His power of judgment. What He raises up by His power, He also casts into destruction. Catastrophic, devastating power is in His hand, to wield in mighty judgments. His awesome power is displayed fully at the cross of Jesus Christ. There the power of divine wrath punishing all the sins of all the elect was poured out upon the Son of God. By power infinite and divine, the Son of God sustained all that wrath of God, suffering until the last drops of His cup had been drunken and complete atonement made.
What power! What strength!
In that power is all the power of the believer.
In that strength must be all your strength.
“Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.”
Trust Him, and Him alone.
Trust Him alone, through His almighty Son Jesus Christ, and by His mighty sacrifice on the cross.
Know and enjoy the strengthening of this faith, as commanded here in the Word. Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might through fellowship of the Word and prayer. Spend time in the Scriptures, hearing the Word proclaimed, studying and meditating on them. Spend time in the praise, thanksgiving, and supplication of holy prayer to your God through Christ.
What strength is yours in the Lord, and in the power of His might!
Strength to endure all trials and temptation.
Power to stand against all the wiles of the devil.
Might to overcome in all your wrestling against all spiritual wickedness in high places.
Be strong, to glorify your Lord in the power of His might!
“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.” Ephesians 6:10
How much and how widely are celebrated the strength and power of men!
Certainly true is this of physical strength and power. Never mind prowess, grace, skill, or coordination, brute, raw displays of power are by themselves most impressive. From weight-lifting to moving large objects, muscles with their power capture the attention of men. Garnering perhaps even more admiration are powerful machines. How much speed, how much acceleration, is always the question. Every kind of vehicle known to man is placed in fierce competition, to see which vehicle and which driver are truly the fastest.
The same is true also of inner qualities. Admired among men are stories of courage and bravery. Where others shrink back with fright or flee from the danger, there the brave go forward to rescue or stop the menace. In difficult circumstances, which would cause so many to give up and yield in despair, others endure every difficulty and surmount every impossible obstacle in their path. Strength to overcome arouses deep wonder and awe.
All of that strength and power, though praised and revered by men, pales in comparison to the strength and the power described in Ephesians 6:10, “his might.” That might of God is His power displayed in the creation of the heavens and the earth. By the mighty Word of His power, He brought all into existence in six days. There is no power in all the universe that He did not bring into being. Every day, His might keeps the universe with all its power in existence and working. The might of God is His power of judgment. What He raises up by His power, He also casts into destruction. Catastrophic, devastating power is in His hand, to wield in mighty judgments. His awesome power is displayed fully at the cross of Jesus Christ. There the power of divine wrath punishing all the sins of all the elect was poured out upon the Son of God. By power infinite and divine, the Son of God sustained all that wrath of God, suffering until the last drops of His cup had been drunken and complete atonement made.
What power! What strength!
In that power is all the power of the believer.
In that strength must be all your strength.
“Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.”
Trust Him, and Him alone.
Trust Him alone, through His almighty Son Jesus Christ, and by His mighty sacrifice on the cross.
Know and enjoy the strengthening of this faith, as commanded here in the Word. Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might through fellowship of the Word and prayer. Spend time in the Scriptures, hearing the Word proclaimed, studying and meditating on them. Spend time in the praise, thanksgiving, and supplication of holy prayer to your God through Christ.
What strength is yours in the Lord, and in the power of His might!
Strength to endure all trials and temptation.
Power to stand against all the wiles of the devil.
Might to overcome in all your wrestling against all spiritual wickedness in high places.
Be strong, to glorify your Lord in the power of His might!
9 May 2017
“In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him.” Ephesians 3:12
Barred was the entrance to Eden, cherubim and a flaming sword posted to keep the way of the tree of life.
A barricade had been set up about Mt. Sinai, so that the children of Israel were kept from touching the holy mountain, where God made known His holy, glorious presence.
A veil had been placed at God’s own direction in His tabernacle and temple. So for ages and generations it stood between the holy and the most holy.
Before there was exclusion, a barrier established between a sinful people and a holy God. Always that barrier stood as a sobering reminder of sin and its certain effect on the fellowship between God and His people.
Even though the promise of the gospel was preached, that barrier remained. Even though the sacrifices and rites of expiation through the shedding of blood pointed ahead to the Lamb of God that was to come, the way was still closed. Even though God’s children could know and enjoy the fellowship of their God, resting on Him by a true and living faith, that exclusion still prevailed.
Until the coming of the promise!
Where before there was exclusion, now in Christ Jesus there is access!
Access now without fear or terror, access without fear of destruction, access without being turned away.
Access even for sinners, and even access for these sinners to the throne of a holy and just God.
This access with boldness and confidence.
How can this be?
How blessed to have the answer at the beginning as well as the end of this short verse!
“In whom.”
So bound and knit are we by faith to our Lord Jesus Christ that we are spiritual, really and truly, in Him. When we come to the Father in Him, just as certainly and really as He delights in His only begotten Son, so He also delights in us. We are His favored, His beloved, precious in His sight.
Also, “by the faith of him.”
Such is the wonderful and powerful manner of faith, this gift of the Holy Spirit, that it is always joined to Jesus Christ its only true object. To have faith is to have Christ. To live by faith is to live by Christ. To walk by faith is to walk by Christ.
What access we have by this faith!
Access to the boundless delight and favour of the living God is ours.
Such bold access is ours to praise and worship, to glorify and serve our Father.
Such confident access is ours to bring all our supplications and petitions to Him who delights to hear and answer them always in the abundance of His grace.
Let us often make use of our blessed access by faith, coming to our heavenly Father in and by His Son, that we may be constantly blessed in the riches of His wonderful grace to us.
“In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him.” Ephesians 3:12
Barred was the entrance to Eden, cherubim and a flaming sword posted to keep the way of the tree of life.
A barricade had been set up about Mt. Sinai, so that the children of Israel were kept from touching the holy mountain, where God made known His holy, glorious presence.
A veil had been placed at God’s own direction in His tabernacle and temple. So for ages and generations it stood between the holy and the most holy.
Before there was exclusion, a barrier established between a sinful people and a holy God. Always that barrier stood as a sobering reminder of sin and its certain effect on the fellowship between God and His people.
Even though the promise of the gospel was preached, that barrier remained. Even though the sacrifices and rites of expiation through the shedding of blood pointed ahead to the Lamb of God that was to come, the way was still closed. Even though God’s children could know and enjoy the fellowship of their God, resting on Him by a true and living faith, that exclusion still prevailed.
Until the coming of the promise!
Where before there was exclusion, now in Christ Jesus there is access!
Access now without fear or terror, access without fear of destruction, access without being turned away.
Access even for sinners, and even access for these sinners to the throne of a holy and just God.
This access with boldness and confidence.
How can this be?
How blessed to have the answer at the beginning as well as the end of this short verse!
“In whom.”
So bound and knit are we by faith to our Lord Jesus Christ that we are spiritual, really and truly, in Him. When we come to the Father in Him, just as certainly and really as He delights in His only begotten Son, so He also delights in us. We are His favored, His beloved, precious in His sight.
Also, “by the faith of him.”
Such is the wonderful and powerful manner of faith, this gift of the Holy Spirit, that it is always joined to Jesus Christ its only true object. To have faith is to have Christ. To live by faith is to live by Christ. To walk by faith is to walk by Christ.
What access we have by this faith!
Access to the boundless delight and favour of the living God is ours.
Such bold access is ours to praise and worship, to glorify and serve our Father.
Such confident access is ours to bring all our supplications and petitions to Him who delights to hear and answer them always in the abundance of His grace.
Let us often make use of our blessed access by faith, coming to our heavenly Father in and by His Son, that we may be constantly blessed in the riches of His wonderful grace to us.
2 May 2017
“And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.” 2 Corinthians 9:8
What are you willing to settle for?
Is your way the way of the church at Corinth?
That way the apostle reveals in the verse above. They were a church “always having all sufficiency in all things.”
This, they thought, was their glory. They were capable. They were resourceful. They were adaptive, equipped to meet every need. They could recall times when various needs arose in their congregation, and they were able to meet those needs.
So they might reasonably have the same hope for their future. Whatever might come to them in the future, they might well expect to deal with. For they continued to possess the same abilities and the same resources. They had laid up in store for every possible need.
But they needed to know that there was something better for them.
They needed to know that God’s grace was not merely enough. God’s grace was not something to be reduced to a measure. It is not such a grace as to find what is lacking in a certain measure, and then merely fill up that measure, to be only enough.
They needed to know that God’s grace was abundant.
“And God is able to make all grace abound toward you.”
God’s grace abounds. Such is the very nature His grace. His grace overflows. His grace exceeds. His grace multiplies. God’s grace does far more than what you might ask or think. His grace surpasses all expectations, bringing the things that eye hath not seen, neither hath ear heard, neither hath entered into the heart of man to conceive.
Even more, God deliberately and wisely directs and channels His grace. He makes His grace abound toward you.
He makes it abound according to the manner and way of your individual nature. He attends to your circumstances, your abilities, and your inclinations. He is able to make His grace overflow in all its different ways, to bless and strengthen you. He considers your way, the opportunities that you face, the occasions you enter. In all of them, He is able to administer His grace so that it excels.
How is this grace made known? How does it overflow?
“That ye . . . may abound to every good work.”
His grace abounds, to increase your desire to do what is right and pleasing before Him.
His grace abounds, to direct your strength to carry out that desire into action.
His grace abounds, to give you wisdom and understanding to seek His glory in your life.
May His grace so abound to us today, that we show its glorious and blessed fruit in lives filled with all good works!
“And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.” 2 Corinthians 9:8
What are you willing to settle for?
Is your way the way of the church at Corinth?
That way the apostle reveals in the verse above. They were a church “always having all sufficiency in all things.”
This, they thought, was their glory. They were capable. They were resourceful. They were adaptive, equipped to meet every need. They could recall times when various needs arose in their congregation, and they were able to meet those needs.
So they might reasonably have the same hope for their future. Whatever might come to them in the future, they might well expect to deal with. For they continued to possess the same abilities and the same resources. They had laid up in store for every possible need.
But they needed to know that there was something better for them.
They needed to know that God’s grace was not merely enough. God’s grace was not something to be reduced to a measure. It is not such a grace as to find what is lacking in a certain measure, and then merely fill up that measure, to be only enough.
They needed to know that God’s grace was abundant.
“And God is able to make all grace abound toward you.”
God’s grace abounds. Such is the very nature His grace. His grace overflows. His grace exceeds. His grace multiplies. God’s grace does far more than what you might ask or think. His grace surpasses all expectations, bringing the things that eye hath not seen, neither hath ear heard, neither hath entered into the heart of man to conceive.
Even more, God deliberately and wisely directs and channels His grace. He makes His grace abound toward you.
He makes it abound according to the manner and way of your individual nature. He attends to your circumstances, your abilities, and your inclinations. He is able to make His grace overflow in all its different ways, to bless and strengthen you. He considers your way, the opportunities that you face, the occasions you enter. In all of them, He is able to administer His grace so that it excels.
How is this grace made known? How does it overflow?
“That ye . . . may abound to every good work.”
His grace abounds, to increase your desire to do what is right and pleasing before Him.
His grace abounds, to direct your strength to carry out that desire into action.
His grace abounds, to give you wisdom and understanding to seek His glory in your life.
May His grace so abound to us today, that we show its glorious and blessed fruit in lives filled with all good works!
4 April 2017
“And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.” Hebrews 11:39,40
One by one the Holy Spirit has summoned these believers before our eyes. One by one the Holy Spirit has given their most basic identification: they believed God. One by one the Holy Spirit has commended His gift of faith by demonstrating its mighty fruits in their lives. There are such names as Abraham and Moses, as well as Jephthah and even Samson. There are those persons who are not named but who through faith “were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection.”
Collecting them now into one marvellous and wonderful group, the Holy Spirit commends them together.
What does He say?
They all obtained a good report through faith.
So the Holy Spirit calls attention to what He has written about them. It is all a good report made about them. It is all a good report made about them through faith.
So the Holy Spirit celebrates and commends His own gift of faith to His elect.
How striking, then, that even with such a commendation the Holy Spirit must now tell us there was something missing. There was something that they did not receive.
They received not the promise.
None of them.
Why? Why this lack? Why this deficit? Why should they not receive the promise?
They were faithful, remarkable and outstanding in their faith. The Holy Spirit has just told us so.
Why?
For us!
“That they without us should not be made perfect.”
As highly commended as their faith is, they did not yet know the fulness of the glory of the One in whom they believed. That “some better thing” was their Lord Jesus Christ. Promised, described, outlined, and shadowed forth, these believed on Him that was to come.
But the One for whom they waited, believing on Him, God has provided for us. With Jesus, that glorious Mediator of the new and everlasting covenant, established in His blood, God has provided for us the better thing.
By faith, believing on Him that was to come, they received not the promise.
By faith, believing on Him that has come, we receive the promise.
And together, we shall be made perfect!
One church, one kingdom, one body!
In that perfection, so shall we together show forth the glory of our glorious Head, seeing Him face to face.
Through the promise of God that is given to be ours through faith.
Through faith, Spirit-given and Spirit-commended.
“And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.” Hebrews 11:39,40
One by one the Holy Spirit has summoned these believers before our eyes. One by one the Holy Spirit has given their most basic identification: they believed God. One by one the Holy Spirit has commended His gift of faith by demonstrating its mighty fruits in their lives. There are such names as Abraham and Moses, as well as Jephthah and even Samson. There are those persons who are not named but who through faith “were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection.”
Collecting them now into one marvellous and wonderful group, the Holy Spirit commends them together.
What does He say?
They all obtained a good report through faith.
So the Holy Spirit calls attention to what He has written about them. It is all a good report made about them. It is all a good report made about them through faith.
So the Holy Spirit celebrates and commends His own gift of faith to His elect.
How striking, then, that even with such a commendation the Holy Spirit must now tell us there was something missing. There was something that they did not receive.
They received not the promise.
None of them.
Why? Why this lack? Why this deficit? Why should they not receive the promise?
They were faithful, remarkable and outstanding in their faith. The Holy Spirit has just told us so.
Why?
For us!
“That they without us should not be made perfect.”
As highly commended as their faith is, they did not yet know the fulness of the glory of the One in whom they believed. That “some better thing” was their Lord Jesus Christ. Promised, described, outlined, and shadowed forth, these believed on Him that was to come.
But the One for whom they waited, believing on Him, God has provided for us. With Jesus, that glorious Mediator of the new and everlasting covenant, established in His blood, God has provided for us the better thing.
By faith, believing on Him that was to come, they received not the promise.
By faith, believing on Him that has come, we receive the promise.
And together, we shall be made perfect!
One church, one kingdom, one body!
In that perfection, so shall we together show forth the glory of our glorious Head, seeing Him face to face.
Through the promise of God that is given to be ours through faith.
Through faith, Spirit-given and Spirit-commended.
26 April 2017
“Say not thou, I will recompense evil; but wait on the Lord, and he shall save thee.” Proverbs 20:22
How this word of God exposes us at our very core!
Often we feel aggrieved by others.
Often we have hurtful words sent out way. We hear words of sharp reprimand spoken out of temper or impatience. Words come to us out of another’s malice and spite, intending to strike and wound our hearts. Words seek out our weakness and intend to expose us, to cause us shame among others around us, others whose esteem we value and enjoy. There are other times we feel pushed out of our place among others by malicious plots and whisperings. Friends turn their backs, and we feel cast out and dejected.
Then the words come into our hearts, if not upon our lips, so easily and quickly: “I will recompense evil.”
We contrive. We plan and plot. We carefully plan the words that we will say in return, waiting for the next opportunity. We might even plot our own campaign of whisperings and deceit, contriving to see those cast out who drove us out of our friendships. We even treasure the results, certain of achieving our goal.
But this Word of God must stop us in our tracks: “Say not thou, I will recompense evil.”
This Word of God saves us. It saves us from our anger, our hatred, and our desire for revenge. In short it saves us from trying to take God’s place away from Him, and robbing Him of His glory.
We are saved from ourselves for a much better way.
“But wait upon the Lord, and he shall save thee.”
Wait upon the Lord!
Your waiting is not mere silence. Tell the Lord what happened to you. Tell Him of the unkind words and the evil that has come to you. Tell Him how it struck and wounded you. Explain to Him about your grief and your hurt. Also confess to God your sinful desire to recompense evil, and that in doing so you sinned against His glory. Seek forgiveness for your sin and receive it at the foot of the cross.
“And he shall save thee.”
Your own words will not save you. Your own plotting and planning ought to fail, lest you become hardened in sin.
But in waiting upon the Lord is your salvation.
Waiting upon the Lord is your peace. You need not busy yourself in plots of foolish, evil revenge. You need not wonder about success or failure. Waiting on the Lord is your peace that he will take care of everything. You need not care at all.
Waiting upon the Lord is your salvation. He will defend and maintain your cause. He is a perfect God, a just God, and good. His judgment will not err, but will be perfect. It will be according to truth and righteousness, and in it He will show His glory as the only true and righteous Judge.
He will be glorious in your salvation, recompensing all evil.
For His glory and for your salvation, wait upon the Lord.
“Say not thou, I will recompense evil; but wait on the Lord, and he shall save thee.” Proverbs 20:22
How this word of God exposes us at our very core!
Often we feel aggrieved by others.
Often we have hurtful words sent out way. We hear words of sharp reprimand spoken out of temper or impatience. Words come to us out of another’s malice and spite, intending to strike and wound our hearts. Words seek out our weakness and intend to expose us, to cause us shame among others around us, others whose esteem we value and enjoy. There are other times we feel pushed out of our place among others by malicious plots and whisperings. Friends turn their backs, and we feel cast out and dejected.
Then the words come into our hearts, if not upon our lips, so easily and quickly: “I will recompense evil.”
We contrive. We plan and plot. We carefully plan the words that we will say in return, waiting for the next opportunity. We might even plot our own campaign of whisperings and deceit, contriving to see those cast out who drove us out of our friendships. We even treasure the results, certain of achieving our goal.
But this Word of God must stop us in our tracks: “Say not thou, I will recompense evil.”
This Word of God saves us. It saves us from our anger, our hatred, and our desire for revenge. In short it saves us from trying to take God’s place away from Him, and robbing Him of His glory.
We are saved from ourselves for a much better way.
“But wait upon the Lord, and he shall save thee.”
Wait upon the Lord!
Your waiting is not mere silence. Tell the Lord what happened to you. Tell Him of the unkind words and the evil that has come to you. Tell Him how it struck and wounded you. Explain to Him about your grief and your hurt. Also confess to God your sinful desire to recompense evil, and that in doing so you sinned against His glory. Seek forgiveness for your sin and receive it at the foot of the cross.
“And he shall save thee.”
Your own words will not save you. Your own plotting and planning ought to fail, lest you become hardened in sin.
But in waiting upon the Lord is your salvation.
Waiting upon the Lord is your peace. You need not busy yourself in plots of foolish, evil revenge. You need not wonder about success or failure. Waiting on the Lord is your peace that he will take care of everything. You need not care at all.
Waiting upon the Lord is your salvation. He will defend and maintain your cause. He is a perfect God, a just God, and good. His judgment will not err, but will be perfect. It will be according to truth and righteousness, and in it He will show His glory as the only true and righteous Judge.
He will be glorious in your salvation, recompensing all evil.
For His glory and for your salvation, wait upon the Lord.
22 April 2017
“And a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man, and mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus. This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John. And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly.” Acts 18:24-26
Apollos was a man who much going for him.
He had his birth as a Jew, of the stock of Abraham according to the flesh. He had Alexandra for the place of his birth, notable through all the world for its scholarship, having a great library and many schools. In his upbringing, Apollos had made good use of the advantages of both. Educated at Alexandria, he was “an eloquent man.” According to his heritage as a Jew he was also “mighty in the scriptures.” He knew the scriptures backward and forward, inside and out.
Apollos also became acquainted with “the way of the Lord,” having been instructed in it. This instruction he had so taken to heart, that he became “fervent in the spirit.”
As a result, when he came to Ephesus, being fervent in the spirit, he began to speak boldly in the synagogue.
Yet, for all his boldness and fervor, for all his education and upbringing, Apollos had his limitation: He knew “only the baptism of John.” He knew only the preparation for the Messiah. He knew only the preparatory summons preached by John to repent and be baptized.
Now there come to him Aquila and Priscilla. Not Jews, not born at Alexandria, not eloquent, perhaps not mighty in the scriptures as Apollos. Not scholars, nor renowned for learning, they were mere tentmakers. But they knew “the way of God more perfectly,” having learned it from the Apostle Paul.
How would Apollos react? Would the eloquent listen? Would the mighty in the scriptures be willing to learn? Would the fervent in the spirit submit himself to the instruction of these two?
He listened. He was willing to learn. He submitted.
What wonderful grace, the grace of humility!
Clothed in that humility, listening eagerly to Aquila and Priscilla, Apollos heard expounded to him the way of God more perfectly. So he grew and increased in the gospel of Jesus Christ. So he became of great use in the church of Jesus Christ, able to help out greatly the church in Corinth as well as in other places, becoming one of Paul’s companions in travel.
No matter our understanding or our might in the Scripture, let us be always clothed with humility, eager and ready to learn from others “the way of God more perfectly.”
“And a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man, and mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus. This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John. And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly.” Acts 18:24-26
Apollos was a man who much going for him.
He had his birth as a Jew, of the stock of Abraham according to the flesh. He had Alexandra for the place of his birth, notable through all the world for its scholarship, having a great library and many schools. In his upbringing, Apollos had made good use of the advantages of both. Educated at Alexandria, he was “an eloquent man.” According to his heritage as a Jew he was also “mighty in the scriptures.” He knew the scriptures backward and forward, inside and out.
Apollos also became acquainted with “the way of the Lord,” having been instructed in it. This instruction he had so taken to heart, that he became “fervent in the spirit.”
As a result, when he came to Ephesus, being fervent in the spirit, he began to speak boldly in the synagogue.
Yet, for all his boldness and fervor, for all his education and upbringing, Apollos had his limitation: He knew “only the baptism of John.” He knew only the preparation for the Messiah. He knew only the preparatory summons preached by John to repent and be baptized.
Now there come to him Aquila and Priscilla. Not Jews, not born at Alexandria, not eloquent, perhaps not mighty in the scriptures as Apollos. Not scholars, nor renowned for learning, they were mere tentmakers. But they knew “the way of God more perfectly,” having learned it from the Apostle Paul.
How would Apollos react? Would the eloquent listen? Would the mighty in the scriptures be willing to learn? Would the fervent in the spirit submit himself to the instruction of these two?
He listened. He was willing to learn. He submitted.
What wonderful grace, the grace of humility!
Clothed in that humility, listening eagerly to Aquila and Priscilla, Apollos heard expounded to him the way of God more perfectly. So he grew and increased in the gospel of Jesus Christ. So he became of great use in the church of Jesus Christ, able to help out greatly the church in Corinth as well as in other places, becoming one of Paul’s companions in travel.
No matter our understanding or our might in the Scripture, let us be always clothed with humility, eager and ready to learn from others “the way of God more perfectly.”
21 April 2017
“Unless thy law had been my delights,
I should then have perished in mine affliction.
I will never forget thy precepts:
For with them thou hast quickened me.” Psalm 119:92, 93
To what lengths does the Psalmist go in praise of God’s law!
He, under the power of the Spirit’s inspiration, has indeed gone far in his praise of God’s holy law. He has praised the law as just, right, holy and good. He has identified the law as truth, righteousness, and light. That law brings blessings of peace and joy to those who follow after it, and devote their lives to keeping it.
But life, even quickening?
Is not the law of God an instrument of condemnation and death? Is not that law the letter that killeth? Does not the law only make sin more sinful?
Yet, here the inspired Psalmist says about God’s precepts: With them thou hast quickened me.
Those words are even emphasized with the words the come before; “I will never forget thy precepts.”
Because their benefit is so great, the Lord using them to quicken the Psalmist, he will never forget them. The quickening he has received has engraved them upon his heart and mind, so that he will never forget them. Eagerly does he commit himself to them: I will never forget them.
How can this be true? How can God’s precepts quicken? How can they quicken us so that we might devote ourselves to them?
The answer is given in the verse before: “Unless thy law had been my delights, I should then have perished in mine affliction.”
The Psalmist had been greatly afflicted. He had been given a great hardship to bear. Whether in body or soul, whether in mind or heart, he almost perished. Indeed he would have perished. But there was one thing that kept him from perishing in his affliction: the law of God.
Because that law had been his delights.
As he was afflicted, he turned to the law of God. From his affliction he learned there was no trust for him in himself, in the arm of flesh, or the things of the world. For him the things of the world had no delight. But all his delights were toward the law of God. There was the path of life, in the worship of the one true God, in trusting Him alone. There was the path of life, in the love of God and the love of the neighbour.
In that delight in God’s law, He understood who He was: a servant of God, purchased by his blessed Redeemer. He knew that his servant’s heart, delighting in the will of his Lord, had been given him by his gracious God.
With that blessed knowledge he did not perish in his affliction, but was quickened.
So in that way he learned the wonderful way of God’s precepts, that by them the Lord quickened him.
So let us delight in the law of our God, never forgetting His precepts, as we know that delight is by His rich grace to us, redeemed from sin to delight in that law, by our Lord Jesus Christ.
“Unless thy law had been my delights,
I should then have perished in mine affliction.
I will never forget thy precepts:
For with them thou hast quickened me.” Psalm 119:92, 93
To what lengths does the Psalmist go in praise of God’s law!
He, under the power of the Spirit’s inspiration, has indeed gone far in his praise of God’s holy law. He has praised the law as just, right, holy and good. He has identified the law as truth, righteousness, and light. That law brings blessings of peace and joy to those who follow after it, and devote their lives to keeping it.
But life, even quickening?
Is not the law of God an instrument of condemnation and death? Is not that law the letter that killeth? Does not the law only make sin more sinful?
Yet, here the inspired Psalmist says about God’s precepts: With them thou hast quickened me.
Those words are even emphasized with the words the come before; “I will never forget thy precepts.”
Because their benefit is so great, the Lord using them to quicken the Psalmist, he will never forget them. The quickening he has received has engraved them upon his heart and mind, so that he will never forget them. Eagerly does he commit himself to them: I will never forget them.
How can this be true? How can God’s precepts quicken? How can they quicken us so that we might devote ourselves to them?
The answer is given in the verse before: “Unless thy law had been my delights, I should then have perished in mine affliction.”
The Psalmist had been greatly afflicted. He had been given a great hardship to bear. Whether in body or soul, whether in mind or heart, he almost perished. Indeed he would have perished. But there was one thing that kept him from perishing in his affliction: the law of God.
Because that law had been his delights.
As he was afflicted, he turned to the law of God. From his affliction he learned there was no trust for him in himself, in the arm of flesh, or the things of the world. For him the things of the world had no delight. But all his delights were toward the law of God. There was the path of life, in the worship of the one true God, in trusting Him alone. There was the path of life, in the love of God and the love of the neighbour.
In that delight in God’s law, He understood who He was: a servant of God, purchased by his blessed Redeemer. He knew that his servant’s heart, delighting in the will of his Lord, had been given him by his gracious God.
With that blessed knowledge he did not perish in his affliction, but was quickened.
So in that way he learned the wonderful way of God’s precepts, that by them the Lord quickened him.
So let us delight in the law of our God, never forgetting His precepts, as we know that delight is by His rich grace to us, redeemed from sin to delight in that law, by our Lord Jesus Christ.
18 April 2017
“But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” Galatians 4:4, 5
Time!
Time for the law.
Time for the law to be published and applied to the people of the Jews. Time for God’s law to rebuke the sin of the people. Time for that law to guide, to guard, and keep them in the way of righteousness. Time for that law to show them the righteousness that God required of them.
Time to be under that law.
For that time, Israel under the law showed only that they could not possibly keep that law. From old to young, from rich to poor, they broke the law. From the life of their heart to the words of their mouths, to the deeds of their hand, they violated the commandments of God. They gave their love, their worship and praise to the idol gods of the nations around. They put their trust in the arm of flesh instead of the power of God. They oppressed and cursed one another.
For that time the law condemned them. So the law judged and punished them, delivering them up to misery and desolation. God’s fury and wrath He poured out upon His disobedient people.
But then the fulness of the time came.
This was the fulness of the time for the law. The law did its proper work, and none were delivered by the law. None received life through the law. No not one.
But it was also the fulness of the time in God’s holy counsel. It was the fulness of the time for Him to send forth His Son. God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law.
To redeem.
To pay the price, and to make the satisfaction.
In the fulness of the time, made of a woman, made under the law, He kept all the law of God.
In the fulness of the time, made of a woman, made under the law, He paid all the penalty of the law of God, laying down His life, shedding His blood on Calvary’s tree.
In the fulness of the time He redeemed them that were under the law.
By that redemption not only did He deliver them from the condemnation and curse of the law of God. Not only did He deliver them from the punishment of that law, the everlasting punishment of hell.
But the Son, made of a woman, made under the law, redeemed us from under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons!
Delivered from under the law, delivered to receive the adoption of sons!
Sons of God, through the grace of the only begotten Son! Forgiven sons, free sons!
What a Redeemer!
What glorious Redemption!
Sent by God in the riches of His grace, in the fulness of the time.
“But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” Galatians 4:4, 5
Time!
Time for the law.
Time for the law to be published and applied to the people of the Jews. Time for God’s law to rebuke the sin of the people. Time for that law to guide, to guard, and keep them in the way of righteousness. Time for that law to show them the righteousness that God required of them.
Time to be under that law.
For that time, Israel under the law showed only that they could not possibly keep that law. From old to young, from rich to poor, they broke the law. From the life of their heart to the words of their mouths, to the deeds of their hand, they violated the commandments of God. They gave their love, their worship and praise to the idol gods of the nations around. They put their trust in the arm of flesh instead of the power of God. They oppressed and cursed one another.
For that time the law condemned them. So the law judged and punished them, delivering them up to misery and desolation. God’s fury and wrath He poured out upon His disobedient people.
But then the fulness of the time came.
This was the fulness of the time for the law. The law did its proper work, and none were delivered by the law. None received life through the law. No not one.
But it was also the fulness of the time in God’s holy counsel. It was the fulness of the time for Him to send forth His Son. God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law.
To redeem.
To pay the price, and to make the satisfaction.
In the fulness of the time, made of a woman, made under the law, He kept all the law of God.
In the fulness of the time, made of a woman, made under the law, He paid all the penalty of the law of God, laying down His life, shedding His blood on Calvary’s tree.
In the fulness of the time He redeemed them that were under the law.
By that redemption not only did He deliver them from the condemnation and curse of the law of God. Not only did He deliver them from the punishment of that law, the everlasting punishment of hell.
But the Son, made of a woman, made under the law, redeemed us from under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons!
Delivered from under the law, delivered to receive the adoption of sons!
Sons of God, through the grace of the only begotten Son! Forgiven sons, free sons!
What a Redeemer!
What glorious Redemption!
Sent by God in the riches of His grace, in the fulness of the time.
13 April 2017
“And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.” Luke 23:43
What grace is believed! What grace is sought! What grace is found!
Grace to believe!
On the hill of Calvary were raised three crosses. Three instruments of condemnation, three condemned to die, three punished for sin under the curse and wrath of God.
By sight there was no distinction. By sight all had the same sentence.
Yet, one of the three crucified saw and knew by faith.
By faith he saw the one next to him, hanging on a cross so much like his own, as his only hope. By faith he saw Him, condemned but truly innocent, hanging on the tree as accursed, but righteous, sentenced to death, but the Lord of life.
Next to him, by faith he saw righteousness to cover his own sin. He saw life to deliver him from death.
Believing grace, grace he sought.
So by faith he sought.
“Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.”
From his Lord, crucified next to him, he received the gracious answer.
“Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.”
Paradise!
With me!
Still hanging on that cross with all its agony and pain, still to die in payment for his crimes, by faith he heard the grace of his Lord.
By faith his justified heart was made joyful and glad in the salvation of his Lord.
In that faith he breathed his last.
And his faith became sight.
In paradise.
With his Lord.
“And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.” Luke 23:43
What grace is believed! What grace is sought! What grace is found!
Grace to believe!
On the hill of Calvary were raised three crosses. Three instruments of condemnation, three condemned to die, three punished for sin under the curse and wrath of God.
By sight there was no distinction. By sight all had the same sentence.
Yet, one of the three crucified saw and knew by faith.
By faith he saw the one next to him, hanging on a cross so much like his own, as his only hope. By faith he saw Him, condemned but truly innocent, hanging on the tree as accursed, but righteous, sentenced to death, but the Lord of life.
Next to him, by faith he saw righteousness to cover his own sin. He saw life to deliver him from death.
Believing grace, grace he sought.
So by faith he sought.
“Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.”
From his Lord, crucified next to him, he received the gracious answer.
“Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.”
Paradise!
With me!
Still hanging on that cross with all its agony and pain, still to die in payment for his crimes, by faith he heard the grace of his Lord.
By faith his justified heart was made joyful and glad in the salvation of his Lord.
In that faith he breathed his last.
And his faith became sight.
In paradise.
With his Lord.
12 April 2017
“Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.” I Peter 2:24
Wondrous tree of Calvary!
That tree on which our Lord and Saviour was crucified was not always lumber awaiting its cruel purpose.
It had its beginning in a tree that arose out of the earth, living and green.
Growing from a seed in its own place, God carefully watched over it. Upon that tree He caused His rain to fall and His sun to shine. By His gifts of rain and sunshine He caused that tree to sprout into a young sapling. Making its roots to grow deep into the earth, he caused its branches to spread forth and shoot out leaves. So the tree grew tall and strong into a mighty tree, the workmanship of God.
Fallen or felled, men then worked upon that tree to makes use of its wood for lumber, lumber for this and lumber for that, a multitude of purposes, limited only by their imagination.
And for a cross. The cross of Calvary upon which our Saviour was hanged.
His own body on the tree.
So the Son of God, holy and righteous, because accursed.
So the Son of God, rightly and properly the object of God’s love and favour, became instead the object of God’s indignation and wrath.
Because, “Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree.” (Deuteronomy 21:23)
With His body on the tree, He became the Sin-bearer.
Whose sins did He bear with His body on the tree.
Not His own, for He had none, the spotless and holy Lamb of God.
Whose sins?
Our sins!
“Who his own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree.”
With His body on the tree He who knew no sin became sin for us.
With His body on the tree, He took from us our sins. With His body on the tree He took from us the curse of God, all of it. With His body on the tree He took from us the indignation and wrath of God. With His body on the tree He set us free.
For what purpose?
“That we being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness.”
His offering makes us free to offer ourselves a living sacrifice to God, to be blessed forever in His service.
So have we been healed by His stripes, healed from our sickness and death in trespasses and sins, quickened to be the workmanship of God, created in Christ Jesus unto all good works.
All by Him, all from Him, who his own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree.
“Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.” I Peter 2:24
Wondrous tree of Calvary!
That tree on which our Lord and Saviour was crucified was not always lumber awaiting its cruel purpose.
It had its beginning in a tree that arose out of the earth, living and green.
Growing from a seed in its own place, God carefully watched over it. Upon that tree He caused His rain to fall and His sun to shine. By His gifts of rain and sunshine He caused that tree to sprout into a young sapling. Making its roots to grow deep into the earth, he caused its branches to spread forth and shoot out leaves. So the tree grew tall and strong into a mighty tree, the workmanship of God.
Fallen or felled, men then worked upon that tree to makes use of its wood for lumber, lumber for this and lumber for that, a multitude of purposes, limited only by their imagination.
And for a cross. The cross of Calvary upon which our Saviour was hanged.
His own body on the tree.
So the Son of God, holy and righteous, because accursed.
So the Son of God, rightly and properly the object of God’s love and favour, became instead the object of God’s indignation and wrath.
Because, “Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree.” (Deuteronomy 21:23)
With His body on the tree, He became the Sin-bearer.
Whose sins did He bear with His body on the tree.
Not His own, for He had none, the spotless and holy Lamb of God.
Whose sins?
Our sins!
“Who his own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree.”
With His body on the tree He who knew no sin became sin for us.
With His body on the tree, He took from us our sins. With His body on the tree He took from us the curse of God, all of it. With His body on the tree He took from us the indignation and wrath of God. With His body on the tree He set us free.
For what purpose?
“That we being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness.”
His offering makes us free to offer ourselves a living sacrifice to God, to be blessed forever in His service.
So have we been healed by His stripes, healed from our sickness and death in trespasses and sins, quickened to be the workmanship of God, created in Christ Jesus unto all good works.
All by Him, all from Him, who his own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree.
11 April 2017
“But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” Galatians 6:14
The cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!
In such a powerful way, the cross was a sign, a symbol, and a means of rejection.
The cross was the instrument of forcible death, death by cruel torment. Nailed to the cross meant a slow death by agonizing torture, days spent alternating between the excruciating pain of attempting to stand on nails driven through the feet, and gasping for breath when unable to bear the pain of standing on nails any longer. Through eventual loss of blood, one crucified would finally collapse and choke to death, unable to breathe, arms stretched to their breaking point.
At the very same time, the cross was a public display of condemnation unto death. The crucified was deemed an outcast, unfit to live upon the earth, and one above whom the heavens were closed. Lifted up as rejected, and suspended under the wrath of God from heaven, the crucified was abandoned by both man and God. Wrath and anger from both, love and fellowship from none, was the lot of one crucified.
Hanging on that cross, enduring the torment of the body, one crucified was meant also to bear down to his heart and sole all the scorn and reproach of his society. A misfit and outcast, hated by all, cutting words were hurled against him, to lash his heart into shreds.
Cross of shame and dishonour! Cross of humiliation and terrible agony!
A cross, then, to hide. A cross to cover over. A cross to put far in the background. If asked, there must be only the greatest reluctance to admit.
Not the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!
Nothing else to glory in! Nothing else to boast about! Nothing else to parade or celebrate!
“But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Why the cross? Why that cross? Why must every Christian follow the Apostle in glorying in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Because in that cross is the most wonderful and amazing work ever done in all the world, in all time and history.
No feat of man can compare to that cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!
So great is the wisdom of the cross, that everything else is folly.
So great is the power of the cross, that everything else is weakness.
So great is the glory of the cross, that everything else is shameful.
In the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, that instrument of His cruel torture and death, is all our peace and reconciliation with the living God.
In the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, that means of reproach and scorn of men, is all our salvation from beginning to end.
In the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, the way of condemnation and curse, is all our blessedness.
God forbid that we should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!
“But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” Galatians 6:14
The cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!
In such a powerful way, the cross was a sign, a symbol, and a means of rejection.
The cross was the instrument of forcible death, death by cruel torment. Nailed to the cross meant a slow death by agonizing torture, days spent alternating between the excruciating pain of attempting to stand on nails driven through the feet, and gasping for breath when unable to bear the pain of standing on nails any longer. Through eventual loss of blood, one crucified would finally collapse and choke to death, unable to breathe, arms stretched to their breaking point.
At the very same time, the cross was a public display of condemnation unto death. The crucified was deemed an outcast, unfit to live upon the earth, and one above whom the heavens were closed. Lifted up as rejected, and suspended under the wrath of God from heaven, the crucified was abandoned by both man and God. Wrath and anger from both, love and fellowship from none, was the lot of one crucified.
Hanging on that cross, enduring the torment of the body, one crucified was meant also to bear down to his heart and sole all the scorn and reproach of his society. A misfit and outcast, hated by all, cutting words were hurled against him, to lash his heart into shreds.
Cross of shame and dishonour! Cross of humiliation and terrible agony!
A cross, then, to hide. A cross to cover over. A cross to put far in the background. If asked, there must be only the greatest reluctance to admit.
Not the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!
Nothing else to glory in! Nothing else to boast about! Nothing else to parade or celebrate!
“But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Why the cross? Why that cross? Why must every Christian follow the Apostle in glorying in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Because in that cross is the most wonderful and amazing work ever done in all the world, in all time and history.
No feat of man can compare to that cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!
So great is the wisdom of the cross, that everything else is folly.
So great is the power of the cross, that everything else is weakness.
So great is the glory of the cross, that everything else is shameful.
In the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, that instrument of His cruel torture and death, is all our peace and reconciliation with the living God.
In the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, that means of reproach and scorn of men, is all our salvation from beginning to end.
In the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, the way of condemnation and curse, is all our blessedness.
God forbid that we should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!
8 April 2017
“And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be. And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.” Genesis 17:15, 16
Doubt and unbelief had done its work.
In unbelief Sarai had withdrawn herself from the covenant promise and fulfillment. In unbelief she offered Hagar, her Egyptian handmaid, to Abraham. Her unbelief was that God’s covenant promise was to be fulfilled through union between Abraham and Hagar, and not herself. In unbelief, Abraham agreed.
By that unbelief, Hagar conceived Ishmael by Abraham. By unbelief Abraham received a son. Was Ishmael to be the heir of the covenant? Is he to be the promised seed? Is his seed to be as many as the sand by the seashore? Is his seed to inherit the land of Canaan?
God’s promise does not reckon with unbelief. God’s fulfillment is not to be compromised by doubt.
So God spoke these wonderful words to Abraham.
His Word of promise set aside Hagar and Ishmael her son. These words of promise set aside all that unbelief.
His promise took Sarai and restored her to her proper place.
His promise blessed her. His promise gave Abraham a son of her. By this son of Sarai, Jehovah blessed her to be a mother of nations. By this son of Sarai were to be kings of people.
Of her, who was ninety years old. Of her, with whom it ceased to be “after the manner of women.” Of her, whose womb was dead.
Such a promise was this that it changed her name from Sarai to Sarah.
Jehovah’s promise must not reckon with the ability of men. Jehovah’s promise must not reckon with the faith or unbelief of men. As Jehovah speaks for His glory, so He does all for His glory.
As His Word, so His deed.
So Sarah conceived by that Word, through faith in that Word. So she gave birth to a son. So by that son born to her she became a mother of nations. So by that son born to her kings of people proceeded from her.
Believing the Word of God, that He will do all that He has spoken, to be our God and the God of our seed after us, let us be the blessed children of Abraham and Sarah!
“And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be. And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.” Genesis 17:15, 16
Doubt and unbelief had done its work.
In unbelief Sarai had withdrawn herself from the covenant promise and fulfillment. In unbelief she offered Hagar, her Egyptian handmaid, to Abraham. Her unbelief was that God’s covenant promise was to be fulfilled through union between Abraham and Hagar, and not herself. In unbelief, Abraham agreed.
By that unbelief, Hagar conceived Ishmael by Abraham. By unbelief Abraham received a son. Was Ishmael to be the heir of the covenant? Is he to be the promised seed? Is his seed to be as many as the sand by the seashore? Is his seed to inherit the land of Canaan?
God’s promise does not reckon with unbelief. God’s fulfillment is not to be compromised by doubt.
So God spoke these wonderful words to Abraham.
His Word of promise set aside Hagar and Ishmael her son. These words of promise set aside all that unbelief.
His promise took Sarai and restored her to her proper place.
His promise blessed her. His promise gave Abraham a son of her. By this son of Sarai, Jehovah blessed her to be a mother of nations. By this son of Sarai were to be kings of people.
Of her, who was ninety years old. Of her, with whom it ceased to be “after the manner of women.” Of her, whose womb was dead.
Such a promise was this that it changed her name from Sarai to Sarah.
Jehovah’s promise must not reckon with the ability of men. Jehovah’s promise must not reckon with the faith or unbelief of men. As Jehovah speaks for His glory, so He does all for His glory.
As His Word, so His deed.
So Sarah conceived by that Word, through faith in that Word. So she gave birth to a son. So by that son born to her she became a mother of nations. So by that son born to her kings of people proceeded from her.
Believing the Word of God, that He will do all that He has spoken, to be our God and the God of our seed after us, let us be the blessed children of Abraham and Sarah!
4 April 2017
“And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.” John 6:40
“No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.” John 6:44
Sealed by the will of God!
Every one that sees the Son and believes on Him will have everlasting life.
Everlasting life that is truly and really everlasting.
No everlasting life this is that is given to someone who sees the Son and believes on him, and then loses that everlasting life because he no longer believes on him.
It is, after all, everlasting life.
But in case there are some who would still argue that someone might lose their possession of everlasting life because they might no longer believe on Jesus, Jesus has given this additional word: “I will raise him up at the last day.”
Every one.
No exceptions.
Still another argument might be raised, an argument that might even be brought against these words of Jesus.
How can these words be so sure? Can’t all men see Jesus, if they want to? Can’t all men believe on Jesus if they want to? Can’t anybody come to Jesus if they want to? Doesn’t God, doesn’t Jesus want to see everyone saved, and brought into His kingdom? Isn’t it God’s will that no man should perish, but that all should be saved?
In answer we have Jesus’ following words, words that lay out another rule.
“No man can come to me.”
No man!
No man can come to Jesus. No man can see Jesus. No man can believe on Jesus.
That is the rule.
But, there is an exception to this rule, the wonderful exception of God’s grace.
The exception?
“Except the Father which hath sent me draw him.”
The Father draws one here. The Father draws one there.
Every one that the Father draws comes to Jesus. Every one that the Father draws sees Jesus. Every one that the Father draws believes on Jesus.
Just as the Father has sent Jesus, so the Father draws every one that He wills to Jesus.
Then, certainly, surely, Jesus will raise him up at the last day!
So must you understand how you have come to Jesus. The same way have you seen Jesus, and the same way have you believed in Jesus.
Because the Father has drawn you.
Only then do you have the solid, undoubted assurance that Jesus will raise you up at the last day.
Yours is eternal life, through the Son sent by the Father, the Father who has drawn you to Him.
Rejoice, and give all thanks and glory to your Father, through His Son!
“And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.” John 6:40
“No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.” John 6:44
Sealed by the will of God!
Every one that sees the Son and believes on Him will have everlasting life.
Everlasting life that is truly and really everlasting.
No everlasting life this is that is given to someone who sees the Son and believes on him, and then loses that everlasting life because he no longer believes on him.
It is, after all, everlasting life.
But in case there are some who would still argue that someone might lose their possession of everlasting life because they might no longer believe on Jesus, Jesus has given this additional word: “I will raise him up at the last day.”
Every one.
No exceptions.
Still another argument might be raised, an argument that might even be brought against these words of Jesus.
How can these words be so sure? Can’t all men see Jesus, if they want to? Can’t all men believe on Jesus if they want to? Can’t anybody come to Jesus if they want to? Doesn’t God, doesn’t Jesus want to see everyone saved, and brought into His kingdom? Isn’t it God’s will that no man should perish, but that all should be saved?
In answer we have Jesus’ following words, words that lay out another rule.
“No man can come to me.”
No man!
No man can come to Jesus. No man can see Jesus. No man can believe on Jesus.
That is the rule.
But, there is an exception to this rule, the wonderful exception of God’s grace.
The exception?
“Except the Father which hath sent me draw him.”
The Father draws one here. The Father draws one there.
Every one that the Father draws comes to Jesus. Every one that the Father draws sees Jesus. Every one that the Father draws believes on Jesus.
Just as the Father has sent Jesus, so the Father draws every one that He wills to Jesus.
Then, certainly, surely, Jesus will raise him up at the last day!
So must you understand how you have come to Jesus. The same way have you seen Jesus, and the same way have you believed in Jesus.
Because the Father has drawn you.
Only then do you have the solid, undoubted assurance that Jesus will raise you up at the last day.
Yours is eternal life, through the Son sent by the Father, the Father who has drawn you to Him.
Rejoice, and give all thanks and glory to your Father, through His Son!
1 April 2017
“And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest.”
“Can these bones live?”
What must be the answer to this question?
God’s prophet has been placed in the midst of a valley that was full of bones. Then Ezekiel was made to survey all these bones as they filled this valley.
He saw that they were very many. The bones of an entire nation filled up this valley. It was if this whole nation had been slaughtered in a very great campaign, and their bodies then taken to this valley and dumped there without any ceremony and without any care.
The Lord’s prophet also saw that they were very dry. To them clung no skin or flesh. No ligaments joined bone to bone. They were no longer yellow, but bleached white, as from the sun shining upon them for many years. Cracks coursed over every bone, every last bit of moisture and marrow long gone.
“Can these bones live?”
Certainly not!
Once they had lived, but that was long ago. Life had long departed. No longer even corpses, but only dry bones did Ezekiel behold. No life, but only death, long death did the Lord’s prophet see. How could these bones possibly stand? How could they again support sinew and flesh? How could they again become living, breathing, flesh and blood bodies?
But this question is not asked of Ezekiel by a man, but by the Lord God!
Can these bones live?
So the prophet must give his answer: “O Lord God, though knowest.”
With God, nothing is impossible!
As he answered, Ezekiel also obeyed the command of God, prophesying to these dry bones that filled this valley.
Then the prophet witnessed the wondrous work of the Lord God upon those bones. He saw bone joined to bone. He beheld first the covering of sinews and flesh, and then skin covering the flesh.
Then, as Ezekiel prophesied again, commanding the wind to breathe upon these slain, he saw them come to life. He saw them stand up, upon their feet. He saw a living, mighty army.
Who are we, and what are we, without the grace of God?
Only dry bones we are. No life, but only death is ours. No good, but only of evil are we capable. Unclean and corrupt is all we are by nature.
But God knows!
As He knows so He works by His Word and Spirit.
By His power He has turned our dead bones to life, regenerating and quickening us. So that life comes to course through our whole nature. So we live, and we believe. So we live, and we worship and praise. So we lead lives of grateful service to the Lord our God. So we fight the good fight of faith.
Son of man, can these bones live?
Yes, indeed, by the power of God’s grace alone!
“And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest.”
“Can these bones live?”
What must be the answer to this question?
God’s prophet has been placed in the midst of a valley that was full of bones. Then Ezekiel was made to survey all these bones as they filled this valley.
He saw that they were very many. The bones of an entire nation filled up this valley. It was if this whole nation had been slaughtered in a very great campaign, and their bodies then taken to this valley and dumped there without any ceremony and without any care.
The Lord’s prophet also saw that they were very dry. To them clung no skin or flesh. No ligaments joined bone to bone. They were no longer yellow, but bleached white, as from the sun shining upon them for many years. Cracks coursed over every bone, every last bit of moisture and marrow long gone.
“Can these bones live?”
Certainly not!
Once they had lived, but that was long ago. Life had long departed. No longer even corpses, but only dry bones did Ezekiel behold. No life, but only death, long death did the Lord’s prophet see. How could these bones possibly stand? How could they again support sinew and flesh? How could they again become living, breathing, flesh and blood bodies?
But this question is not asked of Ezekiel by a man, but by the Lord God!
Can these bones live?
So the prophet must give his answer: “O Lord God, though knowest.”
With God, nothing is impossible!
As he answered, Ezekiel also obeyed the command of God, prophesying to these dry bones that filled this valley.
Then the prophet witnessed the wondrous work of the Lord God upon those bones. He saw bone joined to bone. He beheld first the covering of sinews and flesh, and then skin covering the flesh.
Then, as Ezekiel prophesied again, commanding the wind to breathe upon these slain, he saw them come to life. He saw them stand up, upon their feet. He saw a living, mighty army.
Who are we, and what are we, without the grace of God?
Only dry bones we are. No life, but only death is ours. No good, but only of evil are we capable. Unclean and corrupt is all we are by nature.
But God knows!
As He knows so He works by His Word and Spirit.
By His power He has turned our dead bones to life, regenerating and quickening us. So that life comes to course through our whole nature. So we live, and we believe. So we live, and we worship and praise. So we lead lives of grateful service to the Lord our God. So we fight the good fight of faith.
Son of man, can these bones live?
Yes, indeed, by the power of God’s grace alone!
30 March 2017
“And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.” John 16:24, 25
How the disciples rejoiced to have Jesus so near to them!
They knew the power of Jesus’ sovereign call to them, His call whereby He made them His disciples. They saw His power demonstrated in His casting out of devils, His healing of the sick whole, His calming of the wind and sea, and even His raising of the dead. They witnessed His glory when they were with Him in the holy mount. And they rejoiced when Jesus put His enemies to shame with His wonderful wisdom.
So they clung to Him. He was their safety and their comfort. They delighted to have Him near to them, and to be near to Him. Could they even imagine life without Him? So they ignored and put far from their consciousness every reminder their Lord gave them that He would be betrayed, crucified, put to death, and raised again from the dead.
So they asked Him everything.
They asked Him the questions that were on their minds. They asked Him of their place in the kingdom of heaven. They asked Him about the meanings of the parables He taught them. They asked Him about right and wrong, about good and evil. They asked Him about the future.
But a new and better day was coming.
The day was coming when Jesus would be gone from among them. The day was coming when He would have finished the work upon earth the Father gave Him to do, the work of atonement and reconciliation. The day was coming when He would ascend into heaven, and from God’s right hand He would give them the Spirit according to His Word.
“And in that day ye shall ask me nothing.”
Of Jesus they would ask nothing. To Him they would no longer bring their requests. Of Him they would no longer inquire. Him they would no longer ask.
Instead, they would take that blessed name of their Lord upon their lips, when they would exercise a far higher and greater privilege. They would ask all things of the Father instead. And, asking in Jesus’ name, they would receive all things.
In that blessed and wonderful name of Jesus, they would have the place of children, calling upon the living eternal God as their Father. Asking the Father as their Father, taking the name of Jesus upon their lips, theirs was the privilege of receive all things from their Father.
In Jesus’ name they were to pray. In Jesus’ name they were to ask, and they would receive.
And their joy would be full.
So let us also know this same fullness of joy, when we come to our heavenly Father in this same blessed name of Jesus. As we ask all things and receive all things from His almighty hand, let us rejoice in our God, and in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, for whose sake all things are ours.
“And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.” John 16:24, 25
How the disciples rejoiced to have Jesus so near to them!
They knew the power of Jesus’ sovereign call to them, His call whereby He made them His disciples. They saw His power demonstrated in His casting out of devils, His healing of the sick whole, His calming of the wind and sea, and even His raising of the dead. They witnessed His glory when they were with Him in the holy mount. And they rejoiced when Jesus put His enemies to shame with His wonderful wisdom.
So they clung to Him. He was their safety and their comfort. They delighted to have Him near to them, and to be near to Him. Could they even imagine life without Him? So they ignored and put far from their consciousness every reminder their Lord gave them that He would be betrayed, crucified, put to death, and raised again from the dead.
So they asked Him everything.
They asked Him the questions that were on their minds. They asked Him of their place in the kingdom of heaven. They asked Him about the meanings of the parables He taught them. They asked Him about right and wrong, about good and evil. They asked Him about the future.
But a new and better day was coming.
The day was coming when Jesus would be gone from among them. The day was coming when He would have finished the work upon earth the Father gave Him to do, the work of atonement and reconciliation. The day was coming when He would ascend into heaven, and from God’s right hand He would give them the Spirit according to His Word.
“And in that day ye shall ask me nothing.”
Of Jesus they would ask nothing. To Him they would no longer bring their requests. Of Him they would no longer inquire. Him they would no longer ask.
Instead, they would take that blessed name of their Lord upon their lips, when they would exercise a far higher and greater privilege. They would ask all things of the Father instead. And, asking in Jesus’ name, they would receive all things.
In that blessed and wonderful name of Jesus, they would have the place of children, calling upon the living eternal God as their Father. Asking the Father as their Father, taking the name of Jesus upon their lips, theirs was the privilege of receive all things from their Father.
In Jesus’ name they were to pray. In Jesus’ name they were to ask, and they would receive.
And their joy would be full.
So let us also know this same fullness of joy, when we come to our heavenly Father in this same blessed name of Jesus. As we ask all things and receive all things from His almighty hand, let us rejoice in our God, and in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, for whose sake all things are ours.
27 March 2017
“In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old.” Isaiah 63:9
The living, true, almighty God, infinite and eternal, holy and just.
Also afflicted!
Feeling the sting and the burning pain of the lash of the whip. Feeling the oppression and trouble of forced labour deep within. Knowing the agony and anguish of hard bondage with no hope of escape.
In all the affliction of the children of Israel in Egypt, was Jehovah their God also afflicted.
Their suffering He made HIs own suffering. Their bondage He made His own bondage. Their burdens of trouble and sorrow He took upon Himself.
Such is the love of Jehovah for His people, to be bound and joined to them in their suffering.
Such is the pity of Jehovah welling up in His own heart.
Out of that love and pity, He wondrously redeemed HIs people out of Egypt. Out of that love and pity He bare them and carried them all the days of old.
How blessed we are to know the truth and reality of this way of Jehovah by His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord!
How great the love and pity of our God for us, to give us His only-begotten Son, the glorious Angel of His presence!
How great the love and pity of the Son, to come to save us.
For He came, very God of very God, in the likeness of our sinful flesh.
He came to suffer.
He came to bear our griefs and carry our sorrows. He became “a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief.” So He suffered and died on the cross, the death of vicarious, substitutionary atonement. By His suffering and death, He removed our sin and our guilt and has redeemed us. As He laid down His life for us, so our Good Shepherd also bears us, and carries us all our days.
Though He is now in glory, seated at God’s right hand, we still must know of the love and pity of God our Saviour for us.
In all our afflictions He is afflicted.
Our griefs and sorrows He makes His own. Our burdens and trials He bears and carries. In our persecutions is He persecuted. In our deepest anguish and greatest pain, our Saviour is right next to us.
Just as we are “flesh of HIs flesh and bone of His bone,” joined and united by the Spirit of Christ. Just as our Lord from heaven said to Saul, “Why persecutest thou me?”
So near to us, afflicted with our afflictions, our Saviour who has redemed us also carries us. Safely He carries us in His hand through all our trials and afflictions. Safely He bears us upon His shoulders to the place He has prepared for us, that we may rejoice in Him forever.
Our merciful Saviour!
Afflicted with our afflictions!
“In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old.” Isaiah 63:9
The living, true, almighty God, infinite and eternal, holy and just.
Also afflicted!
Feeling the sting and the burning pain of the lash of the whip. Feeling the oppression and trouble of forced labour deep within. Knowing the agony and anguish of hard bondage with no hope of escape.
In all the affliction of the children of Israel in Egypt, was Jehovah their God also afflicted.
Their suffering He made HIs own suffering. Their bondage He made His own bondage. Their burdens of trouble and sorrow He took upon Himself.
Such is the love of Jehovah for His people, to be bound and joined to them in their suffering.
Such is the pity of Jehovah welling up in His own heart.
Out of that love and pity, He wondrously redeemed HIs people out of Egypt. Out of that love and pity He bare them and carried them all the days of old.
How blessed we are to know the truth and reality of this way of Jehovah by His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord!
How great the love and pity of our God for us, to give us His only-begotten Son, the glorious Angel of His presence!
How great the love and pity of the Son, to come to save us.
For He came, very God of very God, in the likeness of our sinful flesh.
He came to suffer.
He came to bear our griefs and carry our sorrows. He became “a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief.” So He suffered and died on the cross, the death of vicarious, substitutionary atonement. By His suffering and death, He removed our sin and our guilt and has redeemed us. As He laid down His life for us, so our Good Shepherd also bears us, and carries us all our days.
Though He is now in glory, seated at God’s right hand, we still must know of the love and pity of God our Saviour for us.
In all our afflictions He is afflicted.
Our griefs and sorrows He makes His own. Our burdens and trials He bears and carries. In our persecutions is He persecuted. In our deepest anguish and greatest pain, our Saviour is right next to us.
Just as we are “flesh of HIs flesh and bone of His bone,” joined and united by the Spirit of Christ. Just as our Lord from heaven said to Saul, “Why persecutest thou me?”
So near to us, afflicted with our afflictions, our Saviour who has redemed us also carries us. Safely He carries us in His hand through all our trials and afflictions. Safely He bears us upon His shoulders to the place He has prepared for us, that we may rejoice in Him forever.
Our merciful Saviour!
Afflicted with our afflictions!
24 March 2017
“The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart;
And saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
Many are the afflictions of the righteous:
But the Lord delivereth him out of them all.” Psalm 34:18, 19
What amazing words these are of grace and consolation!
These are words for the broken hearted, for those of a contrite spirit, for the righteous in their afflictions.
These are the righteous. These are the children of God. They have put their trust in the Lord, so that they are righteous by faith alone with the righteousness of their God. These are the children of God, bearing the fruits of that justification in their ways of righteousness, peace and truth. Faithfully, willingly, they serve God in deep gratitude for His salvation.
Yet, their way is one of many afflictions.
They are beset from the right and left. They are confronted with barriers and obstacles. They have hindrances dragging them down from behind. Their condition and cause appears so difficult, if not even hopeless.
Even more, the afflictions work their way deep within. They are troubled in their hearts. They groan and sigh in their spirits.
Their hearts are broken.
Their spirits are contrite.
They might have heard others questioning their righteousness because of their many afflictions. The devil has whispered to them that their many afflictions are the clearest demonstration that they are not righteous before God, but are under condemnation. God is no friend of theirs, but only their bitter foe. Their many afflictions are only the present seeds of the future torment awaiting them.
But exactly for them and to them is this Word of God sent.
Unto them that are broken in heart, the Lord is nigh!
Such as be of a contrite spirit, the Lord saves!
Out of the many afflictions of the righteous, the Lord delivers!
Exactly when, how, and where they are broken in heart, the Lord is near them in His dear friendship and precious fellowship.
Exactly when, how, and where they are of a contrite spirit, the Lord directs His grace and mercy for their salvation.
And, no matter how many or how great their afflictions are, the Lord will deliver him out of them all.
Every one!
Their broken hearts will be healed. Their contrite spirits will be lifted up on high. Their afflictions will be far behind them.
And great will be their joy in the God of their salvation!
“The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart;
And saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
Many are the afflictions of the righteous:
But the Lord delivereth him out of them all.” Psalm 34:18, 19
What amazing words these are of grace and consolation!
These are words for the broken hearted, for those of a contrite spirit, for the righteous in their afflictions.
These are the righteous. These are the children of God. They have put their trust in the Lord, so that they are righteous by faith alone with the righteousness of their God. These are the children of God, bearing the fruits of that justification in their ways of righteousness, peace and truth. Faithfully, willingly, they serve God in deep gratitude for His salvation.
Yet, their way is one of many afflictions.
They are beset from the right and left. They are confronted with barriers and obstacles. They have hindrances dragging them down from behind. Their condition and cause appears so difficult, if not even hopeless.
Even more, the afflictions work their way deep within. They are troubled in their hearts. They groan and sigh in their spirits.
Their hearts are broken.
Their spirits are contrite.
They might have heard others questioning their righteousness because of their many afflictions. The devil has whispered to them that their many afflictions are the clearest demonstration that they are not righteous before God, but are under condemnation. God is no friend of theirs, but only their bitter foe. Their many afflictions are only the present seeds of the future torment awaiting them.
But exactly for them and to them is this Word of God sent.
Unto them that are broken in heart, the Lord is nigh!
Such as be of a contrite spirit, the Lord saves!
Out of the many afflictions of the righteous, the Lord delivers!
Exactly when, how, and where they are broken in heart, the Lord is near them in His dear friendship and precious fellowship.
Exactly when, how, and where they are of a contrite spirit, the Lord directs His grace and mercy for their salvation.
And, no matter how many or how great their afflictions are, the Lord will deliver him out of them all.
Every one!
Their broken hearts will be healed. Their contrite spirits will be lifted up on high. Their afflictions will be far behind them.
And great will be their joy in the God of their salvation!
23 March 2017
“Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” II Peter 1:10, 11
What wonderful assurance and certainty is presented in this Word of God!
There is the assurance and certainty of election: chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world by God’s unconditional decree.
There is the assurance and certainty of calling: sovereign, gracious, calling according that same decree of election. There is the Spirit’s calling, applying the gospel of grace with the power of God to you, a calling that has brought you out of darkness into the light of God’s kingdom.
There is the assurance and certainty of the glorious end of your calling and election: the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
But with this assurance and certainty of this Word of God there comes to you a calling.
This calling sets before you your responsibility and your obligation. You have a duty.
What is that calling?
Give diligence to make your calling and election sure. Give diligence that “ye do these things.”
What things?
These are the things that are set before you in verses 5 through 7. Here is a list of Christian virtues that you must cultivate in your life. Together they begin with the very same words, “giving all diligence.”
These are the fruits of election and calling: faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, and charity.
These things are together the manner of the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ: faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, and charity.
How important to remember that these are not conditions of election. Nor must you have them in order to be called. Nor are they keys to the entrance of the everlasting kingdom of God, to open it.
If they were, then you would read, “Give diligence to make your calling and election sure.” You would read, “For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you.”
The calling and election is of God alone. Of God alone is the entrance into the everlasting kingdom.
But just as “these things” are the fruits of calling and election, and are the manner of the everlasting kingdom, diligence in them makes our calling and election more and more sure, more and more evident in our lives, and in our consciences as we see them. Being diligent in them makes more abundant the ministration of your entrance into the everlasting kingdom. The gates open wider and wider, the entrance becomes clearer and closer, the beauty beyond more and more delightful.
So, give diligence!
“Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” II Peter 1:10, 11
What wonderful assurance and certainty is presented in this Word of God!
There is the assurance and certainty of election: chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world by God’s unconditional decree.
There is the assurance and certainty of calling: sovereign, gracious, calling according that same decree of election. There is the Spirit’s calling, applying the gospel of grace with the power of God to you, a calling that has brought you out of darkness into the light of God’s kingdom.
There is the assurance and certainty of the glorious end of your calling and election: the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
But with this assurance and certainty of this Word of God there comes to you a calling.
This calling sets before you your responsibility and your obligation. You have a duty.
What is that calling?
Give diligence to make your calling and election sure. Give diligence that “ye do these things.”
What things?
These are the things that are set before you in verses 5 through 7. Here is a list of Christian virtues that you must cultivate in your life. Together they begin with the very same words, “giving all diligence.”
These are the fruits of election and calling: faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, and charity.
These things are together the manner of the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ: faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, and charity.
How important to remember that these are not conditions of election. Nor must you have them in order to be called. Nor are they keys to the entrance of the everlasting kingdom of God, to open it.
If they were, then you would read, “Give diligence to make your calling and election sure.” You would read, “For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you.”
The calling and election is of God alone. Of God alone is the entrance into the everlasting kingdom.
But just as “these things” are the fruits of calling and election, and are the manner of the everlasting kingdom, diligence in them makes our calling and election more and more sure, more and more evident in our lives, and in our consciences as we see them. Being diligent in them makes more abundant the ministration of your entrance into the everlasting kingdom. The gates open wider and wider, the entrance becomes clearer and closer, the beauty beyond more and more delightful.
So, give diligence!
21 March 2017
“The Lord hath made known his salvation:
His righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.
He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel:
All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.” Psalm 98:2, 3
Powerful are these words of praise to our God, powerful when we understand the pathway that they set before us.
That pathway is the pathway of knowledge, and that path began with the house of Israel.
Its beginning we see clearly when we bring together the first lines of these two verses:
“The Lord hath made known His salvation.”
“He hath remembered mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel.”
The house of Israel is the seed of Jacob. The house of Israel is the covenant house. It is the seed of Jacob as organized together into one family, one house. That house is the family of Jacob, taken up by this Word of God according to God’s own covenant promise, that He would be the God of Abraham, and His seed. That house is the house of God’s covenant faithfulness, His mercy and truth by that Word of promise to Isaac and Jacob, heirs with Abraham.
According to that Word, the seed of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob was formed into a great house, a numerous people, even a great nation. So that nation in its greatness became a present threat to their close neighbour, the land of Egypt. Egypt’s response to the perceived threat of the house of Israel was horrible oppression: the forcing of the house of Jacob into slavery and the ordered death of the firstborn of this house of Israel that was heir to the promise of the Lord.
Then the Lord remembered His mercy and truth to the house of Israel. In mighty deeds and great judgments He made known His salvation. Through the destruction of their oppressors, even to the death of the firstborn of Egypt, He saved His people, the house of Jacob.
Then we see in this Word of God’s praise a distinct direction to this knowledge.
“His righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.”
“All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.”
So must the heathen know that Jacob’s God is God alone. So must the ends of the earth fear and worship Jehovah alone, forsaking all idolatry.
How much more true this is with the salvation of the church of Jesus Christ, the reality to which the former deliverance of Jacob’s house pointed. Here is the true salvation, the redemption of the body of Christ through the blood of the covenant. A salvation that begins with the triumph of the Head over death and hell, and a salvation proclaimed to the heathen and to the uttermost parts of the earth by order of this risen and victorious Head.
The Lord makes known His salvation. His righteousness He openly shews in the sight of the heathen. He makes the ends of the earth see His salvation.
As that knowledge of salvation goes to the ends of the earth, something most wonderful happens.
There, among the heathen, that righteousness is embraced.
There, in the ends of the earth, the salvation of Jehovah is enjoyed.
For there in those places is the true, spiritual house of Israel, the elect church of Jesus Christ. By the proclamation of that righteousness of the true Head of the house of Jacob, Jesus Christ, God gathers to Himself His elect church. By grace sovereign and irresistible He draws them to Himself. They come to Him, delivered out of their darkness into His marvellous light. Their idolatry they forsake, to place their hope and trust in the living God alone.
This God has remembered us.
To us has He shown His righteousness, sealing it to our hearts by faith. So has He saved and redeemed us by the blood of His Son, into blessed fellowship with Him.
God continues even now to send out His Word to the ends of the earth, making His great salvation known.
Let us rejoice to see and know that glorious work of our Lord! Let us use the abundant means that He has given us to support this labour, encouraging His faithful servants!
And with these words, let us magnify our God!
“The Lord hath made known his salvation:
His righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.
He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel:
All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.” Psalm 98:2, 3
Powerful are these words of praise to our God, powerful when we understand the pathway that they set before us.
That pathway is the pathway of knowledge, and that path began with the house of Israel.
Its beginning we see clearly when we bring together the first lines of these two verses:
“The Lord hath made known His salvation.”
“He hath remembered mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel.”
The house of Israel is the seed of Jacob. The house of Israel is the covenant house. It is the seed of Jacob as organized together into one family, one house. That house is the family of Jacob, taken up by this Word of God according to God’s own covenant promise, that He would be the God of Abraham, and His seed. That house is the house of God’s covenant faithfulness, His mercy and truth by that Word of promise to Isaac and Jacob, heirs with Abraham.
According to that Word, the seed of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob was formed into a great house, a numerous people, even a great nation. So that nation in its greatness became a present threat to their close neighbour, the land of Egypt. Egypt’s response to the perceived threat of the house of Israel was horrible oppression: the forcing of the house of Jacob into slavery and the ordered death of the firstborn of this house of Israel that was heir to the promise of the Lord.
Then the Lord remembered His mercy and truth to the house of Israel. In mighty deeds and great judgments He made known His salvation. Through the destruction of their oppressors, even to the death of the firstborn of Egypt, He saved His people, the house of Jacob.
Then we see in this Word of God’s praise a distinct direction to this knowledge.
“His righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.”
“All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.”
So must the heathen know that Jacob’s God is God alone. So must the ends of the earth fear and worship Jehovah alone, forsaking all idolatry.
How much more true this is with the salvation of the church of Jesus Christ, the reality to which the former deliverance of Jacob’s house pointed. Here is the true salvation, the redemption of the body of Christ through the blood of the covenant. A salvation that begins with the triumph of the Head over death and hell, and a salvation proclaimed to the heathen and to the uttermost parts of the earth by order of this risen and victorious Head.
The Lord makes known His salvation. His righteousness He openly shews in the sight of the heathen. He makes the ends of the earth see His salvation.
As that knowledge of salvation goes to the ends of the earth, something most wonderful happens.
There, among the heathen, that righteousness is embraced.
There, in the ends of the earth, the salvation of Jehovah is enjoyed.
For there in those places is the true, spiritual house of Israel, the elect church of Jesus Christ. By the proclamation of that righteousness of the true Head of the house of Jacob, Jesus Christ, God gathers to Himself His elect church. By grace sovereign and irresistible He draws them to Himself. They come to Him, delivered out of their darkness into His marvellous light. Their idolatry they forsake, to place their hope and trust in the living God alone.
This God has remembered us.
To us has He shown His righteousness, sealing it to our hearts by faith. So has He saved and redeemed us by the blood of His Son, into blessed fellowship with Him.
God continues even now to send out His Word to the ends of the earth, making His great salvation known.
Let us rejoice to see and know that glorious work of our Lord! Let us use the abundant means that He has given us to support this labour, encouraging His faithful servants!
And with these words, let us magnify our God!
18 March 2017
“Thou didst cause judgment to be heard from heaven;
The earth feared, and was still,
When God arose to judgment,
To save all the meek of the earth. Selah
Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee:
The remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.” Psalm 76:8-10
In these words is a powerful confession of God’s absolute sovereignty over all, even over the wrath of man.
Take note of that wrath of man!
Hear it in the words of blasphemy and profanity that more and more fill your ears. On the streets or in the media, there is the wrath of man. See it in the lives of men as they throw off every standard of decency and morals, and revel with abandon in decadence and abomination. Understand it in the pursuit of every kind of pleasure and self-indulgence. Behold it in every attempt to form and forge a new world order and the zealous labour to create a utopia for the whole human race, whether by technology, medicine or diplomacy.
Behold also the wrath of man in the persecution of the church of Jesus Christ. Hear it in the words of scorn and derision aimed at God’s Word. See that wrath manifested in every work of the apostate church world to supplant the truth with errors of every kind, and to declare good evil and evil good.
Then, suddenly, all of this wrath and rage of men ceases. Silence reigns as these same men cower and grovel in the dust.
What has happened?
“Thou didst cause judgment to be heard from heaven.”
That is why “the earth feared, and was still.”
“God arose to judgment.”
“God arose . . . to save all the meek of the earth.”
There they were, the meek.
How they were oppressed, persecuted, and troubled by the wrath of man!
They were only a remnant, few and far between. Here was one, surrounded by the enemy, taunted and ridiculed. Here was another, driven to hiding in some corner, fearing for his life. Here was still another, defending the faith in the public square, facing so great opposition, yet doing so in meekness and fear.
To save all these meek of the earth God arose. He showed Himself mighty to be their Judge and Saviour.
So now, what of all that wrath? What of all that rage of the nations against the throne of God?
It all serves the glory of the Lord in judgment, as “the earth feared and was still.
How great that wrath became, only to show its vanity before the glory of God revealed at His coming.
“Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee.”
“The remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.”
How that wrath would cast God off His throne! How that wrath would destroy all the meek of the earth!
But God restrains. He so hinders the wrath of man that it serves Him. He so hinders the wrath of man so that not one of those meek shall perish.
Meek of the earth, you have nothing to fear! Let the wrath of man grow and increase! Let it grow ever so near to you! You are safe in the hand of your God.
“Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee.”
“The remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.”
“Thou didst cause judgment to be heard from heaven;
The earth feared, and was still,
When God arose to judgment,
To save all the meek of the earth. Selah
Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee:
The remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.” Psalm 76:8-10
In these words is a powerful confession of God’s absolute sovereignty over all, even over the wrath of man.
Take note of that wrath of man!
Hear it in the words of blasphemy and profanity that more and more fill your ears. On the streets or in the media, there is the wrath of man. See it in the lives of men as they throw off every standard of decency and morals, and revel with abandon in decadence and abomination. Understand it in the pursuit of every kind of pleasure and self-indulgence. Behold it in every attempt to form and forge a new world order and the zealous labour to create a utopia for the whole human race, whether by technology, medicine or diplomacy.
Behold also the wrath of man in the persecution of the church of Jesus Christ. Hear it in the words of scorn and derision aimed at God’s Word. See that wrath manifested in every work of the apostate church world to supplant the truth with errors of every kind, and to declare good evil and evil good.
Then, suddenly, all of this wrath and rage of men ceases. Silence reigns as these same men cower and grovel in the dust.
What has happened?
“Thou didst cause judgment to be heard from heaven.”
That is why “the earth feared, and was still.”
“God arose to judgment.”
“God arose . . . to save all the meek of the earth.”
There they were, the meek.
How they were oppressed, persecuted, and troubled by the wrath of man!
They were only a remnant, few and far between. Here was one, surrounded by the enemy, taunted and ridiculed. Here was another, driven to hiding in some corner, fearing for his life. Here was still another, defending the faith in the public square, facing so great opposition, yet doing so in meekness and fear.
To save all these meek of the earth God arose. He showed Himself mighty to be their Judge and Saviour.
So now, what of all that wrath? What of all that rage of the nations against the throne of God?
It all serves the glory of the Lord in judgment, as “the earth feared and was still.
How great that wrath became, only to show its vanity before the glory of God revealed at His coming.
“Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee.”
“The remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.”
How that wrath would cast God off His throne! How that wrath would destroy all the meek of the earth!
But God restrains. He so hinders the wrath of man that it serves Him. He so hinders the wrath of man so that not one of those meek shall perish.
Meek of the earth, you have nothing to fear! Let the wrath of man grow and increase! Let it grow ever so near to you! You are safe in the hand of your God.
“Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee.”
“The remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.”
16 March 2017
“And there came a leper to him, beseeching him, and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean.” Mark 1:40, 41
What faith is here to meet with such marvellous grace!
What faith this leper had!
Faith brought him to Jesus. Faith led him to beseech Jesus as he worshipped Him, kneeling down before Him. By faith this leper knew that Jesus had all power to heal him of his dreadful leprosy.
There was only one question. Would Jesus be willing to heal him? Would Jesus be moved to heal him? Would Jesus decide and determine to use His power for the removal of his leprosy?
This question, too, came out of the faith of the leper.
By faith he knew that Jesus was under no obligation to heal him. There was no argument he could find. There was no ground he could present. There was no compelling reason he could bring for Jesus to heal him.
In addition, he knew that Jesus might be most reluctant to heal him. The disease of his leprosy made him ceremonially unclean. Because of his uncleanness, he was not even to approach Jesus. Because of his uncleanness he had every reason to believe Jesus would be repulsed by his approach and would even refuse to heal him.
But in faith he approached Jesus. And in faith he spoke these wonderful words.
“If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.”
What did this leper find in Jesus?
He found deep and tender compassion.
He found in Jesus a compassion that moved Him. His compassion moved Him to reach past the divide between clean and unclean. For in Jesus there was the mighty cleansing and saving grace. To be sure there was the ceremonial law that the unclean would always defile the clean, to make it unclean. But not here. With Jesus, as the leper believed, was the gracious power of cleansing and healing to make the unclean clean.
In Jesus was wonderful compassion that did not balk or flinch to reach out and touch the leper.
Take note of the steps presented that show that compassion. First, Jesus put forth his hand. Second, He touched him. Third, He spoke, “I will; be thou clean.”
Then we read, “As soon as he had spoken, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was cleansed.”
Like the leper, we are unclean. But our pollution and our uncleanness is nothing ceremonial. It is moral and spiritual, real and true uncleanness. With our uncleanness, inside and out, we are not acceptable with God. Before His holiness we have no place, but are only outcasts.
Like the leper, we have the same gracious and compassionate Jesus.
To Him we go. Him we beseech. Before Him we kneel. To Him we say, “If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.”
In Him we find the same compassion, moving Him to put His gracious hand upon us. Touching us in our filth and uncleanness by His Spirit, He cleanses us with His own precious blood. Then He speaks these precious words of the gospel to us: “I will; be thou clean.”
So are we clean, clean thoroughly and clean indeed! Cleansed by the Son, we are accepted with the Father. Our place before Him is secure and assured. So far from fear of being cast out, we have the confidence of the children of our heavenly Father.
Cleansed by our willing, compassionate Lord!
“And there came a leper to him, beseeching him, and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean.” Mark 1:40, 41
What faith is here to meet with such marvellous grace!
What faith this leper had!
Faith brought him to Jesus. Faith led him to beseech Jesus as he worshipped Him, kneeling down before Him. By faith this leper knew that Jesus had all power to heal him of his dreadful leprosy.
There was only one question. Would Jesus be willing to heal him? Would Jesus be moved to heal him? Would Jesus decide and determine to use His power for the removal of his leprosy?
This question, too, came out of the faith of the leper.
By faith he knew that Jesus was under no obligation to heal him. There was no argument he could find. There was no ground he could present. There was no compelling reason he could bring for Jesus to heal him.
In addition, he knew that Jesus might be most reluctant to heal him. The disease of his leprosy made him ceremonially unclean. Because of his uncleanness, he was not even to approach Jesus. Because of his uncleanness he had every reason to believe Jesus would be repulsed by his approach and would even refuse to heal him.
But in faith he approached Jesus. And in faith he spoke these wonderful words.
“If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.”
What did this leper find in Jesus?
He found deep and tender compassion.
He found in Jesus a compassion that moved Him. His compassion moved Him to reach past the divide between clean and unclean. For in Jesus there was the mighty cleansing and saving grace. To be sure there was the ceremonial law that the unclean would always defile the clean, to make it unclean. But not here. With Jesus, as the leper believed, was the gracious power of cleansing and healing to make the unclean clean.
In Jesus was wonderful compassion that did not balk or flinch to reach out and touch the leper.
Take note of the steps presented that show that compassion. First, Jesus put forth his hand. Second, He touched him. Third, He spoke, “I will; be thou clean.”
Then we read, “As soon as he had spoken, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was cleansed.”
Like the leper, we are unclean. But our pollution and our uncleanness is nothing ceremonial. It is moral and spiritual, real and true uncleanness. With our uncleanness, inside and out, we are not acceptable with God. Before His holiness we have no place, but are only outcasts.
Like the leper, we have the same gracious and compassionate Jesus.
To Him we go. Him we beseech. Before Him we kneel. To Him we say, “If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.”
In Him we find the same compassion, moving Him to put His gracious hand upon us. Touching us in our filth and uncleanness by His Spirit, He cleanses us with His own precious blood. Then He speaks these precious words of the gospel to us: “I will; be thou clean.”
So are we clean, clean thoroughly and clean indeed! Cleansed by the Son, we are accepted with the Father. Our place before Him is secure and assured. So far from fear of being cast out, we have the confidence of the children of our heavenly Father.
Cleansed by our willing, compassionate Lord!
14 March 2017
“And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” Revelation 18:2-4
“And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.” Revelation 18:21
So unbelievable is the news that it must be repeated: “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen!”
So unbelievable is the news that it must be illustrated: A mighty angel’s word of Babylon’s overthrow must be accompanied with the casting of a stone like a great millstone into the sea.
That great city?!!
Overthrown?!!
How could such a great and glorious city be overthrown? All the men of the earth through many generations dug so very deep, even down to bedrock. So deep down did they lay the foundations of this magnificent city, their city. Just so much they laboured to make the walls and gates of their beloved city so thick and so strong. Upon its walls they built citadels and turrets, to shield their many defenses from the power of the enemy.
For so long a time men also laboured with care and diligence to make their city grand and beautiful. They made it a city filled with the delights of the children of men. A great center of trade, its business was to gather up within its walls the very best of all that was desired and traded among men.
So Babylon became Babylon the great, a city glorious and splendid, a city that drew to it the love and regard of men. Men loved to travel to the city. They loved to handle and spend their money for its wares. Even the poor of the world felt rich, great, and powerful as they merely walked down its streets and thought of this city as their own.
For this was the city of fornication and lust, of greed and envy, the city of carnal pleasure. With its treasures and wards, its splendid joys and pleasures, it was an idol. When, where, and how men ought to have worshipped the living God, they worshipped Babylon the great. When, where, and how men ought to look to their Maker for their life and happiness, seeking Him and thanking Him, they instead put their trust in Babylon the great, praising its glory. As men in the darkness of their hearts revolted from the Lord God, they committed themselves with all their affection and delight to Babylon the great.
“For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.”
Yet, for all the labour and devotion of all men to her, Babylon the Great must certainly fall. She shall be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.
Therefore: “Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.”
Come out of Babylon!
How her arms reach out to encircle and enfold you, my people, drawing you into her bosom! How open and easy is the road that leads to this city of such delights!
How much you find, my people, in you that hears the siren song of Babylon! How much your old man of sin would gladly fall into those arms and be led into the midst of that wicked city!
Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partaker of her sins!
Come out of her, my people, that ye receive not of her plagues!
Flee! And flee into the blessed city of God, the holy Jerusalem.
There enjoy the blessed delights of fellowship with your God, clothed in white robes of His righteousness. There drink from the fountain of living waters of everlasting life. There find your peace and confidence in the foundations laid by the living God so that she shall never be moved. There live, and there walk forever and ever.
“And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” Revelation 18:2-4
“And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.” Revelation 18:21
So unbelievable is the news that it must be repeated: “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen!”
So unbelievable is the news that it must be illustrated: A mighty angel’s word of Babylon’s overthrow must be accompanied with the casting of a stone like a great millstone into the sea.
That great city?!!
Overthrown?!!
How could such a great and glorious city be overthrown? All the men of the earth through many generations dug so very deep, even down to bedrock. So deep down did they lay the foundations of this magnificent city, their city. Just so much they laboured to make the walls and gates of their beloved city so thick and so strong. Upon its walls they built citadels and turrets, to shield their many defenses from the power of the enemy.
For so long a time men also laboured with care and diligence to make their city grand and beautiful. They made it a city filled with the delights of the children of men. A great center of trade, its business was to gather up within its walls the very best of all that was desired and traded among men.
So Babylon became Babylon the great, a city glorious and splendid, a city that drew to it the love and regard of men. Men loved to travel to the city. They loved to handle and spend their money for its wares. Even the poor of the world felt rich, great, and powerful as they merely walked down its streets and thought of this city as their own.
For this was the city of fornication and lust, of greed and envy, the city of carnal pleasure. With its treasures and wards, its splendid joys and pleasures, it was an idol. When, where, and how men ought to have worshipped the living God, they worshipped Babylon the great. When, where, and how men ought to look to their Maker for their life and happiness, seeking Him and thanking Him, they instead put their trust in Babylon the great, praising its glory. As men in the darkness of their hearts revolted from the Lord God, they committed themselves with all their affection and delight to Babylon the great.
“For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.”
Yet, for all the labour and devotion of all men to her, Babylon the Great must certainly fall. She shall be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.
Therefore: “Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.”
Come out of Babylon!
How her arms reach out to encircle and enfold you, my people, drawing you into her bosom! How open and easy is the road that leads to this city of such delights!
How much you find, my people, in you that hears the siren song of Babylon! How much your old man of sin would gladly fall into those arms and be led into the midst of that wicked city!
Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partaker of her sins!
Come out of her, my people, that ye receive not of her plagues!
Flee! And flee into the blessed city of God, the holy Jerusalem.
There enjoy the blessed delights of fellowship with your God, clothed in white robes of His righteousness. There drink from the fountain of living waters of everlasting life. There find your peace and confidence in the foundations laid by the living God so that she shall never be moved. There live, and there walk forever and ever.
The Lord’s Day, 12 March 2017
“God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints,
And to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.”
Psalm 89:7
In a most powerful way Scripture here describes the church of Jesus Christ in her worship.
It is “the assembly of the saints.”
The church is the deliberate, conscious and conscientious gathering of the saints. The word “assembly” indicates a formation, a properly thought-out and well-ordered group. A certain place and time is given to them, so they have come for a purpose.
And this assembly is “of the saints.” These are the holy ones. They are holy by virtue of being washed in the blood of the Lamb. So cleansed and sanctified they might then appear properly before their God. They are holy also by the Holy Spirit dwelling in them. By the Spirit’s presence they are consecrated unto God. The chief point of that consecration is that they willingly and sincerely dedicate themselves to the worship and service of their God. But their consecration also means that they have been separated from the moral pollution and spiritual defilement of the world. That separation is the result of their calling by God, out of the darkness of sin into the light of His Word and kingdom.
In this assembly of the saints, God is greatly to be feared.
There God is greatly to be feared, because these saints have gathered in order to exalt and magnify His name. Their voices are joined to declare by song the glory of their God. They sing from their hearts of God’s perfections and virtues, of His works of judgment and mercy, of truth and goodness. Together they confess the truth that glorifies and exalts their God from hearts joined in true faith. Together they delight in hearing the preaching of God’s holy Word, the preaching that declares the wonderful works and the awesome glory of their God.
And as they engage in every part of their worship, the glory and majesty of their God becomes greater and greater. His greatness fills their hearts and minds so that they greatly fear the Lord their God. How great is His mercy! How great is His love! How great is His truth!
How great is our God!
The church of Jesus Christ is also described as “all them that are about Him.”
Here the church is described as a blessed circle. The saints are about Him.
The blessedness of this circle is that it vividly pictures the gracious presence of God. Here He is, among His people. He is with them as their Sovereign Friend, their beloved God. He is near them to bless them with His salvation and with the goodness of His fellowship.
The blessedness of this circle is also that it explains the proper place that God has among “all them about Him.” He is in the center. He is the object of their worship. His people wait upon Him. He alone is the reason they have gathered. For, in Him alone do they trust, and therefore Him alone they praise and glorify. To Him alone they pray, consecrating themselves to Him with hearts grateful for His salvation. To His Word alone do they attend.
There God is to be “had in reverence.”
Among them, among these mere creatures, is the living and true God. There He is among them with majesty and honour beyond their ability to reckon. There He is among them with glory and power infinite, whose judgments are beyond searching out. To Him alone, then, they turn with their praise. To Him alone they turn for help in their time of need. Therefore among them He is had in reverence. Though so near them as to be among them, He is the mighty God of their salvation. He is among them in His truth and in the greatness of His wisdom and power. In their presence, He is to be esteemed with great reverence. A deep sense of awe and wonder must prevail in the hearts and minds of His worshippers.
May this fear and reverence be strong in our hearts this day, as we gather “in the assembly of the saints” and gather about the Lord our God, who has done such great things for us!
“God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints,
And to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.”
Psalm 89:7
In a most powerful way Scripture here describes the church of Jesus Christ in her worship.
It is “the assembly of the saints.”
The church is the deliberate, conscious and conscientious gathering of the saints. The word “assembly” indicates a formation, a properly thought-out and well-ordered group. A certain place and time is given to them, so they have come for a purpose.
And this assembly is “of the saints.” These are the holy ones. They are holy by virtue of being washed in the blood of the Lamb. So cleansed and sanctified they might then appear properly before their God. They are holy also by the Holy Spirit dwelling in them. By the Spirit’s presence they are consecrated unto God. The chief point of that consecration is that they willingly and sincerely dedicate themselves to the worship and service of their God. But their consecration also means that they have been separated from the moral pollution and spiritual defilement of the world. That separation is the result of their calling by God, out of the darkness of sin into the light of His Word and kingdom.
In this assembly of the saints, God is greatly to be feared.
There God is greatly to be feared, because these saints have gathered in order to exalt and magnify His name. Their voices are joined to declare by song the glory of their God. They sing from their hearts of God’s perfections and virtues, of His works of judgment and mercy, of truth and goodness. Together they confess the truth that glorifies and exalts their God from hearts joined in true faith. Together they delight in hearing the preaching of God’s holy Word, the preaching that declares the wonderful works and the awesome glory of their God.
And as they engage in every part of their worship, the glory and majesty of their God becomes greater and greater. His greatness fills their hearts and minds so that they greatly fear the Lord their God. How great is His mercy! How great is His love! How great is His truth!
How great is our God!
The church of Jesus Christ is also described as “all them that are about Him.”
Here the church is described as a blessed circle. The saints are about Him.
The blessedness of this circle is that it vividly pictures the gracious presence of God. Here He is, among His people. He is with them as their Sovereign Friend, their beloved God. He is near them to bless them with His salvation and with the goodness of His fellowship.
The blessedness of this circle is also that it explains the proper place that God has among “all them about Him.” He is in the center. He is the object of their worship. His people wait upon Him. He alone is the reason they have gathered. For, in Him alone do they trust, and therefore Him alone they praise and glorify. To Him alone they pray, consecrating themselves to Him with hearts grateful for His salvation. To His Word alone do they attend.
There God is to be “had in reverence.”
Among them, among these mere creatures, is the living and true God. There He is among them with majesty and honour beyond their ability to reckon. There He is among them with glory and power infinite, whose judgments are beyond searching out. To Him alone, then, they turn with their praise. To Him alone they turn for help in their time of need. Therefore among them He is had in reverence. Though so near them as to be among them, He is the mighty God of their salvation. He is among them in His truth and in the greatness of His wisdom and power. In their presence, He is to be esteemed with great reverence. A deep sense of awe and wonder must prevail in the hearts and minds of His worshippers.
May this fear and reverence be strong in our hearts this day, as we gather “in the assembly of the saints” and gather about the Lord our God, who has done such great things for us!
10 March 2017
“To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” Romans 3:26
Amazing!
One and only one righteousness: the righteousness of God.
Other than His righteousness there is none. Without Him and apart from Him there is no righteousness, only unrighteousness. There is no righteousness in the earth. There is no righteousness among men.
How can it be, then, that another than God could be righteous? How can it be that someone other than God might be declared righteous by God? How could it possibly be that an unrighteous sinner might be justified, that is, declared righteous by God?
Must not such a declaration, such a justification, make God unjust? How can His justice not be broken, turned into unrighteousness, when He in judgment declares righteous an unrighteous individual?
Only when the righteousness by which He declares the sinner justified is His own righteousness.
Only when that righteousness is the righteousness of the Son of God Himself, the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
The righteousness which is not by the works of the law. The righteousness which is not by human merit. The righteousness which is not of running, or willing, or choosing. The righteousness which is not of man.
But the righteousness which is of the Son of man, Jesus Christ. The righteousness of His holy life and His consecrated death. The righteousness of His obedience to all the divine law, in strength of all His heart and soul and mind. The righteousness of His accomplishment of the work His Father gave Him to do, offering Himself a sacrifice in the stead of His people, to make complete atonement for their sins.
That glorious, perfect righteousness of God, declared by God in the gospel, received by a true and living faith.
Of course, that is the righteousness which is justifiable by the just God.
So let there stand before the just God a man who is a sinner, a sinner who believeth in Jesus.
So let the just God render His just sentence upon such a man.
What will he say in His righteousness? What will be His divine, righteous judgment?
The sinner is righteous!
The believer in Jesus is innocent!
The ungodly one is conformed to the law!
He is worthy of eternal life!
And yet this God continues perfectly just, perfectly righteous in this administration of His law.
So let us bring our sins, every one, to Him who is the just Judge of heaven and earth. Let us bring them to Him, believing in Jesus, resting on all His merits alone.
So let us hear the just sentence from His Word by that faith in Jesus: Righteous, worthy of everlasting life.
From our God: just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.
“To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” Romans 3:26
Amazing!
One and only one righteousness: the righteousness of God.
Other than His righteousness there is none. Without Him and apart from Him there is no righteousness, only unrighteousness. There is no righteousness in the earth. There is no righteousness among men.
How can it be, then, that another than God could be righteous? How can it be that someone other than God might be declared righteous by God? How could it possibly be that an unrighteous sinner might be justified, that is, declared righteous by God?
Must not such a declaration, such a justification, make God unjust? How can His justice not be broken, turned into unrighteousness, when He in judgment declares righteous an unrighteous individual?
Only when the righteousness by which He declares the sinner justified is His own righteousness.
Only when that righteousness is the righteousness of the Son of God Himself, the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
The righteousness which is not by the works of the law. The righteousness which is not by human merit. The righteousness which is not of running, or willing, or choosing. The righteousness which is not of man.
But the righteousness which is of the Son of man, Jesus Christ. The righteousness of His holy life and His consecrated death. The righteousness of His obedience to all the divine law, in strength of all His heart and soul and mind. The righteousness of His accomplishment of the work His Father gave Him to do, offering Himself a sacrifice in the stead of His people, to make complete atonement for their sins.
That glorious, perfect righteousness of God, declared by God in the gospel, received by a true and living faith.
Of course, that is the righteousness which is justifiable by the just God.
So let there stand before the just God a man who is a sinner, a sinner who believeth in Jesus.
So let the just God render His just sentence upon such a man.
What will he say in His righteousness? What will be His divine, righteous judgment?
The sinner is righteous!
The believer in Jesus is innocent!
The ungodly one is conformed to the law!
He is worthy of eternal life!
And yet this God continues perfectly just, perfectly righteous in this administration of His law.
So let us bring our sins, every one, to Him who is the just Judge of heaven and earth. Let us bring them to Him, believing in Jesus, resting on all His merits alone.
So let us hear the just sentence from His Word by that faith in Jesus: Righteous, worthy of everlasting life.
From our God: just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.
9 March 2017
“And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.” Acts 16:25
How badly battered and bruised were the beaten bodies of Paul and Silas. As the magistrates had commanded, so had these two men been beaten, many stripes laid upon them, perhaps front and back. But that night they found no relief for the pain and agony that clothed them. Having been cast into the prison, their feet were fastened into stocks.
So their fellow prisoners ought to have expected, that from these two would be heard moaning and groaning all the night long.
But there was no moaning or groaning. Instead, filling the ears of these prisoners were prayers and songs of praise to the Lord! They heard words expressing the glories of God, extolling Him for His grace and mercy, praising Him for His righteousness and truth. They heard those words expressed in the form of grateful prayer to the Lord as well as in songs of gladness and rejoicing.
Those words, spoken and sung, were a powerful testimony to those other prisoners. They were a powerful testimony to the grace enjoyed by Paul and Silas, grace sufficient in such pain and agony to bring comfort and peace to believers. They were a powerful testimony to the nature of true faith, to bear well such suffering for Jesus’ sake, because it was a pledge of the glory that would soon be given, glory that would make insignificant any present evil endured.
We are left to wonder about the effect of this powerful testimony. Did the Holy Spirit use it to bring salvation to some of these prisoners? Did it become a witness to others of their own unbelief and hardness of heart, to leave them further without excuse before God? We are not told.
But this same testimony must also be ours. And it must also be ours powerfully.
How? Should it be, if we should be accused of evil for Jesus said, and if we should be so beaten with many stripes, and if we should have our feet fast in the stocks, that we should also pray and sing praises unto God? How can we know? How can we have confidence?
Only by the grace of God, through our Lord Jesus Christ!
That grace is to make us that strong and steadfast in the way of our care to be that strong and steadfast.
That care is ours to take through practice.
Through the practice of prayer to God. How do we handle the adversities and trials in our lives? Do we rely on ourselves, our own resources, our own stamina, or our own skills? Or do we bring them before the throne of our heavenly Father, looking to Him alone to bless us and guide us, to make us strong by His grace?
And through the practice of our praises to God as well. Are we practiced in the songs of Zion, the prayers of David the Psalmist of Israel? Which come more easily to our lips, the songs of the world or the songs of the redeemed of the Lord? Which have their strong currents through our hearts and minds?
Are we trained and disciplined so in our prayers and praises that they come naturally to us, prayer arising in our hearts, songs of praise immediately on our lips?
So by grace may we be equipped always to pray and sing praises to our God, even in the pain of persecution, to bear the same powerful testimony of His glorious grace to save and keep!
“And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.” Acts 16:25
How badly battered and bruised were the beaten bodies of Paul and Silas. As the magistrates had commanded, so had these two men been beaten, many stripes laid upon them, perhaps front and back. But that night they found no relief for the pain and agony that clothed them. Having been cast into the prison, their feet were fastened into stocks.
So their fellow prisoners ought to have expected, that from these two would be heard moaning and groaning all the night long.
But there was no moaning or groaning. Instead, filling the ears of these prisoners were prayers and songs of praise to the Lord! They heard words expressing the glories of God, extolling Him for His grace and mercy, praising Him for His righteousness and truth. They heard those words expressed in the form of grateful prayer to the Lord as well as in songs of gladness and rejoicing.
Those words, spoken and sung, were a powerful testimony to those other prisoners. They were a powerful testimony to the grace enjoyed by Paul and Silas, grace sufficient in such pain and agony to bring comfort and peace to believers. They were a powerful testimony to the nature of true faith, to bear well such suffering for Jesus’ sake, because it was a pledge of the glory that would soon be given, glory that would make insignificant any present evil endured.
We are left to wonder about the effect of this powerful testimony. Did the Holy Spirit use it to bring salvation to some of these prisoners? Did it become a witness to others of their own unbelief and hardness of heart, to leave them further without excuse before God? We are not told.
But this same testimony must also be ours. And it must also be ours powerfully.
How? Should it be, if we should be accused of evil for Jesus said, and if we should be so beaten with many stripes, and if we should have our feet fast in the stocks, that we should also pray and sing praises unto God? How can we know? How can we have confidence?
Only by the grace of God, through our Lord Jesus Christ!
That grace is to make us that strong and steadfast in the way of our care to be that strong and steadfast.
That care is ours to take through practice.
Through the practice of prayer to God. How do we handle the adversities and trials in our lives? Do we rely on ourselves, our own resources, our own stamina, or our own skills? Or do we bring them before the throne of our heavenly Father, looking to Him alone to bless us and guide us, to make us strong by His grace?
And through the practice of our praises to God as well. Are we practiced in the songs of Zion, the prayers of David the Psalmist of Israel? Which come more easily to our lips, the songs of the world or the songs of the redeemed of the Lord? Which have their strong currents through our hearts and minds?
Are we trained and disciplined so in our prayers and praises that they come naturally to us, prayer arising in our hearts, songs of praise immediately on our lips?
So by grace may we be equipped always to pray and sing praises to our God, even in the pain of persecution, to bear the same powerful testimony of His glorious grace to save and keep!
8 March 2017
Shew me thy ways, O Lord;
teach me thy paths.
Lead me in thy truth,
and teach me:
for thou art the God of my salvation;
on thee do I wait all the day.
Psalm 25:4, 5
What a wonderful and blessed prayer is given to us in these words from Psalm 25, a servant’s prayer!
For there is no better place for the child of God to stand, than before the throne of His heavenly Father. There are no better words for him to have in his heart and upon his lips than these: On thee do I wait all the day.
He knows there is only one way for him, one path to walk in, one truth to have in his heart and mind. Only the ways of the Lord are for him to walk in. Only the paths of the Lord are for his feet to tread. Only the truth of the Lord must fill his heart and mind. For only there is fellowship and communion with his God.
The child of God also knows that by nature he is inclined to a different way, the way of sin. He knows that his feet would by themselves tread another path, the path of iniquity. He knows his tendency by nature to seek darkness and the lie, instead of the light and truth of His God.
So his prayer is a cry to the God of His salvation.
Shew me thy ways, O Lord!
Set them before me, those ways of thy fellowship and friendship! May I see them clearly and distinctly! May I behold the ways of thy works, thy judgments, thy provisions, thy acts of mercy! May I distinguish the ways of thy holiness and righteousness, not only to see them, but to walk in them as well, following faithfully after thee.
But more: Teach me thy paths!
Thy paths explain to me. With thy words make them known in all their detail, that I may keep my feet in them. Make those words to go down into my ears, through my mind and down into my heart, that I may with ardent zeal pursue them.
Then: Lead me in thy truth, and teach me!
Do not only show me! Do not only teach me! Then I might look and see, but never walk in thy ways and paths. Knowledge alone is never sufficient. Love alone is not enough. But take my hand, and guide me in thy truth! Bring my feet to thy truth, and set my feet in it. Keep and guard them in thy truth, that they may never depart.
Why these ways? Why these paths of the Lord? Why must we so ardently desire to know them and walk in them?
For the God whose ways and paths these are, and whose truth this is, is the God of our salvation.
By grace alone, by grace glorious and sovereign He has saved us. His salvation is the act of boundless love and tender mercy by which He gave His only begotten Son to the shameful death of the cross with its hellish agonies, in order to save us from the darkness of our death and the wicked errors of our ways.
So we come to Him alone, our only Saviour, the only God.
So we desire always to be near to Him, to be found always in His ways, to walk always in His paths, to know only His truth.
So we look to His grace alone, grace almighty and grace wonderful, to show us, to teach us, and to lead us in His ways!
So on Him let us wait all the day!
Shew me thy ways, O Lord;
teach me thy paths.
Lead me in thy truth,
and teach me:
for thou art the God of my salvation;
on thee do I wait all the day.
Psalm 25:4, 5
What a wonderful and blessed prayer is given to us in these words from Psalm 25, a servant’s prayer!
For there is no better place for the child of God to stand, than before the throne of His heavenly Father. There are no better words for him to have in his heart and upon his lips than these: On thee do I wait all the day.
He knows there is only one way for him, one path to walk in, one truth to have in his heart and mind. Only the ways of the Lord are for him to walk in. Only the paths of the Lord are for his feet to tread. Only the truth of the Lord must fill his heart and mind. For only there is fellowship and communion with his God.
The child of God also knows that by nature he is inclined to a different way, the way of sin. He knows that his feet would by themselves tread another path, the path of iniquity. He knows his tendency by nature to seek darkness and the lie, instead of the light and truth of His God.
So his prayer is a cry to the God of His salvation.
Shew me thy ways, O Lord!
Set them before me, those ways of thy fellowship and friendship! May I see them clearly and distinctly! May I behold the ways of thy works, thy judgments, thy provisions, thy acts of mercy! May I distinguish the ways of thy holiness and righteousness, not only to see them, but to walk in them as well, following faithfully after thee.
But more: Teach me thy paths!
Thy paths explain to me. With thy words make them known in all their detail, that I may keep my feet in them. Make those words to go down into my ears, through my mind and down into my heart, that I may with ardent zeal pursue them.
Then: Lead me in thy truth, and teach me!
Do not only show me! Do not only teach me! Then I might look and see, but never walk in thy ways and paths. Knowledge alone is never sufficient. Love alone is not enough. But take my hand, and guide me in thy truth! Bring my feet to thy truth, and set my feet in it. Keep and guard them in thy truth, that they may never depart.
Why these ways? Why these paths of the Lord? Why must we so ardently desire to know them and walk in them?
For the God whose ways and paths these are, and whose truth this is, is the God of our salvation.
By grace alone, by grace glorious and sovereign He has saved us. His salvation is the act of boundless love and tender mercy by which He gave His only begotten Son to the shameful death of the cross with its hellish agonies, in order to save us from the darkness of our death and the wicked errors of our ways.
So we come to Him alone, our only Saviour, the only God.
So we desire always to be near to Him, to be found always in His ways, to walk always in His paths, to know only His truth.
So we look to His grace alone, grace almighty and grace wonderful, to show us, to teach us, and to lead us in His ways!
So on Him let us wait all the day!
7 February 2017
“Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.” Daniel 3:16-18
How generous Nebuchadnezzar thought he was, to give these three another opportunity to show their loyalty and commitment to their king.
He heard the accusation brought against them, these certain Jews. He heard that they did not honour the king’s decree, bowing down before his golden image at the sound of the instruments playing. As he listened, rage and fury rose up in his heart.
So he called these three before him, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and presented to them another opportunity. Their king asked and he commanded. He held out before them the way that was theirs to follow, the way of life. He held out before them the way that they must not follow, the way of certain death in the midst of the burning fire furnace.
Then, these last words: “And who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?”
Oh, yes!
In his own words, Nebuchadnezzar handed to these three children of the captivity the key. So they might give their answer of boldness and confidence.
So they stood before this great king and speak their glorious reply:
“O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter.”
They were not careful. They did not give any care. They exercised no caution.
For there was nothing to ponder. There was no cause for deliberation.
What was this command with its promise? What was the king’s warning with its threat?
It was nothing.
It was nothing before “our God whom we serve.”
Yes, if it be so: “Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us form the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.”
And also, no, if it be not so: If God will not deliver us from the burning fiery furnace.
Yes or no. Life or death. God is still God. Nebuchadnezzar is only a man.
So it must follow: “We will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.”
In these words is the heart of the story. The glorious deliverance of these three men from the burning fiery furnace, and the appearance of God in that deliverance is but the divine seal of approval on their ready answer.
So must we answer every temptation to compromise. Whether that temptation is a command and a promise to live, or a warning that threatens death. Whether that command or warning is issued by a king, president, or prime minister, or by an official standing next to our scaffold.
“We are not careful to answer thee in this matter.”
“Our God whom we serve is able.”
“Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.” Daniel 3:16-18
How generous Nebuchadnezzar thought he was, to give these three another opportunity to show their loyalty and commitment to their king.
He heard the accusation brought against them, these certain Jews. He heard that they did not honour the king’s decree, bowing down before his golden image at the sound of the instruments playing. As he listened, rage and fury rose up in his heart.
So he called these three before him, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and presented to them another opportunity. Their king asked and he commanded. He held out before them the way that was theirs to follow, the way of life. He held out before them the way that they must not follow, the way of certain death in the midst of the burning fire furnace.
Then, these last words: “And who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?”
Oh, yes!
In his own words, Nebuchadnezzar handed to these three children of the captivity the key. So they might give their answer of boldness and confidence.
So they stood before this great king and speak their glorious reply:
“O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter.”
They were not careful. They did not give any care. They exercised no caution.
For there was nothing to ponder. There was no cause for deliberation.
What was this command with its promise? What was the king’s warning with its threat?
It was nothing.
It was nothing before “our God whom we serve.”
Yes, if it be so: “Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us form the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.”
And also, no, if it be not so: If God will not deliver us from the burning fiery furnace.
Yes or no. Life or death. God is still God. Nebuchadnezzar is only a man.
So it must follow: “We will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.”
In these words is the heart of the story. The glorious deliverance of these three men from the burning fiery furnace, and the appearance of God in that deliverance is but the divine seal of approval on their ready answer.
So must we answer every temptation to compromise. Whether that temptation is a command and a promise to live, or a warning that threatens death. Whether that command or warning is issued by a king, president, or prime minister, or by an official standing next to our scaffold.
“We are not careful to answer thee in this matter.”
“Our God whom we serve is able.”
14 January 2017
“And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and will go to the battle; but put thou on thy robes. So the king of Israel disguised himself; and they went to the battle.” II Chronicles 18:29
What folly for Ahab!
On the one hand the wicked king of Israel took Micaiah’s prophecy seriously. As the Lord’s servant stood before Ahab, to tell him in the name of the Lord that the Lord had determined Ahab’s death at Ramoth Gilead, were he to go up, Ahab took steps. He would disguise himself in the battle as a mere charioteer in Israel’s army. At the same time there would accompany him to this battle Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, wearing his royal robe as he rode in his chariot.
But on the other hand, Ahab despised the word of the Lord spoken by His servant. Still he would go up to Ramoth-Gilead to fight with Syria. Still he believed that He would live. He had His plan. Not only did he think he could fool the eyes the Syrian army with his disguise. He thought he could deceive the eyes of the Lord, the eyes of the Lord that run to and fro throughout the whole earth.
What folly!
But was Jehoshophat, the good king of Judah, any less foolish?
Though he had heard the word of the Lord spoken by His servant Micaiah, he nevertheless agreed to go up with Ahab to battle. Though he had heard the prophecy of Ahab’s death in this battle, he cooperated with Ahab’s wicked folly. As he agreed to go into battle with Ahab, Ahab wearing the dress of a common charioteer and himself wearing his royal robes, so he willingly took his role in attempting to deceive the living God.
What folly!
But we do well to consider the root and the cause of Jehoshaphat’s folly.
Hear that folly in verse 3 of this chapter:
“I am as thou art, and my people as thy people; and we will be with thee in the war.”
Here is the root of the folly, the foolishness of friendship with the wicked. Here is compromise with apostasy.
Oh, what glory! Glory of numbers, glory of power, glory of a strong alliance to defeat a powerful, common enemy.
But what folly that such an alliance forfeits the friendship of the Lord!
What folly that such an alliance means cooperating to despise the word of the Lord and to deceive the Omniscient!
How are you and I tempted to make these alliances and to forge and form these friendships? Do you and I understand what deceptions we shall practice in them, trying vainly to mix grace and wrath, the city of God with the city of man?
From such foolish alliances let us flee. Let us continue to be the people of the Lord alone, seeking ever His grace and favour alone.
“And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and will go to the battle; but put thou on thy robes. So the king of Israel disguised himself; and they went to the battle.” II Chronicles 18:29
What folly for Ahab!
On the one hand the wicked king of Israel took Micaiah’s prophecy seriously. As the Lord’s servant stood before Ahab, to tell him in the name of the Lord that the Lord had determined Ahab’s death at Ramoth Gilead, were he to go up, Ahab took steps. He would disguise himself in the battle as a mere charioteer in Israel’s army. At the same time there would accompany him to this battle Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, wearing his royal robe as he rode in his chariot.
But on the other hand, Ahab despised the word of the Lord spoken by His servant. Still he would go up to Ramoth-Gilead to fight with Syria. Still he believed that He would live. He had His plan. Not only did he think he could fool the eyes the Syrian army with his disguise. He thought he could deceive the eyes of the Lord, the eyes of the Lord that run to and fro throughout the whole earth.
What folly!
But was Jehoshophat, the good king of Judah, any less foolish?
Though he had heard the word of the Lord spoken by His servant Micaiah, he nevertheless agreed to go up with Ahab to battle. Though he had heard the prophecy of Ahab’s death in this battle, he cooperated with Ahab’s wicked folly. As he agreed to go into battle with Ahab, Ahab wearing the dress of a common charioteer and himself wearing his royal robes, so he willingly took his role in attempting to deceive the living God.
What folly!
But we do well to consider the root and the cause of Jehoshaphat’s folly.
Hear that folly in verse 3 of this chapter:
“I am as thou art, and my people as thy people; and we will be with thee in the war.”
Here is the root of the folly, the foolishness of friendship with the wicked. Here is compromise with apostasy.
Oh, what glory! Glory of numbers, glory of power, glory of a strong alliance to defeat a powerful, common enemy.
But what folly that such an alliance forfeits the friendship of the Lord!
What folly that such an alliance means cooperating to despise the word of the Lord and to deceive the Omniscient!
How are you and I tempted to make these alliances and to forge and form these friendships? Do you and I understand what deceptions we shall practice in them, trying vainly to mix grace and wrath, the city of God with the city of man?
From such foolish alliances let us flee. Let us continue to be the people of the Lord alone, seeking ever His grace and favour alone.
22 December 2016
“Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwelleth on high, Who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and in the earth! He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifeth the needy out of the dunghill.” Psalm 113:5-7
In two ways the greatness of Jehovah God is explained in these marvellous words of praise. In two ways the question is answered, “Who is like unto the Lord our God?”
The first way is easy to see.
He is the God “who dwelleth on high.”
There is no place for Him to climb up. There is no way for Him to elevate Himself. It is not for Him to ascend in any respect. He dwelleth on high. There is no high place, for He Himself is the height of all glory.
Such is the transcendent height of His being that God must humble himself. He must come down, and bring Himself low.
Why?
In order to behold the things that are in heaven and in the earth.
Not only in the earth, but also in heaven!
The heavenly abode of the angels, where the glorified saints dwell forever in unending light and peace, there are the things that God must humble Himself to behold.
Who is like unto the Lord our God?
The second way is more difficult to see, but just as glorious, and just as praiseworthy.
Who is like unto the Lord our God?
Behold how far He humbles Himself.
Not only does He humble Himself to behold the things that are in heaven. Not only does He humble Himself to behold the things that are in the earth.
In the earth He beholds the poor who has been humbled to the dust. He beholds the needy in the dunghill. He beholds them living in their filth and squalor, so far from the comfort, ease, and luxury of the rich. He looks upon them in their ruin and desolation. He considers them in the depth of all their need and misery.
He beholds, and then humbles himself even further.
Down, down, He reaches with His gracious and merciful hand. He humbles Himself to lower His hand to the dust, to lay hold on the needy. He humbles Himself to put His hand to the dunghill, to grasp the poor that are therein.
With His hand He raiseth the poor, and lifteth the needy, to set them on high, to bless them with His glorious salvation.
Who is like unto the Lord our God?
So let us praise and extol our God, for this is how He has come to be our God. To us, deeply humbled in the dust of our death, and the dunghill of the filth of our iniquity, has He humbled Himself, extending to us His mighty hand of salvation. To us has He sent His Son, as merciful as mighty, very God of very God, to redeem us and to raise us up on high. So have we become His people, and He our God.
Who is like unto the Lord our God?
“Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwelleth on high, Who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and in the earth! He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifeth the needy out of the dunghill.” Psalm 113:5-7
In two ways the greatness of Jehovah God is explained in these marvellous words of praise. In two ways the question is answered, “Who is like unto the Lord our God?”
The first way is easy to see.
He is the God “who dwelleth on high.”
There is no place for Him to climb up. There is no way for Him to elevate Himself. It is not for Him to ascend in any respect. He dwelleth on high. There is no high place, for He Himself is the height of all glory.
Such is the transcendent height of His being that God must humble himself. He must come down, and bring Himself low.
Why?
In order to behold the things that are in heaven and in the earth.
Not only in the earth, but also in heaven!
The heavenly abode of the angels, where the glorified saints dwell forever in unending light and peace, there are the things that God must humble Himself to behold.
Who is like unto the Lord our God?
The second way is more difficult to see, but just as glorious, and just as praiseworthy.
Who is like unto the Lord our God?
Behold how far He humbles Himself.
Not only does He humble Himself to behold the things that are in heaven. Not only does He humble Himself to behold the things that are in the earth.
In the earth He beholds the poor who has been humbled to the dust. He beholds the needy in the dunghill. He beholds them living in their filth and squalor, so far from the comfort, ease, and luxury of the rich. He looks upon them in their ruin and desolation. He considers them in the depth of all their need and misery.
He beholds, and then humbles himself even further.
Down, down, He reaches with His gracious and merciful hand. He humbles Himself to lower His hand to the dust, to lay hold on the needy. He humbles Himself to put His hand to the dunghill, to grasp the poor that are therein.
With His hand He raiseth the poor, and lifteth the needy, to set them on high, to bless them with His glorious salvation.
Who is like unto the Lord our God?
So let us praise and extol our God, for this is how He has come to be our God. To us, deeply humbled in the dust of our death, and the dunghill of the filth of our iniquity, has He humbled Himself, extending to us His mighty hand of salvation. To us has He sent His Son, as merciful as mighty, very God of very God, to redeem us and to raise us up on high. So have we become His people, and He our God.
Who is like unto the Lord our God?
16 December 2016
“Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, neither had they in the ship with them more than one loaf. And he charged them, saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod. And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have no bread.” Mark 8:14-16
It is painful to read and think about the above words.
Their Master had charged them, giving his disciples a sharp admonition: Take heed! Christ had given them a strong warning: Beware!
To what must they take heed? What must they beware? What is so important to guard against?
The leaven of the Pharisees, and the leaven of Herod.
Then how painful it is to read of the reaction of Jesus’ disciples. Struggling to obey His word and casting about to understand its meaning, they come to their conclusion. “It is because we have no bread.”
Unable to rise to the teaching, unable to grasp its spiritual nature, they fall back to an earthly, material reason. “It is because we have no bread.”
Painful.
Do they have so little understanding of spiritual things? Have they no knowledge of the clear difference between their Master’s ways and doctrines, and the ways and doctrines of the Pharisees and of Herod? Are they wholly unable to discern the corrupting influence of legalism and politics into the heart and mind, burying grace under works and the antithesis under worldly compromise?
But the pain we feel in reading the disciples’ reasoning, must be the pain of our own heart and mind.
Although our Lord has spoken these same words to us, and although we suppose we are superior to these disciples because we get the point, yet we must admit of our own carelessness and heedlessness.
We do not take heed as we ought. We do not beware as we should.
Yes, there still is the leaven of the Pharisees and of Herod.
The poison of proud, haughty, self-righteous legalism is always creeping in and influencing us. We measure ourselves by the measure of men, thinking approval with men is the same as approval with God. We seek to be good because God will then deal well with us. We seek success and prosperity and we look for the approval of men, thinking that it will bring also God’s approval.
The leaven of Herod would always introduce its corruption into our mind. Fear of men causes us to modify our words. Fear of trouble makes us rethink our plans. Compromise sneaks in here and there for the sake of advantage, and we may convince ourselves that the end justifies the means.
So may our pain be for our correction and for our renewed discernment.
So we may not hear our Lord and Master say to us, “Perceive ye not yet, neither understand? have ye your heart yet hardened?”
“Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, neither had they in the ship with them more than one loaf. And he charged them, saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod. And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have no bread.” Mark 8:14-16
It is painful to read and think about the above words.
Their Master had charged them, giving his disciples a sharp admonition: Take heed! Christ had given them a strong warning: Beware!
To what must they take heed? What must they beware? What is so important to guard against?
The leaven of the Pharisees, and the leaven of Herod.
Then how painful it is to read of the reaction of Jesus’ disciples. Struggling to obey His word and casting about to understand its meaning, they come to their conclusion. “It is because we have no bread.”
Unable to rise to the teaching, unable to grasp its spiritual nature, they fall back to an earthly, material reason. “It is because we have no bread.”
Painful.
Do they have so little understanding of spiritual things? Have they no knowledge of the clear difference between their Master’s ways and doctrines, and the ways and doctrines of the Pharisees and of Herod? Are they wholly unable to discern the corrupting influence of legalism and politics into the heart and mind, burying grace under works and the antithesis under worldly compromise?
But the pain we feel in reading the disciples’ reasoning, must be the pain of our own heart and mind.
Although our Lord has spoken these same words to us, and although we suppose we are superior to these disciples because we get the point, yet we must admit of our own carelessness and heedlessness.
We do not take heed as we ought. We do not beware as we should.
Yes, there still is the leaven of the Pharisees and of Herod.
The poison of proud, haughty, self-righteous legalism is always creeping in and influencing us. We measure ourselves by the measure of men, thinking approval with men is the same as approval with God. We seek to be good because God will then deal well with us. We seek success and prosperity and we look for the approval of men, thinking that it will bring also God’s approval.
The leaven of Herod would always introduce its corruption into our mind. Fear of men causes us to modify our words. Fear of trouble makes us rethink our plans. Compromise sneaks in here and there for the sake of advantage, and we may convince ourselves that the end justifies the means.
So may our pain be for our correction and for our renewed discernment.
So we may not hear our Lord and Master say to us, “Perceive ye not yet, neither understand? have ye your heart yet hardened?”
12 December 2016
“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. John 13:34, 35
For more than three years the disciples of Jesus had been clearly marked as His disciples.
How did their neighbours and acquaintences from Galilee now describe these who were before fisherman, labouring on the sea of Galilee? As fisherman? How should his fellow publicans describe their partner Matthew? As a publican?
Oh, no! Peter, Andrew, James and John were no longer fishermen. Matthew was no longer a tax collector.
They were disciples, disciples of Jesus of Nazareth.
How did men know this was true? What made them disciples of Jesus of Nazareth?
The answer is astonishingly simple. They followed Jesus.
Wherever Jesus was to be found, there were these about Him. They travelled with Him, ate and drank with Him, and where he laid down His head at night, there they did. They attended upon all His words. They followed His teachings. They represented Him when He sent them out two by two to the cities and villages where He Himself would go.
But now Jesus told them that He was going away from them. “Little children, yet a little while I am with you.”
The coming separation meant that Jesus’ disciples would no longer be known as His disciples for this reason.
Though no longer with their Lord and Master, they must still be known as His disciples.
How?
“By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”
In this way of love, were these men to show that they were followers of Jesus. By this love they were to demonstrate that they had received His teachings in order to follow Him. By this love they were to prove that they indeed belonged to Him, though the distance between them was as great as between heaven and earth.
Why this way of love?
The answer we have in verse 34, “As I have loved you.”
How Jesus had loved them! He loved them, to leave His heavenly glory to be incarnate in the likeness of sinful flesh, to be found a man among men. He loved them, to give Himself to them, leading them, instructing them, bolstering their faith, caring for them. But He loved them most of all in laying down His life for them, sacrificing His blood on the accursed tree of the cross, to redeem them from sin and Satan’s hand.
So had He loved them: wondrously, beautifully, powerfully, and selflessly.
So now must they love one another: wondrously, beautifully, powerfully, and selflessly.
Now would men see them as they loved one another. And all who saw them must certainly conclude: yes, they must indeed be the disciples of Jesus Christ.
So may we by the power of the Spirit of Jesus Christ love one another as He loved us! So may all men know that we are His disciples!
“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. John 13:34, 35
For more than three years the disciples of Jesus had been clearly marked as His disciples.
How did their neighbours and acquaintences from Galilee now describe these who were before fisherman, labouring on the sea of Galilee? As fisherman? How should his fellow publicans describe their partner Matthew? As a publican?
Oh, no! Peter, Andrew, James and John were no longer fishermen. Matthew was no longer a tax collector.
They were disciples, disciples of Jesus of Nazareth.
How did men know this was true? What made them disciples of Jesus of Nazareth?
The answer is astonishingly simple. They followed Jesus.
Wherever Jesus was to be found, there were these about Him. They travelled with Him, ate and drank with Him, and where he laid down His head at night, there they did. They attended upon all His words. They followed His teachings. They represented Him when He sent them out two by two to the cities and villages where He Himself would go.
But now Jesus told them that He was going away from them. “Little children, yet a little while I am with you.”
The coming separation meant that Jesus’ disciples would no longer be known as His disciples for this reason.
Though no longer with their Lord and Master, they must still be known as His disciples.
How?
“By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”
In this way of love, were these men to show that they were followers of Jesus. By this love they were to demonstrate that they had received His teachings in order to follow Him. By this love they were to prove that they indeed belonged to Him, though the distance between them was as great as between heaven and earth.
Why this way of love?
The answer we have in verse 34, “As I have loved you.”
How Jesus had loved them! He loved them, to leave His heavenly glory to be incarnate in the likeness of sinful flesh, to be found a man among men. He loved them, to give Himself to them, leading them, instructing them, bolstering their faith, caring for them. But He loved them most of all in laying down His life for them, sacrificing His blood on the accursed tree of the cross, to redeem them from sin and Satan’s hand.
So had He loved them: wondrously, beautifully, powerfully, and selflessly.
So now must they love one another: wondrously, beautifully, powerfully, and selflessly.
Now would men see them as they loved one another. And all who saw them must certainly conclude: yes, they must indeed be the disciples of Jesus Christ.
So may we by the power of the Spirit of Jesus Christ love one another as He loved us! So may all men know that we are His disciples!
6 December 2016
“In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge.” Proverbs 14:26
How much we are given in these few words, and how much we are given because these words are so few!
Such a short, pithy statement is filled with tremendous meaning and significance.
First, with its few simple words this Proverb welds together the inward and the outward sides of God’s wonderful salvation.
“Strong confidence” is the blessedness enjoyed “in the fear of the Lord.” This is courage and boldness that runs through the heart and mind of the believer. Though in the presence of his enemies, he is free from terror. Though his path lies amidst many dangers, he does not fear them.
This strong confidence, which the believer possesses inwardly, is the result of what he knows is true outwardly: “his children shall have a place of refuge.”
They have a strong tower and a mighty fortress in which they are secure. They are hidden in a citadel, placed behind a strong wall, numbered with towers and bulwarks. The enemy cannot penetrate these defences. In their place of refuge, they cannot be harmed.
Who are these that enjoy this confidence and this place of refuge?
How they are identified is both striking and glorious.
Just as their refuge is identified in two different ways, so are these described who have these blessings.
On the one hand, they are the children of the Lord. Having been predestinated unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ, saved by promise of the Son in the Old Testament, saved by the fulfilled Son in the New Testament, they are the children of God. In sovereign love and tender care for His dear children, the Lord guides them into their place of refuge. He will keep His children safe!
On the other hand, these children of God are described according to their inner character and nature. What is it that characterizes these children? How does this word of God identify them as it looks inwardly at them?
“In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence.”
They fear the Lord.
The fear of the Lord runs through their heart. When they think of their Father, they are filled with awe and wonder, with tremendous reverence and respect. They tremble before the greatness of His majesty. Before Him they feel weak, frail, and insignificant.
But this fear is not a terror of destruction. It is not such a fear that makes the children of God flee from their Father. It never feels the need to diminish the honour and glory of God in order to decrease this fear.
For this fear is wonderful. It belongs properly to the children of God, who love their heavenly Father.
Because this fear knows the utter greatness of the glory, majesty, power, and might that makes for His children their place of refuge, and is exactly the confidence of their heart. Because that fear knows also the great, unsearchable and unfathomable grace that has taken such wicked children of Satan, and adopted them to be forever the children of God.
In that fear of the Lord, may we go our way with strong confidence! As His beloved children, may we give thanks to our Father for our place of refuge with Him!
“In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge.” Proverbs 14:26
How much we are given in these few words, and how much we are given because these words are so few!
Such a short, pithy statement is filled with tremendous meaning and significance.
First, with its few simple words this Proverb welds together the inward and the outward sides of God’s wonderful salvation.
“Strong confidence” is the blessedness enjoyed “in the fear of the Lord.” This is courage and boldness that runs through the heart and mind of the believer. Though in the presence of his enemies, he is free from terror. Though his path lies amidst many dangers, he does not fear them.
This strong confidence, which the believer possesses inwardly, is the result of what he knows is true outwardly: “his children shall have a place of refuge.”
They have a strong tower and a mighty fortress in which they are secure. They are hidden in a citadel, placed behind a strong wall, numbered with towers and bulwarks. The enemy cannot penetrate these defences. In their place of refuge, they cannot be harmed.
Who are these that enjoy this confidence and this place of refuge?
How they are identified is both striking and glorious.
Just as their refuge is identified in two different ways, so are these described who have these blessings.
On the one hand, they are the children of the Lord. Having been predestinated unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ, saved by promise of the Son in the Old Testament, saved by the fulfilled Son in the New Testament, they are the children of God. In sovereign love and tender care for His dear children, the Lord guides them into their place of refuge. He will keep His children safe!
On the other hand, these children of God are described according to their inner character and nature. What is it that characterizes these children? How does this word of God identify them as it looks inwardly at them?
“In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence.”
They fear the Lord.
The fear of the Lord runs through their heart. When they think of their Father, they are filled with awe and wonder, with tremendous reverence and respect. They tremble before the greatness of His majesty. Before Him they feel weak, frail, and insignificant.
But this fear is not a terror of destruction. It is not such a fear that makes the children of God flee from their Father. It never feels the need to diminish the honour and glory of God in order to decrease this fear.
For this fear is wonderful. It belongs properly to the children of God, who love their heavenly Father.
Because this fear knows the utter greatness of the glory, majesty, power, and might that makes for His children their place of refuge, and is exactly the confidence of their heart. Because that fear knows also the great, unsearchable and unfathomable grace that has taken such wicked children of Satan, and adopted them to be forever the children of God.
In that fear of the Lord, may we go our way with strong confidence! As His beloved children, may we give thanks to our Father for our place of refuge with Him!
3 December 2016
“Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.” Psalm 143:8
With his enemies in pursuit, so numerous and so strong, David’s strength is spent and his way closed in. So certain is he of death he speaks of himself as already dead and buried.
“He hath made me to dwell in darkness, as those that have been long dead.”
His weakness is not only a weakness of body, but also a weakness of soul. Deep within he finds no inner strength to draw upon, no courage of heart to summon.
“Therefore is my spirit overwhelmed within me; my heart within me is desolate.”
David’s desolate condition is, however, the first aspect of faith. Faith find no strength, no ability, no goodness in self.
At the same time we have faith expressed in its second aspect: to God.
To whom does David come with his desolate condition? Before whom does the Psalmist lay out his case?
Before Jehovah, his God alone.
“For in thee do I trust.”
“For I lift up my soul to thee.”
God alone David will glorify. The Lord alone David will praise. Jehovah alone will be his trust and his shield, his glory and the lifter up of his head.
Why does David put his trust in God alone?
Because God alone is glorious, and God alone is faithful.
All David needs is a word from His God: “Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning.” All he needs is for God to announce His tender, gracious love for His beloved and blessed servant.
To hear such a word must fill David with strength of body and renewed resolve of heart. To have such a word must so enliven and invigorate this servant of the Lord, that he will rise up from the ground with new strength and zeal.
Where will he go with his strength? What will he do with his zeal?
For this, too, he puts his trust in God alone.
“Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk.”
Blessed with God’s strength, David desires to walk only in God’s way.
What is the path of the redeemed? What is the way of the saved?
So it is for the same God who so faithfully speaks His lovingkindness also to teach His way.
The way of security and peace. The way of salvation and blessedness. The way of fellowship and friendship, of truth and light.
“The way wherein I should walk.”
So may we learn of the way wherein we should walk–taught to us by our God.
So may we walk in that way with strength of heart and courage of mind–supplied by the word of our God’s lovingkindness in the morning.
As we trust in Him alone, and lift up our soul to Him alone.
Our God.
“Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.” Psalm 143:8
With his enemies in pursuit, so numerous and so strong, David’s strength is spent and his way closed in. So certain is he of death he speaks of himself as already dead and buried.
“He hath made me to dwell in darkness, as those that have been long dead.”
His weakness is not only a weakness of body, but also a weakness of soul. Deep within he finds no inner strength to draw upon, no courage of heart to summon.
“Therefore is my spirit overwhelmed within me; my heart within me is desolate.”
David’s desolate condition is, however, the first aspect of faith. Faith find no strength, no ability, no goodness in self.
At the same time we have faith expressed in its second aspect: to God.
To whom does David come with his desolate condition? Before whom does the Psalmist lay out his case?
Before Jehovah, his God alone.
“For in thee do I trust.”
“For I lift up my soul to thee.”
God alone David will glorify. The Lord alone David will praise. Jehovah alone will be his trust and his shield, his glory and the lifter up of his head.
Why does David put his trust in God alone?
Because God alone is glorious, and God alone is faithful.
All David needs is a word from His God: “Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning.” All he needs is for God to announce His tender, gracious love for His beloved and blessed servant.
To hear such a word must fill David with strength of body and renewed resolve of heart. To have such a word must so enliven and invigorate this servant of the Lord, that he will rise up from the ground with new strength and zeal.
Where will he go with his strength? What will he do with his zeal?
For this, too, he puts his trust in God alone.
“Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk.”
Blessed with God’s strength, David desires to walk only in God’s way.
What is the path of the redeemed? What is the way of the saved?
So it is for the same God who so faithfully speaks His lovingkindness also to teach His way.
The way of security and peace. The way of salvation and blessedness. The way of fellowship and friendship, of truth and light.
“The way wherein I should walk.”
So may we learn of the way wherein we should walk–taught to us by our God.
So may we walk in that way with strength of heart and courage of mind–supplied by the word of our God’s lovingkindness in the morning.
As we trust in Him alone, and lift up our soul to Him alone.
Our God.
29 November 2016
“And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you he will avenge them speedily.” Luke 18:7
In these words is the application of the parable of the bothersome widow. She appealed to a wicked judge for relief from her adversary. Even though this wicked judge was wholly uncaring, both toward the widow and his work as judge, yet he gave into her begging and pleading because she would not cease from asking him.
When it comes to the application of this parable we must be deeply impressed. The great argument made from the parable by our Lord moves from the lesser to the greater. God is so much different than this unjust judge! The result is the same: deliverance from the enemy. But such a powerful contrast is made between this wicked judge and God.
What is this contrast?
This contrast is between sheer apathy and great, earnest, and urgent desire. The contrast is between an earthly judge tired of being troubled by incessant pleading and begging and the living God ardently longing to save His own.
But what word did our Saviour choose to express this urgent desire of God to save His own?
Not “beloved.” Not “children.” Not “precious.” Not “dear.” Not “little flock.”
But He chose “elect.”
“Shall not God avenge his own elect.”
That word, accused of being cold and frigid. That word, supposed to be so high up, so far away, so remote to be of hardly any use. That word, thought to be of dubious value, thought to stir up notions only of doubt, and thought to be destructive of assurance.
Yet, here it is, despite the thoughts and judgements of men, here on the lips of our Saviour.
Why?
Rooted in eternity, the word “elect” expresses the unchangeable and unconditional determination of God to love forever those whom He chose.
Further, the word “elect” signifies that there is nothing in these elect that makes the Father more or less desirous to deliver them. Though they are weak and sinful, God’s desire to avenge them remains solid and strong.
But most of all, the word “elect” shows that God certainly must avenge them. Only in infinite, boundless, and endless love did He choose them before the foundation of the world. It is that love, rooted and grounded in God’s infinite being alone, which must be fulfilled in the holy, glorious vengeance that God will speedily work for them.
Such must be the comfort of the saints in all their persecutions and tribulations. Persecuted and oppressed by their enemies, the church cries day and night to her God for deliverance. Troubled, harassed and bothered by the world, God’s people wait upon God, while He bears long with them.
And as we are persecuted with those who are persecuted, and suffer with those suffering, our hearts knit together crying out for deliverance, we must be assured that the God who has elected us is just as determined to avenge us speedily.
“And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you he will avenge them speedily.” Luke 18:7
In these words is the application of the parable of the bothersome widow. She appealed to a wicked judge for relief from her adversary. Even though this wicked judge was wholly uncaring, both toward the widow and his work as judge, yet he gave into her begging and pleading because she would not cease from asking him.
When it comes to the application of this parable we must be deeply impressed. The great argument made from the parable by our Lord moves from the lesser to the greater. God is so much different than this unjust judge! The result is the same: deliverance from the enemy. But such a powerful contrast is made between this wicked judge and God.
What is this contrast?
This contrast is between sheer apathy and great, earnest, and urgent desire. The contrast is between an earthly judge tired of being troubled by incessant pleading and begging and the living God ardently longing to save His own.
But what word did our Saviour choose to express this urgent desire of God to save His own?
Not “beloved.” Not “children.” Not “precious.” Not “dear.” Not “little flock.”
But He chose “elect.”
“Shall not God avenge his own elect.”
That word, accused of being cold and frigid. That word, supposed to be so high up, so far away, so remote to be of hardly any use. That word, thought to be of dubious value, thought to stir up notions only of doubt, and thought to be destructive of assurance.
Yet, here it is, despite the thoughts and judgements of men, here on the lips of our Saviour.
Why?
Rooted in eternity, the word “elect” expresses the unchangeable and unconditional determination of God to love forever those whom He chose.
Further, the word “elect” signifies that there is nothing in these elect that makes the Father more or less desirous to deliver them. Though they are weak and sinful, God’s desire to avenge them remains solid and strong.
But most of all, the word “elect” shows that God certainly must avenge them. Only in infinite, boundless, and endless love did He choose them before the foundation of the world. It is that love, rooted and grounded in God’s infinite being alone, which must be fulfilled in the holy, glorious vengeance that God will speedily work for them.
Such must be the comfort of the saints in all their persecutions and tribulations. Persecuted and oppressed by their enemies, the church cries day and night to her God for deliverance. Troubled, harassed and bothered by the world, God’s people wait upon God, while He bears long with them.
And as we are persecuted with those who are persecuted, and suffer with those suffering, our hearts knit together crying out for deliverance, we must be assured that the God who has elected us is just as determined to avenge us speedily.
22 November 2016
“For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:20
Is there any hope at all? Any hope of entering the kingdom of heaven?
Look at those scribes and Pharisees! See how righteous they are. Indeed, they set the standard of righteousness.
They were the students and scholars. The object of their study was the law of God. With painstaking effort they pored over that law. They knew it backward and forward, able to answer any question about that law asked of them. They read commentaries on the law. They wrote commentaries on that law.
And as they studied and as they wrote, so they observed and kept that law. They kept it carefully and thoroughly. They carefully ensured that every step they took with their feet, every movement of their hands, and every word that they spoke was according to that perfect law. So they walked. So they acted. So they spoke. No fault could be found with them. They were blameless and spotless before all.
Morever, these were filled with zeal and devotion to that law of God. Relentlessly they pursued its perfection. They expressed in their speech and language deep regard and unflagging zeal for the law of God.
They were righteous. They were righteousness.
Surely, if anyone was entering the kingdom of heaven, these scribes and Pharisees were first in line. For them the gates of heaven were surely opened wide, to grant them blessed entrance.
No?
Hear the word of Jesus: In no case.
They were not getting in. Against them heaven’s gates were tightly closed. They had no entrance into the kingdom of heaven.
Their righteousness was insufficient!
“Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.”
Your righteousness must exceed theirs. If your righteousness is as their righteousness, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. If your righteousness falls short of their righteousness, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Yet, there is entrance into the kingdom of heaven. There is wide-open, welcoming entrance into the kingdom.
By a righteousness that far surpasses the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. By a righteousness that is wondrously greater than anything you could produce.
The righteousness of Him who spoke these very words.
The righteousness of the Lawgiver Himself, the living God embracing the flesh of Adam’s race. The righteousness of the very Son of God. The righteousness of His heart, soul, mind and strength aligned to do always and only the will of God thoroughly and completely. The righteousness of a perfect entire life and way, in perfect harmony with all the will of God. The righteousness of perfect obedience to the law of God. The righteousness of the Mediator who came in love to seek and save the lost, to be their perfectly obedient Substitute on the tree of the cross.
That is the righteousness which enters into the kingdom of heaven.
Your righteousness!
That righteousness not of your works. That righteousness not of the obedience of the law.
But your righteousness through faith. Preached to you through the gospel, for you to embrace and receive through faith in Christ.
In that righteousness, far exceeding the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, rest assured of your entrance into the kingdom of heaven.
In that blessed and glorious kingdom rejoice.
There rejoice in that righteousness that was exceeding mighty to bring you in, the righteousness of your Lord Jesus Christ. And in that joy give all praise and glory to God, who so graciously gave it to you.
“For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:20
Is there any hope at all? Any hope of entering the kingdom of heaven?
Look at those scribes and Pharisees! See how righteous they are. Indeed, they set the standard of righteousness.
They were the students and scholars. The object of their study was the law of God. With painstaking effort they pored over that law. They knew it backward and forward, able to answer any question about that law asked of them. They read commentaries on the law. They wrote commentaries on that law.
And as they studied and as they wrote, so they observed and kept that law. They kept it carefully and thoroughly. They carefully ensured that every step they took with their feet, every movement of their hands, and every word that they spoke was according to that perfect law. So they walked. So they acted. So they spoke. No fault could be found with them. They were blameless and spotless before all.
Morever, these were filled with zeal and devotion to that law of God. Relentlessly they pursued its perfection. They expressed in their speech and language deep regard and unflagging zeal for the law of God.
They were righteous. They were righteousness.
Surely, if anyone was entering the kingdom of heaven, these scribes and Pharisees were first in line. For them the gates of heaven were surely opened wide, to grant them blessed entrance.
No?
Hear the word of Jesus: In no case.
They were not getting in. Against them heaven’s gates were tightly closed. They had no entrance into the kingdom of heaven.
Their righteousness was insufficient!
“Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.”
Your righteousness must exceed theirs. If your righteousness is as their righteousness, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. If your righteousness falls short of their righteousness, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Yet, there is entrance into the kingdom of heaven. There is wide-open, welcoming entrance into the kingdom.
By a righteousness that far surpasses the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. By a righteousness that is wondrously greater than anything you could produce.
The righteousness of Him who spoke these very words.
The righteousness of the Lawgiver Himself, the living God embracing the flesh of Adam’s race. The righteousness of the very Son of God. The righteousness of His heart, soul, mind and strength aligned to do always and only the will of God thoroughly and completely. The righteousness of a perfect entire life and way, in perfect harmony with all the will of God. The righteousness of perfect obedience to the law of God. The righteousness of the Mediator who came in love to seek and save the lost, to be their perfectly obedient Substitute on the tree of the cross.
That is the righteousness which enters into the kingdom of heaven.
Your righteousness!
That righteousness not of your works. That righteousness not of the obedience of the law.
But your righteousness through faith. Preached to you through the gospel, for you to embrace and receive through faith in Christ.
In that righteousness, far exceeding the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, rest assured of your entrance into the kingdom of heaven.
In that blessed and glorious kingdom rejoice.
There rejoice in that righteousness that was exceeding mighty to bring you in, the righteousness of your Lord Jesus Christ. And in that joy give all praise and glory to God, who so graciously gave it to you.
17 November 2016
“For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.” John 16:27
The wonderful and glorious blessedness of this Word of God is ours to know and enjoy.
“The Father himself loveth you!”
For us is the love of the living God, the Almighty God, the Eternal One. For us is the love of the King whose throne is established forever in the heavens. For us is the love of the glorious Sovereign, who is the Lord of hosts. For us is the love of the supreme, absolute, divine Being.
But also for us is the love of the Father. This love of God is as tender as it is powerful, as intimate as it is glorious, as gentle as it is everlasting. Infinite love cradles and carries us all the way into the blessed arms of our Father in heaven.
But what must be our way to this blessed love? How are we to know that it is truly and really ours in all its blessed and sweet fullness?
“Because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.”
Could such an amazing, wonderful love possibly be suspended on such conditions as these?
Not only a condition of faith, but also a condition of love.
If you believe in God, then He will love you. If you believe that Jesus came out from God, then He will love you.
Could such love of the Father put between itself and its needy children something for them to do, an act for them to perform? If they will do their part, then God will love them?
Impossible!
The love of God must be truly free, glorious, sovereign and gracious!
It is the love of God shown for us when we were still enemies, when God gave His Son to the death of the cross for us.
It is a love gracious, without any merit, wholly without condition.
“Because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.”
What does it mean?
It is exactly the greatness of this love of God, that brings you to the Father and to His Son Jesus Christ.
That love of God never waits. That love of God is never suspended on a condition.
Instead it mightily works in you love for Jesus your Saviour. Instead it graciously works in you faith to believe that Jesus came out from God.
Only because of this work of the love of God, in you is love for His Son Jesus. Only because of this work of the love of God, in you is faith that Jesus came out from God.
In your love of Jesus, is the love of God for you. In your faith that Jesus came out from God, is the love of God for you.
In that love of Jesus, rejoice! In that faith that Jesus came from God, be glad!
“For the Father Himself loveth you.”
“For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.” John 16:27
The wonderful and glorious blessedness of this Word of God is ours to know and enjoy.
“The Father himself loveth you!”
For us is the love of the living God, the Almighty God, the Eternal One. For us is the love of the King whose throne is established forever in the heavens. For us is the love of the glorious Sovereign, who is the Lord of hosts. For us is the love of the supreme, absolute, divine Being.
But also for us is the love of the Father. This love of God is as tender as it is powerful, as intimate as it is glorious, as gentle as it is everlasting. Infinite love cradles and carries us all the way into the blessed arms of our Father in heaven.
But what must be our way to this blessed love? How are we to know that it is truly and really ours in all its blessed and sweet fullness?
“Because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.”
Could such an amazing, wonderful love possibly be suspended on such conditions as these?
Not only a condition of faith, but also a condition of love.
If you believe in God, then He will love you. If you believe that Jesus came out from God, then He will love you.
Could such love of the Father put between itself and its needy children something for them to do, an act for them to perform? If they will do their part, then God will love them?
Impossible!
The love of God must be truly free, glorious, sovereign and gracious!
It is the love of God shown for us when we were still enemies, when God gave His Son to the death of the cross for us.
It is a love gracious, without any merit, wholly without condition.
“Because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.”
What does it mean?
It is exactly the greatness of this love of God, that brings you to the Father and to His Son Jesus Christ.
That love of God never waits. That love of God is never suspended on a condition.
Instead it mightily works in you love for Jesus your Saviour. Instead it graciously works in you faith to believe that Jesus came out from God.
Only because of this work of the love of God, in you is love for His Son Jesus. Only because of this work of the love of God, in you is faith that Jesus came out from God.
In your love of Jesus, is the love of God for you. In your faith that Jesus came out from God, is the love of God for you.
In that love of Jesus, rejoice! In that faith that Jesus came from God, be glad!
“For the Father Himself loveth you.”
12 November 2016
“I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.” John 10:14
A beautiful and blessed picture does Scripture display here of the fellowship between Jesus Christ and His church.
It is a picture of a shepherd and his sheep.
A shepherd knows his sheep. He can identify each and every one. He has them numbered. He has them named. He knows them in all their ways. He knows where and how they are prone to wander away, to seek them, find them and bring them back. He knows the weaknesses and frailties of each, to care for them each and to support them. He knows which ones he must lead gently. He knows which ones he must even carry. He knows how to keep his sheep.
These sheep also know their shepherd. They know him as the one who will take care of them. They know him as the one in whose presence they are safe and secure. They know him as the one who will seek them and find them if they become lost. They know his voice, so that they come to him when he calls them. They know him as the one who leads them well, into green pastures and beside still waters. They know him, to trust him in all his guidance and care.
Such is the way of the shepherd with his sheep.
Such is the way of the good Shepherd with His flock, the way of the Lord Jesus Christ with His church.
Such is the way of the His church and flock with her Saviour and Shepherd.
But this same word of the Shepherd sets before us another truth, the truth of who is first in this blessed and wonderful relationship between the good Shepherd and His sheep.
How clearly we have this truth established in the first words, “I am the good shepherd.”
There it stands in all its glory and in all its power. He is the good shepherd. He is the one who is superior. The sheep belong to Him, given into His hand by the Father. He is the one that is over the sheep. He is the one charged with their welfare and security. He is the one who calls and gathers by His call.
Also, His knowledge is first. The good Shepherd knows His sheep. They are the ones given Him by the Father, known to the Father by name, numbered by the Father, even before they are given to the good Shepherd.
Then, only then, and wonderfully then, is the knowledge of the sheep.
Oh, not only is the Shepherd the good Shepherd. Not only does He know His sheep. But the sheep also know Him. They know Him who has called them by name, who knew them before they knew Him. They know Him as the one who called them by name. They know Him as the one who laid down his life for their sakes. They know him as the one to whom they belong.
They know Him who is the good Shepherd. That knowledge is their delight and their joy. In that knowledge they are safe and secure. For they know their weakness and frailty. They know their tendency to wander and stray. They know they are but sheep.
So may we know our good Shepherd in all His goodness to us, His goodness to know us, His goodness to lay down His life for us, His goodness to lead us home. And in His goodness may we forever follow Him, hearing His voice.
“I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.” John 10:14
A beautiful and blessed picture does Scripture display here of the fellowship between Jesus Christ and His church.
It is a picture of a shepherd and his sheep.
A shepherd knows his sheep. He can identify each and every one. He has them numbered. He has them named. He knows them in all their ways. He knows where and how they are prone to wander away, to seek them, find them and bring them back. He knows the weaknesses and frailties of each, to care for them each and to support them. He knows which ones he must lead gently. He knows which ones he must even carry. He knows how to keep his sheep.
These sheep also know their shepherd. They know him as the one who will take care of them. They know him as the one in whose presence they are safe and secure. They know him as the one who will seek them and find them if they become lost. They know his voice, so that they come to him when he calls them. They know him as the one who leads them well, into green pastures and beside still waters. They know him, to trust him in all his guidance and care.
Such is the way of the shepherd with his sheep.
Such is the way of the good Shepherd with His flock, the way of the Lord Jesus Christ with His church.
Such is the way of the His church and flock with her Saviour and Shepherd.
But this same word of the Shepherd sets before us another truth, the truth of who is first in this blessed and wonderful relationship between the good Shepherd and His sheep.
How clearly we have this truth established in the first words, “I am the good shepherd.”
There it stands in all its glory and in all its power. He is the good shepherd. He is the one who is superior. The sheep belong to Him, given into His hand by the Father. He is the one that is over the sheep. He is the one charged with their welfare and security. He is the one who calls and gathers by His call.
Also, His knowledge is first. The good Shepherd knows His sheep. They are the ones given Him by the Father, known to the Father by name, numbered by the Father, even before they are given to the good Shepherd.
Then, only then, and wonderfully then, is the knowledge of the sheep.
Oh, not only is the Shepherd the good Shepherd. Not only does He know His sheep. But the sheep also know Him. They know Him who has called them by name, who knew them before they knew Him. They know Him as the one who called them by name. They know Him as the one who laid down his life for their sakes. They know him as the one to whom they belong.
They know Him who is the good Shepherd. That knowledge is their delight and their joy. In that knowledge they are safe and secure. For they know their weakness and frailty. They know their tendency to wander and stray. They know they are but sheep.
So may we know our good Shepherd in all His goodness to us, His goodness to know us, His goodness to lay down His life for us, His goodness to lead us home. And in His goodness may we forever follow Him, hearing His voice.
9 November 2019
“Let all your things be done with charity.” 1 Corinthians 16:14
As demanding as this short verse is in translation, much more demanding is it in the original Greek in which the apostle Paul wrote it.
The above translation of this verse gives an exhortation, an encouragement to the saints to see to it that all their business and all their matters are conducted with charity.
But the original carries the force of a commandment. Commanded, demanded, made necessary it is, that “all your things be done with charity.” A commandment for the saints to hear, a commandment for the saints to carry out. But the commandment carries its force and weight to “all your things.” What cannot be expressed in our English language is perfectly clear in the Greek. So we have the best: “Let all your things be done with charity.”
Another way in which this verse is more demanding in the original Greek has to do with the words “with charity.” Lest we should suppose that charity must only accompany or go along with all the things we do, the original Greek is far stronger. It uses the word “in” rather than the word “with.” The way of the original is to tell us that charity must be the sweet odor that must imbue everything that we do.
Charity!
Charity must be the motive that both directs and strengthens us for all that we say and do in this world. Charity must be the influence that runs through every word we speak and every deed we set our hands to perform. Charity must be the end and goal that is manifested and clearly understood by every hearer of our words and every observer of our deeds. Charity must be the understanding that lingers when our words and deeds become only a memory in the minds of those who heard and saw.
Most appropriately, does our translation then use the word charity, rather than the other word which is used so often to translate it, love.
Not only is it well that this verse coming up at the end of I Corinthians share the same word used in the blessed 13th chapter. It is most proper because the word charity emphasises the selfless, sacrificial, giving love that must characterize all the things we do.
This is the charity that looks for nothing in return. There is in it not an ounce of self-consideration. It is the charity that does not seek something for self. It does not deliberate or ponder gain. It does not look for advantage. Charity does not become angry when nothing is received in return, when not even a word of gratitude is heard.
Because, this is the charity that is wholly aimed at bringing benefit to others. The well being of the neighbour is of such importance that self is wholly swallowed up. What will help him? What will be good for her? What will be the best for them? Those questions are the guiding force of charity.
This is the charity with which all our things must be done.
Not merely some of our things. Not only when we might feel especially generous or kind. Not only at times we might feel especially blessed and enriched, and so give out of that mood. Not only when we find ourselves among those easy to love.
No.
“Let all your things be done with charity.”
How?
The way is shown us in the verse before, in the words, “Stand fast in the faith.”
Stand fast in the faith that is in Jesus Christ. Stand fast in the faith that knows the wonder of the cross of Jesus Christ, in the faith that delights to know the wonders of the love of God manifested in that glorious instrument of our salvation. Know the price there that was paid for our sins, the precious blood of the Son of God. Explore that price in all its greatness, the love of Christ to lay down His life for His beloved and dear friends. Consider that price in all its wonder, the love of God to sinners, the love that gave His Son to that death, to suffer under the divine wrath and judgment against sin.
By faith fill your heart with that boundless, endless love of God through Christ.
Then, “Let all your things be done with charity.”
“Let all your things be done with charity.” 1 Corinthians 16:14
As demanding as this short verse is in translation, much more demanding is it in the original Greek in which the apostle Paul wrote it.
The above translation of this verse gives an exhortation, an encouragement to the saints to see to it that all their business and all their matters are conducted with charity.
But the original carries the force of a commandment. Commanded, demanded, made necessary it is, that “all your things be done with charity.” A commandment for the saints to hear, a commandment for the saints to carry out. But the commandment carries its force and weight to “all your things.” What cannot be expressed in our English language is perfectly clear in the Greek. So we have the best: “Let all your things be done with charity.”
Another way in which this verse is more demanding in the original Greek has to do with the words “with charity.” Lest we should suppose that charity must only accompany or go along with all the things we do, the original Greek is far stronger. It uses the word “in” rather than the word “with.” The way of the original is to tell us that charity must be the sweet odor that must imbue everything that we do.
Charity!
Charity must be the motive that both directs and strengthens us for all that we say and do in this world. Charity must be the influence that runs through every word we speak and every deed we set our hands to perform. Charity must be the end and goal that is manifested and clearly understood by every hearer of our words and every observer of our deeds. Charity must be the understanding that lingers when our words and deeds become only a memory in the minds of those who heard and saw.
Most appropriately, does our translation then use the word charity, rather than the other word which is used so often to translate it, love.
Not only is it well that this verse coming up at the end of I Corinthians share the same word used in the blessed 13th chapter. It is most proper because the word charity emphasises the selfless, sacrificial, giving love that must characterize all the things we do.
This is the charity that looks for nothing in return. There is in it not an ounce of self-consideration. It is the charity that does not seek something for self. It does not deliberate or ponder gain. It does not look for advantage. Charity does not become angry when nothing is received in return, when not even a word of gratitude is heard.
Because, this is the charity that is wholly aimed at bringing benefit to others. The well being of the neighbour is of such importance that self is wholly swallowed up. What will help him? What will be good for her? What will be the best for them? Those questions are the guiding force of charity.
This is the charity with which all our things must be done.
Not merely some of our things. Not only when we might feel especially generous or kind. Not only at times we might feel especially blessed and enriched, and so give out of that mood. Not only when we find ourselves among those easy to love.
No.
“Let all your things be done with charity.”
How?
The way is shown us in the verse before, in the words, “Stand fast in the faith.”
Stand fast in the faith that is in Jesus Christ. Stand fast in the faith that knows the wonder of the cross of Jesus Christ, in the faith that delights to know the wonders of the love of God manifested in that glorious instrument of our salvation. Know the price there that was paid for our sins, the precious blood of the Son of God. Explore that price in all its greatness, the love of Christ to lay down His life for His beloved and dear friends. Consider that price in all its wonder, the love of God to sinners, the love that gave His Son to that death, to suffer under the divine wrath and judgment against sin.
By faith fill your heart with that boundless, endless love of God through Christ.
Then, “Let all your things be done with charity.”
8 November, 2016
“But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.” Psalm 116:3
A word to remember!
A word to remember as Americans visit polling places throughout their land.
As they vote, they vote their pleasure, and they vote their pleasure according to the law.
How many laws have been enacted and how many court cases have been decided in order to protect the rights of voters? The freedom to vote, and to vote without coercion is a cherished freedom.
Yet with this election there is a conflict. Many are not pleased with their choice. They are greatly displeased.
Why such choices as these? Why all these feelings of constraint, feeling obligated to vote? Why feeling only such a compulsion to vote to keep the other choice from gaining a majority of votes?
“But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.”
Why these choices?
So hard to hear, so hard to understand: God hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.
One of the reasons for the conflict of heart and soul in this election is the result. Who will be elected? What decisions will he make? What will she do with the great power that is placed into her hands?
Undoubtedly the one chosen will feel the greatness of the power that he or she will hold. What makes us tremble with fear is the uncertainty of how such a one will be pleased to exercise his power. Will he use that power to serve his own cause and his own greatness, rather than the cause of God and country? Will she use the power of her office to tear down and destroy, or to build up and restore?
So will he or she be set up by men as a god. So will he or she exercise their will and their power as a god. So will he or she receive praise and honour, glory and blessing, as a god.
For all of this uncertainty, for all of this concern, the Word of God has rich and wonderful comfort and peace.
All of these workings are merely upon the face of the earth. They are only the pleasures of men made of the dust of the earth. As much as they rally and support, as much as they choose and decide, as much power as they pretend to exert, they are of the earth, earthy.
“But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.”
Who shall be chosen? The one that God has been pleased to chose, from His throne in the heavens.
What shall be the pleasure of the one so chosen by God? What will he or she do with that power committed into his or her hands? What decisions shall be made, what decrees shall issue forth from that office?
Only those that the God of heaven has decreed. As He hath done whatsoever he hath pleased, so shall He do over the next four years.
So shall the God of heaven do: always, only His sovereign good pleasure.
And all that He will do He will do, not only according to His good pleasure, but also for His church.
For this God, who is in the heavens and who does whatsoever He hath pleased, is our God.
He is our God, who has promised forever to be our God. He is our God, who has given to us His only-begotten Son, and will give us all things with Him.
All things!
“The world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours.”
May this be our comfort and our peace every day:
“Our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.”
“But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.” Psalm 116:3
A word to remember!
A word to remember as Americans visit polling places throughout their land.
As they vote, they vote their pleasure, and they vote their pleasure according to the law.
How many laws have been enacted and how many court cases have been decided in order to protect the rights of voters? The freedom to vote, and to vote without coercion is a cherished freedom.
Yet with this election there is a conflict. Many are not pleased with their choice. They are greatly displeased.
Why such choices as these? Why all these feelings of constraint, feeling obligated to vote? Why feeling only such a compulsion to vote to keep the other choice from gaining a majority of votes?
“But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.”
Why these choices?
So hard to hear, so hard to understand: God hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.
One of the reasons for the conflict of heart and soul in this election is the result. Who will be elected? What decisions will he make? What will she do with the great power that is placed into her hands?
Undoubtedly the one chosen will feel the greatness of the power that he or she will hold. What makes us tremble with fear is the uncertainty of how such a one will be pleased to exercise his power. Will he use that power to serve his own cause and his own greatness, rather than the cause of God and country? Will she use the power of her office to tear down and destroy, or to build up and restore?
So will he or she be set up by men as a god. So will he or she exercise their will and their power as a god. So will he or she receive praise and honour, glory and blessing, as a god.
For all of this uncertainty, for all of this concern, the Word of God has rich and wonderful comfort and peace.
All of these workings are merely upon the face of the earth. They are only the pleasures of men made of the dust of the earth. As much as they rally and support, as much as they choose and decide, as much power as they pretend to exert, they are of the earth, earthy.
“But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.”
Who shall be chosen? The one that God has been pleased to chose, from His throne in the heavens.
What shall be the pleasure of the one so chosen by God? What will he or she do with that power committed into his or her hands? What decisions shall be made, what decrees shall issue forth from that office?
Only those that the God of heaven has decreed. As He hath done whatsoever he hath pleased, so shall He do over the next four years.
So shall the God of heaven do: always, only His sovereign good pleasure.
And all that He will do He will do, not only according to His good pleasure, but also for His church.
For this God, who is in the heavens and who does whatsoever He hath pleased, is our God.
He is our God, who has promised forever to be our God. He is our God, who has given to us His only-begotten Son, and will give us all things with Him.
All things!
“The world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours.”
May this be our comfort and our peace every day:
“Our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.”
25 October 2016
“Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 18:10
How easy it is to offend!
How easy it is to go on in our way, heedless of those around us!
Easy it is to fall into the patterns and habits of the sins of the world in which we live. Easy it is to take the same careless words into our own mouths. Easy it is to adopt the same attitudes, behaviours and works. Easy it is to excuse ourselves, that these are “no big deal.”
But, take heed!
Easy it is also to insist on our own way. We go where the Word of God is silent, giving us the right to decide what we shall do and what we shall say. We will decide our course of action. We will determine our way. So will we carry on, never minding the effect that our way might have on one who is “little.” Easy it is to express our will and our choice, regardless and heedless.
But, Take heed!
“Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones.”
How easy it is to overlook them!
They are small. We take little account of them. Their opinions and judgments do not matter to us. Of little weight are the force of their words and actions. As we might think of our projects and plans, our ambitious aims and goals, these “little ones” all but disappear from view.
But as little as they are, so impressionable are they. With their nimble minds, they quickly gather in all they see and hear, analyzing and drawing their conclusions. They assess and they reason. As they do, to those words, deeds, and attitudes we present with so little heed, they attach great weight.
As easy as it is for us to sin and as easy as it is for us to insist on our right, so easy is it for them to be offended and to stumble.
“Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones.”
Not one!
In order to make us take heed, our Lord presents us with such a view that must forcefully correct our disregard.
“For I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.”
These little ones have their angels.
Their angels are the mighty, glorious, wondrous messengers of heaven. Their angels bear in their perfectly holy natures the glory of the heaven that they inhabit. Standing before the face of Jesus’ Father, they absorb His heavenly glory and reflect it as they carry out their heavenly missions.
Before His face they stand, ready to be dispatched to administer their Father’s love and care upon His little ones. They return to report back to their Father how they have done and how His little ones have fared with His care they brought to them. They declare the cause of His little ones, and how they are treated and how they are cared for by others around them.
May these angels that always behold the face of the heavenly Father bring a good report concerning us and our regard and care for His little ones!
So let us take heed that we despise not one of these little ones, but show our deep regard and care for them in all our conduct.
“Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 18:10
How easy it is to offend!
How easy it is to go on in our way, heedless of those around us!
Easy it is to fall into the patterns and habits of the sins of the world in which we live. Easy it is to take the same careless words into our own mouths. Easy it is to adopt the same attitudes, behaviours and works. Easy it is to excuse ourselves, that these are “no big deal.”
But, take heed!
Easy it is also to insist on our own way. We go where the Word of God is silent, giving us the right to decide what we shall do and what we shall say. We will decide our course of action. We will determine our way. So will we carry on, never minding the effect that our way might have on one who is “little.” Easy it is to express our will and our choice, regardless and heedless.
But, Take heed!
“Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones.”
How easy it is to overlook them!
They are small. We take little account of them. Their opinions and judgments do not matter to us. Of little weight are the force of their words and actions. As we might think of our projects and plans, our ambitious aims and goals, these “little ones” all but disappear from view.
But as little as they are, so impressionable are they. With their nimble minds, they quickly gather in all they see and hear, analyzing and drawing their conclusions. They assess and they reason. As they do, to those words, deeds, and attitudes we present with so little heed, they attach great weight.
As easy as it is for us to sin and as easy as it is for us to insist on our right, so easy is it for them to be offended and to stumble.
“Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones.”
Not one!
In order to make us take heed, our Lord presents us with such a view that must forcefully correct our disregard.
“For I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.”
These little ones have their angels.
Their angels are the mighty, glorious, wondrous messengers of heaven. Their angels bear in their perfectly holy natures the glory of the heaven that they inhabit. Standing before the face of Jesus’ Father, they absorb His heavenly glory and reflect it as they carry out their heavenly missions.
Before His face they stand, ready to be dispatched to administer their Father’s love and care upon His little ones. They return to report back to their Father how they have done and how His little ones have fared with His care they brought to them. They declare the cause of His little ones, and how they are treated and how they are cared for by others around them.
May these angels that always behold the face of the heavenly Father bring a good report concerning us and our regard and care for His little ones!
So let us take heed that we despise not one of these little ones, but show our deep regard and care for them in all our conduct.
22 October 2016
“But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” Matthew 9:13
As the self-righteous but wicked Pharisees inquired, so Christ answered.
“Why,” they asked, “eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?”
Why?
Their question is asked out of their astonishment. Before their eyes was a religious and moral violation of the highest order. The Master was, of all things, eating and drinking with sinners!
How could He?!! The unclean must defile the clean. The pure, righteous, and holy Master has now defiled and degraded Himself. The contamination of these sinners must now contaminate Him who sat with them. His purity is now lost. His holiness is now broken. Now He is no different than they, these sinners.
But their question, whether asked by these Pharisees in simple amazement or dissimulating hatred, reveals nothing about the Master. It reveals only their ignorance.
They do not know, but walk in the darkness of their ignorance.
They know not their own Scriptures. They are ignorant of the Word of the God they claimed to serve and follow.
They must go and they must learn what this means: “I will have mercy and not sacrifice.”
What is truly pleasing to God? What is delightful to Him?
Not the outward ritual. Not the presentation of sacrifices, however great and numerous, however the cost or trouble. Not the accumulation of all the close and careful observances of tradition and law practiced so carefully and scrupulously by these Pharisees.
But mercy.
Mercy!
Wonderful and blessed virtue of the heart! The mercy that feels woe, anguish, and sorrow for those that are in trouble and need! The mercy that swiftly goes to those troubled and needy! The mercy that gives all to lift them up out of their trouble and need! The mercy that seeks their blessedness and peace!
Mercy God will have. Mercy God delights in. Mercy He loves and approves.
Right then and there, the questioned Master carries the delight, the love, and the approval of His Father upon Him.
As He eats with publicans and sinners.
For so He came to this world, to please His merciful, Heavenly Father.
So He came not “to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
So our merciful Master came to us. So He came near to us, poor, miserable sinners.
So He came calling us to repentance, to turn from our sinful ways to rest in His mercy, His mercy of pardon and His mercy of redemption from sin, its guilt and its awful power.
So by His great mercy, by His Word and Spirit, we heard His merciful, powerful call. So we came to Him, to know the riches of His mercy to us.
And as we know the greatness of our Master’s mercy to us, let us rejoice to walk in that same way of mercy.
May we show that we have learned from our merciful Master what this means: “I will have mercy and not sacrifice.”
“But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” Matthew 9:13
As the self-righteous but wicked Pharisees inquired, so Christ answered.
“Why,” they asked, “eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?”
Why?
Their question is asked out of their astonishment. Before their eyes was a religious and moral violation of the highest order. The Master was, of all things, eating and drinking with sinners!
How could He?!! The unclean must defile the clean. The pure, righteous, and holy Master has now defiled and degraded Himself. The contamination of these sinners must now contaminate Him who sat with them. His purity is now lost. His holiness is now broken. Now He is no different than they, these sinners.
But their question, whether asked by these Pharisees in simple amazement or dissimulating hatred, reveals nothing about the Master. It reveals only their ignorance.
They do not know, but walk in the darkness of their ignorance.
They know not their own Scriptures. They are ignorant of the Word of the God they claimed to serve and follow.
They must go and they must learn what this means: “I will have mercy and not sacrifice.”
What is truly pleasing to God? What is delightful to Him?
Not the outward ritual. Not the presentation of sacrifices, however great and numerous, however the cost or trouble. Not the accumulation of all the close and careful observances of tradition and law practiced so carefully and scrupulously by these Pharisees.
But mercy.
Mercy!
Wonderful and blessed virtue of the heart! The mercy that feels woe, anguish, and sorrow for those that are in trouble and need! The mercy that swiftly goes to those troubled and needy! The mercy that gives all to lift them up out of their trouble and need! The mercy that seeks their blessedness and peace!
Mercy God will have. Mercy God delights in. Mercy He loves and approves.
Right then and there, the questioned Master carries the delight, the love, and the approval of His Father upon Him.
As He eats with publicans and sinners.
For so He came to this world, to please His merciful, Heavenly Father.
So He came not “to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
So our merciful Master came to us. So He came near to us, poor, miserable sinners.
So He came calling us to repentance, to turn from our sinful ways to rest in His mercy, His mercy of pardon and His mercy of redemption from sin, its guilt and its awful power.
So by His great mercy, by His Word and Spirit, we heard His merciful, powerful call. So we came to Him, to know the riches of His mercy to us.
And as we know the greatness of our Master’s mercy to us, let us rejoice to walk in that same way of mercy.
May we show that we have learned from our merciful Master what this means: “I will have mercy and not sacrifice.”
20 October 2016
“And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.” Luke 21:28
Look all around you.
Look through all the earth. Look among the nations and their inhabitants. Examine societies and cultures. Consider the rich and the poor, the high and the low, educated and uneducated, the famous and the ignoble.
What do you see?
See catastrophe and calamity. See earthquakes, famines, and pestilence ravaging lands and peoples. See the destructive fury of earthquakes and landslides, of hurricanes, typhoons, and their devastation by wind and wave.
See the destructive power of weapons of war: missiles and bombs, tanks and guns, the instruments of nations warring against nations. Note the efforts of diplomacy failing over and over again, men turning from peace to war. Observe the violence practiced by men upon each other, neighbor setting upon neighbor, whether of greed, anger or simple contempt.
See the increase of iniquity in society. Behold the abounding abominations practiced by men in high places. No longer excusing but approving. No longer in hiding for shame of disapproval, but flagrantly flaunting their wickedness in public.
And what you see, looking around you, is cause to look downward.
Looking down for shame and sorrow, seeing how truth is fallen in the street and the gold become dim. Looking down for frailty and feebleness, for who can stand in such an evil day?
But the Word of your Saviour you must hear.
Look up!
Lift up your heads!
“For your redemption draweth nigh.”
See in and through all that calamity, violence, and iniquity your redemption. All these evils are the judgments of Him who sits at the right hand of God. Your Lord is busy carrying out His justice. He is at work executing His righteousness among the nations of men, to bring about His return in judgment.
In that judgment is also your salvation. The end of wickedness is your perfect righteousness. The end of destruction is your glorious deliverance. He is coming for you, to deliver you out of this present evil age. He is coming to take you to be with Him in the everlasting glory of your salvation.
Look up!
“And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.” Luke 21:28
Look all around you.
Look through all the earth. Look among the nations and their inhabitants. Examine societies and cultures. Consider the rich and the poor, the high and the low, educated and uneducated, the famous and the ignoble.
What do you see?
See catastrophe and calamity. See earthquakes, famines, and pestilence ravaging lands and peoples. See the destructive fury of earthquakes and landslides, of hurricanes, typhoons, and their devastation by wind and wave.
See the destructive power of weapons of war: missiles and bombs, tanks and guns, the instruments of nations warring against nations. Note the efforts of diplomacy failing over and over again, men turning from peace to war. Observe the violence practiced by men upon each other, neighbor setting upon neighbor, whether of greed, anger or simple contempt.
See the increase of iniquity in society. Behold the abounding abominations practiced by men in high places. No longer excusing but approving. No longer in hiding for shame of disapproval, but flagrantly flaunting their wickedness in public.
And what you see, looking around you, is cause to look downward.
Looking down for shame and sorrow, seeing how truth is fallen in the street and the gold become dim. Looking down for frailty and feebleness, for who can stand in such an evil day?
But the Word of your Saviour you must hear.
Look up!
Lift up your heads!
“For your redemption draweth nigh.”
See in and through all that calamity, violence, and iniquity your redemption. All these evils are the judgments of Him who sits at the right hand of God. Your Lord is busy carrying out His justice. He is at work executing His righteousness among the nations of men, to bring about His return in judgment.
In that judgment is also your salvation. The end of wickedness is your perfect righteousness. The end of destruction is your glorious deliverance. He is coming for you, to deliver you out of this present evil age. He is coming to take you to be with Him in the everlasting glory of your salvation.
Look up!
14 October 2016
“And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; there remained not so much as one of them. But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.” Exodus 14:27-29
Those marvelous waters of the Red Sea!
These waters had seen such working of divine power before. Before they had settled down to become the Red Sea they had been joined together with the waters that poured out of the foundations of the deep and poured out of the windows of heaven. They had been part of the vast deluge that covered the earth in the days of Noah. They had their part in cleansing that old world of its sin and sinners. They had their part in saving believing Noah and his family from the sin and sinners of that old world.
Now these waters are again called by the mighty voice of God to perform the same glorious work of salvation.
Now their duty is to stand at attention, forming with two high walls a pathway for the children of Israel to walk through. Through those waters the people of God walked on dry ground, as they looked on those watery walls with wonder and amazement. Here was their salvation. Guarded and guided by those walls, the Lord directed His redeemed people to their freedom that lay on the other side of the Red Sea.
Salvation to His people did these great waters bring!
But those same waters are also called by God to be the instrument of His awful judgment.
Down, through the midst of those same waters chased heart-hardened Pharaoh and the heart-hardened host of Egypt. Down into the division of the flood of the Red Sea Pharaoh pursued his angry vengeance against the people of God delivered by such mighty signs and wonders.
But those waters for Pharaoh and his host provided no safety and no security. For him and his they gave no path forward. Those waters were their condemnation. Those waters were their judgment, their overthrow and their death.
So the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. His mighty waters covered over the chariots, and the horsemen and all the host of Pharaoh.
The very same waters!
The instrument of salvation is the very same instrument of damnation.
The waters that save Israel are the waters that destroy Egypt.
So now today is the Word of the gospel of the cross of Jesus Christ. So today is the fellowship of the church in that Word.
In that Word and in that fellowship of the Word is salvation. Salvation to bring comfort and peace. Salvation to bring hope and joy in that hope. Salvation to live and walk as the people of God in the world. Safe are they from all their enemies. Safe are they in the hands of their God.
But let the world and its children beware! Let hypocrites, the children of the flesh, and lovers of this present world beware! That same Word is a Word of rebuke, of condemnation, and everlasting judgment. In and with the salvation brought to God’s people in the world is the judgment of the world.
As we follow after that Word, finding in it our peace with God, our light and our life, let us remember that the judgment of the same Word is also our salvation. Our redemption is through judgment, our salvation in that we shall see our enemies no more.
“And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; there remained not so much as one of them. But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.” Exodus 14:27-29
Those marvelous waters of the Red Sea!
These waters had seen such working of divine power before. Before they had settled down to become the Red Sea they had been joined together with the waters that poured out of the foundations of the deep and poured out of the windows of heaven. They had been part of the vast deluge that covered the earth in the days of Noah. They had their part in cleansing that old world of its sin and sinners. They had their part in saving believing Noah and his family from the sin and sinners of that old world.
Now these waters are again called by the mighty voice of God to perform the same glorious work of salvation.
Now their duty is to stand at attention, forming with two high walls a pathway for the children of Israel to walk through. Through those waters the people of God walked on dry ground, as they looked on those watery walls with wonder and amazement. Here was their salvation. Guarded and guided by those walls, the Lord directed His redeemed people to their freedom that lay on the other side of the Red Sea.
Salvation to His people did these great waters bring!
But those same waters are also called by God to be the instrument of His awful judgment.
Down, through the midst of those same waters chased heart-hardened Pharaoh and the heart-hardened host of Egypt. Down into the division of the flood of the Red Sea Pharaoh pursued his angry vengeance against the people of God delivered by such mighty signs and wonders.
But those waters for Pharaoh and his host provided no safety and no security. For him and his they gave no path forward. Those waters were their condemnation. Those waters were their judgment, their overthrow and their death.
So the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. His mighty waters covered over the chariots, and the horsemen and all the host of Pharaoh.
The very same waters!
The instrument of salvation is the very same instrument of damnation.
The waters that save Israel are the waters that destroy Egypt.
So now today is the Word of the gospel of the cross of Jesus Christ. So today is the fellowship of the church in that Word.
In that Word and in that fellowship of the Word is salvation. Salvation to bring comfort and peace. Salvation to bring hope and joy in that hope. Salvation to live and walk as the people of God in the world. Safe are they from all their enemies. Safe are they in the hands of their God.
But let the world and its children beware! Let hypocrites, the children of the flesh, and lovers of this present world beware! That same Word is a Word of rebuke, of condemnation, and everlasting judgment. In and with the salvation brought to God’s people in the world is the judgment of the world.
As we follow after that Word, finding in it our peace with God, our light and our life, let us remember that the judgment of the same Word is also our salvation. Our redemption is through judgment, our salvation in that we shall see our enemies no more.
28 September 2016
“The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness. Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness. If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.” Luke 11:34-36
How excellent a picture of our natures our Lord Jesus gives us in these words!
Our nature Jesus pictures as a body, an empty building that would be entirely and completely dark were it not for one window. That window is the eye. The eye is the window of the body, and whatever light is going to enter into the body, to make it full of light, must enter in through the eye.
Blessed is that body that is full of light! There is in that body joy, peace, and happiness. There is that body the consciousness of the favour and friendship of the living God. There is in that body delight and affection for God, His Word and fellowship with Him in prayer. There may be darkness all around that body, but within the light remains.
In that body there is no part that is dark. It is “as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.” There is light within, and there are no shadows to bother or trouble.
On the other hand, awful is the body that is full of darkness. There is nothing of truth, nothing reliable or faithful. Instead there are only lies and deceit. There is only horrible ignorance and groping blindness, that must lead to constant stumbling and wandering.
Why all this darkness? Because of the window that is the eye. “Thine eye is evil.”
All depends on the eye. Is the eye single, or is it evil? Is “the light that is in thee” darkness or light?
Take heed!
“Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness!”
Take heed that thine eye is not evil!
Take heed that thine eye is not directed to the darkness of evil. Take heed that thine eye does not fall upon the evil abominations of men. Take heed that thine eye is not filled with their perversions or their violence. Take heed that thy window does not look toward the pride of possessions or wealth, or the fame and glory of men. Take heed that thy vision is not directed toward seeking and finding evil in thy neighbour to feed pride and self-righteousness.
Lest the light that is in thee be darkness.
But also take heed that thine eye be single!
That is, take heed that thine eye is not compound, or manifold, that it takes in a mixture of darkness and light. Do not suppose that you can dwell upon evil and good, upon the truth and the lie, on the fear of God and the fear of man, on the love of God and the love of the world. Do not think you can meditate on kindness and cruelty, on forgiveness and vengeance, on evil and good.
For then, too, thine eye will be evil, and thy body also filled with darkness.
But let thine eye be single, and thy whole body filled with light.
Let thine dwell upon Christ, the light of God and the light of the world. Let it look upon the Word of light and truth. Let it seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness only. Let it look to whatsoever things are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, and of good report.
Then the “whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.”
Light to rejoice in. Light to walk in. Light to live by.
Take heed therefore!
“The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness. Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness. If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.” Luke 11:34-36
How excellent a picture of our natures our Lord Jesus gives us in these words!
Our nature Jesus pictures as a body, an empty building that would be entirely and completely dark were it not for one window. That window is the eye. The eye is the window of the body, and whatever light is going to enter into the body, to make it full of light, must enter in through the eye.
Blessed is that body that is full of light! There is in that body joy, peace, and happiness. There is that body the consciousness of the favour and friendship of the living God. There is in that body delight and affection for God, His Word and fellowship with Him in prayer. There may be darkness all around that body, but within the light remains.
In that body there is no part that is dark. It is “as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.” There is light within, and there are no shadows to bother or trouble.
On the other hand, awful is the body that is full of darkness. There is nothing of truth, nothing reliable or faithful. Instead there are only lies and deceit. There is only horrible ignorance and groping blindness, that must lead to constant stumbling and wandering.
Why all this darkness? Because of the window that is the eye. “Thine eye is evil.”
All depends on the eye. Is the eye single, or is it evil? Is “the light that is in thee” darkness or light?
Take heed!
“Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness!”
Take heed that thine eye is not evil!
Take heed that thine eye is not directed to the darkness of evil. Take heed that thine eye does not fall upon the evil abominations of men. Take heed that thine eye is not filled with their perversions or their violence. Take heed that thy window does not look toward the pride of possessions or wealth, or the fame and glory of men. Take heed that thy vision is not directed toward seeking and finding evil in thy neighbour to feed pride and self-righteousness.
Lest the light that is in thee be darkness.
But also take heed that thine eye be single!
That is, take heed that thine eye is not compound, or manifold, that it takes in a mixture of darkness and light. Do not suppose that you can dwell upon evil and good, upon the truth and the lie, on the fear of God and the fear of man, on the love of God and the love of the world. Do not think you can meditate on kindness and cruelty, on forgiveness and vengeance, on evil and good.
For then, too, thine eye will be evil, and thy body also filled with darkness.
But let thine eye be single, and thy whole body filled with light.
Let thine dwell upon Christ, the light of God and the light of the world. Let it look upon the Word of light and truth. Let it seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness only. Let it look to whatsoever things are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, and of good report.
Then the “whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.”
Light to rejoice in. Light to walk in. Light to live by.
Take heed therefore!
22 September 2016
“Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” I Peter 1:10, 11
Wherefore, the rather, brethren!
Rather than lacking the things that pertain unto life and godliness. . . Rather than being blind, unable to see afar off . . . Rather than the forgetting we have been purged from our old sins . . . Rather than forgetting our calling and election . . .
Rather, let us give diligence. Rather, let us make our calling and election sure. Rather, let us add to our faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge temperance, to temperance patience, to patience godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness charity.
Let us make our calling from God’s mercy and our election by God’s grace sure. Let us make them sure through the vigorous and relentless pursuit of every good fruit of that calling and election.
Why?
So far from failing, so far from the blindness from seeing God’s kingdom, and so far from forgetting, we shall never fail.
So far from failure, an entrance into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ shall be abundantly ministered unto us!
See it growing ever stronger! See it growing ever nearer! See it become ever clearer before your eyes! Any doubt of entering is banished. Any concern of losing your way is dismissed.
How?
We must go back to God’s calling and His election.
In His calling and election is absolute, utter certainty. His calling is almighty and powerful, the same calling that brought light out of darkness. His election is sovereign and unconditional, made before the foundation of the world without respect to anything in the creature.
That calling and election have only one, undisputed and clear end: everlasting salvation. God’s calling is unto grace and glory. His election is unto His everlasting kingdom.
These are the very fruits of that almighty calling and eternal election: faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, and charity.
As those fruits, pursued by us and enjoyed by us, have their wonderful presence in our lives, not only does our calling and election become more sure to us, but so does their end: our entrance into the kingdom.
So let us give diligence! Let us add! Let us abound!
“Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” I Peter 1:10, 11
Wherefore, the rather, brethren!
Rather than lacking the things that pertain unto life and godliness. . . Rather than being blind, unable to see afar off . . . Rather than the forgetting we have been purged from our old sins . . . Rather than forgetting our calling and election . . .
Rather, let us give diligence. Rather, let us make our calling and election sure. Rather, let us add to our faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge temperance, to temperance patience, to patience godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness charity.
Let us make our calling from God’s mercy and our election by God’s grace sure. Let us make them sure through the vigorous and relentless pursuit of every good fruit of that calling and election.
Why?
So far from failing, so far from the blindness from seeing God’s kingdom, and so far from forgetting, we shall never fail.
So far from failure, an entrance into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ shall be abundantly ministered unto us!
See it growing ever stronger! See it growing ever nearer! See it become ever clearer before your eyes! Any doubt of entering is banished. Any concern of losing your way is dismissed.
How?
We must go back to God’s calling and His election.
In His calling and election is absolute, utter certainty. His calling is almighty and powerful, the same calling that brought light out of darkness. His election is sovereign and unconditional, made before the foundation of the world without respect to anything in the creature.
That calling and election have only one, undisputed and clear end: everlasting salvation. God’s calling is unto grace and glory. His election is unto His everlasting kingdom.
These are the very fruits of that almighty calling and eternal election: faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, and charity.
As those fruits, pursued by us and enjoyed by us, have their wonderful presence in our lives, not only does our calling and election become more sure to us, but so does their end: our entrance into the kingdom.
So let us give diligence! Let us add! Let us abound!
21 September 2016
“Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin.” I Peter 4:1
The Word of God announces here a powerful and clear call to arms.
There is presently a war, an ongoing battle in which you have been drafted by the grace of God. According to sovereign, divine election, through the Spirit’s work of calling you out of Satan’s kingdom and into the kingdom of the dear Son of God, you have your place on the winning side. Your side is the side of faith, the victory that overcometh the world.
But that victory is not yet won. The battle still rages. Still you must war and fight.
So, arm yourselves!
What are the armaments of this battle? What are the weapons of this warfare?
The Word of God here gives you your weapon: arm yourselves with the same mind.
Your weapon is a frame of mind. Your armaments are a certain set of thoughts. To defend your position and territory requires a mode of thinking. To emerge victorious in this fray you must adopt this viewpoint.
What is this same mind?
It is the mind of Christ, who “suffered for us in the flesh.” This is the way laid out in the previous chapter, that the Christian “suffer for well doing,” rather than “suffer for evil doing.” This is the way of Jesus’ suffering in all his life, but especially on the cross. “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit.”
That kind of suffering, suffering for a good end, and a good purpose, was the mind of Christ. With His holy mind, He looked for that suffering, understanding it as good and advantageous. He saw the end and goal of His suffering: the unjust brought to God, wholly reconciled to Him, and blessed in His peace with all the blessings of salvation, eternal life and glory.
With that mind must you arm yourselves.
Look to suffer. Be ready to suffer. Have the mindset of suffering.
Keep in your mind a connection between suffering and good. Have no mind for suffering for evil doing. That is no goal at all! Be of a mind to suffer for good.
With your mind remove all shame and dishonour from this suffering for good. With your mind esteem and treasure this kind of suffering, making it most honourable and delightful. Consider with your mind the example of those who suffered for good, that they were glad and rejoiced to suffer for the sake of Jesus’ name.
With your mind so armed, you will then reap the great benefit of suffering. Any and all suffering will have the powerful result that you will be freed of the greatest threat to your blessedness in God’s kingdom: the love of the world.
How the world desires to take you back into its warm, loving embrace! How the world wishes to give you its own comfort and peace, its society and culture for your rest and your hope!
But your suffering in this world gives you exactly the right mind to shun that love of the world. It cannot be your home. It cannot be your peace.
No, your home is in heaven. Your peace is in the kingdom of God. Your strength is to fight the battle of faith, the victory that overcometh the world.
So arm yourselves!
Arm yourselves with the mind of Christ!
“Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin.” I Peter 4:1
The Word of God announces here a powerful and clear call to arms.
There is presently a war, an ongoing battle in which you have been drafted by the grace of God. According to sovereign, divine election, through the Spirit’s work of calling you out of Satan’s kingdom and into the kingdom of the dear Son of God, you have your place on the winning side. Your side is the side of faith, the victory that overcometh the world.
But that victory is not yet won. The battle still rages. Still you must war and fight.
So, arm yourselves!
What are the armaments of this battle? What are the weapons of this warfare?
The Word of God here gives you your weapon: arm yourselves with the same mind.
Your weapon is a frame of mind. Your armaments are a certain set of thoughts. To defend your position and territory requires a mode of thinking. To emerge victorious in this fray you must adopt this viewpoint.
What is this same mind?
It is the mind of Christ, who “suffered for us in the flesh.” This is the way laid out in the previous chapter, that the Christian “suffer for well doing,” rather than “suffer for evil doing.” This is the way of Jesus’ suffering in all his life, but especially on the cross. “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit.”
That kind of suffering, suffering for a good end, and a good purpose, was the mind of Christ. With His holy mind, He looked for that suffering, understanding it as good and advantageous. He saw the end and goal of His suffering: the unjust brought to God, wholly reconciled to Him, and blessed in His peace with all the blessings of salvation, eternal life and glory.
With that mind must you arm yourselves.
Look to suffer. Be ready to suffer. Have the mindset of suffering.
Keep in your mind a connection between suffering and good. Have no mind for suffering for evil doing. That is no goal at all! Be of a mind to suffer for good.
With your mind remove all shame and dishonour from this suffering for good. With your mind esteem and treasure this kind of suffering, making it most honourable and delightful. Consider with your mind the example of those who suffered for good, that they were glad and rejoiced to suffer for the sake of Jesus’ name.
With your mind so armed, you will then reap the great benefit of suffering. Any and all suffering will have the powerful result that you will be freed of the greatest threat to your blessedness in God’s kingdom: the love of the world.
How the world desires to take you back into its warm, loving embrace! How the world wishes to give you its own comfort and peace, its society and culture for your rest and your hope!
But your suffering in this world gives you exactly the right mind to shun that love of the world. It cannot be your home. It cannot be your peace.
No, your home is in heaven. Your peace is in the kingdom of God. Your strength is to fight the battle of faith, the victory that overcometh the world.
So arm yourselves!
Arm yourselves with the mind of Christ!
18 September 2016
“I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet.” Revelation 1:10
Where?
Where was the apostle John? Where was the disciple that was beloved of the Lord?
There he was, in the isle of Patmos. There he was, exiled to that place for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. There he was, as “your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ,” according to the verse before.
But there he also was, “in the Spirit.”
In the Spirit, not exiled, banished away to Patmos. In the Spirit, John was in the midst of the church of Jesus Christ. In the Spirit, the apostle was one with the saints in the worship of the living God and joined in the testimony of Jesus Christ.
When?
When was this apostle in the Spirit?
He was “in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day.”
That blessed day of days! The Lord’s Day!
This was the day of the resurrection. This was the day that Jesus arose, triumphant over death and the grave, victorious over all His enemies. This was the day of new life and light shining in the darkness. This was the day that signified newness of life and heralded the everlasting life of a new heavens and new earth, all by the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.
In the Spirit, on the Lord’s Day, John heard. He heard behind him “a great voice, as of a trumpet.”
He heard the voice of the Lord, whose day it was. He heard the voice of the glorified, risen and ascended Jesus Christ. He heard the voice of Him who is King of kings and Lord of Lords, who is Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending.
Such is also our blessedness on this day of the Lord, in this year of the Lord.
So let us be in the Spirit. So let us be in the house of the Lord, where His voice is heard, calling us His people to Himself. So may we know our blessedness with John, “in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ.”
“I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet.” Revelation 1:10
Where?
Where was the apostle John? Where was the disciple that was beloved of the Lord?
There he was, in the isle of Patmos. There he was, exiled to that place for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. There he was, as “your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ,” according to the verse before.
But there he also was, “in the Spirit.”
In the Spirit, not exiled, banished away to Patmos. In the Spirit, John was in the midst of the church of Jesus Christ. In the Spirit, the apostle was one with the saints in the worship of the living God and joined in the testimony of Jesus Christ.
When?
When was this apostle in the Spirit?
He was “in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day.”
That blessed day of days! The Lord’s Day!
This was the day of the resurrection. This was the day that Jesus arose, triumphant over death and the grave, victorious over all His enemies. This was the day of new life and light shining in the darkness. This was the day that signified newness of life and heralded the everlasting life of a new heavens and new earth, all by the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.
In the Spirit, on the Lord’s Day, John heard. He heard behind him “a great voice, as of a trumpet.”
He heard the voice of the Lord, whose day it was. He heard the voice of the glorified, risen and ascended Jesus Christ. He heard the voice of Him who is King of kings and Lord of Lords, who is Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending.
Such is also our blessedness on this day of the Lord, in this year of the Lord.
So let us be in the Spirit. So let us be in the house of the Lord, where His voice is heard, calling us His people to Himself. So may we know our blessedness with John, “in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ.”
September 13, 2016
“By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.” Hebrews 11:7
By faith Noah prepared an ark!
By faith Noah poured himself into this work. He measured. He cut. He joined. He caulked and sealed. He gathered from far. He stored and saved.
Day after day. Month after month. Year after year.
This ark was his occupation. It was his life.
Forward he pushed and upward he built, despite all the shame and ridicule heaped upon him by his neighbours.
Why all this work? Why all this steadfast devotion to this ark?
By faith!
He had been “warned of God of things not seen as yet.”
There was no rain seen as yet. There was no flood seen as yet. There was no such widespread destruction seen as yet.
Onward and forward went the world. Spinning and hastening deeper and deeper into sin. Wickedness grew and abounded. Against that wickedness there was no judgment. So wicked men encouraged one another in their pursuit of rebellion against God.
But God had warned. He had told His covenant friend, Noah, what He was going to do.
Noah heard, and Noah believed in God. So he built and so he laboured.
By faith Noah “prepared an ark to the saving of his house.”
God kept His Word of judgment. He sent the rain. He broke up the great fountains of the deep. The flood of waters rose higher and higher until all things living had perished under the wrath of God.
But by the ark that he had prepared, Noah was saved and his house.
By that very same action Noah condemned the world.
The very same word that he had heard from God, the same word that he believed, he also delivered to the wicked world around him. He testified of the coming judgement, as a preacher of righteousness.
The ark also stood as a silent witness to the truth of God’s Word and the faith of Noah in that Word of God. God’s Word was a Word to be believed. God’s Word was a Word that demanded repentance from sin and obedience to the Word of God.
But as that ark rose up above the flood of waters, and as all the wicked perished beneath the ark in that flood, so they were justly condemned. Condemned were they by the flood. Condemned were they by the ark in which Noah and His house were saved. Condemned were they for their unbelief, their whole-hearted rejection of the Word of God.
The condemnation of the world in the flood must also declare the righteousness which was Noah’s by faith.
How could Noah escape? How was it that he was not drowned with the wicked world? How was it that He had an ark to flee into and to conduct his house into for safety and salvation?
Because Noah was a believer, believing the Word of God, believing to prepare an ark to the saving of his house.
As he believed, so he became an heir of the righteousness which is by faith.
So by faith, let us hear the Word of God. By faith let us follow the Word with all obedience. By faith let us know our place with believing Noah, heirs with him of the righteousness which is by faith. And by faith let us enjoy the salvation of our houses with us.
“By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.” Hebrews 11:7
By faith Noah prepared an ark!
By faith Noah poured himself into this work. He measured. He cut. He joined. He caulked and sealed. He gathered from far. He stored and saved.
Day after day. Month after month. Year after year.
This ark was his occupation. It was his life.
Forward he pushed and upward he built, despite all the shame and ridicule heaped upon him by his neighbours.
Why all this work? Why all this steadfast devotion to this ark?
By faith!
He had been “warned of God of things not seen as yet.”
There was no rain seen as yet. There was no flood seen as yet. There was no such widespread destruction seen as yet.
Onward and forward went the world. Spinning and hastening deeper and deeper into sin. Wickedness grew and abounded. Against that wickedness there was no judgment. So wicked men encouraged one another in their pursuit of rebellion against God.
But God had warned. He had told His covenant friend, Noah, what He was going to do.
Noah heard, and Noah believed in God. So he built and so he laboured.
By faith Noah “prepared an ark to the saving of his house.”
God kept His Word of judgment. He sent the rain. He broke up the great fountains of the deep. The flood of waters rose higher and higher until all things living had perished under the wrath of God.
But by the ark that he had prepared, Noah was saved and his house.
By that very same action Noah condemned the world.
The very same word that he had heard from God, the same word that he believed, he also delivered to the wicked world around him. He testified of the coming judgement, as a preacher of righteousness.
The ark also stood as a silent witness to the truth of God’s Word and the faith of Noah in that Word of God. God’s Word was a Word to be believed. God’s Word was a Word that demanded repentance from sin and obedience to the Word of God.
But as that ark rose up above the flood of waters, and as all the wicked perished beneath the ark in that flood, so they were justly condemned. Condemned were they by the flood. Condemned were they by the ark in which Noah and His house were saved. Condemned were they for their unbelief, their whole-hearted rejection of the Word of God.
The condemnation of the world in the flood must also declare the righteousness which was Noah’s by faith.
How could Noah escape? How was it that he was not drowned with the wicked world? How was it that He had an ark to flee into and to conduct his house into for safety and salvation?
Because Noah was a believer, believing the Word of God, believing to prepare an ark to the saving of his house.
As he believed, so he became an heir of the righteousness which is by faith.
So by faith, let us hear the Word of God. By faith let us follow the Word with all obedience. By faith let us know our place with believing Noah, heirs with him of the righteousness which is by faith. And by faith let us enjoy the salvation of our houses with us.
September 9, 2016
“And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.” Genesis 22:8
What a penetrating question from Abraham’s son, his only son, Isaac!
Where is it?
Here is the fire. Here is the wood. Here are the means for offering a sacrifice, taken all the way from their home to this distant mountain now looming before them.
But where is the lamb for a burnt offering?
Such a question from Isaac thrust its point deeply into his father’s heart. God’s command pointed out the sacrifice to be offered on that wood, kindled by that fire. The sacrifice was to be Abraham’s son, his only son, whom he loved.
But in Abraham’s heart, so deeply touched by his son’s question, was also the gift of faith. By faith Abraham believed the promise of God that in this son, his only son Isaac, would his seed be called.
By the promise of God’s Word, were Isaac to be offered as a burnt offering, he must also be raised from the dead. So must the Word of God stand.
So it stood for Abraham.
So Abraham might return this answer to his son’s probing query: “My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.”
Yes, there must be a burnt offering!
Yes, there must be a lamb for that burnt offering!
But that lamb God would provide.
That lamb God would provide for Himself, or, to Himself. Such is clear especially in the original Hebrew.
With his answer, Abraham preached and confessed the gospel of God’s grace to Isaac his son.
No sacrifice could Abraham provide. No lamb could Isaac his son be.
What God required, that He provided. So God provided His only-begotten Son, His Son whom He loved.
With His Lamb, God provided all He required. What His Lamb the Lord provided redemption, atonement, propitiation, and reconciliation. What the sacrifice of His own Son, He provided for Himself all mercy, grace, and peace to bestow on the seed of Abraham. With the offering of the Son of His love, He obtained new life, faith, holiness, and glory for all His elect.
There is the gospel of our salvation!
There is our joy, our peace, our righteousness and life everlasting!
“God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.”
“And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.” Genesis 22:8
What a penetrating question from Abraham’s son, his only son, Isaac!
Where is it?
Here is the fire. Here is the wood. Here are the means for offering a sacrifice, taken all the way from their home to this distant mountain now looming before them.
But where is the lamb for a burnt offering?
Such a question from Isaac thrust its point deeply into his father’s heart. God’s command pointed out the sacrifice to be offered on that wood, kindled by that fire. The sacrifice was to be Abraham’s son, his only son, whom he loved.
But in Abraham’s heart, so deeply touched by his son’s question, was also the gift of faith. By faith Abraham believed the promise of God that in this son, his only son Isaac, would his seed be called.
By the promise of God’s Word, were Isaac to be offered as a burnt offering, he must also be raised from the dead. So must the Word of God stand.
So it stood for Abraham.
So Abraham might return this answer to his son’s probing query: “My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.”
Yes, there must be a burnt offering!
Yes, there must be a lamb for that burnt offering!
But that lamb God would provide.
That lamb God would provide for Himself, or, to Himself. Such is clear especially in the original Hebrew.
With his answer, Abraham preached and confessed the gospel of God’s grace to Isaac his son.
No sacrifice could Abraham provide. No lamb could Isaac his son be.
What God required, that He provided. So God provided His only-begotten Son, His Son whom He loved.
With His Lamb, God provided all He required. What His Lamb the Lord provided redemption, atonement, propitiation, and reconciliation. What the sacrifice of His own Son, He provided for Himself all mercy, grace, and peace to bestow on the seed of Abraham. With the offering of the Son of His love, He obtained new life, faith, holiness, and glory for all His elect.
There is the gospel of our salvation!
There is our joy, our peace, our righteousness and life everlasting!
“God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.”
6 August 2016
“When I heard, my belly trembled; my lips quivered at the voice: rottenness entered into my bones, and I trembled in myself, that I might rest in the day of trouble.” Habakkuk 3:16
What a Word from the Lord this was!
His Word the Lord spoke to His servant, the prophet Habakkuk. So had the prophet received many words and visions from the Lord. Faithfully the Lord’s servant had carried out the work of a prophet. What he received from the Lord He brought to the people. So He spoke of the Lord’s judgment in righteousness, to turn the wicked from their sins and to comfort the afflicted.
But the power of this Word of judgment was that it powerfully and deeply affected Habakkuk. His belly trembled. His stomach churned and convulsed at these tidings of judgment. He was upset deep within his bowels. At the voice of Jehovah the prophet’s lips quivered. Astonishment and great fear spread through his face. The power of speech left his lips, so that he was unable to form any words. All stability and strength fled from his bones, replaced suddenly with corruption and rottenness.
So Habakkuk trembled, shaking with fright. Fear spread throughout His body, gripping each member and robbing it of all vitality.
We might think such a powerful reaction to be simply and only that: a reaction. A reaction to the mighty and fearful Word of the Lord’s judgment. A reaction within the prophet Habakkuk, who heard the divine sentence from the lips of his holy God.
But there was far more. To this reaction there was a purpose.
What was that purpose?
“That I might rest in the day of trouble.”
Why did Habakkuk tremble in his belly? Why did his lips quiver? Why did rottenness enter into the prophet’s bones? Why did he tremble in himself?
For the sake of the day of trouble.
The day was coming when the Lord would finally execute His fearful sentence. That day of desolation and destruction would surely. The time of ruin, grief, sorrow, and heartbreak of loss would arrive. In its wake must follow only bleak despair.
Yet, for the Lord’s prophet that day was to be a day of rest. He would know deliverance in that day. He would enjoy the peace, the safety and security of salvation from the hand of His God.
How? Why?
Because at the Word of the Lord He trembled.
So must we tremble now, whenever we hear the Word of the Lord. When we hear of sin and judgment, may our bellies tremble. May our lips quiver. May rottenness enter into our bones. May we tremble in ourselves. May that fear and terror pursue us to the only refuge we have, the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
So shall we rest in the day of trouble.
“When I heard, my belly trembled; my lips quivered at the voice: rottenness entered into my bones, and I trembled in myself, that I might rest in the day of trouble.” Habakkuk 3:16
What a Word from the Lord this was!
His Word the Lord spoke to His servant, the prophet Habakkuk. So had the prophet received many words and visions from the Lord. Faithfully the Lord’s servant had carried out the work of a prophet. What he received from the Lord He brought to the people. So He spoke of the Lord’s judgment in righteousness, to turn the wicked from their sins and to comfort the afflicted.
But the power of this Word of judgment was that it powerfully and deeply affected Habakkuk. His belly trembled. His stomach churned and convulsed at these tidings of judgment. He was upset deep within his bowels. At the voice of Jehovah the prophet’s lips quivered. Astonishment and great fear spread through his face. The power of speech left his lips, so that he was unable to form any words. All stability and strength fled from his bones, replaced suddenly with corruption and rottenness.
So Habakkuk trembled, shaking with fright. Fear spread throughout His body, gripping each member and robbing it of all vitality.
We might think such a powerful reaction to be simply and only that: a reaction. A reaction to the mighty and fearful Word of the Lord’s judgment. A reaction within the prophet Habakkuk, who heard the divine sentence from the lips of his holy God.
But there was far more. To this reaction there was a purpose.
What was that purpose?
“That I might rest in the day of trouble.”
Why did Habakkuk tremble in his belly? Why did his lips quiver? Why did rottenness enter into the prophet’s bones? Why did he tremble in himself?
For the sake of the day of trouble.
The day was coming when the Lord would finally execute His fearful sentence. That day of desolation and destruction would surely. The time of ruin, grief, sorrow, and heartbreak of loss would arrive. In its wake must follow only bleak despair.
Yet, for the Lord’s prophet that day was to be a day of rest. He would know deliverance in that day. He would enjoy the peace, the safety and security of salvation from the hand of His God.
How? Why?
Because at the Word of the Lord He trembled.
So must we tremble now, whenever we hear the Word of the Lord. When we hear of sin and judgment, may our bellies tremble. May our lips quiver. May rottenness enter into our bones. May we tremble in ourselves. May that fear and terror pursue us to the only refuge we have, the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
So shall we rest in the day of trouble.
16 June 2016
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” John 5:24.
Packed with truth and promise is this word from our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Packed is this word with the full identification of who they are that are saved and delivered from death.
In two different ways our Lord describes them.
First, he is one who hears Jesus’ word. He speaks, and he listens. He speaks, and he attends diligently and carefully to His words, the words of the Word of God. He receives His words with all meekness and humility, willing to be instructed in it.
For with His words Jesus speaks of the Father. He tells of the Father who sent Him into the world. He tells of the Father who loved the world so much that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Second, then, he believes on the Father that sent Jesus and gave Him the word to speak. In the Father he puts his trust, believing the love shown him in the gift of His Son. He looks to Him for salvation, for eternal blessedness and everlasting peace.
And yet, these two are one. To hear the word of the Son is to hear the Father. To believe on the Son is to believe on the Father.
With this identification is the most glorious promise, packed also in this word.
What is the blessedness of him who hears the word that the Son speaks to them? What is the blessedness of him who believes on the Father who sent His Son?
He has everlasting life. He shall not come into condemnation. He is passed from death unto life.
This word of Jesus’ promise contains the fulness of salvation.
Here He promises freedom from condemnation. The guilt of sin is wholly removed. Sins can no longer be charged. Guilt no longer lies upon the record, upon the conscience, or upon the heart. The awful burden is gone, banished forever.
Here He promises everlasting life. Death is taken away, the wages of sin. Everlasting life and eternal glory are the declared possession of the believer. Through faith he possesses the right to everlasting life. For he hears the Word of life, and hearing the Word of life, he believes on the living God who sent the Word of life.
But even more than a promise of what shall be, here is a word that declares present possession.
He “hath everlasting life.”
He “Is passed from death unto life.”
With these words we have even more identification. The one who hears the word of the son hath everlasting life. The one that believes the Father is passed from death unto life.
With this identification we face the truth of how a person hears the word of Jesus, and how a person believes the Father who sent Him.
He hears the word of Jesus because he has everlasting life. He believes the Father who sent Him because He is passed from death unto life.
As we hear the word from our beloved Saviour, Jesus Christ, and as we believe in the Father who sent Him, let us be filled with humble wonder over the wonderful gift He has given us, the gift of everlasting life. And in that life, let us forever bless and praise the Son and the Father.
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” John 5:24.
Packed with truth and promise is this word from our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Packed is this word with the full identification of who they are that are saved and delivered from death.
In two different ways our Lord describes them.
First, he is one who hears Jesus’ word. He speaks, and he listens. He speaks, and he attends diligently and carefully to His words, the words of the Word of God. He receives His words with all meekness and humility, willing to be instructed in it.
For with His words Jesus speaks of the Father. He tells of the Father who sent Him into the world. He tells of the Father who loved the world so much that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Second, then, he believes on the Father that sent Jesus and gave Him the word to speak. In the Father he puts his trust, believing the love shown him in the gift of His Son. He looks to Him for salvation, for eternal blessedness and everlasting peace.
And yet, these two are one. To hear the word of the Son is to hear the Father. To believe on the Son is to believe on the Father.
With this identification is the most glorious promise, packed also in this word.
What is the blessedness of him who hears the word that the Son speaks to them? What is the blessedness of him who believes on the Father who sent His Son?
He has everlasting life. He shall not come into condemnation. He is passed from death unto life.
This word of Jesus’ promise contains the fulness of salvation.
Here He promises freedom from condemnation. The guilt of sin is wholly removed. Sins can no longer be charged. Guilt no longer lies upon the record, upon the conscience, or upon the heart. The awful burden is gone, banished forever.
Here He promises everlasting life. Death is taken away, the wages of sin. Everlasting life and eternal glory are the declared possession of the believer. Through faith he possesses the right to everlasting life. For he hears the Word of life, and hearing the Word of life, he believes on the living God who sent the Word of life.
But even more than a promise of what shall be, here is a word that declares present possession.
He “hath everlasting life.”
He “Is passed from death unto life.”
With these words we have even more identification. The one who hears the word of the son hath everlasting life. The one that believes the Father is passed from death unto life.
With this identification we face the truth of how a person hears the word of Jesus, and how a person believes the Father who sent Him.
He hears the word of Jesus because he has everlasting life. He believes the Father who sent Him because He is passed from death unto life.
As we hear the word from our beloved Saviour, Jesus Christ, and as we believe in the Father who sent Him, let us be filled with humble wonder over the wonderful gift He has given us, the gift of everlasting life. And in that life, let us forever bless and praise the Son and the Father.
6 June 2016
“And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah’s womb. He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God.” Romans 4:19, 20
“Being not weak in faith.”
“Was strong in faith.”
What is this mighty and wonderful gift of faith? What is its real strength and its matchless power? How is it stronger than the weightiest resolution of the heart? How is it mightier than the firmest reckoning of the mind? How is it greater than the strongest impulse of the soul?
To answer the question we have to see the power of faith in its demonstration.
For that demonstration Scripture points to Abraham, the father of the faithful. His faith is the model for ours, the strength of his to show the strength of ours.
That faith and its strength is declared first in what Abraham was able to exclude from his reckoning. How was this patriarch of faith able to be so certain that he would have a son? Even more, how might he be certain that through a son begotten of him that he would become heir of the world, and a father of many nations?
Should Abraham bring into this consideration the nature of his own body? If he considered the condition and state of his body, could he be assured that he was indeed capable of begetting offspring?
Certainly not! His body was “now dead.” He was “about an hundred years old.” He was clearly and decidedly incapable of producing offspring.
There was another consideration for Abraham to reckon with: Sarah’s womb. Was his wife capable of conceiving and bearing a son?
Again, certainly not! Here as well Scripture declares the truth, speaking of “the deadness of Sara’s womb.” Her womb was dead, never having embraced and nurtured a child within. She had never conceived any children, and was now of such an age to be completely incapable.
But with these irrefutable, biblically-grounded facts and truths Abraham did not reckon. He excluded them from his consideration.
Instead he came to the glorious conclusion from his reckoning: He and Sarah would have a son, a son who would be the heir of the world, and through whom Abraham would become the father of many nations.
How? Why?
Because God had promised Abraham and Sarah a son. Because He gave them His Word. Because God had given Abraham faith to believe the promise He made.
So mighty is the Word, and so mighty is the gift of faith in that Word, that it overshadowed and overpowered the deadness of Abraham’s body and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. However close and compelling that evidence, it stood not a chance against the power of faith in the Word of the living God.
So Abraham was “strong in faith, giving glory to God.” So by faith Abraham became the heir of the world and the father of many nations.
So must we reckon, according to the same Word of God. So must we consider, according to the same gift of faith worked in us.
Let us not consider who we are or what we have done for our justification. All we must find with us is sinful, borne out of our death in trespasses and sins. The only conclusion we can draw is that we are so far from any justification. Instead we must conclude we are condemned, worthy only of everlasting punishment of hell.
Shutting the truth about ourselves completely out of our reckoning, let us rather reckon by faith in the Word of God’s promise. He promises to justify all those who trust in Him, reckoning them as righteous before Him. Let us not be weak in faith, but strong, giving glory to the God of His Word, whose promise is forever sure by His own Word, Jesus Christ.
In our justification by faith alone, may we walk as the children of Abraham, heir of the world, the father of nations, and our father by faith.
“And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah’s womb. He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God.” Romans 4:19, 20
“Being not weak in faith.”
“Was strong in faith.”
What is this mighty and wonderful gift of faith? What is its real strength and its matchless power? How is it stronger than the weightiest resolution of the heart? How is it mightier than the firmest reckoning of the mind? How is it greater than the strongest impulse of the soul?
To answer the question we have to see the power of faith in its demonstration.
For that demonstration Scripture points to Abraham, the father of the faithful. His faith is the model for ours, the strength of his to show the strength of ours.
That faith and its strength is declared first in what Abraham was able to exclude from his reckoning. How was this patriarch of faith able to be so certain that he would have a son? Even more, how might he be certain that through a son begotten of him that he would become heir of the world, and a father of many nations?
Should Abraham bring into this consideration the nature of his own body? If he considered the condition and state of his body, could he be assured that he was indeed capable of begetting offspring?
Certainly not! His body was “now dead.” He was “about an hundred years old.” He was clearly and decidedly incapable of producing offspring.
There was another consideration for Abraham to reckon with: Sarah’s womb. Was his wife capable of conceiving and bearing a son?
Again, certainly not! Here as well Scripture declares the truth, speaking of “the deadness of Sara’s womb.” Her womb was dead, never having embraced and nurtured a child within. She had never conceived any children, and was now of such an age to be completely incapable.
But with these irrefutable, biblically-grounded facts and truths Abraham did not reckon. He excluded them from his consideration.
Instead he came to the glorious conclusion from his reckoning: He and Sarah would have a son, a son who would be the heir of the world, and through whom Abraham would become the father of many nations.
How? Why?
Because God had promised Abraham and Sarah a son. Because He gave them His Word. Because God had given Abraham faith to believe the promise He made.
So mighty is the Word, and so mighty is the gift of faith in that Word, that it overshadowed and overpowered the deadness of Abraham’s body and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. However close and compelling that evidence, it stood not a chance against the power of faith in the Word of the living God.
So Abraham was “strong in faith, giving glory to God.” So by faith Abraham became the heir of the world and the father of many nations.
So must we reckon, according to the same Word of God. So must we consider, according to the same gift of faith worked in us.
Let us not consider who we are or what we have done for our justification. All we must find with us is sinful, borne out of our death in trespasses and sins. The only conclusion we can draw is that we are so far from any justification. Instead we must conclude we are condemned, worthy only of everlasting punishment of hell.
Shutting the truth about ourselves completely out of our reckoning, let us rather reckon by faith in the Word of God’s promise. He promises to justify all those who trust in Him, reckoning them as righteous before Him. Let us not be weak in faith, but strong, giving glory to the God of His Word, whose promise is forever sure by His own Word, Jesus Christ.
In our justification by faith alone, may we walk as the children of Abraham, heir of the world, the father of nations, and our father by faith.
2 June 2016
“To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” Romans 3:26
In these words is expressed the divine purpose of the cross of Jesus Christ.
Why did Jesus die on the cross? Why, according to the words going before, did there need to be the redemption that Jesus Christ accomplished by His death? Why did He need to make a propitiation by the shedding of His blood?
In order that God might be just.
To be sure, there was a way without that cross in which God might be just. There was a way in which God might work all His works and still be just. There was a way in which God might do all that He did and still be the righteous God.
But that was only one way: the way of the everlasting punishment of all the children of Adam
Without that redemption of Jesus’ cross God could not be just in saving anyone. Without that propitiation by the shedding of Jesus’ blood God could not be righteous in justifying anyone. He could not be just in bringing salvation to any man. He could not be righteous in bringing anyone to glory.
All must instead be declared guilty. All must instead be found worthy of everlasting punishment. All must be brought under the wrath of the living God to the eternal punishment of hell.
For God to be righteous.
For God to be just.
But now God is just when he justifies the wicked, ungodly sinner.
But now God is just, and the justifier of him that believeth on Jesus.
Because of God’s own righteousness.
Because of that righteousness given by faith of Jesus Christ.
For Jesus is the propitiation through faith in His blood. He is the one in whom all redemption is to be found. He is the righteous Son of God, very God of very God. He is the one whom God sent into the world, to be the righteous substitute for unrighteous sinners. He is the one who laid down His life and shed His precious blood on the accursed tree of the cross, to exchange His righteousness for the unrighteousness of the ungodly.
Let us therefore flee to His cross. Let us trust only in that once for all propitiatory, redeeming sacrifice.
There let us be justified by faith alone in Jesus!
And there may we rejoice in our just God, the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus!
“To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” Romans 3:26
In these words is expressed the divine purpose of the cross of Jesus Christ.
Why did Jesus die on the cross? Why, according to the words going before, did there need to be the redemption that Jesus Christ accomplished by His death? Why did He need to make a propitiation by the shedding of His blood?
In order that God might be just.
To be sure, there was a way without that cross in which God might be just. There was a way in which God might work all His works and still be just. There was a way in which God might do all that He did and still be the righteous God.
But that was only one way: the way of the everlasting punishment of all the children of Adam
Without that redemption of Jesus’ cross God could not be just in saving anyone. Without that propitiation by the shedding of Jesus’ blood God could not be righteous in justifying anyone. He could not be just in bringing salvation to any man. He could not be righteous in bringing anyone to glory.
All must instead be declared guilty. All must instead be found worthy of everlasting punishment. All must be brought under the wrath of the living God to the eternal punishment of hell.
For God to be righteous.
For God to be just.
But now God is just when he justifies the wicked, ungodly sinner.
But now God is just, and the justifier of him that believeth on Jesus.
Because of God’s own righteousness.
Because of that righteousness given by faith of Jesus Christ.
For Jesus is the propitiation through faith in His blood. He is the one in whom all redemption is to be found. He is the righteous Son of God, very God of very God. He is the one whom God sent into the world, to be the righteous substitute for unrighteous sinners. He is the one who laid down His life and shed His precious blood on the accursed tree of the cross, to exchange His righteousness for the unrighteousness of the ungodly.
Let us therefore flee to His cross. Let us trust only in that once for all propitiatory, redeeming sacrifice.
There let us be justified by faith alone in Jesus!
And there may we rejoice in our just God, the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus!
5 April 2016
“And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.” Luke 17:24, 25
How offensive and scandalous these words are!
How offensive and scandalous they are to the modern ear today!
Modernity, either in the world or in the church, finds such a presentation and teaching completely abhorrent. Hell, together with its causes, sin and God’s perfect holiness, has been consigned to the ash heap of history. The notion that people might have to suffer eternally for their sins belongs to a more barbaric, less-civilized age. If Jesus’ teachings have a divine origin, he was merely trying to teach people a truth in language they could appreciate because of its striking character. He did not really mean what he said, and a curious spectacle are those who still think that there is a hell, a God filled with wrath toward sin, guilty sinners worthy of hell, and a cross that brings forgiveness of sin and deliverance from hell. These have yet to discover the truth that God and Jesus simply love everybody, and do their best to make sure people have and do their best in this life and in the life to come, if there is such a thing.
Though that is the scandal to the modern man, it is not the true scandal of these verses. These words of Christ are sharpest, clearest, and most forceful words that argue the true existence of this place of everlasting torment. Here hell is described by the Lord of truth as the rich man experiences his submersion in the lake of fire. In his torment in hell’s flame, he fixes his whole heart and mind on one blissful possibility: that his tongue be cooled from its searing heat with only one drop of water from Lazarus’ fingertip.
Just one drop!
In fact, the truth and reality of hell and its real experience of everlasting torment are the ground for the real offense and scandal of these words of holy Scripture.
What is the true offense? What is the real scandal? What was so provoking about this parable?
Two words.
The offensive word was the first one spoken by the rich man from hell in his torment: Father!
The scandalous word was the first one spoken by Abraham from heaven, with Lazarus in his bosom: Son!
Here in the pit of hell, experiencing its awful, unrelenting and unabating torment, is a son of Abraham. He is an Israelite, one circumcised, having the law and the promises of the Scriptures. He might have thought that such was his key to heaven. Of course, he had God’s favour! Of course, he was on the way to heaven! Perhaps his confidence grew on account of his riches: surely God was blessing and prospering him on his way to heaven, giving him all these good things!
The scandal and the offense is indeed great.
For the scandal and the offense is the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is that one’s ancestry according to the flesh does not entitle him to the kingdom of heaven. The gospel of Jesus Christ is that one’s riches or success by any earthly standard does not qualify him for heaven. The rich man, this son of Abraham, is in the torments of hell.
That scandal and that offense continues.
The offense of the gospel is that the poor beggar, whose comfort was the tongues of dogs cooling his inflamed sores, goes to heaven to rest in Abraham’s bosom, carried there by the angels.
The scandal and the offense of the gospel is simply God’s sovereign grace: His grace to chose, to call, to regenerate, to glorify. Without works, without running, without willing, but only of God’s mercy to poor sinners.
In that scandal and in that offense let us ever rejoice, for it means that we can be and are saved, to have our place alongside of poor Lazarus in Abraham’s bosom in heaven.
The true sons and daughters of Abraham, by faith in Christ alone.
“And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.” Luke 17:24, 25
How offensive and scandalous these words are!
How offensive and scandalous they are to the modern ear today!
Modernity, either in the world or in the church, finds such a presentation and teaching completely abhorrent. Hell, together with its causes, sin and God’s perfect holiness, has been consigned to the ash heap of history. The notion that people might have to suffer eternally for their sins belongs to a more barbaric, less-civilized age. If Jesus’ teachings have a divine origin, he was merely trying to teach people a truth in language they could appreciate because of its striking character. He did not really mean what he said, and a curious spectacle are those who still think that there is a hell, a God filled with wrath toward sin, guilty sinners worthy of hell, and a cross that brings forgiveness of sin and deliverance from hell. These have yet to discover the truth that God and Jesus simply love everybody, and do their best to make sure people have and do their best in this life and in the life to come, if there is such a thing.
Though that is the scandal to the modern man, it is not the true scandal of these verses. These words of Christ are sharpest, clearest, and most forceful words that argue the true existence of this place of everlasting torment. Here hell is described by the Lord of truth as the rich man experiences his submersion in the lake of fire. In his torment in hell’s flame, he fixes his whole heart and mind on one blissful possibility: that his tongue be cooled from its searing heat with only one drop of water from Lazarus’ fingertip.
Just one drop!
In fact, the truth and reality of hell and its real experience of everlasting torment are the ground for the real offense and scandal of these words of holy Scripture.
What is the true offense? What is the real scandal? What was so provoking about this parable?
Two words.
The offensive word was the first one spoken by the rich man from hell in his torment: Father!
The scandalous word was the first one spoken by Abraham from heaven, with Lazarus in his bosom: Son!
Here in the pit of hell, experiencing its awful, unrelenting and unabating torment, is a son of Abraham. He is an Israelite, one circumcised, having the law and the promises of the Scriptures. He might have thought that such was his key to heaven. Of course, he had God’s favour! Of course, he was on the way to heaven! Perhaps his confidence grew on account of his riches: surely God was blessing and prospering him on his way to heaven, giving him all these good things!
The scandal and the offense is indeed great.
For the scandal and the offense is the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is that one’s ancestry according to the flesh does not entitle him to the kingdom of heaven. The gospel of Jesus Christ is that one’s riches or success by any earthly standard does not qualify him for heaven. The rich man, this son of Abraham, is in the torments of hell.
That scandal and that offense continues.
The offense of the gospel is that the poor beggar, whose comfort was the tongues of dogs cooling his inflamed sores, goes to heaven to rest in Abraham’s bosom, carried there by the angels.
The scandal and the offense of the gospel is simply God’s sovereign grace: His grace to chose, to call, to regenerate, to glorify. Without works, without running, without willing, but only of God’s mercy to poor sinners.
In that scandal and in that offense let us ever rejoice, for it means that we can be and are saved, to have our place alongside of poor Lazarus in Abraham’s bosom in heaven.
The true sons and daughters of Abraham, by faith in Christ alone.
23 February 2016
“But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence.” I Corinthians 1:27-29
“And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. . . . Yet have I left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.” I Kings 19:11, 12, 18.
Choice. Select. Preferred.
We need not ponder or weigh. We need not consider before choosing or selecting.
What moves us? Why do we pick up this and not that? What do we buy and use?
The labels we see tell us.
Choice. Select. Preferred.
We want the biggest and best. We want the greatest and the most. We desire what is most attractive and what is most popular.
How would we choose the Lord’s presence? What mode would we select for His manifestation? What way would we prefer for His appearance?
A great wind, great enough to rent the mountains and break the rocks in pieces before the Lord!
An earthquake! The shaking of the earth to signify the weight of the Lord’s glory present upon the strong mountains.
A fire to signify His great holiness, burning brightly and consuming wonderfully all that is before it!
What did God choose? What did He select? What did He prefer?
A still, small voice. A mere whisper that Elijah had to strain his ears to hear.
Why?
For Elijah, and for you and me.
Because what He had to say to Elijah, He still says to you and me. And His still, small voice, matches exactly what he tells you and me.
He has left to himself seven thousand.
Seven thousand!
Seven thousand out of all the hundreds of thousands of Israel.
Not wicked King Ahab, nor wicked Queen Jezebel, nor the wicked multitudes whose knees bowed to Baal and whose mouths kissed his image.
And with that same, still, small voice He tells you and me that He has chosen a remnant according to the election of grace. He has chosen what is weak, what is base, what is despised, what is foolish and what is nothing.
He has chosen you, and He has chosen me.
Why?
“That no flesh should glory in His presence.”
No glory to us. No credit to us.
All glory to God alone!
“But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence.” I Corinthians 1:27-29
“And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. . . . Yet have I left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.” I Kings 19:11, 12, 18.
Choice. Select. Preferred.
We need not ponder or weigh. We need not consider before choosing or selecting.
What moves us? Why do we pick up this and not that? What do we buy and use?
The labels we see tell us.
Choice. Select. Preferred.
We want the biggest and best. We want the greatest and the most. We desire what is most attractive and what is most popular.
How would we choose the Lord’s presence? What mode would we select for His manifestation? What way would we prefer for His appearance?
A great wind, great enough to rent the mountains and break the rocks in pieces before the Lord!
An earthquake! The shaking of the earth to signify the weight of the Lord’s glory present upon the strong mountains.
A fire to signify His great holiness, burning brightly and consuming wonderfully all that is before it!
What did God choose? What did He select? What did He prefer?
A still, small voice. A mere whisper that Elijah had to strain his ears to hear.
Why?
For Elijah, and for you and me.
Because what He had to say to Elijah, He still says to you and me. And His still, small voice, matches exactly what he tells you and me.
He has left to himself seven thousand.
Seven thousand!
Seven thousand out of all the hundreds of thousands of Israel.
Not wicked King Ahab, nor wicked Queen Jezebel, nor the wicked multitudes whose knees bowed to Baal and whose mouths kissed his image.
And with that same, still, small voice He tells you and me that He has chosen a remnant according to the election of grace. He has chosen what is weak, what is base, what is despised, what is foolish and what is nothing.
He has chosen you, and He has chosen me.
Why?
“That no flesh should glory in His presence.”
No glory to us. No credit to us.
All glory to God alone!
2 February 2016
“When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.” John 11:4
In its surroundings, these words of Jesus sound so strange in our ears. They seem not to fit at all.
Before is a word of love. Such was the message that Martha and Mary had sent to Jesus. Just a short message, containing so few words, but every word appealed to the love Jesus had for Lazarus. Lazarus’ sisters were certain that Jesus’ great love for Lazarus would bring Him straightway to Bethany, to save from imminent death their beloved brother. “Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick.”
After is another word of love. These words of holy Scripture inform us of the truth of the sisters’ message. Their appeal was not vain at all. Their word was exactly right. “Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus.”
Why, then, did Jesus speak these words? Why then would he abide two days still in the same place where he was?
“The glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.”
“This sickness is not unto death.”
So must Jesus wait. So must He wait for Lazarus even to die and to die from this sickness.
For in and through the death of Lazarus, God must and God will be glorified. In and through the death of Lazarus the Son of God must and will be glorified.
Raised from death rather than healed of sickness must be the way of Lazarus. It is for the Son of God to speak the word, “Lazarus, come forth,” and to have by that Word him that was dead come forth. It is for the Son of God to accomplish this wonder through His prayer raised to His Father in heaven. It is for the Son of God to work this mighty wonder to prove His blessed Word to Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life.” It is for the Son of God to do this great miracle in order to bring some to faith, and others to the council of the Jews, to arouse their deep envy and resentment.
Yes, indeed: for the glory of God and the glory of the Son of God.
But also love. Love for Lazarus. Love for Mary and Martha.
That same love that wept at Lazarus’ grave, weeping over the loss of a beloved friend, weeping with beloved and bereaved Mary and Martha, is the very same love that overcomes death and the grave in order to restore and make new. It is the love of Jesus that restores, revives, and mightily overcomes all loss and damage.
For the glory of God!
No, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.”
So it is with the sickness of the beloved children of God. So it is with the death of the brothers and sisters of Christ, joint heirs with Him.
Why their sickness? Why their death?
For the glory of God, and the glory of the Son of God.
For He shall come again in power and glory. He shall come again at the sound of the last trumpet, and in the twinkling of an eye He shall raise the dead. Their bodies, ravaged by sickness and dissolved into the dust of death and the grave, shall stand again upon the earth. They shall stand freed forever from all sickness and all death, made fit for the everlasting glory of the new heavens and earth.
But also love, the same love for Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. For His love of His people, whom He loved unto death, Christ will raise them up. His love will work mightily to bring them to be with Him forever, to share in His glory. His love will work mightily to make them like Himself, like unto His glorious body.
For His love will not rest until there shines in all of His beloved the glory of God His Father.
So in all our sickness and in our death, let us rest in the love of our Saviour, to glorify God in our blessed resurrection and in our life!
“When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.” John 11:4
In its surroundings, these words of Jesus sound so strange in our ears. They seem not to fit at all.
Before is a word of love. Such was the message that Martha and Mary had sent to Jesus. Just a short message, containing so few words, but every word appealed to the love Jesus had for Lazarus. Lazarus’ sisters were certain that Jesus’ great love for Lazarus would bring Him straightway to Bethany, to save from imminent death their beloved brother. “Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick.”
After is another word of love. These words of holy Scripture inform us of the truth of the sisters’ message. Their appeal was not vain at all. Their word was exactly right. “Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus.”
Why, then, did Jesus speak these words? Why then would he abide two days still in the same place where he was?
“The glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.”
“This sickness is not unto death.”
So must Jesus wait. So must He wait for Lazarus even to die and to die from this sickness.
For in and through the death of Lazarus, God must and God will be glorified. In and through the death of Lazarus the Son of God must and will be glorified.
Raised from death rather than healed of sickness must be the way of Lazarus. It is for the Son of God to speak the word, “Lazarus, come forth,” and to have by that Word him that was dead come forth. It is for the Son of God to accomplish this wonder through His prayer raised to His Father in heaven. It is for the Son of God to work this mighty wonder to prove His blessed Word to Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life.” It is for the Son of God to do this great miracle in order to bring some to faith, and others to the council of the Jews, to arouse their deep envy and resentment.
Yes, indeed: for the glory of God and the glory of the Son of God.
But also love. Love for Lazarus. Love for Mary and Martha.
That same love that wept at Lazarus’ grave, weeping over the loss of a beloved friend, weeping with beloved and bereaved Mary and Martha, is the very same love that overcomes death and the grave in order to restore and make new. It is the love of Jesus that restores, revives, and mightily overcomes all loss and damage.
For the glory of God!
No, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.”
So it is with the sickness of the beloved children of God. So it is with the death of the brothers and sisters of Christ, joint heirs with Him.
Why their sickness? Why their death?
For the glory of God, and the glory of the Son of God.
For He shall come again in power and glory. He shall come again at the sound of the last trumpet, and in the twinkling of an eye He shall raise the dead. Their bodies, ravaged by sickness and dissolved into the dust of death and the grave, shall stand again upon the earth. They shall stand freed forever from all sickness and all death, made fit for the everlasting glory of the new heavens and earth.
But also love, the same love for Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. For His love of His people, whom He loved unto death, Christ will raise them up. His love will work mightily to bring them to be with Him forever, to share in His glory. His love will work mightily to make them like Himself, like unto His glorious body.
For His love will not rest until there shines in all of His beloved the glory of God His Father.
So in all our sickness and in our death, let us rest in the love of our Saviour, to glorify God in our blessed resurrection and in our life!
25 December 2015
“When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star ,which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.” Matthew 2:9, 10
Wondrous star of Bethlehem!
First it appeared to these great men when they were so very far from the little town of Bethlehem. While scanning the heavens in their own lands and countries so far away, they saw this new star gleaming with brilliance. So it announced something new, something glorious.
So they looked with awe-filled wonder. What could it mean? What did it signify?
By divine, heavenly knowledge given them they had the answer to their questions. This new star, given its place in the heavens, announced the birth of the King of the Jews.
A king whose birth was indicated by a star! What a king this must be! No king or emperor or Caesar received such heavenly recognition. Such a king born with such a star must be far greater than any earthly potentate. A heavenly star demands a heavenly king, a glorious, everlasting king, whose dominion shall never cease.
Then the star was gone, having delivered its heavenly, glorious tidings.
So these great men took their long journey, to find Him that was born King of the Jews.
At the end of their journey, they met with new amazement. In the very city of the great King whose birth the star announced, there was not one who knew. There were none who rejoiced. No one could tell them he had heard or seen Him that was “born King of the Jews.”
After meeting with such disappointment from men, what joy filled their hearts when they departed from Herod!
For there, shining again, was the star which they saw in the east!
This time that star beckoned them. This time the star led them. All the way to Bethlehem, until it came to the very place “where the young child was.”
There was the young child with Mary His mother. There was the young child, to be worshipped. There was the glorious, heavenly king of the Jews, to receive not only their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, but also the faith, hope, and love of their hearts.
This Christmas Day we have no star to lead us to Jerusalem from our land and country. We have no light in the sky to go before us to Bethlehem where we should find the young child and Mary His mother.
We have a better, clearer, sharper light. We have a more sure word of prophecy. We have the infallible Word of God.
Let us follow that Word today. Let us be led by it to Bethlehem’s manger, to see with the shepherds Mary, Joseph, and the babe lying in the manger.
And may our joy be great this Christmas Day, beholding by faith our King, our Redeemer and Saviour, born to set us free!
“When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star ,which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.” Matthew 2:9, 10
Wondrous star of Bethlehem!
First it appeared to these great men when they were so very far from the little town of Bethlehem. While scanning the heavens in their own lands and countries so far away, they saw this new star gleaming with brilliance. So it announced something new, something glorious.
So they looked with awe-filled wonder. What could it mean? What did it signify?
By divine, heavenly knowledge given them they had the answer to their questions. This new star, given its place in the heavens, announced the birth of the King of the Jews.
A king whose birth was indicated by a star! What a king this must be! No king or emperor or Caesar received such heavenly recognition. Such a king born with such a star must be far greater than any earthly potentate. A heavenly star demands a heavenly king, a glorious, everlasting king, whose dominion shall never cease.
Then the star was gone, having delivered its heavenly, glorious tidings.
So these great men took their long journey, to find Him that was born King of the Jews.
At the end of their journey, they met with new amazement. In the very city of the great King whose birth the star announced, there was not one who knew. There were none who rejoiced. No one could tell them he had heard or seen Him that was “born King of the Jews.”
After meeting with such disappointment from men, what joy filled their hearts when they departed from Herod!
For there, shining again, was the star which they saw in the east!
This time that star beckoned them. This time the star led them. All the way to Bethlehem, until it came to the very place “where the young child was.”
There was the young child with Mary His mother. There was the young child, to be worshipped. There was the glorious, heavenly king of the Jews, to receive not only their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, but also the faith, hope, and love of their hearts.
This Christmas Day we have no star to lead us to Jerusalem from our land and country. We have no light in the sky to go before us to Bethlehem where we should find the young child and Mary His mother.
We have a better, clearer, sharper light. We have a more sure word of prophecy. We have the infallible Word of God.
Let us follow that Word today. Let us be led by it to Bethlehem’s manger, to see with the shepherds Mary, Joseph, and the babe lying in the manger.
And may our joy be great this Christmas Day, beholding by faith our King, our Redeemer and Saviour, born to set us free!
17 December 2015
“For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy ; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.” Isaiah 57:15
Two places!
Two places that could not be more different from each other.
One place is high and glorious. It is the place where God alone dwells. It is eternity, the place where there is no time. It is a high place. It is a holy place. It is a place that is worthy of being the habitation of God. Its dignity and glory are beyond any measure, incomprehensible to the feeble understanding of men.
What is this place? It is higher than the highest heaven, for the heaven is God’s throne, and the earth is the footstool of His feet.
This place is eternity. This place is infinity. This place is the light which no man can approach unto.
That place God calls His own. So He declares, “I dwell in the high and holy place.”
Then there is the other place.
As high as is the first place, so low is the other.
As desirable and honourable and glorious before men is the first place, so shunned and loathed by men is the second.
This second place is occupied by those who are “of a contrite and humble spirit.”
It is the place of the lowly, of the broken in heart, of the meek and the poor in spirit. It is the place of those that are afflicted and burdened. It is the place of those cast down and desolate.
That lowly, despised place is also the dwelling place of God, the high and lofty One, whose name is Holy!
Hear His Word! “I dwell . . . with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit.”
Such is His glory, to dwell with such. Such is His glory to make His abode with them, to be near and to stay near to them. His glory is to dwell with them in order to raise them up and to exalt them. There He makes them to live, reviving their spirit and reviving their heart.
Neither is His glory to revive them and then to leave, having finished His work. No, with them He continues to dwell, not only to keep them in their life, but in that life to bless them with the riches of His fellowship and His friendship.
So must we come here to dwell!
Let us be broken over our sin. Let us be desolate over our transgression. And in our contrite and humble spirits, may we know the blessed presence of our God, who dwells in the high and holy place, dwelling with us.
Our Jesus! Our Emmanuel! God with us!
“For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy ; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.” Isaiah 57:15
Two places!
Two places that could not be more different from each other.
One place is high and glorious. It is the place where God alone dwells. It is eternity, the place where there is no time. It is a high place. It is a holy place. It is a place that is worthy of being the habitation of God. Its dignity and glory are beyond any measure, incomprehensible to the feeble understanding of men.
What is this place? It is higher than the highest heaven, for the heaven is God’s throne, and the earth is the footstool of His feet.
This place is eternity. This place is infinity. This place is the light which no man can approach unto.
That place God calls His own. So He declares, “I dwell in the high and holy place.”
Then there is the other place.
As high as is the first place, so low is the other.
As desirable and honourable and glorious before men is the first place, so shunned and loathed by men is the second.
This second place is occupied by those who are “of a contrite and humble spirit.”
It is the place of the lowly, of the broken in heart, of the meek and the poor in spirit. It is the place of those that are afflicted and burdened. It is the place of those cast down and desolate.
That lowly, despised place is also the dwelling place of God, the high and lofty One, whose name is Holy!
Hear His Word! “I dwell . . . with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit.”
Such is His glory, to dwell with such. Such is His glory to make His abode with them, to be near and to stay near to them. His glory is to dwell with them in order to raise them up and to exalt them. There He makes them to live, reviving their spirit and reviving their heart.
Neither is His glory to revive them and then to leave, having finished His work. No, with them He continues to dwell, not only to keep them in their life, but in that life to bless them with the riches of His fellowship and His friendship.
So must we come here to dwell!
Let us be broken over our sin. Let us be desolate over our transgression. And in our contrite and humble spirits, may we know the blessed presence of our God, who dwells in the high and holy place, dwelling with us.
Our Jesus! Our Emmanuel! God with us!
12 December 2015
“Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.” James 4:7,8
In these few words is declared the fundamental, spiritual movement of the Christian.
That movement is along one line, a line defined by two points. At one end of that line is the devil, and at the other end is God.
Your place is on this line, given you by God’s wonderful, saving grace.
Without that grace of God, there would be no line at all, and your place would be in the devil’s horrible circle of sin and condemnation. But the mighty grace of God that has redeemed you from Satan’s grasp also sets you on this line, and gives you this certain calling, a calling that has respect to Him as well as to His and your enemy, the devil.
Resist the devil!
Understand how much he works to take you down that line to himself. He labours constantly to draw you slowly, steadily and stealthily away from your Saviour and Redeemer. His tools are many: pride, love of the world, the snare of riches, lust for power, the fear of men, to name only a few. His goal is to put so much distance between you and God that you come wholly under his power and influence, enslaved once again to sin. Always he is there. Always he is working.
Resist the devil, and he will flee from you!
Raise the cloud from your mind. Clear away the fog of his temptations. See them for what they are and refuse to give in.
And he will flee from you.
Along that line he will flee, putting as much distance as he can between you and him. See him fleeing from heavenly wisdom and spiritual discernment. See him fleeing from the glory of God shown in the strength of him that resists.
Then you have the calling along that same line toward God.
Always in this life you have an awful, unwanted gap between you and God. Always that gap seems to grow. It grows when you take up your place and work in the world. It can even grow when you are engaged in holy activities. Even as you pray and read the Word of God, you can feel this distance.
Hear the Word calling you: Draw near to God!
Turn to Him in ardent seeking for Him who is your blessed Lord! Shorten the distance by pouring out your heart to your precious Saviour! Close up that gap by bringing out of your heart words of praise and exaltation to your heavenly Father!
And He will draw nigh to you.
So He also closes the distance, coming to meet you. So He draws near, to take you to Himself and to hide you under the shadow of His wings. So He comes close, to tell you that He is yours and you are His.
So resist!
So draw near!
Put the devil to flight!
And enjoy the nearness of your God!
“Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.” James 4:7,8
In these few words is declared the fundamental, spiritual movement of the Christian.
That movement is along one line, a line defined by two points. At one end of that line is the devil, and at the other end is God.
Your place is on this line, given you by God’s wonderful, saving grace.
Without that grace of God, there would be no line at all, and your place would be in the devil’s horrible circle of sin and condemnation. But the mighty grace of God that has redeemed you from Satan’s grasp also sets you on this line, and gives you this certain calling, a calling that has respect to Him as well as to His and your enemy, the devil.
Resist the devil!
Understand how much he works to take you down that line to himself. He labours constantly to draw you slowly, steadily and stealthily away from your Saviour and Redeemer. His tools are many: pride, love of the world, the snare of riches, lust for power, the fear of men, to name only a few. His goal is to put so much distance between you and God that you come wholly under his power and influence, enslaved once again to sin. Always he is there. Always he is working.
Resist the devil, and he will flee from you!
Raise the cloud from your mind. Clear away the fog of his temptations. See them for what they are and refuse to give in.
And he will flee from you.
Along that line he will flee, putting as much distance as he can between you and him. See him fleeing from heavenly wisdom and spiritual discernment. See him fleeing from the glory of God shown in the strength of him that resists.
Then you have the calling along that same line toward God.
Always in this life you have an awful, unwanted gap between you and God. Always that gap seems to grow. It grows when you take up your place and work in the world. It can even grow when you are engaged in holy activities. Even as you pray and read the Word of God, you can feel this distance.
Hear the Word calling you: Draw near to God!
Turn to Him in ardent seeking for Him who is your blessed Lord! Shorten the distance by pouring out your heart to your precious Saviour! Close up that gap by bringing out of your heart words of praise and exaltation to your heavenly Father!
And He will draw nigh to you.
So He also closes the distance, coming to meet you. So He draws near, to take you to Himself and to hide you under the shadow of His wings. So He comes close, to tell you that He is yours and you are His.
So resist!
So draw near!
Put the devil to flight!
And enjoy the nearness of your God!
11 December 2015
“But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answering said unto them, What reason ye in your hearts? Whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Rise up and walk?” Luke 5:23
Which is it?
Is it easier to say, “Thy sins be forgiven thee”?
Or, is it easier to say, “Rise up and walk”?
We face a certain difficulty in these words.
If we limit ourselves to outward appearances, the answer is simple and clear. It is easier to say, “Thy sins be forgiven thee.” We might well say it. We might say it with every intention to carry out the result. We might even report once we have said it, “It is done: his sins are forgiven him.”
Easy to say, for it addresses an invisible quality. Are the man’s sins really and truly forgiven? We cannot tell.
If we stay limited to outward appearances it will be far harder to say, “Rise up and walk.” Whether such a word is true or not is immediately evident. Should such words be spoken whether or not the man rises up and walks must be their ultimate proof. Can we say such words? No, for they would immediately prove we are liars.
Far harder is it to say, “Rise up and walk.”
But let us change our viewpoint. Let us adopt a viewpoint that is spiritual. What does this same question become before the living, holy God?
Then we have a completely different answer.
Easy it is to say, “Rise up and walk.”
So much more difficult is it to say, “Thy sins be forgiven thee.”
A simple thing is it to cure a man of his paralysis in comparison to the forgiveness of sins. Far more difficult is it to separate a man from the guilt of his sins, to wash and cleanse him of them, so that he might appear before the presence of God.
It cannot be done with a word. It must be done with the cross, the accursed cross on which the Son of God must hang, offering Himself as a sacrifice to God for redemption and salvation. It must be done by God the Holy Spirit, washing that guilty, thoroughly polluted and defiled sinner of every last spot and taint of his sin with the blood of God’s precious Son.
But, we listen.
What do we hear?
We hear our Lord say first, “Thy sins be forgiven thee.”
The hardest work He did first. The greatest need He attended first.
Then he speaks again, saying the other word, “Arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house.”
So, “immediately he rose up before them, and took up that wherein he lay, and departed to his own house, glorifying God.”
So we come to Him, poor, wretched, miserable and needy sinners.
So we listen.
And we hear Him say to us, “Man, thy sins are forgiven thee.”
What sweet words to enter our ears! What blessedness and joy to enter into our hearts!
Our sins are forgiven, our redemption is granted, our salvation is true.
Because our Lord has said.
9 December 2015
“Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” Hebrews 2:14, 15
Partakers of flesh and blood!
Such is who and such is what we are, creatures of flesh and blood.
How often are we reminded of this seemingly inescapable truth!
No merely academic or intellectual matter, nor a knowledge that results from research and study is this truth.
It is forced upon us in a myriad of ways.
It comes to us in all the limitations we experience, old and young alike. How we wish we might be able to do this or that! We want to accomplish these great goals. We want to achieve these great aims. Yet we cannot. We are partakers of flesh and blood.
So easily are we injured. Cuts and bruises, scrapes and scratches we daily encounter. Some major, some minor: all require our care and attention. They all take time to heal, and some leave their trace as a scar. Growing pains the young experience. Deep aches and pains of arthritis the old must endure.
Diseases plague our bodies. The minor infirmities cause us to change our plans. The major ones make us drop our ordinary lives in order to pursue healing and recovery by many different means. Death threatens us. We feel incapable of fending it off.
One stark, clear truth is deeply impressed upon us: we are flesh and blood.
But this truth is nothing for us to deny or to fight against.
It is a powerful truth. It is even a wonderful truth.
It is wonderful because it leads us to our Savior, our mighty, glorious, wonderful Saviour.
What a Savior this is!
For “He also himself likewise took part of the same.”
He too became a partaker of flesh and blood. He did so for a very important purpose, an amazing, incredible purpose. His purpose was “that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is the devil.”
Amazing! The very weakness of our frame He took upon Himself in order to gain a mighty triumph over our great enemy, the devil. He died in weakness that He might rise in complete victory over death and the grave.
As a partaker of flesh and blood.
His victory is our freedom, because He partook of our flesh and blood. So are we freed from Satan’s dominion. Given us is sweet liberty from the fear of death. No longer are we subject to bondage.
In that freedom let us rejoice and give thanks to our dear Lord.
And in our flesh and blood may we cling to the One who partook of the same in order to rescue us.
“Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” Hebrews 2:14, 15
Partakers of flesh and blood!
Such is who and such is what we are, creatures of flesh and blood.
How often are we reminded of this seemingly inescapable truth!
No merely academic or intellectual matter, nor a knowledge that results from research and study is this truth.
It is forced upon us in a myriad of ways.
It comes to us in all the limitations we experience, old and young alike. How we wish we might be able to do this or that! We want to accomplish these great goals. We want to achieve these great aims. Yet we cannot. We are partakers of flesh and blood.
So easily are we injured. Cuts and bruises, scrapes and scratches we daily encounter. Some major, some minor: all require our care and attention. They all take time to heal, and some leave their trace as a scar. Growing pains the young experience. Deep aches and pains of arthritis the old must endure.
Diseases plague our bodies. The minor infirmities cause us to change our plans. The major ones make us drop our ordinary lives in order to pursue healing and recovery by many different means. Death threatens us. We feel incapable of fending it off.
One stark, clear truth is deeply impressed upon us: we are flesh and blood.
But this truth is nothing for us to deny or to fight against.
It is a powerful truth. It is even a wonderful truth.
It is wonderful because it leads us to our Savior, our mighty, glorious, wonderful Saviour.
What a Savior this is!
For “He also himself likewise took part of the same.”
He too became a partaker of flesh and blood. He did so for a very important purpose, an amazing, incredible purpose. His purpose was “that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is the devil.”
Amazing! The very weakness of our frame He took upon Himself in order to gain a mighty triumph over our great enemy, the devil. He died in weakness that He might rise in complete victory over death and the grave.
As a partaker of flesh and blood.
His victory is our freedom, because He partook of our flesh and blood. So are we freed from Satan’s dominion. Given us is sweet liberty from the fear of death. No longer are we subject to bondage.
In that freedom let us rejoice and give thanks to our dear Lord.
And in our flesh and blood may we cling to the One who partook of the same in order to rescue us.
9 November 2015
“And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.” John 9:39
How great and how glorious is the judgment of Christ! He judges not after the appearance, but after the heart. His judgment is of such a kind as to overthrow the judgments of men. Men try. Men test. As they see, so they either condemn or approve. But Christ’s judgment contradicts and overcomes these judgments of men.
John 9 is a case in point.
Evident there is the judgment of men.
There was the poor blind man, blind from birth. Unable to see, he was no doubt occupied in begging as Jesus and the disciples passed by. As the disciples saw, so they judged. Not only did they see his blindness, but they also judged the cause of his blindness, some sin or another. Their question was not whether, but who. “Who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?”
The disciples’ judgment mirrored that of the Pharisees, which they gave in verse 34: “Thou wast altogether born in sins, and does thou teach us?”
Over against the judgment of men upon passed upon the blind man, there was the judgment passed upon the Pharisees. What was their judgment by men? They were found upright, just, holy according to all the law of God. They received high honour and praise of men, given such understanding and knowledge of the law of God. They enjoyed their lofty position in society, being called of men, “Rabbi, Rabbi.” What insights and understanding they had! Their sight was great indeed, according to the judgment of men.
Such are the judgments of men. Such tend to be our judgments, judging according to sight, not according to truth.
But what is Jesus’ judgment? Why did He come into the world?
“That they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.”
Who saw? Who was blind? Let us hear what each say about Jesus.
Let us hear the Pharisees’ judgment. Let us hear it in connection with the oath that they administer to the blind man, for his testimony.
“Give God the praise: we know that this man is a sinner.” (verse 24)
Let us then hear the testimony of the blind man.
“He is a prophet.” (verse 17)
“If this man were not of God, he could do nothing.” (verse 33)
When Jesus found him afterward He asked him, “Dost thou believe on the Son of God?” The blind man’s answer? “Lord, I believe.”
Such is the judgment, the judgment that Christ brought with Him, righteous, glorious, true judgment!
So let us follow His judgment of light, fleeing from the judgments of men. So let us repent of our blindness, the folly we pursue in our own, sin-darkened judgment. Let us follow after the judgment of Christ alone. Let us look upon Him, the true, blessed and glorious light of the world! Seeing the glory of His righteousness, let us trust it alone for our justification before God. And in His light, let us walk to the glory and praise of Him who has opened our eyes to see Him.
“And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.” John 9:39
How great and how glorious is the judgment of Christ! He judges not after the appearance, but after the heart. His judgment is of such a kind as to overthrow the judgments of men. Men try. Men test. As they see, so they either condemn or approve. But Christ’s judgment contradicts and overcomes these judgments of men.
John 9 is a case in point.
Evident there is the judgment of men.
There was the poor blind man, blind from birth. Unable to see, he was no doubt occupied in begging as Jesus and the disciples passed by. As the disciples saw, so they judged. Not only did they see his blindness, but they also judged the cause of his blindness, some sin or another. Their question was not whether, but who. “Who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?”
The disciples’ judgment mirrored that of the Pharisees, which they gave in verse 34: “Thou wast altogether born in sins, and does thou teach us?”
Over against the judgment of men upon passed upon the blind man, there was the judgment passed upon the Pharisees. What was their judgment by men? They were found upright, just, holy according to all the law of God. They received high honour and praise of men, given such understanding and knowledge of the law of God. They enjoyed their lofty position in society, being called of men, “Rabbi, Rabbi.” What insights and understanding they had! Their sight was great indeed, according to the judgment of men.
Such are the judgments of men. Such tend to be our judgments, judging according to sight, not according to truth.
But what is Jesus’ judgment? Why did He come into the world?
“That they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.”
Who saw? Who was blind? Let us hear what each say about Jesus.
Let us hear the Pharisees’ judgment. Let us hear it in connection with the oath that they administer to the blind man, for his testimony.
“Give God the praise: we know that this man is a sinner.” (verse 24)
Let us then hear the testimony of the blind man.
“He is a prophet.” (verse 17)
“If this man were not of God, he could do nothing.” (verse 33)
When Jesus found him afterward He asked him, “Dost thou believe on the Son of God?” The blind man’s answer? “Lord, I believe.”
Such is the judgment, the judgment that Christ brought with Him, righteous, glorious, true judgment!
So let us follow His judgment of light, fleeing from the judgments of men. So let us repent of our blindness, the folly we pursue in our own, sin-darkened judgment. Let us follow after the judgment of Christ alone. Let us look upon Him, the true, blessed and glorious light of the world! Seeing the glory of His righteousness, let us trust it alone for our justification before God. And in His light, let us walk to the glory and praise of Him who has opened our eyes to see Him.
4 November 2015
“The labour of the righteous tendeth to life: the fruit of the wicked to sin.” Proverb 10:16
How sharp and strong is the division here declared!
To be sure, the chief division found in this Word of God is the fundamental divide between the righteous and the wicked. This is the fundament point that this holy book of the Bible constantly teaches. True wisdom always seeks to understand this difference. What is righteousness and what is wickedness? Who are the righteous and who are the wicked? Whose company to seek and keep? Whose company to avoid and shun? Who to be? Who not to be?
Which brings us to the second point of division in this proverb: why not be wicked? Why be righteous?
Everything that attends the way of the wicked carries with it the wrath of God. Everything about the wicked is filled with their iniquities and sins. Under the judgment and condemnation of God, their way is simply the way of destruction. One is not to be deceived by all that the wicked have and enjoy. All that they have are means and ways of their own destruction. For that reason they and their ways are never to be envied, but always to be avoided.
On the other side is the way of the righteous. Their way is the way of life. It is the way of God’s blessings and the enjoyment of His goodness. It is the way that is bathed in the light of God’s fellowship and friendship. It is the way of peace that brings great confidence as one lives in the midst of the world that belongs to His God. It is the way of reconciliation with God, through the blood of Jesus, being redeemed by His precious blood into the kingdom of heaven. It is the way of walking in the sanctification of the Holy Spirit of Christ.
When we see that difference between the righteous and the wicked in their ways, then we can well understand the third point of division in this proverb.
That point is the difference between the labour of the righteous and the fruit of the wicked.
The wicked have finished their labour. They have planned, establishing their goals. They have exercised their care and their strength according to their plans. They met with success in those labours. Now they enjoy their fruit. They eat. They drink. They are filled, happy and content.
But where does that fruit tend? Is it good? Is it healthy for them? Does it make them better?
Not at all! It tendeth toward sin. By the enjoyment of that fruit they harden themselves in their sinful ways. They find reward in their evil. So they keep on in their sinful ways, finding in their fruit cause to deny the impending wrath of God upon them.
Then there are the righteous. They have their plans and their goals. But they do not as yet have any fruit for their labours and efforts. But in the midst of their pursuits and in the way of their labour they enjoy great blessedness. Their labour itself tendeth to life. Whether their labour meets with success, it does not matter. Whether their plans are fruitful, it makes no difference. Their way is the way of life. In that way, they enjoy the goodness of God that has given them their labour. They enjoy using the strength for which they have prayed, and have received. They enjoy the path of that labour that is under the grace of their God, the path that leads to eternal life.
So let us rejoice in our labour this day. Righteous before our God with the righteousness of Christ, and walking after the Spirit, let us labour in the labour that tendeth to life. Let us never envy the fruit of the wicked, that tendeth always to sin.
“The labour of the righteous tendeth to life: the fruit of the wicked to sin.” Proverb 10:16
How sharp and strong is the division here declared!
To be sure, the chief division found in this Word of God is the fundamental divide between the righteous and the wicked. This is the fundament point that this holy book of the Bible constantly teaches. True wisdom always seeks to understand this difference. What is righteousness and what is wickedness? Who are the righteous and who are the wicked? Whose company to seek and keep? Whose company to avoid and shun? Who to be? Who not to be?
Which brings us to the second point of division in this proverb: why not be wicked? Why be righteous?
Everything that attends the way of the wicked carries with it the wrath of God. Everything about the wicked is filled with their iniquities and sins. Under the judgment and condemnation of God, their way is simply the way of destruction. One is not to be deceived by all that the wicked have and enjoy. All that they have are means and ways of their own destruction. For that reason they and their ways are never to be envied, but always to be avoided.
On the other side is the way of the righteous. Their way is the way of life. It is the way of God’s blessings and the enjoyment of His goodness. It is the way that is bathed in the light of God’s fellowship and friendship. It is the way of peace that brings great confidence as one lives in the midst of the world that belongs to His God. It is the way of reconciliation with God, through the blood of Jesus, being redeemed by His precious blood into the kingdom of heaven. It is the way of walking in the sanctification of the Holy Spirit of Christ.
When we see that difference between the righteous and the wicked in their ways, then we can well understand the third point of division in this proverb.
That point is the difference between the labour of the righteous and the fruit of the wicked.
The wicked have finished their labour. They have planned, establishing their goals. They have exercised their care and their strength according to their plans. They met with success in those labours. Now they enjoy their fruit. They eat. They drink. They are filled, happy and content.
But where does that fruit tend? Is it good? Is it healthy for them? Does it make them better?
Not at all! It tendeth toward sin. By the enjoyment of that fruit they harden themselves in their sinful ways. They find reward in their evil. So they keep on in their sinful ways, finding in their fruit cause to deny the impending wrath of God upon them.
Then there are the righteous. They have their plans and their goals. But they do not as yet have any fruit for their labours and efforts. But in the midst of their pursuits and in the way of their labour they enjoy great blessedness. Their labour itself tendeth to life. Whether their labour meets with success, it does not matter. Whether their plans are fruitful, it makes no difference. Their way is the way of life. In that way, they enjoy the goodness of God that has given them their labour. They enjoy using the strength for which they have prayed, and have received. They enjoy the path of that labour that is under the grace of their God, the path that leads to eternal life.
So let us rejoice in our labour this day. Righteous before our God with the righteousness of Christ, and walking after the Spirit, let us labour in the labour that tendeth to life. Let us never envy the fruit of the wicked, that tendeth always to sin.
29 October 2015
“Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.” John 15:15, 16
What blessedness our Saviour declares to us in these verses!
First, the Son of God tells us who we are before Him.
How wonderful it is even to be the servants of Jesus! There is in that word the comfort and the blessedness of belonging to our faithful Saviour, Jesus Christ. He is the one that Has redeemed us from the tyranny of the devil and from the guilt and bondage of our sin, that we should belong to Him forever, in life and in death. Freed to be His servants, we belong to His blessed household, and that we live, walk, and serve under His blessed protection and by His abundant provision.
But our Lord tells us here we have far, far more.
A servant is not privy to what his lord is doing. His lord does not share with him his plans and determinations. The servant’s lord does not draw him into his inner circle, where he makes his plans and seeks the understanding and knowledge of those close to him. Those privileges belong to friends.
But here our Lord tells us that He calls us His friends! We are in that circle of friendship. He becomes intimate with us. He shares with us His counsels and determinations. He makes known to us His plans and purposes.
Then follows the proof of that friendship.
How do we know that we are the friends of Jesus?
Because He tells us: “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you.”
What a knowledge to keep and what a treasure to safeguard! Sovereign, unconditional, eternal election! So intimate is this knowledge, we could never come to it by our own seeking and by our own study. We always say we chose. So to demonstrate His friendship He tells us that, no, we did not choose Him, but He chose us.
In this very statement, given as proof of Jesus’ friendship, we also have the greatness and the depth of His friendship. That choice He made of us also speaks of the greatness of His love in that friendship. He chose us, to lay down His life for us, His friends. His choice, eternal and sovereign, came at this great cost to Himself.
In His friendship with us, our Saviour goes a step further, to give us even more knowledge about what He does.
He tells us the reason why He chose us.
“That ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.”
Purpose upon purpose, reason upon reason we have in these words!
Not only that we should go and bring forth fruit has he chosen us, but also that our fruit should remain. That we should be fruitful in this life, and that our fruit should remain forever and ever in the blessedness of the everlasting kingdom of God! That we should have an abundance of good works in all our lives, and that those good works should follow us into our heavenly reward. All this is ours by His choice of us, to make us His friends.
Then this purpose: “that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it to you.”
To ask to be fruitful of the Father and to ask in Jesus name, such is our privilege by the friendship of Jesus! In His friendship He chose us. In His friendship He makes us know He chose us. In His friendship He gives us the reason. And in His friendship He takes us with Him to our heavenly Father, to ask all we need in the name of our Friend.
What blessedness is ours from our blessed, sovereign Friend! May we rejoice in those blessings and exercise ourselves in them every day, to the glory of our Friend who has chosen us!
“Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.” John 15:15, 16
What blessedness our Saviour declares to us in these verses!
First, the Son of God tells us who we are before Him.
How wonderful it is even to be the servants of Jesus! There is in that word the comfort and the blessedness of belonging to our faithful Saviour, Jesus Christ. He is the one that Has redeemed us from the tyranny of the devil and from the guilt and bondage of our sin, that we should belong to Him forever, in life and in death. Freed to be His servants, we belong to His blessed household, and that we live, walk, and serve under His blessed protection and by His abundant provision.
But our Lord tells us here we have far, far more.
A servant is not privy to what his lord is doing. His lord does not share with him his plans and determinations. The servant’s lord does not draw him into his inner circle, where he makes his plans and seeks the understanding and knowledge of those close to him. Those privileges belong to friends.
But here our Lord tells us that He calls us His friends! We are in that circle of friendship. He becomes intimate with us. He shares with us His counsels and determinations. He makes known to us His plans and purposes.
Then follows the proof of that friendship.
How do we know that we are the friends of Jesus?
Because He tells us: “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you.”
What a knowledge to keep and what a treasure to safeguard! Sovereign, unconditional, eternal election! So intimate is this knowledge, we could never come to it by our own seeking and by our own study. We always say we chose. So to demonstrate His friendship He tells us that, no, we did not choose Him, but He chose us.
In this very statement, given as proof of Jesus’ friendship, we also have the greatness and the depth of His friendship. That choice He made of us also speaks of the greatness of His love in that friendship. He chose us, to lay down His life for us, His friends. His choice, eternal and sovereign, came at this great cost to Himself.
In His friendship with us, our Saviour goes a step further, to give us even more knowledge about what He does.
He tells us the reason why He chose us.
“That ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.”
Purpose upon purpose, reason upon reason we have in these words!
Not only that we should go and bring forth fruit has he chosen us, but also that our fruit should remain. That we should be fruitful in this life, and that our fruit should remain forever and ever in the blessedness of the everlasting kingdom of God! That we should have an abundance of good works in all our lives, and that those good works should follow us into our heavenly reward. All this is ours by His choice of us, to make us His friends.
Then this purpose: “that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it to you.”
To ask to be fruitful of the Father and to ask in Jesus name, such is our privilege by the friendship of Jesus! In His friendship He chose us. In His friendship He makes us know He chose us. In His friendship He gives us the reason. And in His friendship He takes us with Him to our heavenly Father, to ask all we need in the name of our Friend.
What blessedness is ours from our blessed, sovereign Friend! May we rejoice in those blessings and exercise ourselves in them every day, to the glory of our Friend who has chosen us!
18 October 2015, The Lord’s Day
“Have mercy upon me, O Lord; consider my trouble which I suffer of them that hate me, thou that liftest me up from the gates of death: That I may shew forth all thy praise in the gates of the daughter of Zion: I will rejoice in thy salvation.” Psalm 9:13, 14
What a blessed privilege is ours, to call upon the Lord our God as the God of all mercy to us!
And mercy upon mercy!
The Psalmist David leads us in prayer for mercy. He spoke to the Lord of his present situation, the trouble that he suffered of those that hated him. They surrounded him with their strength and cunning, with their superiority in numbers. Their hearts were filled with pure hatred for the Lord’s servant. Out of that hatred they sought his complete destruction. They had nothing but contempt for his life, and wanted him gone from the face of the earth.
Knowing that he had no power in himself for deliverance, David looked to the Lord for His mercy. He looked to the Lord to reach down to Him, to deliver him by His power and might from the hand of his hateful enemies.
For this mercy, David then set before the Lord the reason. The Lord had shown David the same mercy before. The Lord before lifted him up from the gates of death. David had been in the same situation, at the very gates of death. His death was imminent. He was dragged down to its mighty gates. Then the Lord brought David up in a glorious, merciful deliverance.
So David applies on the basis of past mercy, for the sake of God’s unfailing mercies, to show His servant mercy again.
So David leads us. So must we look and seek to God’s mercy always, and to be assured of that mercy according to the excellency of God’s everlasting and unfailing goodness.
But the Psalmist also looked forward. Looking ahead he also gave a wonderful reason for his request for mercy.
For the church!
His desire was to be brought out of the gates of death to the gates of the daughter of Zion. He desired the mercy of God to bring Him out of death to the fellowship and friendship of God’s people. He wanted to tell to them what great things the Lord had done for him. He wanted to related the power and might of God’s mercy to the congregation, that they together might praise the name of the Lord. Out of his anticipated joy in his deliverance, He longed to tell the people of God of his great salvation. So he desired that they rejoice together in the salvation of their God.
May that desire bring us to the gates of the daughter of Zion today!
As we have sought from the Lord His mercy, shown to us poor sinners, may such be our aim. As we have prayed for His mercy to pardon our transgressions, may such be our goal. As we have sought deliverance from all our pains, sorrows, and difficulties, may this be our great desire.
That we might show forth the praises of our God in the gates of the daughter of Zion, together to rejoice in the salvation of our God.
So may we find this desire of our heart realized today, when we come to the house of our God. So may we rejoice together to hear the wonder of that mercy of God in the gospel of Jesus Christ. So may we together praise the Lord our God, for His unfailing mercies to us His people.
“Have mercy upon me, O Lord; consider my trouble which I suffer of them that hate me, thou that liftest me up from the gates of death: That I may shew forth all thy praise in the gates of the daughter of Zion: I will rejoice in thy salvation.” Psalm 9:13, 14
What a blessed privilege is ours, to call upon the Lord our God as the God of all mercy to us!
And mercy upon mercy!
The Psalmist David leads us in prayer for mercy. He spoke to the Lord of his present situation, the trouble that he suffered of those that hated him. They surrounded him with their strength and cunning, with their superiority in numbers. Their hearts were filled with pure hatred for the Lord’s servant. Out of that hatred they sought his complete destruction. They had nothing but contempt for his life, and wanted him gone from the face of the earth.
Knowing that he had no power in himself for deliverance, David looked to the Lord for His mercy. He looked to the Lord to reach down to Him, to deliver him by His power and might from the hand of his hateful enemies.
For this mercy, David then set before the Lord the reason. The Lord had shown David the same mercy before. The Lord before lifted him up from the gates of death. David had been in the same situation, at the very gates of death. His death was imminent. He was dragged down to its mighty gates. Then the Lord brought David up in a glorious, merciful deliverance.
So David applies on the basis of past mercy, for the sake of God’s unfailing mercies, to show His servant mercy again.
So David leads us. So must we look and seek to God’s mercy always, and to be assured of that mercy according to the excellency of God’s everlasting and unfailing goodness.
But the Psalmist also looked forward. Looking ahead he also gave a wonderful reason for his request for mercy.
For the church!
His desire was to be brought out of the gates of death to the gates of the daughter of Zion. He desired the mercy of God to bring Him out of death to the fellowship and friendship of God’s people. He wanted to tell to them what great things the Lord had done for him. He wanted to related the power and might of God’s mercy to the congregation, that they together might praise the name of the Lord. Out of his anticipated joy in his deliverance, He longed to tell the people of God of his great salvation. So he desired that they rejoice together in the salvation of their God.
May that desire bring us to the gates of the daughter of Zion today!
As we have sought from the Lord His mercy, shown to us poor sinners, may such be our aim. As we have prayed for His mercy to pardon our transgressions, may such be our goal. As we have sought deliverance from all our pains, sorrows, and difficulties, may this be our great desire.
That we might show forth the praises of our God in the gates of the daughter of Zion, together to rejoice in the salvation of our God.
So may we find this desire of our heart realized today, when we come to the house of our God. So may we rejoice together to hear the wonder of that mercy of God in the gospel of Jesus Christ. So may we together praise the Lord our God, for His unfailing mercies to us His people.
3 October 2015
“So when the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I did. So when the Samaritans were come unto him, they besought him that he would tarry with them: and he abode there two days. And many more believed because of his own word; And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.” John 4:40-42
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should no perish, but have eternal life.” John 3:16
It is truly amazing to think that the wonderful word of Jesus to Nicodemus in John 3:16 is fulfilled and realized in the very next chapter.
Is Jesus the Saviour of the world? Is the gift of His Son proof indeed that He loves the world, saving the world through Him?
Look no further than the very next chapter, where Jesus saves these Samaritans.
For time out of mind these Samaritans had been excluded from the worship and service of the Lord, the God of Israel. So great was the prejudice against them by the Jews, that their worst insults and vilest reproaches were saved for them. One of the Jews greatest insults they used against Jesus, when they called him a Samaritan, John 8:48.
The Samaritans were a mixed people. They were partly Jews, and partly of other nations, from the days of the kings of Assyria to the time of Ezra and Nehemiah, when many Jews of the returned captivity intermarried with the people already there. Being rejected of the Jews, they formed their own distorted worship of the Lord, building a temple for their own use on Mt. Gerizim, as a rival to the Jews’ temple in Jerusalem.
This embittered prejudice was the reason for the astonishment of the Samaritan woman that Jesus opened His mouth to speak to her. Imagine the further astonishment of both the townspeople and the disciples when Jesus remained with them two days. Over those two days He taught and preached to these Samaritans. So they believed. Out of their faith they gave this glorious confession.
“This is indeed the Christ, The Saviour of the world.”
How could they make this confession? How could they state it for a fact?
Because these Samaritans of Sychar heard Jesus preach. Because they believed on Him because of His word.
So we hear His Word, proclaimed to us. So we believe that Word that saves us from our sins. So must we also confess that this Jesus is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.
Let us not wait to see. Let us not wait to see whether all or most of the world is saved. Let us not wait to see whether or not multitudes from the nations come to repent of their sin and believe on Christ. Let us not wait to see if revivals sweep through so many lands.
Jesus was the Christ, the Saviour of the world, when He saved these Samaritans.
Jesus is the Christ, the Saviour of the world, when He comes to us who are not of the Jews, and saves us by His Word and Spirit.
For this is our Saviour, the Saviour of the world, the Saviour whose salvation knows no boundary established among men. Let us rejoice in Him and give Him glory for His mighty salvation that reaches so far, even to us!
“So when the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I did. So when the Samaritans were come unto him, they besought him that he would tarry with them: and he abode there two days. And many more believed because of his own word; And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.” John 4:40-42
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should no perish, but have eternal life.” John 3:16
It is truly amazing to think that the wonderful word of Jesus to Nicodemus in John 3:16 is fulfilled and realized in the very next chapter.
Is Jesus the Saviour of the world? Is the gift of His Son proof indeed that He loves the world, saving the world through Him?
Look no further than the very next chapter, where Jesus saves these Samaritans.
For time out of mind these Samaritans had been excluded from the worship and service of the Lord, the God of Israel. So great was the prejudice against them by the Jews, that their worst insults and vilest reproaches were saved for them. One of the Jews greatest insults they used against Jesus, when they called him a Samaritan, John 8:48.
The Samaritans were a mixed people. They were partly Jews, and partly of other nations, from the days of the kings of Assyria to the time of Ezra and Nehemiah, when many Jews of the returned captivity intermarried with the people already there. Being rejected of the Jews, they formed their own distorted worship of the Lord, building a temple for their own use on Mt. Gerizim, as a rival to the Jews’ temple in Jerusalem.
This embittered prejudice was the reason for the astonishment of the Samaritan woman that Jesus opened His mouth to speak to her. Imagine the further astonishment of both the townspeople and the disciples when Jesus remained with them two days. Over those two days He taught and preached to these Samaritans. So they believed. Out of their faith they gave this glorious confession.
“This is indeed the Christ, The Saviour of the world.”
How could they make this confession? How could they state it for a fact?
Because these Samaritans of Sychar heard Jesus preach. Because they believed on Him because of His word.
So we hear His Word, proclaimed to us. So we believe that Word that saves us from our sins. So must we also confess that this Jesus is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.
Let us not wait to see. Let us not wait to see whether all or most of the world is saved. Let us not wait to see whether or not multitudes from the nations come to repent of their sin and believe on Christ. Let us not wait to see if revivals sweep through so many lands.
Jesus was the Christ, the Saviour of the world, when He saved these Samaritans.
Jesus is the Christ, the Saviour of the world, when He comes to us who are not of the Jews, and saves us by His Word and Spirit.
For this is our Saviour, the Saviour of the world, the Saviour whose salvation knows no boundary established among men. Let us rejoice in Him and give Him glory for His mighty salvation that reaches so far, even to us!
27 September 2015, The Lord’s Day
“Take heed to thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.” 1 Timothy 4:16
Timothy, save thyself!
Save thyself from thy sins, and from the wrath that is to come! Save thyself to the possession of everlasting righteousness and blessed membership in the kingdom of heaven! Save thyself from the condemnation of God, and to the saving fellowship and communion of thy heavenly Father!
And, Timothy, save them that hear thee!
Have them enjoy with thee the same salvation! Make sure that they possess the same pardon of sin and the same saving fellowship with God their Father!
How?
How is Timothy to save Himself? How is Timothy to save those that hear him?
How is the minister of the gospel to save himself? How is the minister of the gospel to save them that hear him?
By taking heed to himself, the thoughts of his heart and the manner of his life. By taking heed unto the doctrine. And by such taking of heed, so must the minister of the gospel continue in them. That is He must continue on in the doctrines of the holy Word of God. He must not forsake them, either by departing from them or twisting them to his preference or liking. He must remain faithful to them, preaching and teaching them. By the preaching and teaching of those doctrines Timothy was to save himself and them that heard him.
Such is the blessed transaction we look for on this Sabbath Day.
We look for the Lord’s servant to bring to us the doctrine to which he has taken heed. We look for him to preach to us the truth in which he has continued. We look for him to save us who hear him, by his preaching of the truth of the Scriptures. So we pray for him, that God by His grace and Spirit will strengthen him to continue in those doctrines before us, to fill our ears and hearts with the knowledge of the living God and the riches of His grace to us in Christ. So we come to the preaching to hear the doctrine that saves us and our children.
And in that expectation we also save our minister. We expect, and require of him, that he continue in the doctrine that saves us. And as he continues by the grace of God, according to our expectation of him, he saves himself.
So may we this Lord’s Day witness our own salvation and the salvation of the Lord’s servants, as we continue together in the doctrine of His Word, taking heed!
“Take heed to thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.” 1 Timothy 4:16
Timothy, save thyself!
Save thyself from thy sins, and from the wrath that is to come! Save thyself to the possession of everlasting righteousness and blessed membership in the kingdom of heaven! Save thyself from the condemnation of God, and to the saving fellowship and communion of thy heavenly Father!
And, Timothy, save them that hear thee!
Have them enjoy with thee the same salvation! Make sure that they possess the same pardon of sin and the same saving fellowship with God their Father!
How?
How is Timothy to save Himself? How is Timothy to save those that hear him?
How is the minister of the gospel to save himself? How is the minister of the gospel to save them that hear him?
By taking heed to himself, the thoughts of his heart and the manner of his life. By taking heed unto the doctrine. And by such taking of heed, so must the minister of the gospel continue in them. That is He must continue on in the doctrines of the holy Word of God. He must not forsake them, either by departing from them or twisting them to his preference or liking. He must remain faithful to them, preaching and teaching them. By the preaching and teaching of those doctrines Timothy was to save himself and them that heard him.
Such is the blessed transaction we look for on this Sabbath Day.
We look for the Lord’s servant to bring to us the doctrine to which he has taken heed. We look for him to preach to us the truth in which he has continued. We look for him to save us who hear him, by his preaching of the truth of the Scriptures. So we pray for him, that God by His grace and Spirit will strengthen him to continue in those doctrines before us, to fill our ears and hearts with the knowledge of the living God and the riches of His grace to us in Christ. So we come to the preaching to hear the doctrine that saves us and our children.
And in that expectation we also save our minister. We expect, and require of him, that he continue in the doctrine that saves us. And as he continues by the grace of God, according to our expectation of him, he saves himself.
So may we this Lord’s Day witness our own salvation and the salvation of the Lord’s servants, as we continue together in the doctrine of His Word, taking heed!
September 26, 2015
“Neither shall they say, Lo here! Or, lo there! For, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.” Luke 17:21
So they say, and so easy is it for us to listen and to look.
Lo here! Lo there!
So they say: This is the day and this is the hour. Look at this individual and that individual. Look at this movement. Look at that church, that assembly, that fellowship. See this man that has so many in his church and has seed-churches springing up everywhere. See that woman whose books are selling by the tens of thousands, and is viewed daily by hundreds of thousands. Look to that man whose coming is heralded by nations and trumpeted on television, who has the respect of presidents and world leaders, received into their company as a mighty and glorious peer?
Shall we look? Shall we listen? Shall we agree? Yes, there is the kingdom of God! Lo, here! Lo, there!
Not at all, not a look, not even a glance!
There is not the kingdom of God, but only the vain pretention of men. There is not the kingdom of heaven, but only an idolatrous replica, a contrived distraction.
Follow the direction given by Jesus: Behold!
“For, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.”
What blessed, glad, glorious news this is!
Not outwardly, where movements come and go, where men and women rise and fall, where outward institutions become corrupt and subverted. Not outwardly, by numbers, polls, or policies enacted and enforced.
Within you, where thieves cannot break through nor steal, where loss and violence cannot enter, where the hand of man cannot reach and take away.
Within you, within your heart. For peace, for joy, for assurance and confidence, for abiding comfort and sure hope.
For in our hearts is where our King works the true power of His kingdom. There He breaks the wretched tyranny of sin and unbelief, placing His blessed throne of grace. There He builds His rule of sweet grace, turning the will to Him, to seek His kingdom and His righteousness. That will He satisfies with His own wonderful Presence by His Spirit, giving true peace and rest within.
Let us follow this Word of our Saviour. Let us rejoice to know its reality within, in our hearts. May we eagerly hope for its fullness, when we see our dear Lord face to face in the wonder of His perfected Kingdom.
“Neither shall they say, Lo here! Or, lo there! For, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.” Luke 17:21
So they say, and so easy is it for us to listen and to look.
Lo here! Lo there!
So they say: This is the day and this is the hour. Look at this individual and that individual. Look at this movement. Look at that church, that assembly, that fellowship. See this man that has so many in his church and has seed-churches springing up everywhere. See that woman whose books are selling by the tens of thousands, and is viewed daily by hundreds of thousands. Look to that man whose coming is heralded by nations and trumpeted on television, who has the respect of presidents and world leaders, received into their company as a mighty and glorious peer?
Shall we look? Shall we listen? Shall we agree? Yes, there is the kingdom of God! Lo, here! Lo, there!
Not at all, not a look, not even a glance!
There is not the kingdom of God, but only the vain pretention of men. There is not the kingdom of heaven, but only an idolatrous replica, a contrived distraction.
Follow the direction given by Jesus: Behold!
“For, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.”
What blessed, glad, glorious news this is!
Not outwardly, where movements come and go, where men and women rise and fall, where outward institutions become corrupt and subverted. Not outwardly, by numbers, polls, or policies enacted and enforced.
Within you, where thieves cannot break through nor steal, where loss and violence cannot enter, where the hand of man cannot reach and take away.
Within you, within your heart. For peace, for joy, for assurance and confidence, for abiding comfort and sure hope.
For in our hearts is where our King works the true power of His kingdom. There He breaks the wretched tyranny of sin and unbelief, placing His blessed throne of grace. There He builds His rule of sweet grace, turning the will to Him, to seek His kingdom and His righteousness. That will He satisfies with His own wonderful Presence by His Spirit, giving true peace and rest within.
Let us follow this Word of our Saviour. Let us rejoice to know its reality within, in our hearts. May we eagerly hope for its fullness, when we see our dear Lord face to face in the wonder of His perfected Kingdom.
25 September 2015
“And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.” Luke 16:15
What words of condemnation Christ spoke to these Pharisees!
Who were these Pharisees? What had they done? The Word of God in the verse before tells us simply that the Pharisees were covetous. Out of their covetousness they sneered at the words spoken by Christ, so that they derided Him. They personally attacked Him with their abusive, derogatory words.
Such was their answer to the clear teaching of verse 13, ending with the words, “Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”
The Pharisees thought that they could very well serve God and mammon. They had their way of life and their system of thought. That way and that system they approved together. Walking in that way, and holding that system, they had the respect and praise of men.
Approval all around! What could possibly be wrong?!!!
How the words of our Lord overturn that godless mindset and walk!
God knew their hearts.
God knew their hearts that hated the one and loved the other. God knew their hearts that held to the one and despised the other. God knew their hearts that loved mammon and held to mammon. God knew their hearts that hated Him and despised Him.
Jesus continued to the ground of their condemnation: “That which is highly esteemed among men is abominable in the sight of God.”
What a ground! What a rule!
That which is highly esteemed among men is so often what we pursue! Abilities, whether physical or intellectual we cultivate and hone so that we can enjoy the esteem of men. We pursue success and attainments of every kind, so that we might be recognized by those around us. We bask in the glow of men’s approval, and when we lack that approval we become discouraged.
Yet, “that which is highly esteemed among men is abominable in the sight of God.”
How hard it is to find abominable what God sees as abominable!
But in these same words is a key to change our ways and our minds from what is abominable in the sight of God.
“Ye are they which justify yourselves before men.”
Let us turn from that way of justification before men. It must certainly help to know that justification before men is always vain. Men’s justification always has its end in the eternal fire of hell. Let all the world applaud and let all the world approve, but all that approval melts to nothing before the heart-penetrating gaze of the living God, the holy Judge of all.
And what help there is to lead to justification before God! What reason we have to find abominable what before God’s sight is abominable! Every reason we have to drop all justification before men.
There is God’s justification!
God’s justification is glorious. His justification stands forever. His justification meets with His holy, righteous approval. He rejoices and glories in it.
That justification is the free gift of His grace, wrought through the gift of His own, only-begotten Son and His sacrifice on the cross. That justification He gives, imputing it to poor, wretched sinners, sealing it through His Spirit’s work of faith in His Son.
To that justification let us cling with joy and thanksgiving! In it let us find our blessed peace with our God!
And, clothed in God’s justification, let us find abominable all justification before men!
“And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.” Luke 16:15
What words of condemnation Christ spoke to these Pharisees!
Who were these Pharisees? What had they done? The Word of God in the verse before tells us simply that the Pharisees were covetous. Out of their covetousness they sneered at the words spoken by Christ, so that they derided Him. They personally attacked Him with their abusive, derogatory words.
Such was their answer to the clear teaching of verse 13, ending with the words, “Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”
The Pharisees thought that they could very well serve God and mammon. They had their way of life and their system of thought. That way and that system they approved together. Walking in that way, and holding that system, they had the respect and praise of men.
Approval all around! What could possibly be wrong?!!!
How the words of our Lord overturn that godless mindset and walk!
God knew their hearts.
God knew their hearts that hated the one and loved the other. God knew their hearts that held to the one and despised the other. God knew their hearts that loved mammon and held to mammon. God knew their hearts that hated Him and despised Him.
Jesus continued to the ground of their condemnation: “That which is highly esteemed among men is abominable in the sight of God.”
What a ground! What a rule!
That which is highly esteemed among men is so often what we pursue! Abilities, whether physical or intellectual we cultivate and hone so that we can enjoy the esteem of men. We pursue success and attainments of every kind, so that we might be recognized by those around us. We bask in the glow of men’s approval, and when we lack that approval we become discouraged.
Yet, “that which is highly esteemed among men is abominable in the sight of God.”
How hard it is to find abominable what God sees as abominable!
But in these same words is a key to change our ways and our minds from what is abominable in the sight of God.
“Ye are they which justify yourselves before men.”
Let us turn from that way of justification before men. It must certainly help to know that justification before men is always vain. Men’s justification always has its end in the eternal fire of hell. Let all the world applaud and let all the world approve, but all that approval melts to nothing before the heart-penetrating gaze of the living God, the holy Judge of all.
And what help there is to lead to justification before God! What reason we have to find abominable what before God’s sight is abominable! Every reason we have to drop all justification before men.
There is God’s justification!
God’s justification is glorious. His justification stands forever. His justification meets with His holy, righteous approval. He rejoices and glories in it.
That justification is the free gift of His grace, wrought through the gift of His own, only-begotten Son and His sacrifice on the cross. That justification He gives, imputing it to poor, wretched sinners, sealing it through His Spirit’s work of faith in His Son.
To that justification let us cling with joy and thanksgiving! In it let us find our blessed peace with our God!
And, clothed in God’s justification, let us find abominable all justification before men!
19 September 2015
"O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open unto you, our heart is enlarged. Ye are not straitened in us, but ye are straitened in your own bowels. Now for a recompence in the same, (I speak as unto my children,) be ye also enlarged. Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?" II Corinthians 6:11-14
Two seemingly different admonitions the Spirit gives us in these few verses, but they are really opposite sides of the same coin.
Both are admonitions. They both find us in our own ways and command us to stop.
The first came to the Corinthians in their stinginess, here identified as straitness or narrowness. We can think of straits as a body of water, a narrow place between two larger bodies of water. There is a great deal of water on both sides, but the water never flows easily from one body to the other because of the straits. So it was with the Corinthians. They were not enlarged toward Paul and his company, but were straitened. Even though Paul came to them in largeness of heart toward them, sacrificing himself and placing himself on the line for this church, they did not respond to him in kind. They closed him out. They did not treat him with the same affectionate kindness. So Paul brings them face to face with their problem. "Ye are not straitened in us, but ye are straitened in your own bowels. . . . be ye also enlarged."
The second admonition came to the Corinthians as a warning against their worldliness. They had their ties with the world that were precious to them. They desired those bonds. They fostered and nourished them. For that reason Paul admonished them: "Be not unequally yoked together with unbelievers." This admonition Paul backed up with powerful words, addressing the fellowship and communion of that yoke in so many words. What fellowship? What communion? What concord? What part? What agreement?
How these admonitions belong together! How they really amount to the same thing!
Where is the true fellowship? The real communion? The blessed concord? The good part? The right agreement?
Not with unbelievers, but with believers. Not with unrighteousness, but with righteousness. Not with darkness, but with light. Not with Belial, but with Christ. Not with the infidel, but with the believer. Not with idols, but with the temple of God.
So it must be with us.
How, then, is that fellowship to be realized? How is that communion to be practiced? How is the concord to be enjoyed, the part to be strong?
There is one way to break the fellowship. There is a way to dry up communion and to turn agreement into disagreement.
Straitness. Narrowness. Withholding of love and kindness.
Let us not be strait in our mouth, our heart, or our bowels of mercies and compassion.
Let us be open in our hearts. Let us be enlarged in our bowels of mercies and compassion, overflowing in words of peace, kindness, and goodness toward our fellow saints.
So let us cherish and nurture these true bonds of fellowship and communion. So may the cause of God’s kingdom prosper and flourish among us.
"O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open unto you, our heart is enlarged. Ye are not straitened in us, but ye are straitened in your own bowels. Now for a recompence in the same, (I speak as unto my children,) be ye also enlarged. Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?" II Corinthians 6:11-14
Two seemingly different admonitions the Spirit gives us in these few verses, but they are really opposite sides of the same coin.
Both are admonitions. They both find us in our own ways and command us to stop.
The first came to the Corinthians in their stinginess, here identified as straitness or narrowness. We can think of straits as a body of water, a narrow place between two larger bodies of water. There is a great deal of water on both sides, but the water never flows easily from one body to the other because of the straits. So it was with the Corinthians. They were not enlarged toward Paul and his company, but were straitened. Even though Paul came to them in largeness of heart toward them, sacrificing himself and placing himself on the line for this church, they did not respond to him in kind. They closed him out. They did not treat him with the same affectionate kindness. So Paul brings them face to face with their problem. "Ye are not straitened in us, but ye are straitened in your own bowels. . . . be ye also enlarged."
The second admonition came to the Corinthians as a warning against their worldliness. They had their ties with the world that were precious to them. They desired those bonds. They fostered and nourished them. For that reason Paul admonished them: "Be not unequally yoked together with unbelievers." This admonition Paul backed up with powerful words, addressing the fellowship and communion of that yoke in so many words. What fellowship? What communion? What concord? What part? What agreement?
How these admonitions belong together! How they really amount to the same thing!
Where is the true fellowship? The real communion? The blessed concord? The good part? The right agreement?
Not with unbelievers, but with believers. Not with unrighteousness, but with righteousness. Not with darkness, but with light. Not with Belial, but with Christ. Not with the infidel, but with the believer. Not with idols, but with the temple of God.
So it must be with us.
How, then, is that fellowship to be realized? How is that communion to be practiced? How is the concord to be enjoyed, the part to be strong?
There is one way to break the fellowship. There is a way to dry up communion and to turn agreement into disagreement.
Straitness. Narrowness. Withholding of love and kindness.
Let us not be strait in our mouth, our heart, or our bowels of mercies and compassion.
Let us be open in our hearts. Let us be enlarged in our bowels of mercies and compassion, overflowing in words of peace, kindness, and goodness toward our fellow saints.
So let us cherish and nurture these true bonds of fellowship and communion. So may the cause of God’s kingdom prosper and flourish among us.
18 September 2015
"Deceit is in the heart of them that imagine evil: but to the counsellers of peace is joy." Proverbs 12:20
How powerful this proverb of God’s Word is! Its true power becomes evident when we see how these two opposing thoughts are balanced against each other.
The first point of opposition are these groups that are here described.
There are "them that imagine evil."
Evil lies in their imagination. They turn their abilities to imagine for evil. They imagine the proud power that they possess. They imagine great ambitions, what they shall accomplish and how great they shall be through their accomplishments. They imagine the intricate and involved schemes and devices they will use to accomplish their goals. And all the while they seek and contrive against God. Their chief ambition is to walk contrary to His way, and to overthrow His judgment. They determine to prosper in their rebellion against them. They determine to live by jealousy and envy, by cruelty and greed.
What a difference we find, when we turn to the other group, "the counsellers of peace"!
These do not work according to their imagination. Their purposes are purposes of peace. They study peace, how to bring it about and how to accomplish it. They put their energies to right relationships, between God and man, between man and man, relationships in the church and in the world. They seek to bring all the blessings of God’s goodness to bear on their lives and on the lives of all those around them.
But these are also different from those that imagine evil in their counsel. As they have peace in their hearts, so they speak words of peace. They are the counsellers of peace. Their speech brings about reconciliation and friendship. Their words cultivate peace and harmony. Their language brings with it the blessings of God’s peace, the blessings of His goodness filling the hearts of men.
As different as these two are, "them that imagine evil," and "the counsellers of peace," so different are the judgments of God upon them.
What is in the heart of "them that imagine evil"?
Deceit.
How great that deceit is! That deceit is they shall be great in their iniquity and evil. That deceit is that they shall not be discovered in their evil ways. That deceit is that they actually shall succeed in evading God’s judgment and that they will find lasting joy in their evil.
That deceit is already in their heart. It follows them in all their imaginations, as they embrace evil goals and plot to carry them out. Judgment does not wait, but is right there, the expression of God’s wrath against their evil.
As far as east from west is the judgment to the counsellers of peace!
To them is joy.
That joy is true, blessed joy of heart. It is the joy of being an instrument in God’s hand, to bring about His peace and His reconciliation. It is the happiness of being a channel of His goodness, blessing the hearts of His people with His peace. It is the joy of seeing desires for peace and following labour for peace bear their rich fruit, fruit in the lives of God’s people walking in His ways.
May the Lord fill us with His peace, to make us more and more counsellers of peace! So may we seek and speak peace, to enjoy His joy forever!
"Deceit is in the heart of them that imagine evil: but to the counsellers of peace is joy." Proverbs 12:20
How powerful this proverb of God’s Word is! Its true power becomes evident when we see how these two opposing thoughts are balanced against each other.
The first point of opposition are these groups that are here described.
There are "them that imagine evil."
Evil lies in their imagination. They turn their abilities to imagine for evil. They imagine the proud power that they possess. They imagine great ambitions, what they shall accomplish and how great they shall be through their accomplishments. They imagine the intricate and involved schemes and devices they will use to accomplish their goals. And all the while they seek and contrive against God. Their chief ambition is to walk contrary to His way, and to overthrow His judgment. They determine to prosper in their rebellion against them. They determine to live by jealousy and envy, by cruelty and greed.
What a difference we find, when we turn to the other group, "the counsellers of peace"!
These do not work according to their imagination. Their purposes are purposes of peace. They study peace, how to bring it about and how to accomplish it. They put their energies to right relationships, between God and man, between man and man, relationships in the church and in the world. They seek to bring all the blessings of God’s goodness to bear on their lives and on the lives of all those around them.
But these are also different from those that imagine evil in their counsel. As they have peace in their hearts, so they speak words of peace. They are the counsellers of peace. Their speech brings about reconciliation and friendship. Their words cultivate peace and harmony. Their language brings with it the blessings of God’s peace, the blessings of His goodness filling the hearts of men.
As different as these two are, "them that imagine evil," and "the counsellers of peace," so different are the judgments of God upon them.
What is in the heart of "them that imagine evil"?
Deceit.
How great that deceit is! That deceit is they shall be great in their iniquity and evil. That deceit is that they shall not be discovered in their evil ways. That deceit is that they actually shall succeed in evading God’s judgment and that they will find lasting joy in their evil.
That deceit is already in their heart. It follows them in all their imaginations, as they embrace evil goals and plot to carry them out. Judgment does not wait, but is right there, the expression of God’s wrath against their evil.
As far as east from west is the judgment to the counsellers of peace!
To them is joy.
That joy is true, blessed joy of heart. It is the joy of being an instrument in God’s hand, to bring about His peace and His reconciliation. It is the happiness of being a channel of His goodness, blessing the hearts of His people with His peace. It is the joy of seeing desires for peace and following labour for peace bear their rich fruit, fruit in the lives of God’s people walking in His ways.
May the Lord fill us with His peace, to make us more and more counsellers of peace! So may we seek and speak peace, to enjoy His joy forever!
15 September 2015
"Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate. Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach. For here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come." Hebrews 13:12-14
In theses verses we have both the calling and the privilege of Christians, the way of the cross.
That way of the cross simply comes upon us according to this Word.
How?
We are joined to our Lord by the wonderful gift of faith in Him, worked by the Holy Spirit. Such is this intimate unity that all the power and vitality of our living Head flows into us. So we not only believe on Him, but we confess His name, and live, speak and walk out of our Lord. We more and more resemble Him, but this mighty working of His grace in us.
And as we more and more resemble Christ, the world takes notice. As the servant is not above his lord, and as the student is not above his teacher, so the world that reproaches Christ will reproach His servants and His disciples.
In this fact and truth we have our first calling: "bearing His reproach."
We may not shake off that reproach. We may not explain that we should not be reproached. We may not try to avoid that reproach. Let us not modify your approach or behaviour in order to escape the reproach of the world. No, we bear that reproach gladly and joyfully, willing to bear not only the image of our Lord but also His reproach.
Then follows the second calling: "Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp."
Never think that the reproach of the world leaves us without a place to go. The reproach of the world is blessed because it sends us exactly where we need to go.
That reproach sends us straight into the arms of our Lord Jesus Christ.
There we find Him who suffered for us without the gate. In Jerusalem He was tried before the council of the Jews, before Pilate and before Herod. In Jerusalem He was rejected of the multitude, and finally sentenced to the death of the cross. But He had to die without the gate as unclean.
There--without the gate and without the camp--He receives us into His arms. Without the gate He comforts us with His everlasting goodness and peace. Without the camp He speaks to us words of consolation and good cheer.
Without the gate and without the camp He leads us to the city that is to come, the heavenly Jerusalem, the holy city of our Great King. This is the city that hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. This is the perfect, enduring and continuing city, where there is no need of light of sun or moon, for the Lord God and the Lamb are the light of it.
For the sake of that city, we are glad to have here "no continuing city." We are glad to hear the reproaches of the world because they send us where we truly belong: with our blessed Saviour, in His everlasting city.
"Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate. Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach. For here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come." Hebrews 13:12-14
In theses verses we have both the calling and the privilege of Christians, the way of the cross.
That way of the cross simply comes upon us according to this Word.
How?
We are joined to our Lord by the wonderful gift of faith in Him, worked by the Holy Spirit. Such is this intimate unity that all the power and vitality of our living Head flows into us. So we not only believe on Him, but we confess His name, and live, speak and walk out of our Lord. We more and more resemble Him, but this mighty working of His grace in us.
And as we more and more resemble Christ, the world takes notice. As the servant is not above his lord, and as the student is not above his teacher, so the world that reproaches Christ will reproach His servants and His disciples.
In this fact and truth we have our first calling: "bearing His reproach."
We may not shake off that reproach. We may not explain that we should not be reproached. We may not try to avoid that reproach. Let us not modify your approach or behaviour in order to escape the reproach of the world. No, we bear that reproach gladly and joyfully, willing to bear not only the image of our Lord but also His reproach.
Then follows the second calling: "Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp."
Never think that the reproach of the world leaves us without a place to go. The reproach of the world is blessed because it sends us exactly where we need to go.
That reproach sends us straight into the arms of our Lord Jesus Christ.
There we find Him who suffered for us without the gate. In Jerusalem He was tried before the council of the Jews, before Pilate and before Herod. In Jerusalem He was rejected of the multitude, and finally sentenced to the death of the cross. But He had to die without the gate as unclean.
There--without the gate and without the camp--He receives us into His arms. Without the gate He comforts us with His everlasting goodness and peace. Without the camp He speaks to us words of consolation and good cheer.
Without the gate and without the camp He leads us to the city that is to come, the heavenly Jerusalem, the holy city of our Great King. This is the city that hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. This is the perfect, enduring and continuing city, where there is no need of light of sun or moon, for the Lord God and the Lamb are the light of it.
For the sake of that city, we are glad to have here "no continuing city." We are glad to hear the reproaches of the world because they send us where we truly belong: with our blessed Saviour, in His everlasting city.
14 September 2015
"And if any man think that he knoweth anything, he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know. But if any man love God, the same is known of him." I Corinthians 8:2
How sharp is the contrast presented in these verses!
On the one side of this contrast is the man who thinks that he knows anything.
Who is this man? He is anyone. What qualifies him here is that he possesses a thought in his mind. He knows. He possesses knowledge. He has been taught something. He has read something. He has seen something. Perhaps he has gone through some kind of thinking process, working logically from premisses to conclusion. But the point is that he thinks he knows.
This man is you. This man is me. We gain a bit of knowledge, whether of earth or heaven, whether of things visible or invisible. We think we know.
Then, the verdict is handed down to us: "He knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know."
Now on the other side of the contrast is a completely different way: But if any man love God.
Here is a man that seeks after God. He delights in the living God, who has revealed Himself in His holy Word. He desires God, to know Him in order to live in fellowship and communion with Him. He reads and meditates on the Word of His God. He enjoys fellowship and communion with His God in prayer. He loves the worship of God. He rejoices to serve His God.
What is the marvellous and glorious truth about this man? What is His great blessedness?
This: the same is known of him.
Known of God!
Here is the key to the entire contrast between these two.
All the knowledge that you and I might glean and gather in all our life cannot compare with the riches of being known by God. The highest and greatest knowledge that a man might possess counts for nothing unless he is known of God. Being known of God, in the love of God, makes all other knowledge small and insignificant.
To be known of God takes us to the knowledge that God has of the man who loves Him. That knowledge of God is His glorious, eternal foreknowledge of His elect. Them He knows in love, as He has in love chosen them to be conformed to the image of His Son, Romans 8:29. According to that divine foreknowledge, God lovingly shaped and molded every one of His children in the womb, Psalm 139:13-16. So He knows all their way, leading them and guiding them to Him by sovereign, almighty grace, Psalm 73:23, 24. So strong and so vast is this knowledge of God that all things without exception must work together for the salvation of His foreknown, Romans 8:28.
How glorious and how inexhaustibly vast is this knowledge of God! How blessed is the man that loves God, who knows that God so knows Him!
So may we grow in the love of our God, to know what is truly worth knowing, that we are known of Him. And may all the knowledge we gather in all our studies and pursuits lead us to the love of our God, who knows us.
"And if any man think that he knoweth anything, he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know. But if any man love God, the same is known of him." I Corinthians 8:2
How sharp is the contrast presented in these verses!
On the one side of this contrast is the man who thinks that he knows anything.
Who is this man? He is anyone. What qualifies him here is that he possesses a thought in his mind. He knows. He possesses knowledge. He has been taught something. He has read something. He has seen something. Perhaps he has gone through some kind of thinking process, working logically from premisses to conclusion. But the point is that he thinks he knows.
This man is you. This man is me. We gain a bit of knowledge, whether of earth or heaven, whether of things visible or invisible. We think we know.
Then, the verdict is handed down to us: "He knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know."
Now on the other side of the contrast is a completely different way: But if any man love God.
Here is a man that seeks after God. He delights in the living God, who has revealed Himself in His holy Word. He desires God, to know Him in order to live in fellowship and communion with Him. He reads and meditates on the Word of His God. He enjoys fellowship and communion with His God in prayer. He loves the worship of God. He rejoices to serve His God.
What is the marvellous and glorious truth about this man? What is His great blessedness?
This: the same is known of him.
Known of God!
Here is the key to the entire contrast between these two.
All the knowledge that you and I might glean and gather in all our life cannot compare with the riches of being known by God. The highest and greatest knowledge that a man might possess counts for nothing unless he is known of God. Being known of God, in the love of God, makes all other knowledge small and insignificant.
To be known of God takes us to the knowledge that God has of the man who loves Him. That knowledge of God is His glorious, eternal foreknowledge of His elect. Them He knows in love, as He has in love chosen them to be conformed to the image of His Son, Romans 8:29. According to that divine foreknowledge, God lovingly shaped and molded every one of His children in the womb, Psalm 139:13-16. So He knows all their way, leading them and guiding them to Him by sovereign, almighty grace, Psalm 73:23, 24. So strong and so vast is this knowledge of God that all things without exception must work together for the salvation of His foreknown, Romans 8:28.
How glorious and how inexhaustibly vast is this knowledge of God! How blessed is the man that loves God, who knows that God so knows Him!
So may we grow in the love of our God, to know what is truly worth knowing, that we are known of Him. And may all the knowledge we gather in all our studies and pursuits lead us to the love of our God, who knows us.
12 September 2015
"Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied." I Samuel 17:45
How thankful we must be to hear this powerful testimony from David, the youngest son of Jesse!
For in this testimony we have the wonderful secret of a power that is mighty to conquer and overthrow every enemy. Even more, this is a power so glorious, it makes all the power and might of man weakness and frailty.
Goliath, that giant of the Philistines, had power and might to make the armies of Israel under Saul’s command flee from his appearance and voice, as he daily defied them. Goliath had his fearsome stature and impressive build. He had his weighty armour, his sword, his spear and his shield. There was none in all the army of Saul, let alone Saul himself, that dared venture his strength and abilities against the fearsome champion of the Philistines.
Then there was David, the shepherd-boy, the youngest among Jesse’s sons, too young to leave his father’s home and to go fight with his brothers.
There was David, who was taken for a fool. Considered a fool, because he dared to challenge this experienced giant of a warrior. Considered a fool, because in his challenge he eschewed sword and spear and shield.
But no fool was David. He took with him against this giant the one weapon he needed.
What was that weapon?
Not his sling with the five smooth stones he picked from the brook.
His true weapon was the name of the Lord.
"But I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied."
How much must David’s testimony overturn our thinking!
We are far too easily impressed with swords, spear, and shields. We shrink from overwhelming numbers of men. We feel the weight of surveys, of majority opinions. We withdraw from the glares, the scorn, the mockery of men. We also choose our tools and select our instruments. We prefer the sword of our intellectual arguments. We like the spear of an emotional presentation. We desire the shield of our own wit and character. We want the safety of numbers.
In all these there is no safety, but only hazard. In them there is no strength, but only weakness.
Let us instead know David’s mighty weapon, the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel. Let us consider the excellency of the glory of that name, its infinite power and wonderful wisdom. Let us know the power of that name to deliver us from the awful weight of our sins and Satan’s oppressive power. Let us regard that name above all names, with its sovereign power against which the gates of hell cannot prevail.
Then, let us go to our battles armed with that glorious, matchless power. Let us go, certain and assured that victory is ours, in that blessed name of our God. Let us confess it and declare it. Then let us see how God will glorify His name in all our battles.
"Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied." I Samuel 17:45
How thankful we must be to hear this powerful testimony from David, the youngest son of Jesse!
For in this testimony we have the wonderful secret of a power that is mighty to conquer and overthrow every enemy. Even more, this is a power so glorious, it makes all the power and might of man weakness and frailty.
Goliath, that giant of the Philistines, had power and might to make the armies of Israel under Saul’s command flee from his appearance and voice, as he daily defied them. Goliath had his fearsome stature and impressive build. He had his weighty armour, his sword, his spear and his shield. There was none in all the army of Saul, let alone Saul himself, that dared venture his strength and abilities against the fearsome champion of the Philistines.
Then there was David, the shepherd-boy, the youngest among Jesse’s sons, too young to leave his father’s home and to go fight with his brothers.
There was David, who was taken for a fool. Considered a fool, because he dared to challenge this experienced giant of a warrior. Considered a fool, because in his challenge he eschewed sword and spear and shield.
But no fool was David. He took with him against this giant the one weapon he needed.
What was that weapon?
Not his sling with the five smooth stones he picked from the brook.
His true weapon was the name of the Lord.
"But I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied."
How much must David’s testimony overturn our thinking!
We are far too easily impressed with swords, spear, and shields. We shrink from overwhelming numbers of men. We feel the weight of surveys, of majority opinions. We withdraw from the glares, the scorn, the mockery of men. We also choose our tools and select our instruments. We prefer the sword of our intellectual arguments. We like the spear of an emotional presentation. We desire the shield of our own wit and character. We want the safety of numbers.
In all these there is no safety, but only hazard. In them there is no strength, but only weakness.
Let us instead know David’s mighty weapon, the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel. Let us consider the excellency of the glory of that name, its infinite power and wonderful wisdom. Let us know the power of that name to deliver us from the awful weight of our sins and Satan’s oppressive power. Let us regard that name above all names, with its sovereign power against which the gates of hell cannot prevail.
Then, let us go to our battles armed with that glorious, matchless power. Let us go, certain and assured that victory is ours, in that blessed name of our God. Let us confess it and declare it. Then let us see how God will glorify His name in all our battles.
11 September 2015
"I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies." Psalm 18:3
A mighty circle of confidence is given us in these words, to strengthen our trust in the Lord alone.
Why call upon the Lord for salvation? Why must we look to Him alone for deliverance and safety from our enemies? Why must we make Him alone our rock and our fortress, our strength and buckler?
Because He alone is worthy to be praised.
Even more directly, according to the original: He is praised! I will call upon the Lord.
How glorious are the praises of the Lord!
As the Lord puts His own works on display through the heavens and the earth, He shows that He alone is to be praised and glorified. Man can only stand and gape in wonder at all the mighty and glorious works of God. He alone has placed the stars in the heavens and He alone sustains each one in all its burning beauty and power. He alone has lifted up the mountains far above the seas. He alone clothes the hills and valleys with their green. He alone raises up mighty men and great nations, and also casts them down in His mighty judgment. By the sacrifice of His Son alone He delivers from the guilt and power of sin and brings eternal salvation to His people.
So He shows and so He proves that He alone is to be called upon.
But even more, we have in these words the way and the manner of our confidence.
The inspired David takes us by the hand and leads us in this confidence: "I will call upon the Lord . . . so shall I be saved from our enemies."
Calling on the Lord must be more than asking Him to save us from our enemies.
Vital for our confidence in this request are the praises of the Lord.
Let us begin not with our request for salvation from our enemies, but with the praises of the Lord. Let us begin by praising Him as the living God, confessing His absolute, infinite glory. Let us continue to speak to Him of His truth, His goodness, His righteousness, His holiness, His mercy, and His grace. Let us speak to Him of His glory shown in His mighty works, works of creation and providence, works of judgment and works of salvation.
Through each and every word of praise it becomes more and more clear that, indeed, He is worthy of all our trust and all our confidence. His hand is mighty to pull us out of the hands of all our enemies. His hand is mighty to defend and protect us from all their power to destroy.
So let us call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised.
So shall we be saved from our enemies.
"I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies." Psalm 18:3
A mighty circle of confidence is given us in these words, to strengthen our trust in the Lord alone.
Why call upon the Lord for salvation? Why must we look to Him alone for deliverance and safety from our enemies? Why must we make Him alone our rock and our fortress, our strength and buckler?
Because He alone is worthy to be praised.
Even more directly, according to the original: He is praised! I will call upon the Lord.
How glorious are the praises of the Lord!
As the Lord puts His own works on display through the heavens and the earth, He shows that He alone is to be praised and glorified. Man can only stand and gape in wonder at all the mighty and glorious works of God. He alone has placed the stars in the heavens and He alone sustains each one in all its burning beauty and power. He alone has lifted up the mountains far above the seas. He alone clothes the hills and valleys with their green. He alone raises up mighty men and great nations, and also casts them down in His mighty judgment. By the sacrifice of His Son alone He delivers from the guilt and power of sin and brings eternal salvation to His people.
So He shows and so He proves that He alone is to be called upon.
But even more, we have in these words the way and the manner of our confidence.
The inspired David takes us by the hand and leads us in this confidence: "I will call upon the Lord . . . so shall I be saved from our enemies."
Calling on the Lord must be more than asking Him to save us from our enemies.
Vital for our confidence in this request are the praises of the Lord.
Let us begin not with our request for salvation from our enemies, but with the praises of the Lord. Let us begin by praising Him as the living God, confessing His absolute, infinite glory. Let us continue to speak to Him of His truth, His goodness, His righteousness, His holiness, His mercy, and His grace. Let us speak to Him of His glory shown in His mighty works, works of creation and providence, works of judgment and works of salvation.
Through each and every word of praise it becomes more and more clear that, indeed, He is worthy of all our trust and all our confidence. His hand is mighty to pull us out of the hands of all our enemies. His hand is mighty to defend and protect us from all their power to destroy.
So let us call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised.
So shall we be saved from our enemies.
10 September 2015
“The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.” Psalm 16:6
Powerful instruction does the Holy Spirit give us in these words, showing us how we are to look at our way in this world and the judgment we are to pass on it.
But can this be said in all the circumstances of our lives? Should every Christian be able to say the lines are fallen unto him in pleasant places? Should every believer say with all the things that can happen to him, that he has a goodly heritage?
Can such an assessment be heard from the lips of one whose heart knows inexpressible grief and loss? Can this confession truly be made by the saint whose life has been shattered with overwhelming news, perhaps of the sudden death of a beloved father or mother, a husband or wife, or a precious son or daughter? Can these words be said by one whose life is torn apart by divorce or desertion, or whose heart is broken by friendship suddenly turned to hostility? Can this statement be made by one whose body is racked with tormenting pain day after day with no end in sight?
We might think of David, the inspired penman of this Psalm. What was his heritage? How had the lines fallen unto him?
He had fallen under king Saul’s unjust displeasure. The very one whom David faithfully served accused his faithful servant of treachery and conspiracy, and hunted him down, seeking his very life. Where he hid for refuge from his enemy he found betrayal among his hosts. The army he helped train used their strength and abilities to track him, intent on his destruction. Fleeing to another country he found suspicion if not outright hostility. Later on, he must know the contempt of a wife, murderous betrayal of his own son, and his kingdom in utter disarray.
Yet hear his confession: “The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.”
How can this truly be his confession?
How can this truly be our confession?
The answer is given us in the following verses, through to the end of the Psalm. He directs his attention away from his circumstances and to his God.
The Lord has given him counsel, so that his inmost thoughts instruct him in the Lord’s ways in the night seasons. With the Lord set before him, at his right hand, he is assured that he will not be moved. For those reasons his heart is glad and his glory rejoices. His soul will not be left in hell, neither will the Lord suffer His Holy One to see corruption. David’s path is the path of life. For in God’s presence is fullness of joy and at His right hand are pleasures for evermore.
So let us turn from our earthly troubles and hardships, to look to our God. Let us look to the counsel of His almighty will, according to the multitude of His precious promises. Let us know the seal of every one of those promises to us, the blood of His only-begotten Son. Let us be filled with the assurance that with the Son of God, all things must be for us. Let us be confident that our momentary afflictions work for us an eternal weight of glory.
In the midst of overwhelming troubles and sorrows, may we so enjoy the assurance of God’s abiding presence. In our times of deep pain, affliction, loss and anxieties, may we know the peace of the Lord’s gracious counsel for us.
So may we rejoice even in our sorrow to say, “The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.”
“The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.” Psalm 16:6
Powerful instruction does the Holy Spirit give us in these words, showing us how we are to look at our way in this world and the judgment we are to pass on it.
But can this be said in all the circumstances of our lives? Should every Christian be able to say the lines are fallen unto him in pleasant places? Should every believer say with all the things that can happen to him, that he has a goodly heritage?
Can such an assessment be heard from the lips of one whose heart knows inexpressible grief and loss? Can this confession truly be made by the saint whose life has been shattered with overwhelming news, perhaps of the sudden death of a beloved father or mother, a husband or wife, or a precious son or daughter? Can these words be said by one whose life is torn apart by divorce or desertion, or whose heart is broken by friendship suddenly turned to hostility? Can this statement be made by one whose body is racked with tormenting pain day after day with no end in sight?
We might think of David, the inspired penman of this Psalm. What was his heritage? How had the lines fallen unto him?
He had fallen under king Saul’s unjust displeasure. The very one whom David faithfully served accused his faithful servant of treachery and conspiracy, and hunted him down, seeking his very life. Where he hid for refuge from his enemy he found betrayal among his hosts. The army he helped train used their strength and abilities to track him, intent on his destruction. Fleeing to another country he found suspicion if not outright hostility. Later on, he must know the contempt of a wife, murderous betrayal of his own son, and his kingdom in utter disarray.
Yet hear his confession: “The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.”
How can this truly be his confession?
How can this truly be our confession?
The answer is given us in the following verses, through to the end of the Psalm. He directs his attention away from his circumstances and to his God.
The Lord has given him counsel, so that his inmost thoughts instruct him in the Lord’s ways in the night seasons. With the Lord set before him, at his right hand, he is assured that he will not be moved. For those reasons his heart is glad and his glory rejoices. His soul will not be left in hell, neither will the Lord suffer His Holy One to see corruption. David’s path is the path of life. For in God’s presence is fullness of joy and at His right hand are pleasures for evermore.
So let us turn from our earthly troubles and hardships, to look to our God. Let us look to the counsel of His almighty will, according to the multitude of His precious promises. Let us know the seal of every one of those promises to us, the blood of His only-begotten Son. Let us be filled with the assurance that with the Son of God, all things must be for us. Let us be confident that our momentary afflictions work for us an eternal weight of glory.
In the midst of overwhelming troubles and sorrows, may we so enjoy the assurance of God’s abiding presence. In our times of deep pain, affliction, loss and anxieties, may we know the peace of the Lord’s gracious counsel for us.
So may we rejoice even in our sorrow to say, “The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.”
26 August 2015
“The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.” Matthew 8:8-10
Exactly the right words did Jesus speak to this centurion, words that we do not hear often from our Saviour’s lips.
“I will come and heal him.”
In fact, His words are the opposite of what he said in response to the nobleman’s pleading that Jesus, who was in Cana, would come to Capernaum in order to heal his son. There He responded by saying, “Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe.” John 4:48.
But because Jesus spoke these words to the centurion, we have this amazing request that Jesus commended so highly, a request that Jesus not come, but “speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.”
His was a faith commended by Jesus. The centurion did not need to have Jesus come to his home. He did not need Jesus to stand next to his dying servant, and speak a word to heal him. He did not need Jesus to lay His hand on the servant’s head, and transfer divine power to heal to the body of him that was so grievously tormented.
Not at all. Instead, with his “so great faith,” his request becomes so very simple, with the result connected to it: “Speak the Word only, and my servant shall be healed.”
But that was only part of the greatness of this centurion’s faith. It was not even the greatest part.
The greatest part of his faith is found in his first statement: “Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof.”
Greatest this is because it is the springboard from which his second request follows. The conclusion is “speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.” The ground is “I am not worthy that thou shouldst come under my roof.”
Great faith can never say, “I am worthy.” Great faith must always say, “I am not worthy.” Great faith, finding glorious, divine, almighty power in Christ to heal and restore, must always conclude, “I am not worthy.”
By that great faith this centurion examined his own way, the way he worked with the authority that he possessed. He spoke and he commanded. By his command he brought near and sent away. By his commands he accomplished his will. Since he, an unworthy man, might so command and have his soldiers and servants obey his word, how much more must the Lord possess this same kind of authority.
“Speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.”
So must our faith operate. So we come to our Lord as unworthy sinners. In all our unworthiness, we bring to Him our supplications and petitions this way:
“Speak the Word only.”
“Speak the Word only.” Declare my sins forgiven through the preaching of the gospel, and I shall be forgiven. My burden will be taken away from my shoulders and my infinite debt will be cancelled, all by thy Word.
“Speak the Word only.” Guide me in the way thou wilt have me to go. Lead me in the way of truth and obedience. I need no signs, no wonders. Thy Word is sufficient for me.
“Speak the Word only.” I have my burdens of pain and sorrow. I have my anxieties and fears. I have my loneliness. I have my doubts and struggles of faith. Persecutions rise up against me. But thy Word is mighty to sustain me and bring me through them all.
So may we go with our unworthiness to our Saviour, saying to Him, “Speak the Word only.” And let us rejoice in that Word that gives us all we need.
“The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.” Matthew 8:8-10
Exactly the right words did Jesus speak to this centurion, words that we do not hear often from our Saviour’s lips.
“I will come and heal him.”
In fact, His words are the opposite of what he said in response to the nobleman’s pleading that Jesus, who was in Cana, would come to Capernaum in order to heal his son. There He responded by saying, “Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe.” John 4:48.
But because Jesus spoke these words to the centurion, we have this amazing request that Jesus commended so highly, a request that Jesus not come, but “speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.”
His was a faith commended by Jesus. The centurion did not need to have Jesus come to his home. He did not need Jesus to stand next to his dying servant, and speak a word to heal him. He did not need Jesus to lay His hand on the servant’s head, and transfer divine power to heal to the body of him that was so grievously tormented.
Not at all. Instead, with his “so great faith,” his request becomes so very simple, with the result connected to it: “Speak the Word only, and my servant shall be healed.”
But that was only part of the greatness of this centurion’s faith. It was not even the greatest part.
The greatest part of his faith is found in his first statement: “Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof.”
Greatest this is because it is the springboard from which his second request follows. The conclusion is “speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.” The ground is “I am not worthy that thou shouldst come under my roof.”
Great faith can never say, “I am worthy.” Great faith must always say, “I am not worthy.” Great faith, finding glorious, divine, almighty power in Christ to heal and restore, must always conclude, “I am not worthy.”
By that great faith this centurion examined his own way, the way he worked with the authority that he possessed. He spoke and he commanded. By his command he brought near and sent away. By his commands he accomplished his will. Since he, an unworthy man, might so command and have his soldiers and servants obey his word, how much more must the Lord possess this same kind of authority.
“Speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.”
So must our faith operate. So we come to our Lord as unworthy sinners. In all our unworthiness, we bring to Him our supplications and petitions this way:
“Speak the Word only.”
“Speak the Word only.” Declare my sins forgiven through the preaching of the gospel, and I shall be forgiven. My burden will be taken away from my shoulders and my infinite debt will be cancelled, all by thy Word.
“Speak the Word only.” Guide me in the way thou wilt have me to go. Lead me in the way of truth and obedience. I need no signs, no wonders. Thy Word is sufficient for me.
“Speak the Word only.” I have my burdens of pain and sorrow. I have my anxieties and fears. I have my loneliness. I have my doubts and struggles of faith. Persecutions rise up against me. But thy Word is mighty to sustain me and bring me through them all.
So may we go with our unworthiness to our Saviour, saying to Him, “Speak the Word only.” And let us rejoice in that Word that gives us all we need.
19 July 2015, The Lord’s Day
“Praise ye the Lord.
Sing unto the Lord a new song,
And his praise in the congregation of saints.
Let Israel rejoice in him that made him:
Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.”
Psalm 149:1
A blessed call to worship greets us this Sunday morning, from the pages of God’s Holy Word: praise ye the Lord!
This call enjoins us to summon and gather all the powers within us. We are to marshall our hearts and souls, our minds and bodies, and especially our faculties of speech: our breath, our vocal cords, our jaws, our tongues, our teeth, and our lips. All of our being we are to direct to this blessed purpose and goal: the praise of the Lord.
This calling shows us the way to do this: the praise of the Lord. We are to declare all the ways in which He is exalted on high, above everything in the vast creation. We are to show forth His glory: His goodness, wisdom, truth, righteousness, holiness, lovingkindness, grace, and mercy. We are to set out the greatness of His being: His infinity, His eternity, His omnipresence, and His omnipotence. We are to speak of the uniqueness of His Godhead as the Triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the Three Persons subsisting in the one Being of God. We are to demonstrate and show His greatness through all His might works: works of creation and redemption, works of judgment and mercy, works to cast down and to raise up.
This calling shows us where to engage in this grand and blessed work: In the congregation of the saints. In the assembly of God’s holy ones, where His elect gather together in the company of believers and their seed--there we must go, and to that assembly we must join ourselves. There we must be helped and help our fellow saints in this more glorious task: the praises of the Lord.
Who is there to hear this call? Whose hearts are stirred up to blessed obedience? Who obeys, to seek out this assembly, to join themselves to it, and to praise the Lord?
“Let Israel rejoice in him that made him:
Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.”
Here is the Israel of God. These are the children of Zion.
In these praises let us know our identity. As we enter the house of the Lord, and as we stand in this blessed assembly, our mouths and tongues filled with the praises of God, let us rejoice to know our name: Israel, the covenant people of God, the heirs of the promises, the people of His inheritance! The children of Zion, our inheritance the heavenly city that hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God!
Let us be glad and joyful to know our origin. Let us rejoice to know that our Maker is our God, the one who has chosen us, and redeemed us, and will forever care for us. Let us delight in our King, who has brought us into His kingdom, who defends and preserves us from all our enemies, and who will supply every need that we have in His blessed grace and enduring mercy.
In our God who has made us, His Israel, let us rejoice!
In our King who has redeemed us, the children of Zion, let us be joyful!
May our glad rejoicing hasten us to the congregation of saints today, to sing unto the Lord our new song!
“Praise ye the Lord.
Sing unto the Lord a new song,
And his praise in the congregation of saints.
Let Israel rejoice in him that made him:
Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.”
Psalm 149:1
A blessed call to worship greets us this Sunday morning, from the pages of God’s Holy Word: praise ye the Lord!
This call enjoins us to summon and gather all the powers within us. We are to marshall our hearts and souls, our minds and bodies, and especially our faculties of speech: our breath, our vocal cords, our jaws, our tongues, our teeth, and our lips. All of our being we are to direct to this blessed purpose and goal: the praise of the Lord.
This calling shows us the way to do this: the praise of the Lord. We are to declare all the ways in which He is exalted on high, above everything in the vast creation. We are to show forth His glory: His goodness, wisdom, truth, righteousness, holiness, lovingkindness, grace, and mercy. We are to set out the greatness of His being: His infinity, His eternity, His omnipresence, and His omnipotence. We are to speak of the uniqueness of His Godhead as the Triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the Three Persons subsisting in the one Being of God. We are to demonstrate and show His greatness through all His might works: works of creation and redemption, works of judgment and mercy, works to cast down and to raise up.
This calling shows us where to engage in this grand and blessed work: In the congregation of the saints. In the assembly of God’s holy ones, where His elect gather together in the company of believers and their seed--there we must go, and to that assembly we must join ourselves. There we must be helped and help our fellow saints in this more glorious task: the praises of the Lord.
Who is there to hear this call? Whose hearts are stirred up to blessed obedience? Who obeys, to seek out this assembly, to join themselves to it, and to praise the Lord?
“Let Israel rejoice in him that made him:
Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.”
Here is the Israel of God. These are the children of Zion.
In these praises let us know our identity. As we enter the house of the Lord, and as we stand in this blessed assembly, our mouths and tongues filled with the praises of God, let us rejoice to know our name: Israel, the covenant people of God, the heirs of the promises, the people of His inheritance! The children of Zion, our inheritance the heavenly city that hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God!
Let us be glad and joyful to know our origin. Let us rejoice to know that our Maker is our God, the one who has chosen us, and redeemed us, and will forever care for us. Let us delight in our King, who has brought us into His kingdom, who defends and preserves us from all our enemies, and who will supply every need that we have in His blessed grace and enduring mercy.
In our God who has made us, His Israel, let us rejoice!
In our King who has redeemed us, the children of Zion, let us be joyful!
May our glad rejoicing hasten us to the congregation of saints today, to sing unto the Lord our new song!
18 July 2015
“Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.” I John 4:4
Victory after victory the world seems to win over against the cause of Christ in the world. Defeat after defeat the cause of Christ seems to suffer at the hands of the world.
On the one side, the forces of secularism work together to push Christianity into a corner. “Teach what you want.” “Believe what you want.” So we hear. But we also are told we must keep our religion to ourselves, and more and more are we forbidden from practicing our religion and living according to our Christian convictions. More and more we feel the wrath of the ungodly as they gain the upper hand, turning the power of institutions, society, and culture to their direction, and using it against Christianity. We see the inroads that militant and terroristic Islam is making against Western European civilization, as it senses the weakness and corruption within, a vacuum of power constantly growing.
On the other hand, Christianity itself is ceding territory left and right. Much of Christianity is busy approving worldliness and ungodliness, not only in the world but in its own members. Evil not only goes unrebuked but it meets with loving approval. The gates are thrown wide open to give appreciative entrance to the enemies of the church. Hand joins in hand to throw down citadels and bulwarks of truth and righteousness that had long stood in the church. God loves all men. There is no need for repentance, no need for faith, no room for truth.
Is all lost? Is the cause of Christ ready to perish? Is the church nearly defeated?
Not one bit! Not even close!
Hear the Word:
“Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them.”
Little children! You who are small in stature and few in number. You who are of so little account in the sight of the world so as to be measured as nothing. You who are overlooked. This word is for you: You have overcome them.
There was never any contest. There was never a match. Victory was never within their reach. Defeat never threatened you in the least.
How can this be?
Because you, little children, are of God. You are small, without a doubt. You are few, to be sure. But that is not what matters. What matters is that you are of God. You are His little children, begotten of His glorious grace and His wondrous mercy in Christ.
Consider and know your heavenly Father exactly as His Word tells you of Him. “Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”
This Word calls you to measure.
Measure the world with the measure of all the ungodly. Measure the world with the measure of the spirit of antichrist, now in the world. Measure the world with the measure of the devil, his craft and subtlety, his experience and knowledge of his long involvement with men. Measure the world by all the power and might, the weight and force of societies, cultures, civilizations, and nations at his diabolical command.
Then reckon with who is greater, the infinite, eternal, living God. Reckon with Him who is without any days or end or even beginning. Reckon with Him whose understanding and knowledge is without any reckoning. Consider Him whose power is without any limitation whatever. Reckon with Him whose absolute goodness knows no end of glorious perfection.
He is greater! Greater than any comparison will allow! There is no real, no true comparison.
But follow this Word down to you. This one who is great is the very one who is in you.
“Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world.”
This One who is greater is in you. He by grace. He is in you by faith. He is in you His Holy Spirit. So has He made you His little children, regenerating you in His own image, to dwell in you forever.
This is your victory. You have overcome. There is no doubt, but only certainty, the certainty of the greatness of your heavenly Father in you.
In that victory rejoice and in that overcoming be strong, knowing the defeat of every last enemy, and the glory of your blessed triumph, all in your glorious God!
“Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.” I John 4:4
Victory after victory the world seems to win over against the cause of Christ in the world. Defeat after defeat the cause of Christ seems to suffer at the hands of the world.
On the one side, the forces of secularism work together to push Christianity into a corner. “Teach what you want.” “Believe what you want.” So we hear. But we also are told we must keep our religion to ourselves, and more and more are we forbidden from practicing our religion and living according to our Christian convictions. More and more we feel the wrath of the ungodly as they gain the upper hand, turning the power of institutions, society, and culture to their direction, and using it against Christianity. We see the inroads that militant and terroristic Islam is making against Western European civilization, as it senses the weakness and corruption within, a vacuum of power constantly growing.
On the other hand, Christianity itself is ceding territory left and right. Much of Christianity is busy approving worldliness and ungodliness, not only in the world but in its own members. Evil not only goes unrebuked but it meets with loving approval. The gates are thrown wide open to give appreciative entrance to the enemies of the church. Hand joins in hand to throw down citadels and bulwarks of truth and righteousness that had long stood in the church. God loves all men. There is no need for repentance, no need for faith, no room for truth.
Is all lost? Is the cause of Christ ready to perish? Is the church nearly defeated?
Not one bit! Not even close!
Hear the Word:
“Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them.”
Little children! You who are small in stature and few in number. You who are of so little account in the sight of the world so as to be measured as nothing. You who are overlooked. This word is for you: You have overcome them.
There was never any contest. There was never a match. Victory was never within their reach. Defeat never threatened you in the least.
How can this be?
Because you, little children, are of God. You are small, without a doubt. You are few, to be sure. But that is not what matters. What matters is that you are of God. You are His little children, begotten of His glorious grace and His wondrous mercy in Christ.
Consider and know your heavenly Father exactly as His Word tells you of Him. “Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”
This Word calls you to measure.
Measure the world with the measure of all the ungodly. Measure the world with the measure of the spirit of antichrist, now in the world. Measure the world with the measure of the devil, his craft and subtlety, his experience and knowledge of his long involvement with men. Measure the world by all the power and might, the weight and force of societies, cultures, civilizations, and nations at his diabolical command.
Then reckon with who is greater, the infinite, eternal, living God. Reckon with Him who is without any days or end or even beginning. Reckon with Him whose understanding and knowledge is without any reckoning. Consider Him whose power is without any limitation whatever. Reckon with Him whose absolute goodness knows no end of glorious perfection.
He is greater! Greater than any comparison will allow! There is no real, no true comparison.
But follow this Word down to you. This one who is great is the very one who is in you.
“Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world.”
This One who is greater is in you. He by grace. He is in you by faith. He is in you His Holy Spirit. So has He made you His little children, regenerating you in His own image, to dwell in you forever.
This is your victory. You have overcome. There is no doubt, but only certainty, the certainty of the greatness of your heavenly Father in you.
In that victory rejoice and in that overcoming be strong, knowing the defeat of every last enemy, and the glory of your blessed triumph, all in your glorious God!
12 July 2015, The Lord’s Day
“Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like minded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 15:5, 6
In these words is expressed the worship of God’s people as the blessing imparted by the Apostle Paul to the church of Jesus Christ.
This is worship: the church in its assembling together glorifying God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ with one mind and one mouth.
With one mind: the fundamental, spiritual unity of the church. Here is the determined thinking of the church. They who are of many minds have their minds knit together, joined together in thinking through the same activity. They have in their minds the same goal. Their minds are filled with the same truth, and are guided by the same Holy Spirit. They think together, as having one mind.
Together with their minds they are fixed on the same goal: the glory of God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
So are their praises, then. Their minds fixed on the glory of God, their mouths follow in the same path. They take up the same words into their mouths, the same praises upon their lips. So they speak and sing out. So they declare among themselves the wonderful works of God to His praise and glory.
So may our praises be this Lord’s Day, in our assembling together in the house of our God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. So may we help and encourage one another to the glory of our God.
How are we to achieve this high and lofty goal? How are we to come to this wonderful unity of one mind and one mouth?
By “the God of patience and consolation.”
We look to our God for His gift of a certain, definite mind toward one another. We seek from Him a mind that is free of a judgmental, scornful, proud frame. We ask of Him a mind that is free of hostility and enmity. We look to him for a mind that is willing to wait in patience, to bear burdens for one another. We pray for a mind that is sympathetic, ready to give consolation and comfort to those who are troubled and sorrowful.
In sum, we desire from God that out of His patience and His consolation He will make us like Him.
This desire God grants in a very specific way: “according to Christ Jesus.” In the preaching of the gospel He will set before us the rule of our minds. In His patience and consolation toward us, He will declare to us again the riches and glory of our salvation in His Son, Jesus Christ. He will lead us into His kingdom, and fill us with the joy of His salvation.
As we hear His gospel, the gospel of His Son, He molds and shapes us more and more after the image of His Son. In that image, renewed by grace, we consider one another. We think of one another. So we become like-minded, rejoicing and delighting in one another.
So may we this day in the house of our God glorify Him, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
With one mind and one mouth.
“Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like minded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 15:5, 6
In these words is expressed the worship of God’s people as the blessing imparted by the Apostle Paul to the church of Jesus Christ.
This is worship: the church in its assembling together glorifying God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ with one mind and one mouth.
With one mind: the fundamental, spiritual unity of the church. Here is the determined thinking of the church. They who are of many minds have their minds knit together, joined together in thinking through the same activity. They have in their minds the same goal. Their minds are filled with the same truth, and are guided by the same Holy Spirit. They think together, as having one mind.
Together with their minds they are fixed on the same goal: the glory of God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
So are their praises, then. Their minds fixed on the glory of God, their mouths follow in the same path. They take up the same words into their mouths, the same praises upon their lips. So they speak and sing out. So they declare among themselves the wonderful works of God to His praise and glory.
So may our praises be this Lord’s Day, in our assembling together in the house of our God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. So may we help and encourage one another to the glory of our God.
How are we to achieve this high and lofty goal? How are we to come to this wonderful unity of one mind and one mouth?
By “the God of patience and consolation.”
We look to our God for His gift of a certain, definite mind toward one another. We seek from Him a mind that is free of a judgmental, scornful, proud frame. We ask of Him a mind that is free of hostility and enmity. We look to him for a mind that is willing to wait in patience, to bear burdens for one another. We pray for a mind that is sympathetic, ready to give consolation and comfort to those who are troubled and sorrowful.
In sum, we desire from God that out of His patience and His consolation He will make us like Him.
This desire God grants in a very specific way: “according to Christ Jesus.” In the preaching of the gospel He will set before us the rule of our minds. In His patience and consolation toward us, He will declare to us again the riches and glory of our salvation in His Son, Jesus Christ. He will lead us into His kingdom, and fill us with the joy of His salvation.
As we hear His gospel, the gospel of His Son, He molds and shapes us more and more after the image of His Son. In that image, renewed by grace, we consider one another. We think of one another. So we become like-minded, rejoicing and delighting in one another.
So may we this day in the house of our God glorify Him, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
With one mind and one mouth.
7 July 2015
“For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.” Romans 12:3
How is the Christian supposed to present his body as a living sacrifice to God, in thinking, reasoning service to Him? How is he not to be conformed to this world? How is he to be transformed by the renewing of his mind?
By not thinking highly of himself, but by thinking soberly.
We are called to flee from the thinking of this world. How filled is this world with bragging, boasting, and arrogant, pompous speech! How many words of scorn and contempt we hear in trash-talking, as men sharpen their tongues like swords against each other.
All this reveals what lies in the hearts of the children of this world, the devil’s pride.
Too easily does this same thinking rise up in our hearts, though we are regenerated children of God.
So the Word of God must hold up its hand before us, to stop us in our tracks.
“Be not conformed to this world.” “…Not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think.”
Only one great glorious tool we have to cut ourselves down to proper size. This tool is handed to us by this Word of God in its two sharp edges. The first edge is the grace of God. “Through the grace given unto me.” What was that grace of God given to Paul? We find out from I Corinthians 15:9, 10. It was such a great to make a former persecutor of Christ into His mighty apostle.
What kind of estimate must follow from the knowledge of that grace? Impossible that Paul could think that he was greater or better than anyone else.
Through that grace the Apostle of Christ speaks to us, Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought to think! All that you have, you have by the grace of God. You have merited nothing. God has given you His grace in spite of who you are and what you have done.
The second edge we have from the last words of this verse. Those words present a rule to measure ourselves by: “according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.” Every man must take note of the gift of faith that God has dealt to him. What is that measure that God hath dealt? Is it great, or is it small? Is it much, or is it little? Whatever that measure is, two things are true of it. First, God has dealt it. It is not of man himself to believe, whether he believes much or believes little. Second, that measure of faith always says the same thing: all is of God, nothing is of man. What matters to the Christian so much, his faith, is nothing to measure himself by. The measure comes from God alone.
Who might think highly of himself? Who might think more highly of himself?
Rather, let us think soberly.
As we think, so let us speak and so let us walk. By God’s grace, may our words be words of meekness and kindness. By faith, may our deeds be fruitful and beneficial to those around us. May we be steadfast in presenting our bodies a living sacrifice to our God, by His rich mercies to us.
“For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.” Romans 12:3
How is the Christian supposed to present his body as a living sacrifice to God, in thinking, reasoning service to Him? How is he not to be conformed to this world? How is he to be transformed by the renewing of his mind?
By not thinking highly of himself, but by thinking soberly.
We are called to flee from the thinking of this world. How filled is this world with bragging, boasting, and arrogant, pompous speech! How many words of scorn and contempt we hear in trash-talking, as men sharpen their tongues like swords against each other.
All this reveals what lies in the hearts of the children of this world, the devil’s pride.
Too easily does this same thinking rise up in our hearts, though we are regenerated children of God.
So the Word of God must hold up its hand before us, to stop us in our tracks.
“Be not conformed to this world.” “…Not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think.”
Only one great glorious tool we have to cut ourselves down to proper size. This tool is handed to us by this Word of God in its two sharp edges. The first edge is the grace of God. “Through the grace given unto me.” What was that grace of God given to Paul? We find out from I Corinthians 15:9, 10. It was such a great to make a former persecutor of Christ into His mighty apostle.
What kind of estimate must follow from the knowledge of that grace? Impossible that Paul could think that he was greater or better than anyone else.
Through that grace the Apostle of Christ speaks to us, Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought to think! All that you have, you have by the grace of God. You have merited nothing. God has given you His grace in spite of who you are and what you have done.
The second edge we have from the last words of this verse. Those words present a rule to measure ourselves by: “according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.” Every man must take note of the gift of faith that God has dealt to him. What is that measure that God hath dealt? Is it great, or is it small? Is it much, or is it little? Whatever that measure is, two things are true of it. First, God has dealt it. It is not of man himself to believe, whether he believes much or believes little. Second, that measure of faith always says the same thing: all is of God, nothing is of man. What matters to the Christian so much, his faith, is nothing to measure himself by. The measure comes from God alone.
Who might think highly of himself? Who might think more highly of himself?
Rather, let us think soberly.
As we think, so let us speak and so let us walk. By God’s grace, may our words be words of meekness and kindness. By faith, may our deeds be fruitful and beneficial to those around us. May we be steadfast in presenting our bodies a living sacrifice to our God, by His rich mercies to us.
5 July 2015, The Lord's Day
“O come, let us worship and bow down:
Let us kneel before the Lord our maker.
For he is our God;
And we are the people of his pasture,
And the sheep of his hand.
Psalm 95:6,7
This Word of God contains in it a wonderful power to bring us together today into the house of the Lord our God. For in its praise of the Lord, this Psalm tells us that our gathering together is due to our nature itself.
Who are we? What is it that makes us what we are? What is our nature?
Our nature, according to this Word of God, is by the power of His grace. He who called the light out of darkness has called us. He who calls and by His call brings life out of death has called us. His call is the call of sheer, sovereign grace. His call is powerful, mighty to make exactly what He has intended and purposed from the foundation of the world. In that call, He has made us anew, regenerating us and transforming us.
What is our new nature? Into what has He made us?
He has made us the people of His pasture.
He has made us the sheep of His hand.
This is the marvelous work of the covenant. Realizing His sovereign, gracious decree of election, He has made His sheep. He has made the people of His pasture. He has become their God, and they have become by His sovereign working, His people, even the people of His pasture.
Such is their nature.
But their nature is not only to be the sheep of His hand, and the people of His pasture.
Their nature is also to do.
What is their new nature to do? What has the Lord their God given them to do in their very nature?
“O come, let us worship and bow down.”
“Let us kneel before the Lord our maker.”
Their nature as the sheep of God’s hand is to gather in the presence of their Good Shepherd.
Their nature as the people of His pasture is to worship and bow down, to kneel before the Lord their Maker.
They hear the call of their Shepherd to gather in His fold. But according to their nature they also speak to one another, echoing this call from their own hearts.
“O come, let us worship and bow down.”
“Let us kneel before the Lord our maker.”
So they call one another. So they speak of the reason for their gathering: “He is our God.” In His grace He has become our God. In His grace He has made us the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand. There is only one thing to do: “O come, let us worship and bow down.”
So may we speak to each other in our covenant homes. So may we speak to each other as brothers and sisters in the Lord our God. Let us then do according to the Word of our God to us, gathering before the Lord our Maker in the worship of His holy name.
“O come, let us worship and bow down:
Let us kneel before the Lord our maker.
For he is our God;
And we are the people of his pasture,
And the sheep of his hand.
Psalm 95:6,7
This Word of God contains in it a wonderful power to bring us together today into the house of the Lord our God. For in its praise of the Lord, this Psalm tells us that our gathering together is due to our nature itself.
Who are we? What is it that makes us what we are? What is our nature?
Our nature, according to this Word of God, is by the power of His grace. He who called the light out of darkness has called us. He who calls and by His call brings life out of death has called us. His call is the call of sheer, sovereign grace. His call is powerful, mighty to make exactly what He has intended and purposed from the foundation of the world. In that call, He has made us anew, regenerating us and transforming us.
What is our new nature? Into what has He made us?
He has made us the people of His pasture.
He has made us the sheep of His hand.
This is the marvelous work of the covenant. Realizing His sovereign, gracious decree of election, He has made His sheep. He has made the people of His pasture. He has become their God, and they have become by His sovereign working, His people, even the people of His pasture.
Such is their nature.
But their nature is not only to be the sheep of His hand, and the people of His pasture.
Their nature is also to do.
What is their new nature to do? What has the Lord their God given them to do in their very nature?
“O come, let us worship and bow down.”
“Let us kneel before the Lord our maker.”
Their nature as the sheep of God’s hand is to gather in the presence of their Good Shepherd.
Their nature as the people of His pasture is to worship and bow down, to kneel before the Lord their Maker.
They hear the call of their Shepherd to gather in His fold. But according to their nature they also speak to one another, echoing this call from their own hearts.
“O come, let us worship and bow down.”
“Let us kneel before the Lord our maker.”
So they call one another. So they speak of the reason for their gathering: “He is our God.” In His grace He has become our God. In His grace He has made us the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand. There is only one thing to do: “O come, let us worship and bow down.”
So may we speak to each other in our covenant homes. So may we speak to each other as brothers and sisters in the Lord our God. Let us then do according to the Word of our God to us, gathering before the Lord our Maker in the worship of His holy name.
1 July 2015
“When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel. For the Lord’s portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.” Deuteronomy 32:8, 9
How this Word of God can make us steer through the pages of history, even to so many blank pages from the beginning. We can think of Egypt, and Assyria, and Tarshish. We can think of the Vandals, the Ostrogoths and the Visigoths. There are the Picts and the Scots, the Norse and the Gauls. All we have is names and vague ideas about where they lived.
What is so hidden from us is clear to God. He was there, to bring these nations and peoples into being. He was there to give them their own places. From His miracle of confusing their tongues at Babel, He led each nation to its own destination, making their boundaries fixed and settled. At times they arose. At times they roamed far and wide, sometimes conquering, plundering and enslaving. But with every move they made, they moved at the Lord’s command and according to His determination.
This Word of God tells us why God determined the boundaries of all these peoples and nations.
“He set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.”
All that He did, He did for the sake of the children of Israel. He placed each people and each nation relative to His one people. He gave them their space and He set them at their distance, all in relation to them alone.
All that close, careful and watchful work God performed so that centuries later His servant Moses might demonstrate their Lord’s love for His people: “For the Lord’s portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.”
Why Assyria and Egypt? Whither all the nations? For the Lord’s people, for Jacob alone.
But we must go even further. God’s loving care is for His portion and the lot of His inheritance is according to their very number. “He set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.”
So many of this people. So many from generation to generation. As the Lord counted and reckoned, so he determined the space for each and every one. His loving care carved out the place for each member of every tribe, and set the boundaries of all the other nations accordingly.
So it is with the church of Jesus Christ.
Why the nations at present? Why their movements? Why their rising and falling?
For the church!
For that little flock, unto whom the Father has given the kingdom. For that holy nation and that peculiar people. For the elect, whose names are written on the hands of their God.
Though they are scattered among the nations, and considered the offscouring and refuse of the earth. Though they filled with the contempt and scorn of the proud and those that are at ease, yet nations serve them and kings bow down before them.
Such is the marvelous and mighty wisdom of our God, to have the great serve the small, to have the exalted serve the humble.
In that wisdom let us rest, and may its peace dwell always in our hearts, strengthening us in the faithful service of our God, no matter the nation of our pilgrimage.
“When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel. For the Lord’s portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.” Deuteronomy 32:8, 9
How this Word of God can make us steer through the pages of history, even to so many blank pages from the beginning. We can think of Egypt, and Assyria, and Tarshish. We can think of the Vandals, the Ostrogoths and the Visigoths. There are the Picts and the Scots, the Norse and the Gauls. All we have is names and vague ideas about where they lived.
What is so hidden from us is clear to God. He was there, to bring these nations and peoples into being. He was there to give them their own places. From His miracle of confusing their tongues at Babel, He led each nation to its own destination, making their boundaries fixed and settled. At times they arose. At times they roamed far and wide, sometimes conquering, plundering and enslaving. But with every move they made, they moved at the Lord’s command and according to His determination.
This Word of God tells us why God determined the boundaries of all these peoples and nations.
“He set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.”
All that He did, He did for the sake of the children of Israel. He placed each people and each nation relative to His one people. He gave them their space and He set them at their distance, all in relation to them alone.
All that close, careful and watchful work God performed so that centuries later His servant Moses might demonstrate their Lord’s love for His people: “For the Lord’s portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.”
Why Assyria and Egypt? Whither all the nations? For the Lord’s people, for Jacob alone.
But we must go even further. God’s loving care is for His portion and the lot of His inheritance is according to their very number. “He set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.”
So many of this people. So many from generation to generation. As the Lord counted and reckoned, so he determined the space for each and every one. His loving care carved out the place for each member of every tribe, and set the boundaries of all the other nations accordingly.
So it is with the church of Jesus Christ.
Why the nations at present? Why their movements? Why their rising and falling?
For the church!
For that little flock, unto whom the Father has given the kingdom. For that holy nation and that peculiar people. For the elect, whose names are written on the hands of their God.
Though they are scattered among the nations, and considered the offscouring and refuse of the earth. Though they filled with the contempt and scorn of the proud and those that are at ease, yet nations serve them and kings bow down before them.
Such is the marvelous and mighty wisdom of our God, to have the great serve the small, to have the exalted serve the humble.
In that wisdom let us rest, and may its peace dwell always in our hearts, strengthening us in the faithful service of our God, no matter the nation of our pilgrimage.
28 June 2015
“Praise ye the Lord. I will praise the Lord with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.” Psalm 111:1
With these words from the Psalmist we are joyfully led into God’s presence among His people this Sabbath Day.
The Psalmist declares here a command, a holy, solemn command that obligates us to take up the praises of the Lord. This calling is to lift up our hearts and voices to search out and declare the works of the Lord.
Then the Psalmist, led by the Spirit, speaks of his own way, calling us to follow him according to his own keeping of this commandment.
“I will praise the Lord with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.”
He will not remain in his own place. He will not stand off, afar and aloof from the people where they are gathered for worship. He cannot think they are not good enough for him. He cannot think the distance and the time and the trouble to go there are not worth the effort. He cannot think that he might just as well praise the Lord by himself, and in the way that suits him best.
He must be found “in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.”
He identifies them not as “those people over there.” He does not see them as hypocrites and unbelievers, though there are certainly some there. He sees them in the light of God’s grace and in the light of God’s covenant mercies. As those gathered by the gracious call of God, the company of believers and their seed purchased by the blood of Christ, He sees them in the light of God’s Word: “the assembly of the upright,” and, “the congregation.”
Of course, that assembly is the place where he belongs!
He belongs there because it is the perfect place to carry out the commandment as it comes to Him. He hears the commandment, “Praise ye the Lord.” As he says in answer, “I will praise the Lord with my whole heart,” so he must also say, “In the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.”
For in this assembly and in this congregation are the praises of the Lord to be found! There are the works of the Lord. Not only recorded in the Scriptures. Not only pondered and weighed in the heart. They are there brought out of the believing hearts of God’s joyful people, and poured out upon their lips in the praise and glory of their God who has saved them and rescued them from all their foes.
There the Psalmist will be greatly encouraged and helped in his praise of His God. There he will be able to encourage and help his fellow saints in the praise of His God.
So may we hear this command to the praise of our God. So may we be filled with this same determination to carry it out, in the same blessed place: “in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.”
“Praise ye the Lord. I will praise the Lord with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.” Psalm 111:1
With these words from the Psalmist we are joyfully led into God’s presence among His people this Sabbath Day.
The Psalmist declares here a command, a holy, solemn command that obligates us to take up the praises of the Lord. This calling is to lift up our hearts and voices to search out and declare the works of the Lord.
Then the Psalmist, led by the Spirit, speaks of his own way, calling us to follow him according to his own keeping of this commandment.
“I will praise the Lord with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.”
He will not remain in his own place. He will not stand off, afar and aloof from the people where they are gathered for worship. He cannot think they are not good enough for him. He cannot think the distance and the time and the trouble to go there are not worth the effort. He cannot think that he might just as well praise the Lord by himself, and in the way that suits him best.
He must be found “in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.”
He identifies them not as “those people over there.” He does not see them as hypocrites and unbelievers, though there are certainly some there. He sees them in the light of God’s grace and in the light of God’s covenant mercies. As those gathered by the gracious call of God, the company of believers and their seed purchased by the blood of Christ, He sees them in the light of God’s Word: “the assembly of the upright,” and, “the congregation.”
Of course, that assembly is the place where he belongs!
He belongs there because it is the perfect place to carry out the commandment as it comes to Him. He hears the commandment, “Praise ye the Lord.” As he says in answer, “I will praise the Lord with my whole heart,” so he must also say, “In the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.”
For in this assembly and in this congregation are the praises of the Lord to be found! There are the works of the Lord. Not only recorded in the Scriptures. Not only pondered and weighed in the heart. They are there brought out of the believing hearts of God’s joyful people, and poured out upon their lips in the praise and glory of their God who has saved them and rescued them from all their foes.
There the Psalmist will be greatly encouraged and helped in his praise of His God. There he will be able to encourage and help his fellow saints in the praise of His God.
So may we hear this command to the praise of our God. So may we be filled with this same determination to carry it out, in the same blessed place: “in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.”
27 June 2015
The Lord shall cut off all flattering lips,
And the tongue that speaketh proud things:
Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail;
Our lips are our own:
Who is lord over us?
For the oppression of the poor,
For the sighing of the needy,
Now will I arise, saith the Lord;
I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.
The words of the Lord are pure words;
As silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
Thou shalt keep them, O Lord,
Thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
The wicked walk on every side,
When the vilest men are exalted. Psalm 12:3-8
How men talk!
They have their lips. They have their tongues.
So they pour forth words out of the vanity of their imagination. They speak of what they will do. And as they continue to speak their proud and boastful words, they lift themselves up in their arrogance. In their arrogance they turn to their own tongues, and reflect on their own speech.
Hear what they say!
“With our tongue will we prevail; Our lips are our own: Who is lord over us?”
So speak culture and society. So speaks the world. So speak 5, sitting on their thrones established by men, composing a majority opinion.
What have they decreed? What have they said? Their language is the language of Psalm 12:4, “With our tongue will we prevail; our lips are our own: who is lord over us?”
So they speak in their pride. So they ask in their haughtiness.
What of these flattering lips? What of this tongue that speaketh proud things?
Let us hear the everlasting and almighty Word of God.
Let us hear the pure words of the Lord. Let us hear the divine words that are as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
What does the eternal Word say?
“The Lord shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things.”
What does the eternal Word say about those who are oppressed by these flattering lips? What does it say about those who sigh when lashed by that proud tongue?
“For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the Lord; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.”
They are safe, kept in their safety by the living Lord who shall arise for them. His mighty salvation will over throw the puffings (and huffings) of the flattering lips and the proud tongue.
May these pure words of our Lord always be our lasting refuge from the lips and tongues of ungodliness!
The Lord shall cut off all flattering lips,
And the tongue that speaketh proud things:
Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail;
Our lips are our own:
Who is lord over us?
For the oppression of the poor,
For the sighing of the needy,
Now will I arise, saith the Lord;
I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.
The words of the Lord are pure words;
As silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
Thou shalt keep them, O Lord,
Thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
The wicked walk on every side,
When the vilest men are exalted. Psalm 12:3-8
How men talk!
They have their lips. They have their tongues.
So they pour forth words out of the vanity of their imagination. They speak of what they will do. And as they continue to speak their proud and boastful words, they lift themselves up in their arrogance. In their arrogance they turn to their own tongues, and reflect on their own speech.
Hear what they say!
“With our tongue will we prevail; Our lips are our own: Who is lord over us?”
So speak culture and society. So speaks the world. So speak 5, sitting on their thrones established by men, composing a majority opinion.
What have they decreed? What have they said? Their language is the language of Psalm 12:4, “With our tongue will we prevail; our lips are our own: who is lord over us?”
So they speak in their pride. So they ask in their haughtiness.
What of these flattering lips? What of this tongue that speaketh proud things?
Let us hear the everlasting and almighty Word of God.
Let us hear the pure words of the Lord. Let us hear the divine words that are as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
What does the eternal Word say?
“The Lord shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things.”
What does the eternal Word say about those who are oppressed by these flattering lips? What does it say about those who sigh when lashed by that proud tongue?
“For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the Lord; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.”
They are safe, kept in their safety by the living Lord who shall arise for them. His mighty salvation will over throw the puffings (and huffings) of the flattering lips and the proud tongue.
May these pure words of our Lord always be our lasting refuge from the lips and tongues of ungodliness!
26 June 2015
“Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” I John 3:1, 2
Beloved, our lives are lives of suspense, of suspense for the end of all things.
On the one side, we are in suspense concerning this world. “The world knoweth us not.”
How can this be? Are we not living in the midst of this world? Here we carry on in our business and trade. Here we build our homes. Here we take our vacations and engage in our pursuits. Do we not demonstrate and show that we are the sons of God in this world? Here we publicly worship the Lord. Here we confess the name of the Lord. Here we live according to God’s commandments.
Yet, “the world knoweth us not.” Why not?
Hear the Word of God: “Because it knew him not.” The world knew not the Son of God. Being sent into this world, walking in this world, the world knew Him not. The world knew Him not, refusing to acknowledge Him and worship Him as the Son of God. Instead the world nailed Him to a cross and lifted Him up, refusing Him and by their refusal putting Him to death.
“Therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.”
As we see in these latter days virulent and violent rejection of Christianity and Christian principles in Western society, culture, and politics, we see how “the world knoweth us not.” Likely, we shall shortly face our own suspension from this world in a personal and individual way.
But what does this suspension mean, when “the world knoweth us not?”
“Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God?” The persecution of the world gives us proof of who we really and truly are. We have been called the sons of God, by the love of the Father bestowed upon us. So blessed are we to be able to trace whatever hatred and persecution we receive from the world to the call of the Father to us, and even further to the love behind that call. Why does the world persecute the church? Because of the Father’s love.
But that suspension by the world must also lead us to our suspension for the future.
By the wonderful manner of the love the Father hath bestowed upon us, we have been called the sons of God. But “it doth not yet appear what we shall be.”
Yes, we have been called the Sons of God. On that account the world knoweth not us. But we are not yet what we shall be. “It doth not yet appear.”
But this we do know. “We know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” The Son of God shall appear. When He appears, we shall be like him. We shall be like him in the true, loving and glorious knowledge of the living God. We shall be like Him in perfect righteousness, everything about us and within us finding, meeting, and knowing God’s blessed approval. We shall be like Him in thorough holiness, full and complete devotion and consecration to the infinite glory of the living God.
“For we shall see him as he is.” We shall see face to face. We shall know even as now we are known by Him. The glorified saints will see their glorious Lord with perfect delight and everlasting happiness.
So let us rejoice and be glad when “the world knoweth us not.” For we are known to the Father who has called us His children. And let us rejoice and be glad, for we shall be like Him, to see Him as He is.
“Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” I John 3:1, 2
Beloved, our lives are lives of suspense, of suspense for the end of all things.
On the one side, we are in suspense concerning this world. “The world knoweth us not.”
How can this be? Are we not living in the midst of this world? Here we carry on in our business and trade. Here we build our homes. Here we take our vacations and engage in our pursuits. Do we not demonstrate and show that we are the sons of God in this world? Here we publicly worship the Lord. Here we confess the name of the Lord. Here we live according to God’s commandments.
Yet, “the world knoweth us not.” Why not?
Hear the Word of God: “Because it knew him not.” The world knew not the Son of God. Being sent into this world, walking in this world, the world knew Him not. The world knew Him not, refusing to acknowledge Him and worship Him as the Son of God. Instead the world nailed Him to a cross and lifted Him up, refusing Him and by their refusal putting Him to death.
“Therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.”
As we see in these latter days virulent and violent rejection of Christianity and Christian principles in Western society, culture, and politics, we see how “the world knoweth us not.” Likely, we shall shortly face our own suspension from this world in a personal and individual way.
But what does this suspension mean, when “the world knoweth us not?”
“Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God?” The persecution of the world gives us proof of who we really and truly are. We have been called the sons of God, by the love of the Father bestowed upon us. So blessed are we to be able to trace whatever hatred and persecution we receive from the world to the call of the Father to us, and even further to the love behind that call. Why does the world persecute the church? Because of the Father’s love.
But that suspension by the world must also lead us to our suspension for the future.
By the wonderful manner of the love the Father hath bestowed upon us, we have been called the sons of God. But “it doth not yet appear what we shall be.”
Yes, we have been called the Sons of God. On that account the world knoweth not us. But we are not yet what we shall be. “It doth not yet appear.”
But this we do know. “We know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” The Son of God shall appear. When He appears, we shall be like him. We shall be like him in the true, loving and glorious knowledge of the living God. We shall be like Him in perfect righteousness, everything about us and within us finding, meeting, and knowing God’s blessed approval. We shall be like Him in thorough holiness, full and complete devotion and consecration to the infinite glory of the living God.
“For we shall see him as he is.” We shall see face to face. We shall know even as now we are known by Him. The glorified saints will see their glorious Lord with perfect delight and everlasting happiness.
So let us rejoice and be glad when “the world knoweth us not.” For we are known to the Father who has called us His children. And let us rejoice and be glad, for we shall be like Him, to see Him as He is.
21 June 2015, The Lord’s Day
“And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers.” Ephesians 4:11
“After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.” Luke 10:1
“Whither he himself would come.”
Where would Jesus go? He would go into this city and into that place. He would go there to preach and teach the gospel of the kingdom of God to the lost sheep of Israel. His deep desire was to see the kingdom of His heavenly Father grow and prosper and the honour and glory of Him who sent Him. He understood the means to accomplish that blessed end: the preaching of the gospel of the kingdom.
But our Saviour could not. He was but one man, bound and limited by the nature He took upon Himself for our salvation. In that nature He could be only in one place at one time. In only one city at a time He could preach the gospel. In only once place at a time He could declare the glad tidings of salvation.
So He sent men. Into every city and into every place “whither he himself would come,” He sent those whom He appointed, seventy men. Two by two He sent them into those cities and places. He gave them the same glad tidings to preach. So they went, as they were sent. In every city and in every place their Lord sent them, they carried out their appointment, preaching and teaching the gospel of the kingdom. By them, the Lord gathered His own to Himself. Sins were forgiven. The gates of the kingdom of heaven were opened. The Lord’s salvation was graciously granted.
Such was the will of the Lord then.
Such is the will of the Lord now.
“Into every city and place, whither he himself would come.”
Into your city. Into your place.
Jesus Himself is unable to come. His proper place is in glory, at the Father’s right hand. There He ascended into His glory, having accomplished our salvation through His deep humiliation.
But from heaven he knows your city. He knows your place. And to you He sends His ambassador, His official, authorized representative. In His place he will come to declare to you the same glad tidings of the gospel. He will declare the forgiveness of sins. He will announce the coming of the kingdom of heaven. He will publish the gift of the righteousness of Christ that brings eternal life.
Through that declaration and those tidings, hear the Word of your Saviour who has sent him to you. Be glad and rejoice in His salvation and His eternal kingdom He has given to you. And give thanks and pray for His servants that He sends to you and throughout all the world, declaring His gospel of the kingdom.
“Whither he himself would come.”
“And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers.” Ephesians 4:11
“After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.” Luke 10:1
“Whither he himself would come.”
Where would Jesus go? He would go into this city and into that place. He would go there to preach and teach the gospel of the kingdom of God to the lost sheep of Israel. His deep desire was to see the kingdom of His heavenly Father grow and prosper and the honour and glory of Him who sent Him. He understood the means to accomplish that blessed end: the preaching of the gospel of the kingdom.
But our Saviour could not. He was but one man, bound and limited by the nature He took upon Himself for our salvation. In that nature He could be only in one place at one time. In only one city at a time He could preach the gospel. In only once place at a time He could declare the glad tidings of salvation.
So He sent men. Into every city and into every place “whither he himself would come,” He sent those whom He appointed, seventy men. Two by two He sent them into those cities and places. He gave them the same glad tidings to preach. So they went, as they were sent. In every city and in every place their Lord sent them, they carried out their appointment, preaching and teaching the gospel of the kingdom. By them, the Lord gathered His own to Himself. Sins were forgiven. The gates of the kingdom of heaven were opened. The Lord’s salvation was graciously granted.
Such was the will of the Lord then.
Such is the will of the Lord now.
“Into every city and place, whither he himself would come.”
Into your city. Into your place.
Jesus Himself is unable to come. His proper place is in glory, at the Father’s right hand. There He ascended into His glory, having accomplished our salvation through His deep humiliation.
But from heaven he knows your city. He knows your place. And to you He sends His ambassador, His official, authorized representative. In His place he will come to declare to you the same glad tidings of the gospel. He will declare the forgiveness of sins. He will announce the coming of the kingdom of heaven. He will publish the gift of the righteousness of Christ that brings eternal life.
Through that declaration and those tidings, hear the Word of your Saviour who has sent him to you. Be glad and rejoice in His salvation and His eternal kingdom He has given to you. And give thanks and pray for His servants that He sends to you and throughout all the world, declaring His gospel of the kingdom.
“Whither he himself would come.”
16 October 2014
“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:1
Peace with God!
What blessedness is this peace with God!
This peace is the complete cessation of all enmity and hostility between us and God.
The great power of this peace we can know only if we understand what hostility there had been before.
There was the hostility of our revolt from the loving fellowship with God we enjoyed with Him before our first parents, Adam and Eve sinned against God. When they sinned, they rejected the fellowship of their blessed Maker. Instead they made their alliance with Satan, God’s great enemy from the beginning. Making friends with the devil, they made God their enemy, fleeing from Him in the garden, instead of rejoicing to meet Him. That hostility is presently deeply rooted in the very nature of man. He views God as His enemy, labouring with all his might to suppress the knowledge of his Maker as it springs up all around him and even within him. He strengthens himself in his sin against God, encouraging his fellow man to work more and more evil in the sight of the Lord, twisting his society and culture to such evil purposes.
In such an evil and corrupt way, there is also overwhelming hostility from God. He visits men according to the greatness of their iniquities and sins. He brings pain and suffering through the multitude of natural disasters and calamities. In His hostility He shows that He is a righteous, and just, and holy God.
But He also justifies! In His justification He gives peace!
With this gift of peace, there is the absolute cessation of all hostilities. His peace takes away all bitterness and hostility. With His peace, He turns from wrath to favour, from anger to love, from destruction to prosperity. All enmity He does away with, and in its place is pure friendship and fellowship.
His peace is also worked powerfully within us, so that we turn from our old, deeply entrenched ways of enmity and bitterness. Instead of fighting against God we surrender. To Him from whom we had before turned and fled away we now run, to enjoy His friendship and to hide ourselves under the shadow of His wings. His nearness, instead of causing anxiety, is now cause for sweet delight and makes glad our souls.
This peace is so wonderful and glorious, because it rests on the rock solid foundation of our justification.
“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Justified! All our sin, all our guilt, and all our condemnation has been removed. In its place is given us righteousness, obedience, and the right to life. And we are justified, not because we have justified ourselves. Not because we have done something we think merits with God. Not because we set it before God, asking Him to justify us because of what we have done. Only because God has justified us with the righteousness of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
For, first, we are justified by faith, not by the deeds or the works of the law. No, not by anything that we have done are we justified. Second, the last words of this verse lead us to the sole source of our justification: our Lord Jesus Christ. Not only has He accomplished all the righteousness we need, by His perfect obedience, and by the atonement He offered for us on the tree of the cross. But also He has purchased the faith by which we are justified. “By faith . . . through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
All our peace has come to us through our Lord Jesus Christ. It is therefore an everlasting, unbreakable peace.
In that peace let us ever live and serve and praise the God of our peace, who has justified us by faith through our Lord Jesus Christ!
“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:1
Peace with God!
What blessedness is this peace with God!
This peace is the complete cessation of all enmity and hostility between us and God.
The great power of this peace we can know only if we understand what hostility there had been before.
There was the hostility of our revolt from the loving fellowship with God we enjoyed with Him before our first parents, Adam and Eve sinned against God. When they sinned, they rejected the fellowship of their blessed Maker. Instead they made their alliance with Satan, God’s great enemy from the beginning. Making friends with the devil, they made God their enemy, fleeing from Him in the garden, instead of rejoicing to meet Him. That hostility is presently deeply rooted in the very nature of man. He views God as His enemy, labouring with all his might to suppress the knowledge of his Maker as it springs up all around him and even within him. He strengthens himself in his sin against God, encouraging his fellow man to work more and more evil in the sight of the Lord, twisting his society and culture to such evil purposes.
In such an evil and corrupt way, there is also overwhelming hostility from God. He visits men according to the greatness of their iniquities and sins. He brings pain and suffering through the multitude of natural disasters and calamities. In His hostility He shows that He is a righteous, and just, and holy God.
But He also justifies! In His justification He gives peace!
With this gift of peace, there is the absolute cessation of all hostilities. His peace takes away all bitterness and hostility. With His peace, He turns from wrath to favour, from anger to love, from destruction to prosperity. All enmity He does away with, and in its place is pure friendship and fellowship.
His peace is also worked powerfully within us, so that we turn from our old, deeply entrenched ways of enmity and bitterness. Instead of fighting against God we surrender. To Him from whom we had before turned and fled away we now run, to enjoy His friendship and to hide ourselves under the shadow of His wings. His nearness, instead of causing anxiety, is now cause for sweet delight and makes glad our souls.
This peace is so wonderful and glorious, because it rests on the rock solid foundation of our justification.
“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Justified! All our sin, all our guilt, and all our condemnation has been removed. In its place is given us righteousness, obedience, and the right to life. And we are justified, not because we have justified ourselves. Not because we have done something we think merits with God. Not because we set it before God, asking Him to justify us because of what we have done. Only because God has justified us with the righteousness of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
For, first, we are justified by faith, not by the deeds or the works of the law. No, not by anything that we have done are we justified. Second, the last words of this verse lead us to the sole source of our justification: our Lord Jesus Christ. Not only has He accomplished all the righteousness we need, by His perfect obedience, and by the atonement He offered for us on the tree of the cross. But also He has purchased the faith by which we are justified. “By faith . . . through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
All our peace has come to us through our Lord Jesus Christ. It is therefore an everlasting, unbreakable peace.
In that peace let us ever live and serve and praise the God of our peace, who has justified us by faith through our Lord Jesus Christ!
13 October 2014
“Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.” Psalm 95:2
In this wonderfully Spirit-arranged verse from the Psalms, we have our way of entering into the house of the Lord for Thanksgiving Day.
We look closely at that arrangement. We might think, at first glance, that this way is the way of thanksgiving, and this thanksgiving we are to express with “a joyful noise.” What better way could there be to express our gratitude to God for His goodness to us than to lift up our voices to sing loudly the praises of our God?
But the Holy Spirit has given us a more striking arrangement.
That joyful noise, or a loud sound from our hearts, is simply the way we are to come into the presence of the Lord. He is worthy of the summoning of all the powers of our heart, that those powers should be expressed with volume and strength of voice in the making of a joyful noise.
To that end, thoughts of thanksgiving represent the way to come into God’s presence and to make a joyful noise unto him. Thanksgiving is the directing of our minds to the enjoyed provision of God. It is the effort of our minds to understand all that we have, that it is all from the hand of God, given through His grace and mercy in Jesus Christ, His Son. Thanksgiving is also the blessed labour of making ourselves glad in the multitude of God’s gifts He has so graciously provided.
But this Word of God especially teaches us that the most proper vehicle for bringing our thanksgiving to God is with Psalms, the Psalms that He has given in His Word.
The first and chief reason why the Psalms are the perfect instrument of thanksgiving is that they are God’s gifts to the church of the Old Testament and the New for the praise and worship of His name. Thanksgiving is, first, to Him. Therefore it is fitting that we exercise ourselves in thanksgiving to Him. That exercise is, to be sure, that we bring before Him the joyful noises of our voices exclaiming the abundance He has given to us. But that exercise is also using the very words with which we come before his presence with thanksgiving. In the Psalms He has declared to us His blessings. We think of Psalm 65, of Psalm 147, of Psalm 104, of Psalm 103, of Psalm 8, of Psalm 100, and of Psalm 107.
How blessed are we to use the gifts of God in His praises! Not only to mention His gifts to us, and not only in the very words He has given us in His Psalm-book, but also with the very breath and life, the voices and hearts that He has graciously given to us, and blessed by His Spirit of grace.
So much cause for thanksgiving! Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with Psalms!
“Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.” Psalm 95:2
In this wonderfully Spirit-arranged verse from the Psalms, we have our way of entering into the house of the Lord for Thanksgiving Day.
We look closely at that arrangement. We might think, at first glance, that this way is the way of thanksgiving, and this thanksgiving we are to express with “a joyful noise.” What better way could there be to express our gratitude to God for His goodness to us than to lift up our voices to sing loudly the praises of our God?
But the Holy Spirit has given us a more striking arrangement.
That joyful noise, or a loud sound from our hearts, is simply the way we are to come into the presence of the Lord. He is worthy of the summoning of all the powers of our heart, that those powers should be expressed with volume and strength of voice in the making of a joyful noise.
To that end, thoughts of thanksgiving represent the way to come into God’s presence and to make a joyful noise unto him. Thanksgiving is the directing of our minds to the enjoyed provision of God. It is the effort of our minds to understand all that we have, that it is all from the hand of God, given through His grace and mercy in Jesus Christ, His Son. Thanksgiving is also the blessed labour of making ourselves glad in the multitude of God’s gifts He has so graciously provided.
But this Word of God especially teaches us that the most proper vehicle for bringing our thanksgiving to God is with Psalms, the Psalms that He has given in His Word.
The first and chief reason why the Psalms are the perfect instrument of thanksgiving is that they are God’s gifts to the church of the Old Testament and the New for the praise and worship of His name. Thanksgiving is, first, to Him. Therefore it is fitting that we exercise ourselves in thanksgiving to Him. That exercise is, to be sure, that we bring before Him the joyful noises of our voices exclaiming the abundance He has given to us. But that exercise is also using the very words with which we come before his presence with thanksgiving. In the Psalms He has declared to us His blessings. We think of Psalm 65, of Psalm 147, of Psalm 104, of Psalm 103, of Psalm 8, of Psalm 100, and of Psalm 107.
How blessed are we to use the gifts of God in His praises! Not only to mention His gifts to us, and not only in the very words He has given us in His Psalm-book, but also with the very breath and life, the voices and hearts that He has graciously given to us, and blessed by His Spirit of grace.
So much cause for thanksgiving! Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with Psalms!
12 October 2014, The Lord's Day
“That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God.” Ephesians 3:18, 19
A wonderfully vain attempt is described in these words from holy Scripture!
Do your best! Aim your very best energies and resources! Seek with all your heart to know!
Study measure and weight. Study time and history. Expand your horizons as far as you possibly can. Give yourself to the study of mathematics to be able to express the greatest possible amount.
How much can you know? How far can you stretch yourself?
That much must you know the love of Christ!
Know that love by all the sins which you have committed, every one of which your Saviour’s love has taken from you. Know that love by the almighty power by which He has delivered you from sin and Satan’s hand, and restored you to life and God’s fellowship. Know that love in the blood that He shed, to purchase you to be His and His Father’s forever. Know that love by the gifts he pours out upon you from Heaven, blessings of His Spirit and Word, His grace, His mercy, and His peace.
Be not alone in this great endeavour. You must be joined to others in it. In the fellowship of God’s people, may this be your delightful task: “that you may be able to comprehend with all saints.” Look for the greatness of that love in the Word of the gospel you hear together. As you hear that gospel in the fellowship of faith, seek together to know the measure of your Saviour’s love for you, together with all His church.
You will always fall short. The blessed word is that as you seek to know “what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height” of the love of Christ, you will always find that love surpassing. You will find it not only infinite in measure, but also infinitely sweet, wonderful, and delightful.
Blessed pursuit of knowledge! This effort, of which you will always fall short, has your fullness in view. As you seek and pursue to know, you are being filled with all the fullness of God. That fullness is the knowledge of His love for you, the love out of which He sent to you His beloved Son who loved you unto death. That fullness is the fruit of that love, His Spirit, His peace, His goodness and grace to fill your mind and heart with all delight and love for your God. That fullness is the rich enjoyment of His friendship and fellowship in worship, to share together with God’s people in His house.
May that fullness of God pour out of our hearts in the praise of His name and to the glory of His grace.
May such be our blessed endeavour today, in the house of our God!
“That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God.” Ephesians 3:18, 19
A wonderfully vain attempt is described in these words from holy Scripture!
Do your best! Aim your very best energies and resources! Seek with all your heart to know!
Study measure and weight. Study time and history. Expand your horizons as far as you possibly can. Give yourself to the study of mathematics to be able to express the greatest possible amount.
How much can you know? How far can you stretch yourself?
That much must you know the love of Christ!
Know that love by all the sins which you have committed, every one of which your Saviour’s love has taken from you. Know that love by the almighty power by which He has delivered you from sin and Satan’s hand, and restored you to life and God’s fellowship. Know that love in the blood that He shed, to purchase you to be His and His Father’s forever. Know that love by the gifts he pours out upon you from Heaven, blessings of His Spirit and Word, His grace, His mercy, and His peace.
Be not alone in this great endeavour. You must be joined to others in it. In the fellowship of God’s people, may this be your delightful task: “that you may be able to comprehend with all saints.” Look for the greatness of that love in the Word of the gospel you hear together. As you hear that gospel in the fellowship of faith, seek together to know the measure of your Saviour’s love for you, together with all His church.
You will always fall short. The blessed word is that as you seek to know “what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height” of the love of Christ, you will always find that love surpassing. You will find it not only infinite in measure, but also infinitely sweet, wonderful, and delightful.
Blessed pursuit of knowledge! This effort, of which you will always fall short, has your fullness in view. As you seek and pursue to know, you are being filled with all the fullness of God. That fullness is the knowledge of His love for you, the love out of which He sent to you His beloved Son who loved you unto death. That fullness is the fruit of that love, His Spirit, His peace, His goodness and grace to fill your mind and heart with all delight and love for your God. That fullness is the rich enjoyment of His friendship and fellowship in worship, to share together with God’s people in His house.
May that fullness of God pour out of our hearts in the praise of His name and to the glory of His grace.
May such be our blessed endeavour today, in the house of our God!
10 October 2014
“Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.” II Thessalonians 2:14, 15
This Scripture, as well as so many others, does not admit any trouble or difficulty harmonizing the truth of sovereign grace with the commandments of God to His people. There is no sense in which Scripture tries to divide between the two: so much given to God to do, and so much given to man to do. Scripture is not afraid at all to give to God all the glory of His sovereignty, and at the same time to give to man all responsibility and accountability.
But that is not all. We have not only an understood harmony between these two. Scripture also tells us which is also first, which is always supreme. God’s sovereignty is absolutely first, and man’s responsibility is always second and always built upon the first.
The first word of verse 15, above, makes that relationship quite clear: “Therefore.”
What is first here? What is the foundation here? The calling of God. He called this church by the gospel brought by Paul and the company of the apostles. He has called His elect, as He chose them “from the beginning,” verse 13. He called them “to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ,” heavenly glory they shall obtain after their lives in this world are finished. Their salvation is sure.
What follows? No “but.” No “although.” No “nevertheless.”
But, “therefore.”
Therefore must they stand fast. Therefore they must hold the traditions which they have been taught, whether by word or epistle. They must stay squarely in the truth, and not be led away from it by any temptation or deception. They must hold tightly to what had been passed along to them from Christ through his apostles, whether they received it through preaching or by letter.
As we feel more and more the tremendous pressure to move away from the gospel of God’s sovereign grace, from the truth of the apostolic Word we have been taught, we must know the power of the connecting word “therefore.” Exactly because God has called us can we hope to stand fast. Because He has called us according to His choice from the beginning, can we dare to stand fast. Because He has called to the obtaining of salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, can we successfully stand fast.
Without the sovereignty of God, we cannot hope to endure! Under it, we have all confidence!
But even more, our contemplation of the absolute sovereignty of God is also a powerful motivation to stand fast and to hold the traditions. The absolute sovereignty of God in our salvation means that we have done nothing to save ourselves. Wholly and completely, without the grace of God which did it all, we would only be under the destructive power of God’s wrath, under bondage to sin and Satan, our only pathway leading to the everlasting destruction of hell. But God rescued us!
Our salvation is wholly of His grace alone.
Therefore!
May our hearts, filled with the joy of His salvation, be strengthened to stand fast and to hold the traditions that He has given us!
“Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.” II Thessalonians 2:14, 15
This Scripture, as well as so many others, does not admit any trouble or difficulty harmonizing the truth of sovereign grace with the commandments of God to His people. There is no sense in which Scripture tries to divide between the two: so much given to God to do, and so much given to man to do. Scripture is not afraid at all to give to God all the glory of His sovereignty, and at the same time to give to man all responsibility and accountability.
But that is not all. We have not only an understood harmony between these two. Scripture also tells us which is also first, which is always supreme. God’s sovereignty is absolutely first, and man’s responsibility is always second and always built upon the first.
The first word of verse 15, above, makes that relationship quite clear: “Therefore.”
What is first here? What is the foundation here? The calling of God. He called this church by the gospel brought by Paul and the company of the apostles. He has called His elect, as He chose them “from the beginning,” verse 13. He called them “to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ,” heavenly glory they shall obtain after their lives in this world are finished. Their salvation is sure.
What follows? No “but.” No “although.” No “nevertheless.”
But, “therefore.”
Therefore must they stand fast. Therefore they must hold the traditions which they have been taught, whether by word or epistle. They must stay squarely in the truth, and not be led away from it by any temptation or deception. They must hold tightly to what had been passed along to them from Christ through his apostles, whether they received it through preaching or by letter.
As we feel more and more the tremendous pressure to move away from the gospel of God’s sovereign grace, from the truth of the apostolic Word we have been taught, we must know the power of the connecting word “therefore.” Exactly because God has called us can we hope to stand fast. Because He has called us according to His choice from the beginning, can we dare to stand fast. Because He has called to the obtaining of salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, can we successfully stand fast.
Without the sovereignty of God, we cannot hope to endure! Under it, we have all confidence!
But even more, our contemplation of the absolute sovereignty of God is also a powerful motivation to stand fast and to hold the traditions. The absolute sovereignty of God in our salvation means that we have done nothing to save ourselves. Wholly and completely, without the grace of God which did it all, we would only be under the destructive power of God’s wrath, under bondage to sin and Satan, our only pathway leading to the everlasting destruction of hell. But God rescued us!
Our salvation is wholly of His grace alone.
Therefore!
May our hearts, filled with the joy of His salvation, be strengthened to stand fast and to hold the traditions that He has given us!
8 October, 2014
“Blessed by the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the earth, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will.” Ephesians 1:3-5
Predestination.
How very wrong is the popular view of this vital biblical doctrine!
What is that popular view?
Leaving all that is of life and love, of sunshine and warmth, of openness and freedom, you must enter a cold, damp, dark and forbidding place. Descending ever deeper through passages growing ever more narrow, you finally come to a place where only cold and aloof reckoning takes place. There you find predestination, a cold, calculating doctrine, a doctrine that restrains and prohibits.
According to this popular view, millions and millions want to be saved from eternal destruction. They try to get into the kingdom of heaven, pressing against its gates with cries for deliverance and refuge on their lips. But they are all turned away, their desires frustrated and their hopes dashed into pieces. The reason? They are not predestinated.
As horrible as this view is, even more is it erroneous. The devil has carefully crafted this presentation, and persuaded so very many to adopt it for their own. All contrary to the testimony of God’s Word.
That testimony of God’s Word teaches exactly the opposite of this decree of predestination. Without predestination there would be none to receive all God’s rich store of “all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.” Without His eternal, wise, just and good decree there must be none to be “holy and without blame before him in love.” Without His sovereign, unconditional choice, there would be no adopted children of God.
For, first, predestination is God’s eternal determination to have more children than His one, only-begotten Son. His absolutely free, unconstrained love alone moved Him to make for Himself a vast multitude of children for Him to raise up, to save, and to bring to Himself, that they should live forever in His blessed kingdom that He has prepared for them from the foundation of the world, Matthew 25:34.
Second, predestination deliberately directs the power of God’s mighty salvation not only to these children but also to the proper goal of that salvation. That end is their perfect holiness and blamelessness. Without that decree every one of those children would be only wretchedly ugly and deformed, bearing only the name of God, but no resemblance to Him whatever. Predestination determines the beautiful, delightful end of these children, that every one of them will be like their heavenly Father, forever perfect in holiness and blamelessness. In that holiness they shall love Him as He loves them, in the glory of His blessed, everlasting kingdom.
Third, predestination means the outpouring of all spiritual blessings in the present. Predestination means the careful distribution of the riches of Christ’s goodness, that every single one of God’s children will receive the abundant blessings of salvation from Jesus’ throne in glory. Standing under the stream of these blessings poured out, each of these children on earth is drenched in the love of their Father for them. Each is able to rejoice that his stream will never dry up, but must unceasingly pour, until at last he comes to its heavenly source, his Lord Jesus Christ.
May this eternal, unconditional decree be our delight and joy! Let us with joy confess it and defend it, “to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.”
“Blessed by the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the earth, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will.” Ephesians 1:3-5
Predestination.
How very wrong is the popular view of this vital biblical doctrine!
What is that popular view?
Leaving all that is of life and love, of sunshine and warmth, of openness and freedom, you must enter a cold, damp, dark and forbidding place. Descending ever deeper through passages growing ever more narrow, you finally come to a place where only cold and aloof reckoning takes place. There you find predestination, a cold, calculating doctrine, a doctrine that restrains and prohibits.
According to this popular view, millions and millions want to be saved from eternal destruction. They try to get into the kingdom of heaven, pressing against its gates with cries for deliverance and refuge on their lips. But they are all turned away, their desires frustrated and their hopes dashed into pieces. The reason? They are not predestinated.
As horrible as this view is, even more is it erroneous. The devil has carefully crafted this presentation, and persuaded so very many to adopt it for their own. All contrary to the testimony of God’s Word.
That testimony of God’s Word teaches exactly the opposite of this decree of predestination. Without predestination there would be none to receive all God’s rich store of “all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.” Without His eternal, wise, just and good decree there must be none to be “holy and without blame before him in love.” Without His sovereign, unconditional choice, there would be no adopted children of God.
For, first, predestination is God’s eternal determination to have more children than His one, only-begotten Son. His absolutely free, unconstrained love alone moved Him to make for Himself a vast multitude of children for Him to raise up, to save, and to bring to Himself, that they should live forever in His blessed kingdom that He has prepared for them from the foundation of the world, Matthew 25:34.
Second, predestination deliberately directs the power of God’s mighty salvation not only to these children but also to the proper goal of that salvation. That end is their perfect holiness and blamelessness. Without that decree every one of those children would be only wretchedly ugly and deformed, bearing only the name of God, but no resemblance to Him whatever. Predestination determines the beautiful, delightful end of these children, that every one of them will be like their heavenly Father, forever perfect in holiness and blamelessness. In that holiness they shall love Him as He loves them, in the glory of His blessed, everlasting kingdom.
Third, predestination means the outpouring of all spiritual blessings in the present. Predestination means the careful distribution of the riches of Christ’s goodness, that every single one of God’s children will receive the abundant blessings of salvation from Jesus’ throne in glory. Standing under the stream of these blessings poured out, each of these children on earth is drenched in the love of their Father for them. Each is able to rejoice that his stream will never dry up, but must unceasingly pour, until at last he comes to its heavenly source, his Lord Jesus Christ.
May this eternal, unconditional decree be our delight and joy! Let us with joy confess it and defend it, “to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.”
October 7, 2014
“Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently.” I Peter 2:22
What a powerful way is given to us in the above words!
There is only one way to the “unfeigned love of the brethren.”
How to love the brethren without hypocrisy, sham, or pretence? How truly to delight in one’s fellow saints, and in the church of Jesus Christ found upon earth? How to love earnestly, sincerely and fervently?
Only “in obeying the truth through the Spirit.”
The truth must always be first, the true revelation of the Triune God, given in the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament. It is the truth about God, the truth about man, the truth about the Son of God, Jesus Christ, and the truth about the glorious, everlasting kingdom of God. It is the truth of the salvation of this kingdom, by the sovereign grace of God alone, without the deeds of the law or the works of man.
That truth demands obedience. No, it does not demand submission in the sense of Islam, bowing before the will of the merciless, pitiless Allah. Obedience to the truth is obedience to the merciful God, who has provided glorious, free salvation to sinners through the blood of His only-begotten, well-beloved Son. Obedience to the truth is wonderful rest and peace through the mighty reconciliation of God, ushering in the blessed hope of eternal life, unending fellowship with the beloved Saviour.
It is this truth, through obedience to it, that purifies the soul. This truth runs through the soul, showing its evil and sinfulness. As it proceeds, it brings out that sin in such a way that the believer does not work to cover it over again, but confesses it and fights against it. Evil motives and ways are put off. All this is the fruit of the work of the Spirit, through whom alone we obey the truth.
At the very same time, a deep spiritual love is kindled by this truth. This love is not only for the truth, but also for other lovers of the truth. It desires to have fellowship with other pure souls, which are being purified in the same way, “obeying the truth through the Spirit.” So is the church knit together, soul to soul, in the blessed fellowship of the truth.
So does the truth place us in this way, as we obey it through the Spirit.
This truth demands of us further obedience as well: “See that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently.”
Our calling is from love to love. We are not to stand in the way of love, but we are to walk and run in it. We are not allowed to rest content with the measure of love we feel in our hearts for the brethren. We are required to become more pure, and more fervent in that love. So we turn back to the truth, to learn more of it. As we learn, our loving obedience to the truth grows. Then grows also our love for one another.
May we be found ever in this way, in obedience to the truth and displaying its power in our love for one another!
“Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently.” I Peter 2:22
What a powerful way is given to us in the above words!
There is only one way to the “unfeigned love of the brethren.”
How to love the brethren without hypocrisy, sham, or pretence? How truly to delight in one’s fellow saints, and in the church of Jesus Christ found upon earth? How to love earnestly, sincerely and fervently?
Only “in obeying the truth through the Spirit.”
The truth must always be first, the true revelation of the Triune God, given in the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament. It is the truth about God, the truth about man, the truth about the Son of God, Jesus Christ, and the truth about the glorious, everlasting kingdom of God. It is the truth of the salvation of this kingdom, by the sovereign grace of God alone, without the deeds of the law or the works of man.
That truth demands obedience. No, it does not demand submission in the sense of Islam, bowing before the will of the merciless, pitiless Allah. Obedience to the truth is obedience to the merciful God, who has provided glorious, free salvation to sinners through the blood of His only-begotten, well-beloved Son. Obedience to the truth is wonderful rest and peace through the mighty reconciliation of God, ushering in the blessed hope of eternal life, unending fellowship with the beloved Saviour.
It is this truth, through obedience to it, that purifies the soul. This truth runs through the soul, showing its evil and sinfulness. As it proceeds, it brings out that sin in such a way that the believer does not work to cover it over again, but confesses it and fights against it. Evil motives and ways are put off. All this is the fruit of the work of the Spirit, through whom alone we obey the truth.
At the very same time, a deep spiritual love is kindled by this truth. This love is not only for the truth, but also for other lovers of the truth. It desires to have fellowship with other pure souls, which are being purified in the same way, “obeying the truth through the Spirit.” So is the church knit together, soul to soul, in the blessed fellowship of the truth.
So does the truth place us in this way, as we obey it through the Spirit.
This truth demands of us further obedience as well: “See that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently.”
Our calling is from love to love. We are not to stand in the way of love, but we are to walk and run in it. We are not allowed to rest content with the measure of love we feel in our hearts for the brethren. We are required to become more pure, and more fervent in that love. So we turn back to the truth, to learn more of it. As we learn, our loving obedience to the truth grows. Then grows also our love for one another.
May we be found ever in this way, in obedience to the truth and displaying its power in our love for one another!
16 October 2014
“Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth.” Psalm 119:142
How this Word might make us tremble with fright!
If we should look at the righteousness of God as what He requires of us, that righteousness is a crushing burden. If we should look at His righteousness as the sum total of all that He requires of us, to be justified before Him, all we can see is impossibility. As we cannot do it, we cannot be justified.
What must we do then? Shall we wait? As we wait, shall we raise our supplication to God that He should lower the standard of His righteousness? Shall we pray that He give us something manageable, something within the range of our possibility to perform?
Forever must we wait, then. “Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness.”
Perhaps, then, we might examine very closely the law of God’s righteousness. In that examination, we might be able to find some flaw or defect. Then, we might approach God with our finding, asking Him to nullify that law altogether.
That way must also be futile. “And thy law is the truth.”
That law can only be true because God is true. God’s righteousness is an everlasting righteousness because God is the everlasting God.
How can we, then, praise this law of God, as we are taught in this Psalm?
Only in the way of knowing that the righteousness of God is the righteousness of Jesus Christ, declared in the gospel, as well in the law and the prophets.
This is the righteousness that is God’s gift, given through His everlasting, true Son. The Son of God fulfilled all the will of God, perfectly keeping all the commandments of God, as the Mediator of His people. He perfectly performed all the will of God, taking upon Himself all the sins and guilt of His people, sacrificing Himself in their stead on the accursed tree of the cross.
This righteousness, imputed to us by God through the Spirit’s gift of faith in Christ, are we justified.
Justified by that righteousness, we are filled with every motive to magnify and exalt that righteousness.
“Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness.” It will last forever and ever. That righteousness will last through all our life, to maintain our status before God as righteous. Though we always continue to sin, and bear the burden of our depravity all the days of our pilgrimage, we are confident Christ’s righteousness will always avail. As our pilgrimage ends in glory, that righteousness will bring us to the new heavens and earth, wherein righteousness dwells forever.
“And thy law is the truth.” It becomes our delight to look into that law, and to see all its truth. For in every respect it shows the glory of Christ in His full obedience to that law. In all its requirements for sin and righteousness, in every command and precept uttered, and in every sacrifice required by that law, the glory of our Mediator shines forth with the most brilliant pure light.
In the praise of God’s law, let us forever praise our true, righteous Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ!
“Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth.” Psalm 119:142
How this Word might make us tremble with fright!
If we should look at the righteousness of God as what He requires of us, that righteousness is a crushing burden. If we should look at His righteousness as the sum total of all that He requires of us, to be justified before Him, all we can see is impossibility. As we cannot do it, we cannot be justified.
What must we do then? Shall we wait? As we wait, shall we raise our supplication to God that He should lower the standard of His righteousness? Shall we pray that He give us something manageable, something within the range of our possibility to perform?
Forever must we wait, then. “Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness.”
Perhaps, then, we might examine very closely the law of God’s righteousness. In that examination, we might be able to find some flaw or defect. Then, we might approach God with our finding, asking Him to nullify that law altogether.
That way must also be futile. “And thy law is the truth.”
That law can only be true because God is true. God’s righteousness is an everlasting righteousness because God is the everlasting God.
How can we, then, praise this law of God, as we are taught in this Psalm?
Only in the way of knowing that the righteousness of God is the righteousness of Jesus Christ, declared in the gospel, as well in the law and the prophets.
This is the righteousness that is God’s gift, given through His everlasting, true Son. The Son of God fulfilled all the will of God, perfectly keeping all the commandments of God, as the Mediator of His people. He perfectly performed all the will of God, taking upon Himself all the sins and guilt of His people, sacrificing Himself in their stead on the accursed tree of the cross.
This righteousness, imputed to us by God through the Spirit’s gift of faith in Christ, are we justified.
Justified by that righteousness, we are filled with every motive to magnify and exalt that righteousness.
“Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness.” It will last forever and ever. That righteousness will last through all our life, to maintain our status before God as righteous. Though we always continue to sin, and bear the burden of our depravity all the days of our pilgrimage, we are confident Christ’s righteousness will always avail. As our pilgrimage ends in glory, that righteousness will bring us to the new heavens and earth, wherein righteousness dwells forever.
“And thy law is the truth.” It becomes our delight to look into that law, and to see all its truth. For in every respect it shows the glory of Christ in His full obedience to that law. In all its requirements for sin and righteousness, in every command and precept uttered, and in every sacrifice required by that law, the glory of our Mediator shines forth with the most brilliant pure light.
In the praise of God’s law, let us forever praise our true, righteous Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ!
5 October 2014, The Lord's Day
“Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God.” Ephesians 2:19
From the viewpoint of this Word of God, today is a day to be at home. Today is a day to be in the place where you truly and rightly belong: with your fellow citizens, in the household of God.
In the world we wander as pilgrims and strangers. Working in this world, six days of the week, according to the calling that our God has given us in His grace, we feel we are aliens. We have a different end and goal in view, as different as heaven and earth. Our pathway, though side by side with the world’s, is of a completely different character. Theirs is of ungodly, noisy rebellion against the will of God. Ours is of peaceful submission to that will. Their way leads ever downward to destruction. Ours leads ever upward to glory.
Formerly, apart from the grace of God, there was no difference. By nature we are perfectly at home in the world. We shared the same way of rebellion, ungodliness, the way of destruction. We were far off from God, under “the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.”
Then came the matchless and mighty grace of God! That grace took us out of that old way, separating us from the ungodly, sinful world.
That grace of God then gave us a new home. Where we were formerly strangers and foreigners, there we now are at home. The household of God is our household. Intimate, personal fellowship we enjoy with the true and living God. Now we are now enabled to call this God our own, our Father in heaven. No longer are we strangers and foreigners to the company of the saints, God’s holy ones, chosen, called, and sanctified by grace. We have our place right among them. Rightfully, legally, purchased by the blood of Christ: we belong with those that belong to Christ.
Let us rejoice, then, at the privilege to enter into the blessed company of the saints today. Let us rejoice to take our place in the household of God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
As we gather for worship, and as we hear the same Word of the gospel, and as we lift up our voices together in the praises of our God, let us remember: here is our home, where we belong.
All by the abundant grace of our God!
“Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God.” Ephesians 2:19
From the viewpoint of this Word of God, today is a day to be at home. Today is a day to be in the place where you truly and rightly belong: with your fellow citizens, in the household of God.
In the world we wander as pilgrims and strangers. Working in this world, six days of the week, according to the calling that our God has given us in His grace, we feel we are aliens. We have a different end and goal in view, as different as heaven and earth. Our pathway, though side by side with the world’s, is of a completely different character. Theirs is of ungodly, noisy rebellion against the will of God. Ours is of peaceful submission to that will. Their way leads ever downward to destruction. Ours leads ever upward to glory.
Formerly, apart from the grace of God, there was no difference. By nature we are perfectly at home in the world. We shared the same way of rebellion, ungodliness, the way of destruction. We were far off from God, under “the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.”
Then came the matchless and mighty grace of God! That grace took us out of that old way, separating us from the ungodly, sinful world.
That grace of God then gave us a new home. Where we were formerly strangers and foreigners, there we now are at home. The household of God is our household. Intimate, personal fellowship we enjoy with the true and living God. Now we are now enabled to call this God our own, our Father in heaven. No longer are we strangers and foreigners to the company of the saints, God’s holy ones, chosen, called, and sanctified by grace. We have our place right among them. Rightfully, legally, purchased by the blood of Christ: we belong with those that belong to Christ.
Let us rejoice, then, at the privilege to enter into the blessed company of the saints today. Let us rejoice to take our place in the household of God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
As we gather for worship, and as we hear the same Word of the gospel, and as we lift up our voices together in the praises of our God, let us remember: here is our home, where we belong.
All by the abundant grace of our God!
30 September 2014
“Man’s goings are of the Lord; how can a man then understand his own way?” Proverbs 20:24
See how this Word of God brings us to seek His grace in us.
We can well begin with the question raised here: How can a man understand his own way?
What a mystery confronts us here.
How often we consider the ways of men! As often as we do we meet with this mystery. Of men in high places we have many questions to ask? What are they made of? Why do they make the decisions they do? Why do they pursue these goals? How do their words and actions line up with the thoughts and intentions of their hearts?
We ask the same of men we know, perhaps intimately. What of their ways? Why do they say and do what we hear and see? First this way, then that. They move forward and backward, then sideways. What must we make of all this? What can we understand?
As well as we know ourselves, we also confront the same mystery? Why do we do the things that we do? Why do we have these thoughts or desires uppermost in our minds? How do certain thoughts pass through our mind, so often unbidden? Good or evil, brilliant or distracting, what ways are ours!
These great mysteries must lead us to the Lord. With the Lord, we have an answer to this mystery. The very reason why a man cannot understand his own way is that his goings are of the Lord. Why does a man do what he does? Why does he think the way that he thinks? Why this end, this goal? Why this method? Why this way? His goings are of the Lord.
Let us find peace in this wonderful truth. We trace the sins of our ways back to the thoughts and intentions of our hearts. We barely touch the surface of the depths of our own hears, from which our sins arise. But we may rest assured that because a man’s goings are of the Lord, that He is able to wash us throughout the depths of our hearts with the blood of His Son, making us whiter than snow.
Let us find with the Lord strength to fight against all sin and evil, knowing that the mighty power of His grace penetrates where we cannot go, renewing us and strengthening us to fight against sin and to purify our ways unto God.
Then let us rest in this wonderful power of our God, when we see the goings of men directed against us. When their words and deeds are turned against us, for our harm and destruction, we are safe and secure. When we see the goings of men increasing greatly in their abominable wickedness, our privilege is to know that their goings are of the Lord.
All of the Lord, and all for His glory and our salvation! May His absolute sovereignty always fill our hearts with His comfort and peace!
“Man’s goings are of the Lord; how can a man then understand his own way?” Proverbs 20:24
See how this Word of God brings us to seek His grace in us.
We can well begin with the question raised here: How can a man understand his own way?
What a mystery confronts us here.
How often we consider the ways of men! As often as we do we meet with this mystery. Of men in high places we have many questions to ask? What are they made of? Why do they make the decisions they do? Why do they pursue these goals? How do their words and actions line up with the thoughts and intentions of their hearts?
We ask the same of men we know, perhaps intimately. What of their ways? Why do they say and do what we hear and see? First this way, then that. They move forward and backward, then sideways. What must we make of all this? What can we understand?
As well as we know ourselves, we also confront the same mystery? Why do we do the things that we do? Why do we have these thoughts or desires uppermost in our minds? How do certain thoughts pass through our mind, so often unbidden? Good or evil, brilliant or distracting, what ways are ours!
These great mysteries must lead us to the Lord. With the Lord, we have an answer to this mystery. The very reason why a man cannot understand his own way is that his goings are of the Lord. Why does a man do what he does? Why does he think the way that he thinks? Why this end, this goal? Why this method? Why this way? His goings are of the Lord.
Let us find peace in this wonderful truth. We trace the sins of our ways back to the thoughts and intentions of our hearts. We barely touch the surface of the depths of our own hears, from which our sins arise. But we may rest assured that because a man’s goings are of the Lord, that He is able to wash us throughout the depths of our hearts with the blood of His Son, making us whiter than snow.
Let us find with the Lord strength to fight against all sin and evil, knowing that the mighty power of His grace penetrates where we cannot go, renewing us and strengthening us to fight against sin and to purify our ways unto God.
Then let us rest in this wonderful power of our God, when we see the goings of men directed against us. When their words and deeds are turned against us, for our harm and destruction, we are safe and secure. When we see the goings of men increasing greatly in their abominable wickedness, our privilege is to know that their goings are of the Lord.
All of the Lord, and all for His glory and our salvation! May His absolute sovereignty always fill our hearts with His comfort and peace!
26 September 2014
“For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.” Psalm 86:5
How good is God!
How good is He?
God is His goodness. He is the absolute, the only good. For He is good of Himself, and He is always and only good. There is not to be found in all the greatness of His being or counsel anything evil. Always He knows Himself and always He delights in Himself as the God who is absolutely, supremely good.
So is He forever to be praised, for His goodness’ sake.
So good is the Lord that He delights always to show His infinite goodness.
He is ready to forgive. This readiness is a eager and delighted preparedness. It is toward “all them that call upon thee.” To all that call upon Him, the Lord is eager, delighted, and ready to show to them the special mercy of forgiving their sins. They call upon His name, crushed under the burden of the weight of their guilt. The Lord is ready to forgive them. They call upon His name, feeling deeply the spot and stain of their sins, so polluted and vile by them, they stand afar off. The Lord hears, and is delighted to wash and cleanse them, making them whiter than snow. They call upon the Lord, knowing that they have wandered far from Him, miring themselves deeply in the pollution and shame of their sins. The Lord readily and handily delivers them, and brings them back into saving fellowship with Him.
Why? Because He is good.
See that goodness of God expressed in the plenteousness of His mercy.
How ready to forgive is He?
His readiness He has made perfectly, abundantly clear by the gift of His only begotten Son. Will God forgive? Can He forgive? The multitude of sin? The depth of sin? The vileness of sin? Oh, yes. That is why He gave His Son to the shameful, bitter, accursed death of the cross.
There is plenty of mercy. There is all readiness to forgive.
“Unto all them that call upon thee.”
Even unto us.
Let us call upon the Lord! Let us prove His readiness, and rejoice in His goodness, as He so graciously and freely forgives all our sins!
“For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.” Psalm 86:5
How good is God!
How good is He?
God is His goodness. He is the absolute, the only good. For He is good of Himself, and He is always and only good. There is not to be found in all the greatness of His being or counsel anything evil. Always He knows Himself and always He delights in Himself as the God who is absolutely, supremely good.
So is He forever to be praised, for His goodness’ sake.
So good is the Lord that He delights always to show His infinite goodness.
He is ready to forgive. This readiness is a eager and delighted preparedness. It is toward “all them that call upon thee.” To all that call upon Him, the Lord is eager, delighted, and ready to show to them the special mercy of forgiving their sins. They call upon His name, crushed under the burden of the weight of their guilt. The Lord is ready to forgive them. They call upon His name, feeling deeply the spot and stain of their sins, so polluted and vile by them, they stand afar off. The Lord hears, and is delighted to wash and cleanse them, making them whiter than snow. They call upon the Lord, knowing that they have wandered far from Him, miring themselves deeply in the pollution and shame of their sins. The Lord readily and handily delivers them, and brings them back into saving fellowship with Him.
Why? Because He is good.
See that goodness of God expressed in the plenteousness of His mercy.
How ready to forgive is He?
His readiness He has made perfectly, abundantly clear by the gift of His only begotten Son. Will God forgive? Can He forgive? The multitude of sin? The depth of sin? The vileness of sin? Oh, yes. That is why He gave His Son to the shameful, bitter, accursed death of the cross.
There is plenty of mercy. There is all readiness to forgive.
“Unto all them that call upon thee.”
Even unto us.
Let us call upon the Lord! Let us prove His readiness, and rejoice in His goodness, as He so graciously and freely forgives all our sins!
24 September 2014
“Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed , In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” I Corinthians 15:51, 52
What a mystery!
We shall not all sleep!
All the bodies of all the saints through the millennia, generation after generation, have all fallen asleep. When their time came, they took their place in the dust of the earth. The feeble and frail children of Adam all succumbed to their mortality. They all took their place among the dead. From dust they were taken, and to dust must they return.
That mortality was in the very nature of their bodies, demonstrated in all who fell on sleep. Some fell asleep only as their bodies yielded under the weight of their many years. Others demonstrated their mortality through raging diseases, horrifying accidents, or through sudden death. Some saw only a few years or weeks of life, while others succumbed before being brought to their birth.
Here is the mystery: we shall not all sleep! This sleep is not a permanent condition of all these bodies. It is, after all, a sleep. It is a rest in order to wake up again, refreshed and renewed.
But that is certainly not the end of this mystery.
We shall be changed!
Changed in a moment. Changed in the twinkling of an eye. Changed at the last trump.
And what a change this will be!
The dead shall be raised incorruptible!
The very dead, their bodies so dissolved or disfigured in their mortality, yielded to corruption, will be raised incorruptible. Long turned to dust in their grave, burned to ashes and scattered on the winds of heaven, or even torn apart by ocean’s waves, will be raised incorruptible.
From those bodies will be removed every last vestige of mortality and corruption. Those bodies, once perished, will be imperishable. Once so very weak, they will be strong evermore. Forever they will be beyond the touch of corruption. Never again pained, sick, diseased, injured can they be.
What a mystery!
Also that we should have our place in this mystery! We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. As we have borne the image of the earthly in Adam, so shall we also bear the image of the heavenly in the second man, the Lord from heaven.
In this Lord from heaven, let us believe and let us hope. And let us enjoy the comfort of our Lord’s blessed promise: He will come to take us to be with Him forever. To celebrate and praise the mystery of our resurrection, through Him who is the resurrection and the life.
“Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed , In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” I Corinthians 15:51, 52
What a mystery!
We shall not all sleep!
All the bodies of all the saints through the millennia, generation after generation, have all fallen asleep. When their time came, they took their place in the dust of the earth. The feeble and frail children of Adam all succumbed to their mortality. They all took their place among the dead. From dust they were taken, and to dust must they return.
That mortality was in the very nature of their bodies, demonstrated in all who fell on sleep. Some fell asleep only as their bodies yielded under the weight of their many years. Others demonstrated their mortality through raging diseases, horrifying accidents, or through sudden death. Some saw only a few years or weeks of life, while others succumbed before being brought to their birth.
Here is the mystery: we shall not all sleep! This sleep is not a permanent condition of all these bodies. It is, after all, a sleep. It is a rest in order to wake up again, refreshed and renewed.
But that is certainly not the end of this mystery.
We shall be changed!
Changed in a moment. Changed in the twinkling of an eye. Changed at the last trump.
And what a change this will be!
The dead shall be raised incorruptible!
The very dead, their bodies so dissolved or disfigured in their mortality, yielded to corruption, will be raised incorruptible. Long turned to dust in their grave, burned to ashes and scattered on the winds of heaven, or even torn apart by ocean’s waves, will be raised incorruptible.
From those bodies will be removed every last vestige of mortality and corruption. Those bodies, once perished, will be imperishable. Once so very weak, they will be strong evermore. Forever they will be beyond the touch of corruption. Never again pained, sick, diseased, injured can they be.
What a mystery!
Also that we should have our place in this mystery! We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. As we have borne the image of the earthly in Adam, so shall we also bear the image of the heavenly in the second man, the Lord from heaven.
In this Lord from heaven, let us believe and let us hope. And let us enjoy the comfort of our Lord’s blessed promise: He will come to take us to be with Him forever. To celebrate and praise the mystery of our resurrection, through Him who is the resurrection and the life.
21 September 2014, The Lord’s Day
“Honour and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.” Psalm 96:6
Blessed words are these, to bring us to the sanctuary of our God today!
These words must take us to a specific place, the place where there is glorious honour and majesty, the place where the strength and beauty of God shine forth.
A place!
Is not God the Lord of heaven and earth? Is He not the one who made all the inhabitants of these places? Do not all these creatures show forth the honour and majesty, the strength and beauty of Him who made them for His good pleasure? Do not the heavens show forth the glory of God, and the firmament His handiwork?
Why, then, the temple and the sanctuary of the temple? Why are churches built, and why do we have sanctuaries in which to gather on the Lord’s Day?
Because “strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.” Because “honour and majesty are before him.”
This place is the place of “his sanctuary.” This place is the place “before him.” The Lord is present in His sanctuary, His holy place, in a way that He is present nowhere else in the earth. Here He is present in covenant fellowship and friendship with His church, His elect people. Through the gospel He calls them to Himself, out of darkness into His marvellous light. So He calls them according to His decree of election into saving fellowship with Himself. By the power of that call, bringing forth faith in His elect, they enjoy His presence together. He dwells among them, by His grace and Spirit, as they gather together in His name.
As this place is the place where the gospel is proclaimed according to the Word of God, it becomes also the special place of God’s strength and beauty, of His honour and majesty.
Strength and beauty!
What qualities are these joined together in the sanctuary! Here they flow and intertwine in blessed harmony: the strength and beauty of grace. This strength and beauty together shine out from God: He is strong to save, and saves beautifully. The cross of Jesus Christ is the omnipotence of God in salvation, shining out most beautifully as a radiant beacon of hope and peace. That grace works with strength and beauty also to reflect itself among His people. The gospel of the cross of Jesus Christ works powerfully to make them beautiful, sweet, and pleasing to God. The gospel transforms them and renews them more and more in the image of His Son.
Also, honour and majesty!
In this same place is present the honour and majesty of God. His gospel declares His honour and majesty, that He is King over all, blessed and glorious forever. His sovereignty is absolute and His kingdom eternal. His is the right to save all those whom He is pleased to save. His is the right to pass by all those whom He passes by, leaving them in His just judgment. With His reconciliation that He has made for His people in Christ, He vindicates His own honour and majesty in saving those who are His enemies, only depraved by nature. His honour and majesty He reveals there in His mighty judgements.
There is our blessed place today: the sanctuary of God! Let us gather there with joy this day, to behold there His strength and beauty that makes us strong and beautiful. Let us gather before Him to see His honour and majesty, in order to give Him all glory and praise.
“Honour and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.” Psalm 96:6
Blessed words are these, to bring us to the sanctuary of our God today!
These words must take us to a specific place, the place where there is glorious honour and majesty, the place where the strength and beauty of God shine forth.
A place!
Is not God the Lord of heaven and earth? Is He not the one who made all the inhabitants of these places? Do not all these creatures show forth the honour and majesty, the strength and beauty of Him who made them for His good pleasure? Do not the heavens show forth the glory of God, and the firmament His handiwork?
Why, then, the temple and the sanctuary of the temple? Why are churches built, and why do we have sanctuaries in which to gather on the Lord’s Day?
Because “strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.” Because “honour and majesty are before him.”
This place is the place of “his sanctuary.” This place is the place “before him.” The Lord is present in His sanctuary, His holy place, in a way that He is present nowhere else in the earth. Here He is present in covenant fellowship and friendship with His church, His elect people. Through the gospel He calls them to Himself, out of darkness into His marvellous light. So He calls them according to His decree of election into saving fellowship with Himself. By the power of that call, bringing forth faith in His elect, they enjoy His presence together. He dwells among them, by His grace and Spirit, as they gather together in His name.
As this place is the place where the gospel is proclaimed according to the Word of God, it becomes also the special place of God’s strength and beauty, of His honour and majesty.
Strength and beauty!
What qualities are these joined together in the sanctuary! Here they flow and intertwine in blessed harmony: the strength and beauty of grace. This strength and beauty together shine out from God: He is strong to save, and saves beautifully. The cross of Jesus Christ is the omnipotence of God in salvation, shining out most beautifully as a radiant beacon of hope and peace. That grace works with strength and beauty also to reflect itself among His people. The gospel of the cross of Jesus Christ works powerfully to make them beautiful, sweet, and pleasing to God. The gospel transforms them and renews them more and more in the image of His Son.
Also, honour and majesty!
In this same place is present the honour and majesty of God. His gospel declares His honour and majesty, that He is King over all, blessed and glorious forever. His sovereignty is absolute and His kingdom eternal. His is the right to save all those whom He is pleased to save. His is the right to pass by all those whom He passes by, leaving them in His just judgment. With His reconciliation that He has made for His people in Christ, He vindicates His own honour and majesty in saving those who are His enemies, only depraved by nature. His honour and majesty He reveals there in His mighty judgements.
There is our blessed place today: the sanctuary of God! Let us gather there with joy this day, to behold there His strength and beauty that makes us strong and beautiful. Let us gather before Him to see His honour and majesty, in order to give Him all glory and praise.
17 September 2014
“If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:26, 27
“So likewise whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:33
“He cannot be my disciple.”
How can this be? How can these be the words of Jesus? How is it that He can issue such a devastating, conflicting ultimatum?
Does not Jesus want everyone to be His disciple? Does He not call all to be His disciples? Did He not command His church to make disciples of every nation?
In addition, did not Jesus declare so many words of promise, benefits and inducements to those who would be His disciples? Did He not promise them eternal life and a glorious, blessed place in the heavenly kingdom that is to come?
Still, these words Jesus spoke. Still, they ring true through the ages: “He cannot be my disciple.”
As these words strike our minds and hearts so deeply, we must ask the question: Who is he who cannot be a disciple of Jesus? Perhaps that condition mentioned is very minor and insignificant. Perhaps it will embrace only a few people. It should be something that should be very easy and simple to accomplish. Perhaps it is that man or that woman who stubbornly refuses to believe in Jesus.
Nothing so small and nothing so minor. Who cannot be a disciple of Jesus? He that does not hate his family. He that hates not his own life. He that does not bear his cross and come after Christ.
Put differently, only those can follow after Jesus who hates his family, and who hates his own life, and who will take up his cross.
Such is the way of trust in Jesus. We must cling to him alone, forsaking all that we have. There may be no back-up plan, no division of faith or trust. Nor may we hold back with our own life, our own comforts or ease. Christ demands all.
Such must also be our consideration and esteem for Christ. If we are to be His disciples, we must esteem and honour him so highly, we can only despise everything else: not just our family, but our very life and all other pleasures. He will not share His place as Lord and Master with any other.
So let us follow after him without any division, without holding anything back. When, where, how He permits us, let us receive from Him family, life, and even the present things of this life to use and enjoy. Should He take them from us, let us content ourselves with our Lord alone. Following Him, all things are ours, I Corinthians 2:22, 23.
So may we be true disciples, by the grace of our Lord, who has purchased us and called us to follow Him forever!
“If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:26, 27
“So likewise whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:33
“He cannot be my disciple.”
How can this be? How can these be the words of Jesus? How is it that He can issue such a devastating, conflicting ultimatum?
Does not Jesus want everyone to be His disciple? Does He not call all to be His disciples? Did He not command His church to make disciples of every nation?
In addition, did not Jesus declare so many words of promise, benefits and inducements to those who would be His disciples? Did He not promise them eternal life and a glorious, blessed place in the heavenly kingdom that is to come?
Still, these words Jesus spoke. Still, they ring true through the ages: “He cannot be my disciple.”
As these words strike our minds and hearts so deeply, we must ask the question: Who is he who cannot be a disciple of Jesus? Perhaps that condition mentioned is very minor and insignificant. Perhaps it will embrace only a few people. It should be something that should be very easy and simple to accomplish. Perhaps it is that man or that woman who stubbornly refuses to believe in Jesus.
Nothing so small and nothing so minor. Who cannot be a disciple of Jesus? He that does not hate his family. He that hates not his own life. He that does not bear his cross and come after Christ.
Put differently, only those can follow after Jesus who hates his family, and who hates his own life, and who will take up his cross.
Such is the way of trust in Jesus. We must cling to him alone, forsaking all that we have. There may be no back-up plan, no division of faith or trust. Nor may we hold back with our own life, our own comforts or ease. Christ demands all.
Such must also be our consideration and esteem for Christ. If we are to be His disciples, we must esteem and honour him so highly, we can only despise everything else: not just our family, but our very life and all other pleasures. He will not share His place as Lord and Master with any other.
So let us follow after him without any division, without holding anything back. When, where, how He permits us, let us receive from Him family, life, and even the present things of this life to use and enjoy. Should He take them from us, let us content ourselves with our Lord alone. Following Him, all things are ours, I Corinthians 2:22, 23.
So may we be true disciples, by the grace of our Lord, who has purchased us and called us to follow Him forever!
16 September 2014
“The tongue of the just is as choice silver: the heart of the wicked is little worth.” Proverbs 10:20
How highly is this tongue of the just commended by the Wisdom of God! It is as choice silver. Not silver ore, not silver hastily refined, but silver that is so thoroughly refined that it is vastly preferred to all other. It commands attention for its evident quality and demands a high price on the market.
Such is the tongue of the just. That tongue is a delight to hear, for it pronounces the things that belong to justice and righteousness. In the mouth of a judge, this tongue always speaks of equity and justice. Those wronged are sure to receive a sentence that exonerates them, delivering them from their oppressors. The evil are sure to be overthrown in judgment, so that the good prosper in the land.
To those going through hardship and trials the tongue of the just brings comfort and good hope. In sorrow and grief that tongue will certainly bring words of consolation. To those burdened with anxiety and fears, that tongue will speak blessed words of peace. To the lonely and desolate, the tongue of the just will bring words of kindness and friendship.
The tongue of the just is also directed to the glory of God, the God who has given righteousness to the bearer of this tongue, and has sanctified it in His grace. That tongue has high words of praise for the God of justice and righteousness, and always leads to Him. It will confess God’s truth, that this just has been justified wholly by the grace of God through faith.
How precious is the tongue of the just! Precious as choice silver.
Over against the tongue of the just the Wisdom of God places the heart of the wicked.
This Wisdom of God bypasses the tongue of the wicked. To be sure the wicked have their tongues in their mouths. With their tongues they speak wickedness. With their tongues they plot and conspire in wickedness, both against God and against men. It might be said, then, that their tongues are of little worth.
Instead, Wisdom puts their heart on display. We follow the stream to its source, the tongue to its root. Here we follow the tongue down to the heart, the source of the speech of the wicked. Scripture gives us the estimate of the heart of these wicked. It is of little worth. Its little worth is that it is devoid of good. Its little worth is that it brings no benefit, but only destruction under the wrath of God. Its desires and plans must be ultimately frustrated and thwarted by the righteousness of God’s counsel.
But we are also meant to go back from the heart of these wicked, to their tongue. All their words are just as their hearts: of little worth. Their words are not to be feared. The damage and destruction that pour out of their lips will be their own.
We are also meant to see something of the value of the heart of the just. As the tongue of the just is choice silver, what must be said of his heart? It is one thing to see and possess the choice silver and to rejoice in its beauty. It is another thing to have the mine from which it is taken. So precious must also be the heart of the just, which manifests itself in his tongue.
May God make our tongues as choice silver, always speaking from hearts filled with the gracious gift of His righteousness!
“The tongue of the just is as choice silver: the heart of the wicked is little worth.” Proverbs 10:20
How highly is this tongue of the just commended by the Wisdom of God! It is as choice silver. Not silver ore, not silver hastily refined, but silver that is so thoroughly refined that it is vastly preferred to all other. It commands attention for its evident quality and demands a high price on the market.
Such is the tongue of the just. That tongue is a delight to hear, for it pronounces the things that belong to justice and righteousness. In the mouth of a judge, this tongue always speaks of equity and justice. Those wronged are sure to receive a sentence that exonerates them, delivering them from their oppressors. The evil are sure to be overthrown in judgment, so that the good prosper in the land.
To those going through hardship and trials the tongue of the just brings comfort and good hope. In sorrow and grief that tongue will certainly bring words of consolation. To those burdened with anxiety and fears, that tongue will speak blessed words of peace. To the lonely and desolate, the tongue of the just will bring words of kindness and friendship.
The tongue of the just is also directed to the glory of God, the God who has given righteousness to the bearer of this tongue, and has sanctified it in His grace. That tongue has high words of praise for the God of justice and righteousness, and always leads to Him. It will confess God’s truth, that this just has been justified wholly by the grace of God through faith.
How precious is the tongue of the just! Precious as choice silver.
Over against the tongue of the just the Wisdom of God places the heart of the wicked.
This Wisdom of God bypasses the tongue of the wicked. To be sure the wicked have their tongues in their mouths. With their tongues they speak wickedness. With their tongues they plot and conspire in wickedness, both against God and against men. It might be said, then, that their tongues are of little worth.
Instead, Wisdom puts their heart on display. We follow the stream to its source, the tongue to its root. Here we follow the tongue down to the heart, the source of the speech of the wicked. Scripture gives us the estimate of the heart of these wicked. It is of little worth. Its little worth is that it is devoid of good. Its little worth is that it brings no benefit, but only destruction under the wrath of God. Its desires and plans must be ultimately frustrated and thwarted by the righteousness of God’s counsel.
But we are also meant to go back from the heart of these wicked, to their tongue. All their words are just as their hearts: of little worth. Their words are not to be feared. The damage and destruction that pour out of their lips will be their own.
We are also meant to see something of the value of the heart of the just. As the tongue of the just is choice silver, what must be said of his heart? It is one thing to see and possess the choice silver and to rejoice in its beauty. It is another thing to have the mine from which it is taken. So precious must also be the heart of the just, which manifests itself in his tongue.
May God make our tongues as choice silver, always speaking from hearts filled with the gracious gift of His righteousness!
14 September 2014, The Lord's Day
“For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.” I Corinthians 1:21
Foolishness today! Foolishness is the order of the day!
For what we do this day is pure foolishness in the wisdom of the world.
For us, today is not a day to work. It is a day to rest. Today is a day to go through the trouble of making ourselves look our very best. Today is a day to travel perhaps some fair distance to go to a place we always go, and to spend our time there doing the most important thing we can do on this day.
What is it?
We go to hear a story told to us. We go to hear a story about how a man died a shameful, humiliating death, that He died on a cross. We go to hear how this death of this man on this cross is salvation. We go to hear how this death is really a sacrifice, a sacrifice that takes away sin, guilt, and the eternal condemnation of guilty sinners. We go to hear how it has purchased salvation, restoration to the favour of the living God, to everlasting righteousness and life, and to victory over death and the grave.
We also go to hear that, in light of this death, there is nothing for us to do to save ourselves. We go to hear that there is nothing we can or must do in order to add to this powerful and mighty work of this one sacrifice of death. We go to hear that we must trust in this sacrifice and rest upon its completeness.
What foolishness! What folly!
To do nothing to be saved. Only to hear and to believe this Word that is preached.
Be not surprised that the world does not beat a pathway today to our doors of worship. What happens there is foolishness to them, and that by God’s design. He has determined to put to shame the wisdom of the world. He has determined to put it to shame exactly through the foolishness of preaching, and the foolishness of the preaching of Christ crucified.
But what is foolishness to the world, is high, glorious and marvellous wisdom to us. We are going to the house of the Lord to hear His wisdom, the wisdom of the only gospel of the only Saviour, and the once for all sacrifice He made to save us from our sins. In the wisdom of that preaching we will trust in that sacrifice for all our salvation, refusing to trust in ourselves or any other creature. In that wisdom of God we will rejoice, and give thanks and praise to our wise God for it.
So let the world watch as we make our way to the Lord’s house. Let them point and laugh at us as we take our place under the tidings of the gospel of Christ crucified. Let us rejoice to be called foolish in their eyes.
For this is the wisdom of our God: to save us by His power, the power of the preaching of Christ crucified.
“For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.” I Corinthians 1:21
Foolishness today! Foolishness is the order of the day!
For what we do this day is pure foolishness in the wisdom of the world.
For us, today is not a day to work. It is a day to rest. Today is a day to go through the trouble of making ourselves look our very best. Today is a day to travel perhaps some fair distance to go to a place we always go, and to spend our time there doing the most important thing we can do on this day.
What is it?
We go to hear a story told to us. We go to hear a story about how a man died a shameful, humiliating death, that He died on a cross. We go to hear how this death of this man on this cross is salvation. We go to hear how this death is really a sacrifice, a sacrifice that takes away sin, guilt, and the eternal condemnation of guilty sinners. We go to hear how it has purchased salvation, restoration to the favour of the living God, to everlasting righteousness and life, and to victory over death and the grave.
We also go to hear that, in light of this death, there is nothing for us to do to save ourselves. We go to hear that there is nothing we can or must do in order to add to this powerful and mighty work of this one sacrifice of death. We go to hear that we must trust in this sacrifice and rest upon its completeness.
What foolishness! What folly!
To do nothing to be saved. Only to hear and to believe this Word that is preached.
Be not surprised that the world does not beat a pathway today to our doors of worship. What happens there is foolishness to them, and that by God’s design. He has determined to put to shame the wisdom of the world. He has determined to put it to shame exactly through the foolishness of preaching, and the foolishness of the preaching of Christ crucified.
But what is foolishness to the world, is high, glorious and marvellous wisdom to us. We are going to the house of the Lord to hear His wisdom, the wisdom of the only gospel of the only Saviour, and the once for all sacrifice He made to save us from our sins. In the wisdom of that preaching we will trust in that sacrifice for all our salvation, refusing to trust in ourselves or any other creature. In that wisdom of God we will rejoice, and give thanks and praise to our wise God for it.
So let the world watch as we make our way to the Lord’s house. Let them point and laugh at us as we take our place under the tidings of the gospel of Christ crucified. Let us rejoice to be called foolish in their eyes.
For this is the wisdom of our God: to save us by His power, the power of the preaching of Christ crucified.
13 September 2014
“For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.” Romans 14:8, 9
Here the Word of God turns to the most basic issue, of life and death. There is one that eats all things. There is another who eats only herbs. The one that eats eats to the Lord. The one that does not eat does not eat to the Lord. There is one who observes days, the days of the Jewish calendar. There is another who does not observe those days. The one who observes observes to the Lord. The one that does not observe does not observe to the Lord. How then can we judge the brother?
How much more basic, then, are the issues of life and death? Whether a man eats or does not eat, he lives. So He lives to the Lord. Whether a man observes days or does not observe days, he dies. But, both living and dying, we live unto the Lord, and we die unto the Lord.
What blessedness lies in these words!
That blessedness is, first of all, a blessedness of powerful unity. We think of a man who lives day after day, all the days of his life, in the service of the Lord. His eating and drinking, His observances, are all “unto the Lord.” He reaches maturity, He becomes married and raises a family, all “unto the Lord.” He takes his place in his home and family, in the church, in the state and society, and the workplace, all “unto the Lord.” He passes through times of plenty and scarcity, through times of joy and sorrow, all “unto the Lord.”
So he lives.
But through this manner of living becomes evident the manner of his death. As he lives so he dies: “unto the Lord.” His death is directed to the Lord. His death is consecrated to the Lord. He dies in the Lord’s service.
This blessedness is but a manifestation of the second, more basic blessedness. What is this blessedness?
“Whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.”
It makes no difference at all, whether we live or die. Ours is still the same blessed status: “We are the Lord’s.” Forever, we are His: just as in life, so in death. Still in His hand. Still under His care. Still in His presence. In life and in death, we are the Lord’s.
How is this true? How can this blessedness be ours? In life, we have some sense of ability and capability. We can at least reach out and grasp. We can lay hold on dear ones nearby for comfort and stability. We might engage even in great and mighty works, to accomplish them with mind or hand. In life, we suppose, we can say, “unto the Lord,” or, “I am the Lord’s.”
But in death? To what should we cling? With what strength of hand have we to cling? Death is the end of all human power and might, the end of any running, willing, or determination.
How can it be: “Whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s”?
It is all of the Lord Himself. “For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.”
His death was the purchase of all His elect. He purchased them with the laying down of His life on the cross, to make them His own. But also in His death He purchased them to be His in their death. In their death, they are the Lord’s because in His death He bought them. But not only did He die. He also rose and revived to make them His own. With His voice He gathers His sheep to Himself, gathering them in life and in death.
So are we the Lord’s, whether we live or die!
Therefore, let us live unto the Lord, and also die unto the Lord!
“For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.” Romans 14:8, 9
Here the Word of God turns to the most basic issue, of life and death. There is one that eats all things. There is another who eats only herbs. The one that eats eats to the Lord. The one that does not eat does not eat to the Lord. There is one who observes days, the days of the Jewish calendar. There is another who does not observe those days. The one who observes observes to the Lord. The one that does not observe does not observe to the Lord. How then can we judge the brother?
How much more basic, then, are the issues of life and death? Whether a man eats or does not eat, he lives. So He lives to the Lord. Whether a man observes days or does not observe days, he dies. But, both living and dying, we live unto the Lord, and we die unto the Lord.
What blessedness lies in these words!
That blessedness is, first of all, a blessedness of powerful unity. We think of a man who lives day after day, all the days of his life, in the service of the Lord. His eating and drinking, His observances, are all “unto the Lord.” He reaches maturity, He becomes married and raises a family, all “unto the Lord.” He takes his place in his home and family, in the church, in the state and society, and the workplace, all “unto the Lord.” He passes through times of plenty and scarcity, through times of joy and sorrow, all “unto the Lord.”
So he lives.
But through this manner of living becomes evident the manner of his death. As he lives so he dies: “unto the Lord.” His death is directed to the Lord. His death is consecrated to the Lord. He dies in the Lord’s service.
This blessedness is but a manifestation of the second, more basic blessedness. What is this blessedness?
“Whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.”
It makes no difference at all, whether we live or die. Ours is still the same blessed status: “We are the Lord’s.” Forever, we are His: just as in life, so in death. Still in His hand. Still under His care. Still in His presence. In life and in death, we are the Lord’s.
How is this true? How can this blessedness be ours? In life, we have some sense of ability and capability. We can at least reach out and grasp. We can lay hold on dear ones nearby for comfort and stability. We might engage even in great and mighty works, to accomplish them with mind or hand. In life, we suppose, we can say, “unto the Lord,” or, “I am the Lord’s.”
But in death? To what should we cling? With what strength of hand have we to cling? Death is the end of all human power and might, the end of any running, willing, or determination.
How can it be: “Whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s”?
It is all of the Lord Himself. “For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.”
His death was the purchase of all His elect. He purchased them with the laying down of His life on the cross, to make them His own. But also in His death He purchased them to be His in their death. In their death, they are the Lord’s because in His death He bought them. But not only did He die. He also rose and revived to make them His own. With His voice He gathers His sheep to Himself, gathering them in life and in death.
So are we the Lord’s, whether we live or die!
Therefore, let us live unto the Lord, and also die unto the Lord!
5 September 2014
“For what if some did not believe? Shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.” Romans 3:3,4
Some did not believe. Some did not believe to whom were committed the oracles of God.
The history of the children of Israel is filled with evidence of those who did not believe. The path of Israel’s wilderness wanderings were littered with the corpses of that unbelieving generation, who did not believe the promise of God to give them the land of Canaan. There were the apostate hordes of Israel that followed after Baal, among which God reserved only a remnant to Himself, seven thousand that bent not the knee to Baal, nor kissed his image.
Their unbelief is here proposed as a test. What does that unbelief say about the faith of God? What does it say about the trustworthiness of His promises? What does it say about Him as true? What does it say about His sayings, about judging Him?
Can God possibly be found unfaithful or untrue to His Word?
Let us shudder at the thought!
What should become of His Word? It must be altogether broken. It cannot be relied upon. His promises cannot be trusted. We should then be wholly destitute of hope or comfort. There is nothing to be salvaged. What should become of God? He could no longer be the eternal, unchangeable God. He could not be true, no longer just. Perhaps He should speak a new, different word. Perhaps He should give new promises. Even so, that new word could not be trusted.
Therefore: God forbid!
So far from making the faith of God without effect, God must be true, but every man must be found a liar! What must be the outcome of the unbelief of some? What must be the outcome of all the sins of every man? “That thou mightiest be justified in thy sayings, and mightiest overcome when thou art judged.” In every saying of God, He is justified and will be justified. In every judgment, He overcomes and will overcome.
Today this Word is tested. There are so very many who say that God promises to save all men. There are many who say that God promises to save all the children of believers. He wants to save them. He wills to save them. He desires to save them.
But what happens? Some do not believe. Among all who hear the call of the gospel to repent and believe, some disobey that call. Among all the children of believers who are baptized and hear the instruction of the gospel from their youth, some scorn and spurn that gospel in unbelieving hardness of heart.
What does that unbelief say about the promise of God? What does it say about His will and determination behind that promise? Has His promise failed? Is the faithfulness of God broken?
God forbid! Yea, let God be true, but every man a liar!
In every saying of God He is justified! In every judgment of God He overcomes!
His promise stands forever strong and sure because behind it stands His eternal, unconditional decree of election. Behind that promise stands His almighty sovereign grace to bring to salvation through His promise, every single one He has elected. That promise is sealed with the blood of the covenant, shed by its Head and Mediator, the Son of God Himself.
Therefore let us cling to the sayings of our God, who is forever faithful to all that He has spoken. By His promises let us live, and let us die.
For our God is true.
“For what if some did not believe? Shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.” Romans 3:3,4
Some did not believe. Some did not believe to whom were committed the oracles of God.
The history of the children of Israel is filled with evidence of those who did not believe. The path of Israel’s wilderness wanderings were littered with the corpses of that unbelieving generation, who did not believe the promise of God to give them the land of Canaan. There were the apostate hordes of Israel that followed after Baal, among which God reserved only a remnant to Himself, seven thousand that bent not the knee to Baal, nor kissed his image.
Their unbelief is here proposed as a test. What does that unbelief say about the faith of God? What does it say about the trustworthiness of His promises? What does it say about Him as true? What does it say about His sayings, about judging Him?
Can God possibly be found unfaithful or untrue to His Word?
Let us shudder at the thought!
What should become of His Word? It must be altogether broken. It cannot be relied upon. His promises cannot be trusted. We should then be wholly destitute of hope or comfort. There is nothing to be salvaged. What should become of God? He could no longer be the eternal, unchangeable God. He could not be true, no longer just. Perhaps He should speak a new, different word. Perhaps He should give new promises. Even so, that new word could not be trusted.
Therefore: God forbid!
So far from making the faith of God without effect, God must be true, but every man must be found a liar! What must be the outcome of the unbelief of some? What must be the outcome of all the sins of every man? “That thou mightiest be justified in thy sayings, and mightiest overcome when thou art judged.” In every saying of God, He is justified and will be justified. In every judgment, He overcomes and will overcome.
Today this Word is tested. There are so very many who say that God promises to save all men. There are many who say that God promises to save all the children of believers. He wants to save them. He wills to save them. He desires to save them.
But what happens? Some do not believe. Among all who hear the call of the gospel to repent and believe, some disobey that call. Among all the children of believers who are baptized and hear the instruction of the gospel from their youth, some scorn and spurn that gospel in unbelieving hardness of heart.
What does that unbelief say about the promise of God? What does it say about His will and determination behind that promise? Has His promise failed? Is the faithfulness of God broken?
God forbid! Yea, let God be true, but every man a liar!
In every saying of God He is justified! In every judgment of God He overcomes!
His promise stands forever strong and sure because behind it stands His eternal, unconditional decree of election. Behind that promise stands His almighty sovereign grace to bring to salvation through His promise, every single one He has elected. That promise is sealed with the blood of the covenant, shed by its Head and Mediator, the Son of God Himself.
Therefore let us cling to the sayings of our God, who is forever faithful to all that He has spoken. By His promises let us live, and let us die.
For our God is true.
4 September 2014
“My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation; I shall not be moved.” Psalm 62:5, 6
How important is that word “only”!
That word is an exclusive word. It is a divisive word. It distinguishes and it separates.
As that word “only” is a word of separation and division, it is a perfect, God-given instrument for the glory of His holiness. For that reason it has a vital place in the Christian’s vocabulary. How often must it be found on our lips! And how often it must be found on our lips in connection with our God!
In this word of God we are taught to take it upon our lips for our own comfort and peace.
That comfort and peace are set before us in the last words: “I shall not be moved.”
Clear, definite, certain words of conviction are these. “I shall not be moved.” Whoever our enemies, however numerous and skilled, however close and pressing they may be, these words are ours to cherish in our hearts and express with our lips before our God. Let us even be bold to state them to our enemies: “I shall not be moved.”
But how do we come to this point? How are we able to speak such words from our hearts?
By using this blessed word “only.”
This word we are given to speak to our souls, when we command them. With it we turn our trust and give it one end: “My soul, wait thou only upon God.” With this word we command our souls to walk right on by every other trust and every other confidence. We meet with our abilities. We come to the strength of our hands, the quickness of our eye, and the power of our intelligence. We leave it on the left side. We meet with the numbers of men, the wisdom of fleshly counsel, the help they are ready to give. We leave it on the right. With the word “only” we set it all aside. We do not linger, we do not stop with our soul until we come to God.
Why must we so command our soul to wait only upon God?
Because of the truth: “He only is my rock and my salvation.”
Wonderful and blessed truth this is.
Wonderful and blessed it is because God alone is God! He only is the rock. He only is immoveable, solid and strong, forever and ever. The strength of the mountains are nothing compared to the strength of their Creator. He only is true, everlasting salvation. His salvation is from the guilt of sin, the horror and throes of death, and the everlasting punishment of hell. The mighty cornerstone of our salvation is Jesus Christ, the living God Himself, the only Saviour.
But this truth is wonderful and blessed because this God is a rock and salvation possessed as our very own. Not only is He the rock. “He only is my rock.” Not only is He salvation. “He only . . . is my salvation.”
For this God is a covenant God. He has given Himself to His people, to be their only rock and their only salvation. He has by sovereign, particular grace called them to Himself He has given Himself to them by His mighty gift of faith. By His calling and His gifts alone, they speak His truth. “He only is my rock and my salvation.”
As we wait only upon our God, who only is our rock and our salvation, so may we gladly confess, “I shall not be moved.”
“My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation; I shall not be moved.” Psalm 62:5, 6
How important is that word “only”!
That word is an exclusive word. It is a divisive word. It distinguishes and it separates.
As that word “only” is a word of separation and division, it is a perfect, God-given instrument for the glory of His holiness. For that reason it has a vital place in the Christian’s vocabulary. How often must it be found on our lips! And how often it must be found on our lips in connection with our God!
In this word of God we are taught to take it upon our lips for our own comfort and peace.
That comfort and peace are set before us in the last words: “I shall not be moved.”
Clear, definite, certain words of conviction are these. “I shall not be moved.” Whoever our enemies, however numerous and skilled, however close and pressing they may be, these words are ours to cherish in our hearts and express with our lips before our God. Let us even be bold to state them to our enemies: “I shall not be moved.”
But how do we come to this point? How are we able to speak such words from our hearts?
By using this blessed word “only.”
This word we are given to speak to our souls, when we command them. With it we turn our trust and give it one end: “My soul, wait thou only upon God.” With this word we command our souls to walk right on by every other trust and every other confidence. We meet with our abilities. We come to the strength of our hands, the quickness of our eye, and the power of our intelligence. We leave it on the left side. We meet with the numbers of men, the wisdom of fleshly counsel, the help they are ready to give. We leave it on the right. With the word “only” we set it all aside. We do not linger, we do not stop with our soul until we come to God.
Why must we so command our soul to wait only upon God?
Because of the truth: “He only is my rock and my salvation.”
Wonderful and blessed truth this is.
Wonderful and blessed it is because God alone is God! He only is the rock. He only is immoveable, solid and strong, forever and ever. The strength of the mountains are nothing compared to the strength of their Creator. He only is true, everlasting salvation. His salvation is from the guilt of sin, the horror and throes of death, and the everlasting punishment of hell. The mighty cornerstone of our salvation is Jesus Christ, the living God Himself, the only Saviour.
But this truth is wonderful and blessed because this God is a rock and salvation possessed as our very own. Not only is He the rock. “He only is my rock.” Not only is He salvation. “He only . . . is my salvation.”
For this God is a covenant God. He has given Himself to His people, to be their only rock and their only salvation. He has by sovereign, particular grace called them to Himself He has given Himself to them by His mighty gift of faith. By His calling and His gifts alone, they speak His truth. “He only is my rock and my salvation.”
As we wait only upon our God, who only is our rock and our salvation, so may we gladly confess, “I shall not be moved.”
2 September 2014
“Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.” Isaiah 8:13
What a way to command our trust in the Lord, to keep Him before us as our confidence and peace!
Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself!
The Lord of hosts is holy. The Lord of hosts is exalted over all. He is the transcendent God. He is transcendent in the light of His glory, so much that He is the invisible, unseeable God, whom no man hath seen nor can see! He is transcendent according to the infinity of His being, according also to exaltedness of His being above all time and history. For He is the Lord of hosts! Not only is every creature in heaven and earth His servant, to do His will and His good pleasure. Also space and time themselves are under His glorious, exalted reign.
According to His exalted character His alone is absolute holiness. He is rightly dedicated and devoted to Himself alone. He is forever consecrated unto Himself! Proper to the very transcendence of His being, He has created and He rules over all creation for the purpose of exalting and magnifying Himself. Why did He create? Why does He rule? For Himself. Because He is sanctified absolutely and forever to Himself.
But how, then, does this command come to us? How are we to sanctify the Lord of hosts Himself?
First, we sanctify Him by consciously and deliberately following after His absolute pure holiness. As He contemplates Himself according to all the excellency of His being, so we regard Him in our hearts. We seek to know Him as He is, this infinite, eternal, transcendent God. We seek also to behold all this creation in the same light of God’s eternal purpose: created and formed, sustained and governed all for the honour and glory of His holy name.
Second, we have this specific way of Isaiah 8:13. We sanctify the Lord of hosts by letting Him be our fear and our dread.
This way is a very deliberate, careful way.
It is the way of making a comparison, a comparison we are shown in the context of Isaiah 8:13.
Ahaz and the people of Judah had reason for their fear and dread. They had heard rumours of a conspiracy. Assyria and Israel had bound themselves together in an unholy alliance. The goal of their alliance was the capture of Judah and Jerusalem, and to put on Jerusalem’s throne their own king, the son of Tabeal. This rumour had its result, according to Isaiah 7:2: “And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind.”
Why that fear and that dread of Ahaz and Judah? They compromised their fear and dread of the Lord of hosts. They did not sanctify Him as they ought to have sanctified Him.
Why our fear and our dread of men, of the world, or of Satan? Why our fears of disease, injury, or death? Why our fears of opposition and persecution? Why our fears of neglect or abandonment? Because we have neglected or forsaken our sanctification of the Lord of hosts. We have not made Him our fear or our dread as we ought.
There are two ways we can compromise this sanctification of the Lord of hosts. The first way is that we have forgotten or neglected His holiness. The second way is that we have forgotten or neglected His nearness to us.
Let us, then, attend to our calling. Let us sanctify the Lord of hosts. Let us fill our minds and hearts with the consideration of His great glory, manifested through His glorious works or mercy and judgment. Let us consider them until we have a powerful fear and dread of Him before which all other fears fade into oblivion. Then let us dwell on His nearness to us, that He sent His Son to us, in the likeness of our flesh and blood, to take our sins from us by His precious blood. Let us meditate on His nearness to us, that this holy God is in us by His Spirit and grace, working in us His wonderful salvation. As we work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, Philippians 2:12, 13.
Then must our hearts be filled with blessed and powerful confidence. We have no cause for fear or dread on account of any enemy, no matter how numerous, strong, or crafty.
Let the Lord of hosts alone be our dread! Let Him alone be our fear!
So may He be sanctified by us!
“Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.” Isaiah 8:13
What a way to command our trust in the Lord, to keep Him before us as our confidence and peace!
Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself!
The Lord of hosts is holy. The Lord of hosts is exalted over all. He is the transcendent God. He is transcendent in the light of His glory, so much that He is the invisible, unseeable God, whom no man hath seen nor can see! He is transcendent according to the infinity of His being, according also to exaltedness of His being above all time and history. For He is the Lord of hosts! Not only is every creature in heaven and earth His servant, to do His will and His good pleasure. Also space and time themselves are under His glorious, exalted reign.
According to His exalted character His alone is absolute holiness. He is rightly dedicated and devoted to Himself alone. He is forever consecrated unto Himself! Proper to the very transcendence of His being, He has created and He rules over all creation for the purpose of exalting and magnifying Himself. Why did He create? Why does He rule? For Himself. Because He is sanctified absolutely and forever to Himself.
But how, then, does this command come to us? How are we to sanctify the Lord of hosts Himself?
First, we sanctify Him by consciously and deliberately following after His absolute pure holiness. As He contemplates Himself according to all the excellency of His being, so we regard Him in our hearts. We seek to know Him as He is, this infinite, eternal, transcendent God. We seek also to behold all this creation in the same light of God’s eternal purpose: created and formed, sustained and governed all for the honour and glory of His holy name.
Second, we have this specific way of Isaiah 8:13. We sanctify the Lord of hosts by letting Him be our fear and our dread.
This way is a very deliberate, careful way.
It is the way of making a comparison, a comparison we are shown in the context of Isaiah 8:13.
Ahaz and the people of Judah had reason for their fear and dread. They had heard rumours of a conspiracy. Assyria and Israel had bound themselves together in an unholy alliance. The goal of their alliance was the capture of Judah and Jerusalem, and to put on Jerusalem’s throne their own king, the son of Tabeal. This rumour had its result, according to Isaiah 7:2: “And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind.”
Why that fear and that dread of Ahaz and Judah? They compromised their fear and dread of the Lord of hosts. They did not sanctify Him as they ought to have sanctified Him.
Why our fear and our dread of men, of the world, or of Satan? Why our fears of disease, injury, or death? Why our fears of opposition and persecution? Why our fears of neglect or abandonment? Because we have neglected or forsaken our sanctification of the Lord of hosts. We have not made Him our fear or our dread as we ought.
There are two ways we can compromise this sanctification of the Lord of hosts. The first way is that we have forgotten or neglected His holiness. The second way is that we have forgotten or neglected His nearness to us.
Let us, then, attend to our calling. Let us sanctify the Lord of hosts. Let us fill our minds and hearts with the consideration of His great glory, manifested through His glorious works or mercy and judgment. Let us consider them until we have a powerful fear and dread of Him before which all other fears fade into oblivion. Then let us dwell on His nearness to us, that He sent His Son to us, in the likeness of our flesh and blood, to take our sins from us by His precious blood. Let us meditate on His nearness to us, that this holy God is in us by His Spirit and grace, working in us His wonderful salvation. As we work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, Philippians 2:12, 13.
Then must our hearts be filled with blessed and powerful confidence. We have no cause for fear or dread on account of any enemy, no matter how numerous, strong, or crafty.
Let the Lord of hosts alone be our dread! Let Him alone be our fear!
So may He be sanctified by us!
10 August 2014, The Lord’s Day
“God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.” Psalm 89:7
Scripture here gives a certain measure of the saints’ nearness to God: fear and reverence.
The wicked must necessarily keep their distance from God. They shield themselves from His knowledge, blinding themselves to His glory revealed in the things that are made. They distract themselves from the compelling truth of His presence by immersing themselves in the lusts of sin and the pleasures of earthly pursuits.
Not so for the saints, God’s holy people. They delight to set aside their earthly pursuits, and to draw near to their God. This delightful exercise they take up all through the week, but especially on the Sabbath Day.
In the holy assembly of these holy ones, God is greatly to be feared. All them that are about Him hold Him in deep reverence. Such is His presence among His people, gathered together to worship Him. He is God alone, glorious in majesty, excellent in power, wonderful in judgment! There He is, present among His saints, where they assemble about Him, the God who only doest wondrous things. There He is, declaring His glory and truth by His Word, the reading and the preaching of the holy Scriptures. There He is, to be confessed, worshipped, and praised by His people. There He delights to be the God of His people, dwelling among them.
But there is another reason for this great fear and reverence: the wonder of His grace!
How is it He is to be found here, in the assembly of the saints? How is it these saints are able to be about Him? That He does not consume them in His holy wrath? That He rejoices to receive the worship and praise of those who are not only saints, but also sinners?
Only by His grace! By His grace He has given His Son, for the redemption of sinners! By His grace, He sanctifies His elect by His Holy Spirit, to make them saints! By His grace He brings them near to Himself, calling them out of their natural darkness into His marvellous light!
In that grace and by that grace, let us join the assembly of His saints, and to be about Him this Sabbath Day. Let us greatly fear Him and hold Him in reverence as we worship Him.
Near to our God.
“God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.” Psalm 89:7
Scripture here gives a certain measure of the saints’ nearness to God: fear and reverence.
The wicked must necessarily keep their distance from God. They shield themselves from His knowledge, blinding themselves to His glory revealed in the things that are made. They distract themselves from the compelling truth of His presence by immersing themselves in the lusts of sin and the pleasures of earthly pursuits.
Not so for the saints, God’s holy people. They delight to set aside their earthly pursuits, and to draw near to their God. This delightful exercise they take up all through the week, but especially on the Sabbath Day.
In the holy assembly of these holy ones, God is greatly to be feared. All them that are about Him hold Him in deep reverence. Such is His presence among His people, gathered together to worship Him. He is God alone, glorious in majesty, excellent in power, wonderful in judgment! There He is, present among His saints, where they assemble about Him, the God who only doest wondrous things. There He is, declaring His glory and truth by His Word, the reading and the preaching of the holy Scriptures. There He is, to be confessed, worshipped, and praised by His people. There He delights to be the God of His people, dwelling among them.
But there is another reason for this great fear and reverence: the wonder of His grace!
How is it He is to be found here, in the assembly of the saints? How is it these saints are able to be about Him? That He does not consume them in His holy wrath? That He rejoices to receive the worship and praise of those who are not only saints, but also sinners?
Only by His grace! By His grace He has given His Son, for the redemption of sinners! By His grace, He sanctifies His elect by His Holy Spirit, to make them saints! By His grace He brings them near to Himself, calling them out of their natural darkness into His marvellous light!
In that grace and by that grace, let us join the assembly of His saints, and to be about Him this Sabbath Day. Let us greatly fear Him and hold Him in reverence as we worship Him.
Near to our God.
8 August 2014
“Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.” I John 4:10, 11
How gracious is this love of God toward us! Or, rather, how great is this love of God, to manifest itself with such wonderful grace!
In two marvellous ways the Holy Spirit testifies about this greatness of God’s love.
The first testimony is of the condition of those beloved of God: “Not that we loved God.” We did not seek after God, but fled from His presence. We did not submit to God our Maker, but revolted from the blessed fellowship of our Sovereign. No children of God were we, but children of the devil. No desire for Him was in our hearts, but only deep and bitter animosity. No love for God was there in us, but only hatred.
So great is this love of God, that He loved us in spite of us. Everything in us called for our immediate destruction and eternal punishment. But He loved us.
So great the love of God!
The Holy Spirit testifies of the greatness of God’s love also in this way, that He “sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”
His love was great, to go to the root of all our ills and troubles, the root of our guilt and punishment. His love was great to provide the only solution to our hopeless situation. “He sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” He sent His son to be a sacrifice on the shameful, bitter cross. He sent His Son to be the propitiation, to bear in Himself, body and soul, the infinite wrath of God. By that one propitiation of the Son, all God’s wrath He has turned away. In its stead is brought everlasting favour and every good gift and blessing to us.
So let us meditate on the greatness of God’s love. Let us devote ourselves to consider its greatness by our hopeless condition by nature. Let us contemplate its greatness by the gift of His only-begotten Son to that great sacrifice of the cross.
Then let us direct it to that end given us: “Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.”
Beloved! Those so loved of God! Hopeless sinners and enemies of God, given His Son to be the propitiation for your sins! How we ought also to love one another!
May that love of God burn away our selfish pride and callous disregard for each another! May it quell our vainglorious efforts to exalt ourselves at the destruction of others! May it make us meek and gentle, considerate of others and their needs! Make it make us sacrifice ourselves for them, to supply and enrich them.
So may we glorify and magnify the great love of our God to us!
“Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.” I John 4:10, 11
How gracious is this love of God toward us! Or, rather, how great is this love of God, to manifest itself with such wonderful grace!
In two marvellous ways the Holy Spirit testifies about this greatness of God’s love.
The first testimony is of the condition of those beloved of God: “Not that we loved God.” We did not seek after God, but fled from His presence. We did not submit to God our Maker, but revolted from the blessed fellowship of our Sovereign. No children of God were we, but children of the devil. No desire for Him was in our hearts, but only deep and bitter animosity. No love for God was there in us, but only hatred.
So great is this love of God, that He loved us in spite of us. Everything in us called for our immediate destruction and eternal punishment. But He loved us.
So great the love of God!
The Holy Spirit testifies of the greatness of God’s love also in this way, that He “sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”
His love was great, to go to the root of all our ills and troubles, the root of our guilt and punishment. His love was great to provide the only solution to our hopeless situation. “He sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” He sent His son to be a sacrifice on the shameful, bitter cross. He sent His Son to be the propitiation, to bear in Himself, body and soul, the infinite wrath of God. By that one propitiation of the Son, all God’s wrath He has turned away. In its stead is brought everlasting favour and every good gift and blessing to us.
So let us meditate on the greatness of God’s love. Let us devote ourselves to consider its greatness by our hopeless condition by nature. Let us contemplate its greatness by the gift of His only-begotten Son to that great sacrifice of the cross.
Then let us direct it to that end given us: “Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.”
Beloved! Those so loved of God! Hopeless sinners and enemies of God, given His Son to be the propitiation for your sins! How we ought also to love one another!
May that love of God burn away our selfish pride and callous disregard for each another! May it quell our vainglorious efforts to exalt ourselves at the destruction of others! May it make us meek and gentle, considerate of others and their needs! Make it make us sacrifice ourselves for them, to supply and enrich them.
So may we glorify and magnify the great love of our God to us!
5 August 2014
“The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the Lord that seek him: your heart shall live for ever.” Psalm 22:26
How blessed to know the Speaker of this verse! Its words are the words of our Lord Jesus Christ Himself. According to Hebrews 2:12, it is Jesus Christ who speaks the wonderful words of verse 22, which lead into verse 26. He is the great preacher of the gospel, by whose Spirit He gives His Word to be preached in the present.
Therefore, to us He brings His word: “The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the Lord that seek him: your heart shall live for ever.”
Very powerful is the arrangement of the words in this verse. First we are told of the activity of the meek. These meek are those who suffer for representing the cause of God in the world. Though their enemies have the upper hand, the meek do not entertain thoughts of revenge. Instead they commit their way unto God. They seek His glory alone, in His overthrow of their enemies.
These meek do two things. First, they seek Him. They seek His strength to endure their heavy burden of affliction. They seek His peace and consolation as they go through deep grief and sorrow. But they also seek Him, to know that they are forever in His gracious hand, from which no enemy can pluck them.
This verse wonderfully compares this seeking after God to eating. The meek taste and see that the Lord is good. In their seeking they certainly find their God. They find Him filled with all good, the good with which He liberally fills them to overflowing. They lack for nothing. They eat, and they are satisfied.
Second, filled to satisfaction with His goodness, the meek lift up their hearts and voices in the praises of the Lord’s great and glorious name. They rejoice in the Lord their Saviour, eager to lift Him up, who has dealt so bountifully with them.
This is the way of their life. So their hearts live forever before God. Though their way is filled with trouble and difficulties, and those difficulties weigh so heavily upon them, yet they live. They live in their seeking the Lord. They live in the abundant, satisfying goodness they receive from the Lord their God. They live in the praises of the Lord. They live in the fellowship and friendship of their God.
But see also the sharp, definite turn in language as we come to this last statement in this verse: “Your heart shall live forever.” Before the language was about “them,” namely, “the meek.” These are the meek. This is what they do. This is their blessedness. But suddenly, the great Preacher turns to you, and speaks directly to you. “Are you meek?” “Do you seek the Lord?” “Do you eat?” “Are you satisfied?”
“Your heart shall live forever.”
May this be your confidence and peace, as you seek after your God, through His Son Jesus Christ!
“The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the Lord that seek him: your heart shall live for ever.” Psalm 22:26
How blessed to know the Speaker of this verse! Its words are the words of our Lord Jesus Christ Himself. According to Hebrews 2:12, it is Jesus Christ who speaks the wonderful words of verse 22, which lead into verse 26. He is the great preacher of the gospel, by whose Spirit He gives His Word to be preached in the present.
Therefore, to us He brings His word: “The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the Lord that seek him: your heart shall live for ever.”
Very powerful is the arrangement of the words in this verse. First we are told of the activity of the meek. These meek are those who suffer for representing the cause of God in the world. Though their enemies have the upper hand, the meek do not entertain thoughts of revenge. Instead they commit their way unto God. They seek His glory alone, in His overthrow of their enemies.
These meek do two things. First, they seek Him. They seek His strength to endure their heavy burden of affliction. They seek His peace and consolation as they go through deep grief and sorrow. But they also seek Him, to know that they are forever in His gracious hand, from which no enemy can pluck them.
This verse wonderfully compares this seeking after God to eating. The meek taste and see that the Lord is good. In their seeking they certainly find their God. They find Him filled with all good, the good with which He liberally fills them to overflowing. They lack for nothing. They eat, and they are satisfied.
Second, filled to satisfaction with His goodness, the meek lift up their hearts and voices in the praises of the Lord’s great and glorious name. They rejoice in the Lord their Saviour, eager to lift Him up, who has dealt so bountifully with them.
This is the way of their life. So their hearts live forever before God. Though their way is filled with trouble and difficulties, and those difficulties weigh so heavily upon them, yet they live. They live in their seeking the Lord. They live in the abundant, satisfying goodness they receive from the Lord their God. They live in the praises of the Lord. They live in the fellowship and friendship of their God.
But see also the sharp, definite turn in language as we come to this last statement in this verse: “Your heart shall live forever.” Before the language was about “them,” namely, “the meek.” These are the meek. This is what they do. This is their blessedness. But suddenly, the great Preacher turns to you, and speaks directly to you. “Are you meek?” “Do you seek the Lord?” “Do you eat?” “Are you satisfied?”
“Your heart shall live forever.”
May this be your confidence and peace, as you seek after your God, through His Son Jesus Christ!
27 July 2014, The Lord’s Day
“Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil. Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.” Ecclesiastes 5:1, 2
How careful we must be when we enter the house of the Lord to have the above order firmly in our hearts and minds!
For we will surely be tempted to be rash with our mouth and our hearts hasty to utter words before God. We will be tempted to multiply our words.
What words? How might we be rash with our mouths?
In Solomon’s day, there was the practice of making vows. Men would come to Jerusalem and enter the temple in company. In that company they would make their vows, promising to do this or that for the Lord. They would hear what vows the others were speaking before the Lord, and they would speak greater and greater things, each trying to outdo the other.
But in their speech, they forgot. They forgot the Lord, before whom they spoke. They became mindful only of other men. They also forgot the works of the Lord, the very basis for their vows. The Lord’s works, His power and glory, no longer mattered. What mattered was the standing of these men before men. What folly!
So are we prone to forget. So are we inclined to be rash with our mouths and our hearts hasty to utter before the Lord.
Not vows. But we surely face the temptation to make much of our own words. In our worship, where shall our emphasis fall? How shall we open our mouths in the singing of God’s praises? Shall we look for the opportunity to show our abilities in singing, to impress our fellow saints with our voices, in their power or beauty, or in their ability to hold their pitch so tightly? What shall be our aim, when we speak either before or after the service with our fellow saints? What impressive things have we done or seen last week? What great thoughts, opinions, or judgments have we developed? How can we make a good impression? How can we establish our standing among God’s people?
So in our determinations we forget the Word of God. “Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God.” We forget the underlying reason. “God is in heaven, and thou upon earth.”
All room we must make for the Word of our heavenly Father. We gather to hear His Word from heaven, the glorious Word of His power and wisdom. We gather to receive into our hearts and minds His wonderful works of justice and mercy, which our God will show to us. We come to hear all that He has done for us, in order that we might put our faith and confidence in Him alone. We come to hear the gospel of our full salvation, accomplished by Christ alone, our beloved Saviour.
Then, may our words not only be few, for we are upon the earth. But may they also faithfully follow after the Word from God that we hear. May we sing and speak our words after His that we have heard. May our words be filled with His works, His grace, and His glory. May we firmly direct our speech to the same end: the honour and glory of His name.
So “let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.” Hebrews 13:15
“Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil. Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.” Ecclesiastes 5:1, 2
How careful we must be when we enter the house of the Lord to have the above order firmly in our hearts and minds!
For we will surely be tempted to be rash with our mouth and our hearts hasty to utter words before God. We will be tempted to multiply our words.
What words? How might we be rash with our mouths?
In Solomon’s day, there was the practice of making vows. Men would come to Jerusalem and enter the temple in company. In that company they would make their vows, promising to do this or that for the Lord. They would hear what vows the others were speaking before the Lord, and they would speak greater and greater things, each trying to outdo the other.
But in their speech, they forgot. They forgot the Lord, before whom they spoke. They became mindful only of other men. They also forgot the works of the Lord, the very basis for their vows. The Lord’s works, His power and glory, no longer mattered. What mattered was the standing of these men before men. What folly!
So are we prone to forget. So are we inclined to be rash with our mouths and our hearts hasty to utter before the Lord.
Not vows. But we surely face the temptation to make much of our own words. In our worship, where shall our emphasis fall? How shall we open our mouths in the singing of God’s praises? Shall we look for the opportunity to show our abilities in singing, to impress our fellow saints with our voices, in their power or beauty, or in their ability to hold their pitch so tightly? What shall be our aim, when we speak either before or after the service with our fellow saints? What impressive things have we done or seen last week? What great thoughts, opinions, or judgments have we developed? How can we make a good impression? How can we establish our standing among God’s people?
So in our determinations we forget the Word of God. “Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God.” We forget the underlying reason. “God is in heaven, and thou upon earth.”
All room we must make for the Word of our heavenly Father. We gather to hear His Word from heaven, the glorious Word of His power and wisdom. We gather to receive into our hearts and minds His wonderful works of justice and mercy, which our God will show to us. We come to hear all that He has done for us, in order that we might put our faith and confidence in Him alone. We come to hear the gospel of our full salvation, accomplished by Christ alone, our beloved Saviour.
Then, may our words not only be few, for we are upon the earth. But may they also faithfully follow after the Word from God that we hear. May we sing and speak our words after His that we have heard. May our words be filled with His works, His grace, and His glory. May we firmly direct our speech to the same end: the honour and glory of His name.
So “let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.” Hebrews 13:15
24 July 2014
“For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord.” I Thessalonians 3:8
In these few words is expressed the great love Paul had for the church of Jesus Christ at Thessalonica. According to his own testimony this apostle of Jesus Christ had left there his heart. “But we, brethren, being taken from you for a short time in presence, not in heart . . .” (2:17). When finally Paul simply had to know how this dear congregation was doing, he sent Timothy away from his side to establish them, comfort them, and bring back with him what he learned of their condition. In the rich comfort that he received from Timothy’s report, Paul makes this powerful statement:
“For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord.”
Such is the sentiment we must hold toward those dear to us in the Lord.
We think of family ties, especially those of parents and children. How blessed is the covenant family, where godly parents give their diligence to nourish their children in the fear of the Lord! Considering their children in light of God’s promise to be their God, Christian parents set before themselves one great aim: that their children stand fast in the Lord. This is why they carefully train up their children in the Lord’s ways, and why they constantly pray for them. This is why they labour for the Christian education of their children, spending and being spent for Christian schools. This is why they rejoice to see this instruction take root in the lives of their children, when they produce blessed fruits of godliness and holiness.
In that love these parents understand and repeat what Paul wrote: “For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord.”
So may those words represent our care for each other in the fellowship of the church of Jesus Christ! Such is a powerful reason to be a blessing to our fellow saints, to bring words of comfort and encouragement to those who are in need. It is a powerful reason to pray constantly for each other. It is a powerful reason to support and help each other in times of difficulty and need.
Here we have every reason to lift up before God’s throne the churches near and dear to us, which together stand for the truth of God’s Word. Here we have cause to devote ourselves in many ways to the well-being of our denomination, for the cause of its continued testimony of truth and righteousness.
In all these actions, two blessed things happen. First, God is pleased to use all our efforts as a means for the strengthening of His people, so that they continue to stand. He shows that He is a God of “grace for grace.” He delights to show that He is faithful to answer the prayers of His people. He is pleased to prove Himself righteous to remember the labour of His children, to bless it with abundant fruit.
Second, our own love grows through these actions. Our love grows through our prayers. Our love grows through our committed labours for the well-being of God’s church and kingdom.
So much does this love grow, we know more and more of what it means: “For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord.”
And out of that love, we labour and pray with greater fervour and zeal.
May God grant us this love in ever greater measure, and in this love may we stand fast in the Lord!
“For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord.” I Thessalonians 3:8
In these few words is expressed the great love Paul had for the church of Jesus Christ at Thessalonica. According to his own testimony this apostle of Jesus Christ had left there his heart. “But we, brethren, being taken from you for a short time in presence, not in heart . . .” (2:17). When finally Paul simply had to know how this dear congregation was doing, he sent Timothy away from his side to establish them, comfort them, and bring back with him what he learned of their condition. In the rich comfort that he received from Timothy’s report, Paul makes this powerful statement:
“For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord.”
Such is the sentiment we must hold toward those dear to us in the Lord.
We think of family ties, especially those of parents and children. How blessed is the covenant family, where godly parents give their diligence to nourish their children in the fear of the Lord! Considering their children in light of God’s promise to be their God, Christian parents set before themselves one great aim: that their children stand fast in the Lord. This is why they carefully train up their children in the Lord’s ways, and why they constantly pray for them. This is why they labour for the Christian education of their children, spending and being spent for Christian schools. This is why they rejoice to see this instruction take root in the lives of their children, when they produce blessed fruits of godliness and holiness.
In that love these parents understand and repeat what Paul wrote: “For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord.”
So may those words represent our care for each other in the fellowship of the church of Jesus Christ! Such is a powerful reason to be a blessing to our fellow saints, to bring words of comfort and encouragement to those who are in need. It is a powerful reason to pray constantly for each other. It is a powerful reason to support and help each other in times of difficulty and need.
Here we have every reason to lift up before God’s throne the churches near and dear to us, which together stand for the truth of God’s Word. Here we have cause to devote ourselves in many ways to the well-being of our denomination, for the cause of its continued testimony of truth and righteousness.
In all these actions, two blessed things happen. First, God is pleased to use all our efforts as a means for the strengthening of His people, so that they continue to stand. He shows that He is a God of “grace for grace.” He delights to show that He is faithful to answer the prayers of His people. He is pleased to prove Himself righteous to remember the labour of His children, to bless it with abundant fruit.
Second, our own love grows through these actions. Our love grows through our prayers. Our love grows through our committed labours for the well-being of God’s church and kingdom.
So much does this love grow, we know more and more of what it means: “For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord.”
And out of that love, we labour and pray with greater fervour and zeal.
May God grant us this love in ever greater measure, and in this love may we stand fast in the Lord!
23 July 2014
“And he beheld them . . .” Luke 20:17
What was this look that Jesus gave to the chief priests, scribes, and elders that surrounded Him and demanded to know of His authority? What was this gaze that He directed to them, when they expressed their opinion of His parable to them, the parable that laid open their deep and bitter hatred of Him, the Messiah of God, “God forbid”?
It was a sharp, piercing, deeply probing and penetrating gaze. It was a determined, long look, that followed a parable which exposed their very soul.
With this look, followed by His words in verses 17 and 18, Jesus laid bare the depths of the hearts of His enemies. As recorded in verse 19, “They perceived that he had spoken this parable against them.”
Oh, they knew what this look meant. They knew the target of this parable, and they knew that Jesus hit that target dead center.
What then? How did they respond? The Spirit records: “And the chief priests and the scribes the same hour sought to lay hands on him.” Again: “And they watched him, and sent forth spies, which should feign themselves just men, that they might take hold of his words, that so they might deliver him unto the power and authority of the governor.” Their response was only aroused hatred and deepened enmity, a further determination to rid themselves of this rogue rabbi.
What should happen when Jesus speaks to us? What should happen when He beholds us?
Let us wither and melt! Let us be smitten with the force of His rebuke. Let us be broken down under the strength of His gaze. Let us sink into the dust, bowed down with grief over our sins and iniquities. Let us then seek from Him, the gospel of His pardon. Let us seek to hear that Word, and to know by it His gaze of wondrous love and tender mercy upon us. Let us seek the healing, restoring, strengthening, and uplifting power of His eyes turned to us in rich grace.
Let us know also that only sovereign grace has withered and melted us under Jesus’ beholding eyes. That we are not hardened and that we are not even more determined foes of Christ is due only to the heart-breaking power of the Holy Spirit, humbling our pride and working our repentance, to bring us to the mighty Rock of our salvation.
So may it be ever true of us, by the grace of God: “Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken.” May we fall, broken in heart, to find our rest and salvation upon the stone rejected by the builders!
“And he beheld them . . .” Luke 20:17
What was this look that Jesus gave to the chief priests, scribes, and elders that surrounded Him and demanded to know of His authority? What was this gaze that He directed to them, when they expressed their opinion of His parable to them, the parable that laid open their deep and bitter hatred of Him, the Messiah of God, “God forbid”?
It was a sharp, piercing, deeply probing and penetrating gaze. It was a determined, long look, that followed a parable which exposed their very soul.
With this look, followed by His words in verses 17 and 18, Jesus laid bare the depths of the hearts of His enemies. As recorded in verse 19, “They perceived that he had spoken this parable against them.”
Oh, they knew what this look meant. They knew the target of this parable, and they knew that Jesus hit that target dead center.
What then? How did they respond? The Spirit records: “And the chief priests and the scribes the same hour sought to lay hands on him.” Again: “And they watched him, and sent forth spies, which should feign themselves just men, that they might take hold of his words, that so they might deliver him unto the power and authority of the governor.” Their response was only aroused hatred and deepened enmity, a further determination to rid themselves of this rogue rabbi.
What should happen when Jesus speaks to us? What should happen when He beholds us?
Let us wither and melt! Let us be smitten with the force of His rebuke. Let us be broken down under the strength of His gaze. Let us sink into the dust, bowed down with grief over our sins and iniquities. Let us then seek from Him, the gospel of His pardon. Let us seek to hear that Word, and to know by it His gaze of wondrous love and tender mercy upon us. Let us seek the healing, restoring, strengthening, and uplifting power of His eyes turned to us in rich grace.
Let us know also that only sovereign grace has withered and melted us under Jesus’ beholding eyes. That we are not hardened and that we are not even more determined foes of Christ is due only to the heart-breaking power of the Holy Spirit, humbling our pride and working our repentance, to bring us to the mighty Rock of our salvation.
So may it be ever true of us, by the grace of God: “Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken.” May we fall, broken in heart, to find our rest and salvation upon the stone rejected by the builders!
20 July 2014, The Lord's Day
“Send therefore to Joppa, and call hither Simon, whose surname is Peter; he is lodged in the house of one Simon a tanner by the sea side: who, when he cometh, shall speak unto thee. Immediately therefore I sent to thee; and thou hast well done that thou art come. Now therefore are we all here present before God, to hear all things that are commanded thee of God.” Acts 10:32, 33.
Cornelius, the centurion of the Italian band, was given his marching orders and an appointment by God’s holy angel. He was to send to this place in Joppa. He was to call for this man, Peter, to come and speak to him. So Cornelius obeyed the messenger of God, and was about to hear the results of his obedience.
In that same spirit of obedience Cornelius was now ready to hear all that God had to tell him by the mouth of Peter.
Today God has made an appointment for you. He has given to you a place, His house of prayer, the assembly of his people. He has given you a day and time, His sabbath day, and these set times for worship. He has sent a man to be there, at that time and in that place. That man He has sent to bring you His word.
Your blessing is to gather there among God’s people, carrying these beautiful words in your heart: “Now therefore are we all here present before God, to hear all things that are commanded thee of God.”
What readiness of heart and mind! What submission and humility before the Word of God!
These words reveal a humble recognition of the presence of the living, majestic, sovereign and holy God. They manifest a deep conviction that this great God is about to speak to men. They show a preparedness to believe every word that shall be spoken, and to obey every command given.
May these blessed words be in our hearts and minds as we enter the house of the Lord this blessed Sabbath day! May we declare them before the Lord as we ready ourselves to hear the Word He has given His servant to speak to us. May we then hear and follow “all things that are commanded thee of God.”
“Send therefore to Joppa, and call hither Simon, whose surname is Peter; he is lodged in the house of one Simon a tanner by the sea side: who, when he cometh, shall speak unto thee. Immediately therefore I sent to thee; and thou hast well done that thou art come. Now therefore are we all here present before God, to hear all things that are commanded thee of God.” Acts 10:32, 33.
Cornelius, the centurion of the Italian band, was given his marching orders and an appointment by God’s holy angel. He was to send to this place in Joppa. He was to call for this man, Peter, to come and speak to him. So Cornelius obeyed the messenger of God, and was about to hear the results of his obedience.
In that same spirit of obedience Cornelius was now ready to hear all that God had to tell him by the mouth of Peter.
Today God has made an appointment for you. He has given to you a place, His house of prayer, the assembly of his people. He has given you a day and time, His sabbath day, and these set times for worship. He has sent a man to be there, at that time and in that place. That man He has sent to bring you His word.
Your blessing is to gather there among God’s people, carrying these beautiful words in your heart: “Now therefore are we all here present before God, to hear all things that are commanded thee of God.”
What readiness of heart and mind! What submission and humility before the Word of God!
These words reveal a humble recognition of the presence of the living, majestic, sovereign and holy God. They manifest a deep conviction that this great God is about to speak to men. They show a preparedness to believe every word that shall be spoken, and to obey every command given.
May these blessed words be in our hearts and minds as we enter the house of the Lord this blessed Sabbath day! May we declare them before the Lord as we ready ourselves to hear the Word He has given His servant to speak to us. May we then hear and follow “all things that are commanded thee of God.”
18 July 2014
“And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.” Luke 16:15
Powerful is this rebuke of Christ to bring us to the urgent need of spiritual reformation!
Sharp is this rebuke, levelled and pointed at the Pharisees. They derided Jesus, scoffing at His teaching, “Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” They were so sure that they could serve two masters, they scorned Jesus’ teaching as being far below them. The Word of God plainly revealed the root of this derision: they were covetous. So Jesus rebuked them for the proud covetousness.
But that same rebuke we need to hear, to show to us our great enemy, and the pride of our covetousness.
For our thoughts so easily and so often fall in this same way. We want to be justified before God and before men. So we look around us. We see what is highly esteemed among men. Those things we highly esteem.
What is highly esteemed among men? Wealth, power and influence, fame and celebrity status are in high demand. Success in business and commerce are widely praised. Talents and abilities, either in sports, music or acting are worshipped and adored.
So we look and we understand. So we also highly esteem the same things. Sometimes we pursue them with heart and soul, hoping to be highly esteemed among men. Other times, though we cannot attain them, we join the company of men in highly esteeming them. We follow the talk. We follow the excitement of watching. We want to show our high esteem of what men highly esteem. We follow their estimations.
Then our hearts follow. In our hearts we highly esteem what men highly esteem. But in our hearts we begin to highly esteem also men themselves.
And we forget.
We forget, “that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.”
And we find ourselves far from God. Our thoughts are opposite the thoughts of God. What we highly esteem the Holy One abominates.
And He knows our hearts.
As we feel the stinging shame of this rebuke, let us turn in thanksgiving to the One who knows our hearts, the One who abhors the high estimates of men. For as He knows our hearts, He is also mighty to cleanse them with the blood of His Son. As He knows our hearts, He is also mighty to turn them from these abominations to Himself, to follow His favour and delight.
By His grace, let us turn to Him, to follow after His ways, to be pleased with the things pleasing to Him, the things of His kingdom, His name, and His truth!
“And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.” Luke 16:15
Powerful is this rebuke of Christ to bring us to the urgent need of spiritual reformation!
Sharp is this rebuke, levelled and pointed at the Pharisees. They derided Jesus, scoffing at His teaching, “Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” They were so sure that they could serve two masters, they scorned Jesus’ teaching as being far below them. The Word of God plainly revealed the root of this derision: they were covetous. So Jesus rebuked them for the proud covetousness.
But that same rebuke we need to hear, to show to us our great enemy, and the pride of our covetousness.
For our thoughts so easily and so often fall in this same way. We want to be justified before God and before men. So we look around us. We see what is highly esteemed among men. Those things we highly esteem.
What is highly esteemed among men? Wealth, power and influence, fame and celebrity status are in high demand. Success in business and commerce are widely praised. Talents and abilities, either in sports, music or acting are worshipped and adored.
So we look and we understand. So we also highly esteem the same things. Sometimes we pursue them with heart and soul, hoping to be highly esteemed among men. Other times, though we cannot attain them, we join the company of men in highly esteeming them. We follow the talk. We follow the excitement of watching. We want to show our high esteem of what men highly esteem. We follow their estimations.
Then our hearts follow. In our hearts we highly esteem what men highly esteem. But in our hearts we begin to highly esteem also men themselves.
And we forget.
We forget, “that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.”
And we find ourselves far from God. Our thoughts are opposite the thoughts of God. What we highly esteem the Holy One abominates.
And He knows our hearts.
As we feel the stinging shame of this rebuke, let us turn in thanksgiving to the One who knows our hearts, the One who abhors the high estimates of men. For as He knows our hearts, He is also mighty to cleanse them with the blood of His Son. As He knows our hearts, He is also mighty to turn them from these abominations to Himself, to follow His favour and delight.
By His grace, let us turn to Him, to follow after His ways, to be pleased with the things pleasing to Him, the things of His kingdom, His name, and His truth!
15 July 2014
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6
“Pilate saith unto him, What is truth?” John 18:38
These two verses of holy Scripture present two very different ways of thinking about and understanding the world, God, and men. These two ways are opposed to each other. One can live, move, and operate in one or the other, never both. These two ways are the only real possibilities. There is no third way.
In Pilate’s judgment hall, these two ways collide.
On the one side, representing “the way” is Jesus Christ. He came to bear witness to the truth. For that reason, every one that is “of the truth heareth my voice.” His words breathe out supreme confidence, the confidence with which He answered Thomas: “I am the way, the truth and the life,” only a few hours before. Before His disciples Thomas, before His governor Pontius Pilate, He states the very same truth.
To His powerful testimony the governor gives his answer: “What is truth?”
With the truth pressing upon him, Pilate attempts to dismiss out of the hand the testimony of the Truth. What words are these from Pilate’s mouth? “What is truth?” Are they the words of a weary skeptic, confronted with a variety of claims, each claim seeking Pilate’s approval? Has he come to the conclusion that they are all wrong, that the truth is not to be found with anyone, god or man? Or, is he a committed relativist? Does he have a true doctrine, namely, that there is no such thing as absolute truth? Or, is Pilate just a committed agnostic, certain that whatever truth there may be, man is simply unable to know it anyway?
Whatever Pilate may be, his words demonstrate only his vanity, and the vanity of all men who refuse to bend the knee before Jesus, who is “the way, the truth, and the life.” Let them all gather their voices to shout their question, “What is truth?” Yet prevails the voice of Him who saith to Thomas, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”
So this word of Christ comes to us. He declares the truth of His Person, His grace, His salvation to us. He says to us, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” By His grace, we leave behind our foolish, vain, question, “What is faith?” Him we embrace. To Him we cling. Him we follow. So we have our way to the Father. We find our hearts filled with His wonderful, blessed truth, the truth of the living God, whom to know is life eternal. In the knowledge of the truth we live the blessed life of fellowship and friendship with our sovereign Friend.
So we confess: “Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.” So we stand today, over against all the restless, agitated questioning of the world, “What is truth?” May we continue to stand, blessed by Him and strengthened by Him, who is forever, “the way, the truth, and the life.”
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6
“Pilate saith unto him, What is truth?” John 18:38
These two verses of holy Scripture present two very different ways of thinking about and understanding the world, God, and men. These two ways are opposed to each other. One can live, move, and operate in one or the other, never both. These two ways are the only real possibilities. There is no third way.
In Pilate’s judgment hall, these two ways collide.
On the one side, representing “the way” is Jesus Christ. He came to bear witness to the truth. For that reason, every one that is “of the truth heareth my voice.” His words breathe out supreme confidence, the confidence with which He answered Thomas: “I am the way, the truth and the life,” only a few hours before. Before His disciples Thomas, before His governor Pontius Pilate, He states the very same truth.
To His powerful testimony the governor gives his answer: “What is truth?”
With the truth pressing upon him, Pilate attempts to dismiss out of the hand the testimony of the Truth. What words are these from Pilate’s mouth? “What is truth?” Are they the words of a weary skeptic, confronted with a variety of claims, each claim seeking Pilate’s approval? Has he come to the conclusion that they are all wrong, that the truth is not to be found with anyone, god or man? Or, is he a committed relativist? Does he have a true doctrine, namely, that there is no such thing as absolute truth? Or, is Pilate just a committed agnostic, certain that whatever truth there may be, man is simply unable to know it anyway?
Whatever Pilate may be, his words demonstrate only his vanity, and the vanity of all men who refuse to bend the knee before Jesus, who is “the way, the truth, and the life.” Let them all gather their voices to shout their question, “What is truth?” Yet prevails the voice of Him who saith to Thomas, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”
So this word of Christ comes to us. He declares the truth of His Person, His grace, His salvation to us. He says to us, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” By His grace, we leave behind our foolish, vain, question, “What is faith?” Him we embrace. To Him we cling. Him we follow. So we have our way to the Father. We find our hearts filled with His wonderful, blessed truth, the truth of the living God, whom to know is life eternal. In the knowledge of the truth we live the blessed life of fellowship and friendship with our sovereign Friend.
So we confess: “Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.” So we stand today, over against all the restless, agitated questioning of the world, “What is truth?” May we continue to stand, blessed by Him and strengthened by Him, who is forever, “the way, the truth, and the life.”
13 July 2014, The Lord’s Day
“Lord, I have loved the habitation of thy house, and the place where thine honour dwelleth.” Psalm 26:8
In these words we are given a beautiful description of the glory and beauty of the house of the Lord.
Whether large or small, whether of marble or stone or wood or even thatch, the house of the Lord is beloved of God’s people. Whether gathered in such a place is a vast multitude or only a handful, the house of the Lord is the desired dwelling place of His children.
What makes it so beloved?
Simply, it is the house of the Lord. It is the place where God’s people go to be in the presence of their gracious God and beloved Redeemer. There they have the pleasure of His fellowship and friendship. There they meet with their God, to bring before Him the sacrifice of thanksgiving, giving praise to Him with their joyful lips. There they present themselves, body and heart, mind and soul, to their God, rejoicing to be His peculiar people, His precious inheritance.
What makes it the house of the Lord, is that it is the place where His honour dwelleth. Regularly and consistently, frequently, His Word is proclaimed, the Word that shows forth the honour of His great and glorious name. His works of creation and salvation are declared and explained according to His holy Word. The Scriptures are opened up. The almighty and glorious works of God are declared as the sole foundation of His people’s salvation. All are called to repentance and salvation in the Word of God, Jesus Christ. The promise of salvation is declared to all, that all who believe in Jesus Christ receive full salvation. The Word of God is declared to the honour of the sovereign God of salvation.
By that preaching of the gospel, God is declared in all His mighty and power, in all His wisdom, counsel, and judgment, in all His holiness and righteousness. He is shown forth in all the glory of His kingdom, in all the majesty of His dominion, and in all the light of His overflowing goodness and mercy.
There is the place where His honour dwelleth, the habitation of His house.
In your love for the habitation of His house, rejoice to enter the place where His honour dwelleth!
“Lord, I have loved the habitation of thy house, and the place where thine honour dwelleth.” Psalm 26:8
In these words we are given a beautiful description of the glory and beauty of the house of the Lord.
Whether large or small, whether of marble or stone or wood or even thatch, the house of the Lord is beloved of God’s people. Whether gathered in such a place is a vast multitude or only a handful, the house of the Lord is the desired dwelling place of His children.
What makes it so beloved?
Simply, it is the house of the Lord. It is the place where God’s people go to be in the presence of their gracious God and beloved Redeemer. There they have the pleasure of His fellowship and friendship. There they meet with their God, to bring before Him the sacrifice of thanksgiving, giving praise to Him with their joyful lips. There they present themselves, body and heart, mind and soul, to their God, rejoicing to be His peculiar people, His precious inheritance.
What makes it the house of the Lord, is that it is the place where His honour dwelleth. Regularly and consistently, frequently, His Word is proclaimed, the Word that shows forth the honour of His great and glorious name. His works of creation and salvation are declared and explained according to His holy Word. The Scriptures are opened up. The almighty and glorious works of God are declared as the sole foundation of His people’s salvation. All are called to repentance and salvation in the Word of God, Jesus Christ. The promise of salvation is declared to all, that all who believe in Jesus Christ receive full salvation. The Word of God is declared to the honour of the sovereign God of salvation.
By that preaching of the gospel, God is declared in all His mighty and power, in all His wisdom, counsel, and judgment, in all His holiness and righteousness. He is shown forth in all the glory of His kingdom, in all the majesty of His dominion, and in all the light of His overflowing goodness and mercy.
There is the place where His honour dwelleth, the habitation of His house.
In your love for the habitation of His house, rejoice to enter the place where His honour dwelleth!
10 July 2014
“They that trust in the Lord shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever. As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the Lord is round about his people from henceforth even for ever.” Psalm 125:1, 2
Great and glorious is the security of the Lord’s people, who put their trust in Him!
They that trust in the Lord are here compared with mount Zion and with Jerusalem, the holy city.
This city of old was a city secure. Its first inhabitants, the Jebusites, boasted that the blind and the lame could defend the city against David’s army because the city’s natural defences were so great and formidable. It was most evident that the city could be taken by David’s men only by Lord’s intervention. For its strong defences it was to be the capital of Israel, where David’s palace and the temple of the Lord was later built.
So it also came to serve as a wonderful illustration of the Lord’s protection of His people.
See that mountain, mount Zion? Look at its sides imposing and intimidating! Look at its great height, all for the protection and preservation of the city on top!
So it is with those that trust in the Lord.
As mount Zion cannot be removed but abideth forever, so are they that trust in the Lord.
See how the mountains are all around Jerusalem, holding up and guarding that city? Just as those mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds His people forever. They have the living God surrounding them by His almighty power and wonderful strength. They have nothing to fear, for no enemy can reach them.
But what happened to this magnificent city, Jerusalem? What happened to the strong defences of Zion? What about those surrounding mountains? The city was overthrown and destroyed twice. Because of the Lord’s judgment the army of Babylon and later the army of Rome completely destroyed the city.
But its very destruction makes us look to the true and real Zion, the one that is above. We must look to the heavenly Jerusalem, the one that is better, the everlasting city of the Son of David, Jesus Christ. There is our citizenship by faith, and there is our everlasting home, sealed to us in the blood of its glorious King.
By faith let us look above. By faith let us see, and be filled with awe and wonder at that glorious city of God. Let us see its eternal strength, its foundations rooted in the blood of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. And understanding its strength, let us know:
They that trust in the Lord
Shall be as mount Zion,
Which cannot be removed,
But abideth for ever.
As the mountains are round about Jerusalem,
So the Lord is round about his people
From henceforth even for ever.
In this wonderful power of our God, let us live and walk today, rejoicing fsin Him!
“They that trust in the Lord shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever. As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the Lord is round about his people from henceforth even for ever.” Psalm 125:1, 2
Great and glorious is the security of the Lord’s people, who put their trust in Him!
They that trust in the Lord are here compared with mount Zion and with Jerusalem, the holy city.
This city of old was a city secure. Its first inhabitants, the Jebusites, boasted that the blind and the lame could defend the city against David’s army because the city’s natural defences were so great and formidable. It was most evident that the city could be taken by David’s men only by Lord’s intervention. For its strong defences it was to be the capital of Israel, where David’s palace and the temple of the Lord was later built.
So it also came to serve as a wonderful illustration of the Lord’s protection of His people.
See that mountain, mount Zion? Look at its sides imposing and intimidating! Look at its great height, all for the protection and preservation of the city on top!
So it is with those that trust in the Lord.
As mount Zion cannot be removed but abideth forever, so are they that trust in the Lord.
See how the mountains are all around Jerusalem, holding up and guarding that city? Just as those mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds His people forever. They have the living God surrounding them by His almighty power and wonderful strength. They have nothing to fear, for no enemy can reach them.
But what happened to this magnificent city, Jerusalem? What happened to the strong defences of Zion? What about those surrounding mountains? The city was overthrown and destroyed twice. Because of the Lord’s judgment the army of Babylon and later the army of Rome completely destroyed the city.
But its very destruction makes us look to the true and real Zion, the one that is above. We must look to the heavenly Jerusalem, the one that is better, the everlasting city of the Son of David, Jesus Christ. There is our citizenship by faith, and there is our everlasting home, sealed to us in the blood of its glorious King.
By faith let us look above. By faith let us see, and be filled with awe and wonder at that glorious city of God. Let us see its eternal strength, its foundations rooted in the blood of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. And understanding its strength, let us know:
They that trust in the Lord
Shall be as mount Zion,
Which cannot be removed,
But abideth for ever.
As the mountains are round about Jerusalem,
So the Lord is round about his people
From henceforth even for ever.
In this wonderful power of our God, let us live and walk today, rejoicing fsin Him!
6 July 2014, The Lord's Day
“Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.” Isaiah 55:6
To be sure, as the words following this verse indicate, this calling is from the Lord to His apostate people, urging them to turn back from their wicked ways to Him, with the promise of His abundant pardon. Still today, these same words from the basis for the call of the gospel that goes through all lands and peoples, the summons of the gospel commanding all who hear to turn from their sins to the Lord, promising pardon to all who turn.
But these same words are always delightful to the children of God, the promise that He will be found of all those that seek Him.
For, the Lord is to be found! The Lord is near!
He is to be found today! The Lord is near today!
How? Where?
Simply, however and wherever His Word is near, and the Word is to be found. He is near in the preaching of the gospel that is heard today.
Today is the day of rest. It is the day to rest in the glad and glorious tidings of the gospel. That gospel proclaims the mighty and glorious work of God’s salvation. It declares full reconciliation and pardon of sin through the sacrifice of the Word made flesh on the tree of the cross. It is the call to turn from sin and to trust in that once for all sacrifice, to rest in it for complete pardon of sin.
This day the Lord sends His servants to you with that Word in their mouths. Today they bring that Word to your ears. So they command in that gospel, “Seek ye the Lord while he may be found.” So they urge, “Call ye upon him while he is near.”
This is your delightful blessedness this Sabbath day. This is your comfort, peace, and hope today. The Word of the Lord comes to you today, calling you to seek Him and to find Him. He does not, then withdraw Himself, so that you should find His Word has become deceitful or vain. He is not a man! Far from it! By His Word He is near. By His Word He gives Himself to you, as you call upon Him. As you seek Him, you find Him, your God.
By His Word, near to you, enjoy His rest, the rest of His everlasting covenant, “even the sure mercies of David,” the mercies of Jesus Christ.
“Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.” Isaiah 55:6
To be sure, as the words following this verse indicate, this calling is from the Lord to His apostate people, urging them to turn back from their wicked ways to Him, with the promise of His abundant pardon. Still today, these same words from the basis for the call of the gospel that goes through all lands and peoples, the summons of the gospel commanding all who hear to turn from their sins to the Lord, promising pardon to all who turn.
But these same words are always delightful to the children of God, the promise that He will be found of all those that seek Him.
For, the Lord is to be found! The Lord is near!
He is to be found today! The Lord is near today!
How? Where?
Simply, however and wherever His Word is near, and the Word is to be found. He is near in the preaching of the gospel that is heard today.
Today is the day of rest. It is the day to rest in the glad and glorious tidings of the gospel. That gospel proclaims the mighty and glorious work of God’s salvation. It declares full reconciliation and pardon of sin through the sacrifice of the Word made flesh on the tree of the cross. It is the call to turn from sin and to trust in that once for all sacrifice, to rest in it for complete pardon of sin.
This day the Lord sends His servants to you with that Word in their mouths. Today they bring that Word to your ears. So they command in that gospel, “Seek ye the Lord while he may be found.” So they urge, “Call ye upon him while he is near.”
This is your delightful blessedness this Sabbath day. This is your comfort, peace, and hope today. The Word of the Lord comes to you today, calling you to seek Him and to find Him. He does not, then withdraw Himself, so that you should find His Word has become deceitful or vain. He is not a man! Far from it! By His Word He is near. By His Word He gives Himself to you, as you call upon Him. As you seek Him, you find Him, your God.
By His Word, near to you, enjoy His rest, the rest of His everlasting covenant, “even the sure mercies of David,” the mercies of Jesus Christ.
1 July 2014
“Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest, O Lord, and teachest him out of thy law; That thou mayest give him rest from the days of adversity, until the pit be digged for the wicked.” Psalm 94:12, 13
Blessed is the man!
Who is this man whom the holy Scriptures declare to be blessed?
This man is chastened by the Lord. He is a suffering man. He feels the rod of the Lord’s anger smiting him. Pain and suffering is his, and that from the Lord’s hand. Through such pain the Lord teaches him out of His holy law. The Lord is teaching him in the most powerful way the evil and wickedness that he must shun. The Lord is teaching him to pursue always and only righteousness and holiness, the way of His commandments.
His is a most difficult way. How can he be blessed?
We might also look at the difficulty of this man’s way in light of what follows in this verse. His days are “days of adversity.” What follows also indicates the nature of his adversity, that it comes to him from the wicked. As he seeks to follow after God’s law, the wicked mock him, harass him, and even persecute him. But those wicked are also used by the sovereign grace of God to chasten His own. As this man suffers great adversity from the wicked around him, the Lord is busy teaching him out of His law.
In his days of adversity, surrounded by the wicked, and chastened by the Lord, how can he be blessed?
Blessed is the man!
He is blessed because his is a most wonderful and glorious future. He is blessed because his days of adversity will come to an end. With the end of those days, a marvelous beginning is his: everlasting rest in the abundant and joyful peace of God’s glorious kingdom. His rest will be to see the pit digged for the wicked, which harassed and persecuted him in his days of adversity. Cast into that pit, sealed within its walls, the wicked shall never come near or threaten him again.
How is this blessedness his? How has he come to this blessed rest?
Only through the chastening of the Lord, being taught by the Lord our of His law. Even as he was chastened of the Lord by the hand of the wicked, he was being separated from them. The Lord taught him the ways of the wicked, that they were rebellion against Him. The Lord taught him of His great wrath against the wicked in their wickedness, and taught him of their guilt and condemnation out of His holy law. The Lord taught him well that these wicked could not be his friends, and that their ways could not be his. The Lord was protecting him from the love of the world.
In this separation was His salvation. When the pit is digged for the wicked, he not be found among them there. Instead, everlasting rest shall be his forever.
Yes, blessed is the man!
“Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest, O Lord, and teachest him out of thy law; That thou mayest give him rest from the days of adversity, until the pit be digged for the wicked.” Psalm 94:12, 13
Blessed is the man!
Who is this man whom the holy Scriptures declare to be blessed?
This man is chastened by the Lord. He is a suffering man. He feels the rod of the Lord’s anger smiting him. Pain and suffering is his, and that from the Lord’s hand. Through such pain the Lord teaches him out of His holy law. The Lord is teaching him in the most powerful way the evil and wickedness that he must shun. The Lord is teaching him to pursue always and only righteousness and holiness, the way of His commandments.
His is a most difficult way. How can he be blessed?
We might also look at the difficulty of this man’s way in light of what follows in this verse. His days are “days of adversity.” What follows also indicates the nature of his adversity, that it comes to him from the wicked. As he seeks to follow after God’s law, the wicked mock him, harass him, and even persecute him. But those wicked are also used by the sovereign grace of God to chasten His own. As this man suffers great adversity from the wicked around him, the Lord is busy teaching him out of His law.
In his days of adversity, surrounded by the wicked, and chastened by the Lord, how can he be blessed?
Blessed is the man!
He is blessed because his is a most wonderful and glorious future. He is blessed because his days of adversity will come to an end. With the end of those days, a marvelous beginning is his: everlasting rest in the abundant and joyful peace of God’s glorious kingdom. His rest will be to see the pit digged for the wicked, which harassed and persecuted him in his days of adversity. Cast into that pit, sealed within its walls, the wicked shall never come near or threaten him again.
How is this blessedness his? How has he come to this blessed rest?
Only through the chastening of the Lord, being taught by the Lord our of His law. Even as he was chastened of the Lord by the hand of the wicked, he was being separated from them. The Lord taught him the ways of the wicked, that they were rebellion against Him. The Lord taught him of His great wrath against the wicked in their wickedness, and taught him of their guilt and condemnation out of His holy law. The Lord taught him well that these wicked could not be his friends, and that their ways could not be his. The Lord was protecting him from the love of the world.
In this separation was His salvation. When the pit is digged for the wicked, he not be found among them there. Instead, everlasting rest shall be his forever.
Yes, blessed is the man!
29 June 2014, The Lord’s Day
“Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 15:5, 6
What a blessed way to describe the worship and praise of the church of Jesus Christ! The privilege of the church is to gather together in a united assembly for the same purpose. That purpose is the glory of the one true God, of Him who is “the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
For He is the Father from whom all blessings flow! There is no goodness without His goodness. The possession of His goodness alone makes us full and complete. To have the Father’s love, is to be loved indeed and in truth. The blessedness of the church is to come into the presence of Him who is the fountain of all good, and to glorify Him for His abundant goodness.
That goodness is known centrally through His gift of His only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. God has given Him, true God of true God, to be our wisdom, our righteousness, our sanctification and our redemption. With the Son of God is all our salvation from beginning to end. He is the basis of our acceptance with the Father, with the full reconciliation He has made through the blood that He shed on His cross.
Surely, then, this God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is worthy of the glory and praise we give Him.
How is He to be glorified? By the assembly of His people with one mind and one mouth!
This is why you and I must hear the preaching of the Word of God today, so that we can glorify God with one mind. We must be thinking the same thoughts, holding to the same truths about our God. The preaching of God’s Word, God’s self-revelation, must gather our minds together, so that we are directed in our worship to the very same God, who is one in truth. And, only as our minds are together shaped and moulded by the preaching of His Word, can we truly glorify our God with one mind.
But then there is also unity of mouth. With one mouth is He to be glorified. What a blessing through our song, and the recitation of the creed, to have our mouths together forming the same words of blessing and praise to our God! What a blessing to follow after the words of congregational prayer, praying them in our own hearts to our God! What a blessing to have resounding in our hearts, through faith, the Word of God as we hear it preached to us by a faithful servant of the Lord!
But before this oneness of our minds and mouth, there is another oneness that goes on before. It is that we “are likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus.” It is that we think the same way toward and about one another, in the church of Jesus Christ. We may not distinguish and divide among the members of the church. We are not to esteem some highly, while thinking poorly of others. We are not to consider some as “our kind” and others as “out there.” Instead we are to be likeminded, according to the rule given us, the rule of Christ Jesus. As He thinks about each of us, His sheep for whom He laid down His life, so must we think about one another.
How much, then, must we offer up this prayer to God before our worship this morning: Wilt thou, the God of patience and consolation, grant me to be likeminded toward my fellow saints according to Christ Jesus!
So may we then go to God’s house today, to glorify Him with one mind and with one mouth!
“Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 15:5, 6
What a blessed way to describe the worship and praise of the church of Jesus Christ! The privilege of the church is to gather together in a united assembly for the same purpose. That purpose is the glory of the one true God, of Him who is “the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
For He is the Father from whom all blessings flow! There is no goodness without His goodness. The possession of His goodness alone makes us full and complete. To have the Father’s love, is to be loved indeed and in truth. The blessedness of the church is to come into the presence of Him who is the fountain of all good, and to glorify Him for His abundant goodness.
That goodness is known centrally through His gift of His only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. God has given Him, true God of true God, to be our wisdom, our righteousness, our sanctification and our redemption. With the Son of God is all our salvation from beginning to end. He is the basis of our acceptance with the Father, with the full reconciliation He has made through the blood that He shed on His cross.
Surely, then, this God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is worthy of the glory and praise we give Him.
How is He to be glorified? By the assembly of His people with one mind and one mouth!
This is why you and I must hear the preaching of the Word of God today, so that we can glorify God with one mind. We must be thinking the same thoughts, holding to the same truths about our God. The preaching of God’s Word, God’s self-revelation, must gather our minds together, so that we are directed in our worship to the very same God, who is one in truth. And, only as our minds are together shaped and moulded by the preaching of His Word, can we truly glorify our God with one mind.
But then there is also unity of mouth. With one mouth is He to be glorified. What a blessing through our song, and the recitation of the creed, to have our mouths together forming the same words of blessing and praise to our God! What a blessing to follow after the words of congregational prayer, praying them in our own hearts to our God! What a blessing to have resounding in our hearts, through faith, the Word of God as we hear it preached to us by a faithful servant of the Lord!
But before this oneness of our minds and mouth, there is another oneness that goes on before. It is that we “are likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus.” It is that we think the same way toward and about one another, in the church of Jesus Christ. We may not distinguish and divide among the members of the church. We are not to esteem some highly, while thinking poorly of others. We are not to consider some as “our kind” and others as “out there.” Instead we are to be likeminded, according to the rule given us, the rule of Christ Jesus. As He thinks about each of us, His sheep for whom He laid down His life, so must we think about one another.
How much, then, must we offer up this prayer to God before our worship this morning: Wilt thou, the God of patience and consolation, grant me to be likeminded toward my fellow saints according to Christ Jesus!
So may we then go to God’s house today, to glorify Him with one mind and with one mouth!
27 June 2014
"The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit." Psalm 34:18
The Lord is nigh! What blessedness and goodness! What safety and security!
To have the Lord near means salvation and deliverance, almighty protection from every enemy. To have the Lord near means His fellowship and friendship, His lovingkindness and mercy which always bless forevermore.
But how is this nearness of the Lord to be enjoyed? How is His salvation to be possessed?
It is most evident that the Lord's nearness is particular. His salvation is not possessed by all. From certain He is "afar off." There are those who are not saved, but destroyed in His holy anger.
More to the point, how are we to have this nearness of the Lord to us? How are we those who are saved by His nearness?
What shall we have as our qualification? What shall we present before the Lord as our credentials?
Shall we set before Him our attainments? As before a bank, from whom we would hope to receive a loan, shall we present our current annual salary, or perhaps our assets on hand? As before a potential employer, shall we bring before the Lord our academic record and achievements, a successful work history, our level of dedication, and the ambitious goals we hope to accomplish in our lives?
Or, more to the point, shall we present before the Lord our faith, that He should be near to us because we have decided to put our trust in Him? Ought we to present to Him our good works, that His goodness should be attracted to ours? Ought we to explain to Him the potential that is in us, that we would make a good contribution to the cause of His kingdom?
None of this. Nothing that is pleasing in the sight of men will bring God's nearness. Nothing that is acceptable to men will determine God's salvation. For God is not like men!
No, to them that are of a broken heart is the Lord nigh. Them that are of a contrite spirit God saves. These are the lowest of the low. Their heart is broken, crushed under the load of the guilt of their sin. Their spirit is not lifted up with vanity, nor puffed up with deceit. Their spirit is crushed to desolation.
The Lord is near to them because His truth has brought them to that depth. Their hearts are broken, their spirits crushed by the knowledge of their sins according to His holy law. The Spirit of the Lord has brought conviction. And as they feel ever so low, broken in heart and contrite in spirit, this word becomes their wonderful comfort: the Lord is nigh them. So it also becomes their praises of their Lord and Saviour, telling the greatness of His glory.
So may we rejoice in the nearness of the Lord to us, who are of a broken heart. May we rejoice in His salvation of us, who are of a contrite spirit.
"The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit." Psalm 34:18
The Lord is nigh! What blessedness and goodness! What safety and security!
To have the Lord near means salvation and deliverance, almighty protection from every enemy. To have the Lord near means His fellowship and friendship, His lovingkindness and mercy which always bless forevermore.
But how is this nearness of the Lord to be enjoyed? How is His salvation to be possessed?
It is most evident that the Lord's nearness is particular. His salvation is not possessed by all. From certain He is "afar off." There are those who are not saved, but destroyed in His holy anger.
More to the point, how are we to have this nearness of the Lord to us? How are we those who are saved by His nearness?
What shall we have as our qualification? What shall we present before the Lord as our credentials?
Shall we set before Him our attainments? As before a bank, from whom we would hope to receive a loan, shall we present our current annual salary, or perhaps our assets on hand? As before a potential employer, shall we bring before the Lord our academic record and achievements, a successful work history, our level of dedication, and the ambitious goals we hope to accomplish in our lives?
Or, more to the point, shall we present before the Lord our faith, that He should be near to us because we have decided to put our trust in Him? Ought we to present to Him our good works, that His goodness should be attracted to ours? Ought we to explain to Him the potential that is in us, that we would make a good contribution to the cause of His kingdom?
None of this. Nothing that is pleasing in the sight of men will bring God's nearness. Nothing that is acceptable to men will determine God's salvation. For God is not like men!
No, to them that are of a broken heart is the Lord nigh. Them that are of a contrite spirit God saves. These are the lowest of the low. Their heart is broken, crushed under the load of the guilt of their sin. Their spirit is not lifted up with vanity, nor puffed up with deceit. Their spirit is crushed to desolation.
The Lord is near to them because His truth has brought them to that depth. Their hearts are broken, their spirits crushed by the knowledge of their sins according to His holy law. The Spirit of the Lord has brought conviction. And as they feel ever so low, broken in heart and contrite in spirit, this word becomes their wonderful comfort: the Lord is nigh them. So it also becomes their praises of their Lord and Saviour, telling the greatness of His glory.
So may we rejoice in the nearness of the Lord to us, who are of a broken heart. May we rejoice in His salvation of us, who are of a contrite spirit.
15 June 2014, The Lord’s Day
“If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus.” Ephesians 4:21
Strange words are these, appearing as they do among these words of admonition written to the saints at Ephesus. How many were the sins they now had to fight against and put off, the sins in which they walked before their redemption! Foreign to this way was the way of Christ, whom they had now learned. “But ye have not so learned Christ.”
Strange words are these because Christ never once appeared to these saints at Ephesus to teach them. He confined His earthly ministry to Judea and Galilee, with occasional forays into Samaria or nearby areas. Never did He travel to Ephesus, so far from Palestine, to preach to the residents there.
How then could the apostle Paul say of these Ephesians that they heard Christ, that they had been taught by Christ? How could his statement have that kind of power with the saints at Ephesus, to encourage them to put off forever their former way of life?
Because they did hear Christ Himself. They were taught by Christ Himself.
Two reasons this chapter of Holy Scripture gives us. One reason is in this Word itself. “The truth is in Jesus.” They heard the truth proclaimed to them. As that truth proclaimed to them is in Jesus, they heard Jesus, and they had been taught by Jesus. He is the way, the truth, and the life.
The other reason we have in verse 11. This verse lists the gifts of the risen and ascended Christ to His church. “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers.” One example is the gift of Christ to the church at Ephesus of the Apostle Paul. Christ sent Paul in the office of apostle to His elect in Ephesus. When Paul came to that city, preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit opened their hearts to hear and believe that gospel. By His own, personal remembrance of that time, he could then write these words, that the saints at Ephesus heard Christ, and had been taught by Christ.
Such is also your blessed privilege in going to the house of the Lord today. Christ has not given you an apostle to bring His gospel. But He has sent to His church pastors and teachers of His gospel. You hear them preach to you the truth of Jesus Christ, as those sent by Him. So it must be true of you, that you hear the Lord and are taught by Him. By His Word He sets you free from your sin and guilt, and brings you into glorious kingdom.
As you enter into the house of the Lord, pray that you might hear Christ, and be taught by Christ. And then hear the answer of that prayer: Christ speaking to you and teaching you His blessed Word of truth!
“If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus.” Ephesians 4:21
Strange words are these, appearing as they do among these words of admonition written to the saints at Ephesus. How many were the sins they now had to fight against and put off, the sins in which they walked before their redemption! Foreign to this way was the way of Christ, whom they had now learned. “But ye have not so learned Christ.”
Strange words are these because Christ never once appeared to these saints at Ephesus to teach them. He confined His earthly ministry to Judea and Galilee, with occasional forays into Samaria or nearby areas. Never did He travel to Ephesus, so far from Palestine, to preach to the residents there.
How then could the apostle Paul say of these Ephesians that they heard Christ, that they had been taught by Christ? How could his statement have that kind of power with the saints at Ephesus, to encourage them to put off forever their former way of life?
Because they did hear Christ Himself. They were taught by Christ Himself.
Two reasons this chapter of Holy Scripture gives us. One reason is in this Word itself. “The truth is in Jesus.” They heard the truth proclaimed to them. As that truth proclaimed to them is in Jesus, they heard Jesus, and they had been taught by Jesus. He is the way, the truth, and the life.
The other reason we have in verse 11. This verse lists the gifts of the risen and ascended Christ to His church. “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers.” One example is the gift of Christ to the church at Ephesus of the Apostle Paul. Christ sent Paul in the office of apostle to His elect in Ephesus. When Paul came to that city, preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit opened their hearts to hear and believe that gospel. By His own, personal remembrance of that time, he could then write these words, that the saints at Ephesus heard Christ, and had been taught by Christ.
Such is also your blessed privilege in going to the house of the Lord today. Christ has not given you an apostle to bring His gospel. But He has sent to His church pastors and teachers of His gospel. You hear them preach to you the truth of Jesus Christ, as those sent by Him. So it must be true of you, that you hear the Lord and are taught by Him. By His Word He sets you free from your sin and guilt, and brings you into glorious kingdom.
As you enter into the house of the Lord, pray that you might hear Christ, and be taught by Christ. And then hear the answer of that prayer: Christ speaking to you and teaching you His blessed Word of truth!
13 June 2014
“But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.” Jude 20, 21
How much you are given to occupy your time before the coming again of our Lord Jesus Christ!
Among all these exhortations one is pre-eminent among them. “Keep yourselves in the love of God.” Safeguard yourselves! Protect yourselves from all the forces that would take you away from the love of God. Many and diverse are these forces. Most crafty and subtle is the devil. Most domineering and surrounding is the world. Most pernicious and insidious is the flesh. They conspire to turn you from the love of God, to the love of self and the love of the world. How they ply upon us with their temptations! How they crave our indulgence!
How do we fend off these foes?
These words give you your weapons. In them you must be occupied, labouring busily in them. The very idea presented in them is that of constant activity. Active in them, you have the way of keeping yourselves in the love of God: “Building up . . . praying . . . looking for.”
First, you have your most holy faith. This is the faith delivered to you from the Word of God. Be busy building up yourselves on that most holy faith. Keep looking into it. Keep meditating on it. Keep finding in it new splendour and more brilliance, more wonders of the true knowledge of God and of His kingdom. Keep seeing the foundation of your faith growing stronger and stronger under your feet.
Second, be busy praying in the Holy Ghost. By that most holy faith on which you are built, keep seeking God’s face in prayer, enjoying blessed fellowship and communion with Him. Keep bringing Him your praise and thanksgiving. Keep seeking His pardon for your sins and pouring out your heart before Him, casting upon Him all your care. Keep giving Him thanks for the Holy Spirit, by whom you and your prayers are brought before His heavenly throne of grace.
Third, be busy “looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.” Keep dwelling upon the hope of your Lord’s coming again to bring into heavenly joys and glory. Keep looking for His mercy to bring you with all His chosen ones to Himself, delivering you from all evil and sin, and the corruption of the grave. Keep looking for His mercy to deliver you and all His through His mighty judgments, casting down all rebellion and evil and silencing all blasphemy.
Plenty to do! Many are the ways you are given to keep yourselves in the love of God, and safe from your enemies. May you and I be constant in these ways by the almighty grace of our God, blessed forever in the enjoyment of the riches of His love for us, through our Lord Jesus Christ!
“But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.” Jude 20, 21
How much you are given to occupy your time before the coming again of our Lord Jesus Christ!
Among all these exhortations one is pre-eminent among them. “Keep yourselves in the love of God.” Safeguard yourselves! Protect yourselves from all the forces that would take you away from the love of God. Many and diverse are these forces. Most crafty and subtle is the devil. Most domineering and surrounding is the world. Most pernicious and insidious is the flesh. They conspire to turn you from the love of God, to the love of self and the love of the world. How they ply upon us with their temptations! How they crave our indulgence!
How do we fend off these foes?
These words give you your weapons. In them you must be occupied, labouring busily in them. The very idea presented in them is that of constant activity. Active in them, you have the way of keeping yourselves in the love of God: “Building up . . . praying . . . looking for.”
First, you have your most holy faith. This is the faith delivered to you from the Word of God. Be busy building up yourselves on that most holy faith. Keep looking into it. Keep meditating on it. Keep finding in it new splendour and more brilliance, more wonders of the true knowledge of God and of His kingdom. Keep seeing the foundation of your faith growing stronger and stronger under your feet.
Second, be busy praying in the Holy Ghost. By that most holy faith on which you are built, keep seeking God’s face in prayer, enjoying blessed fellowship and communion with Him. Keep bringing Him your praise and thanksgiving. Keep seeking His pardon for your sins and pouring out your heart before Him, casting upon Him all your care. Keep giving Him thanks for the Holy Spirit, by whom you and your prayers are brought before His heavenly throne of grace.
Third, be busy “looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.” Keep dwelling upon the hope of your Lord’s coming again to bring into heavenly joys and glory. Keep looking for His mercy to bring you with all His chosen ones to Himself, delivering you from all evil and sin, and the corruption of the grave. Keep looking for His mercy to deliver you and all His through His mighty judgments, casting down all rebellion and evil and silencing all blasphemy.
Plenty to do! Many are the ways you are given to keep yourselves in the love of God, and safe from your enemies. May you and I be constant in these ways by the almighty grace of our God, blessed forever in the enjoyment of the riches of His love for us, through our Lord Jesus Christ!
16 March 2014, The Lord’s Day
“O give thanks unto the Lord; call upon his name: make known his deeds among the people. Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him: talk ye of all his wondrous works. Glory ye in his holy name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord.” Psalm 105:1-3
The blessing of God’s people on the Sabbath Day is well explained by the above words. They tell us of the holy works of the Sabbath, the delights and joys of those that seek the Lord. They address the hearts of God’s beloved Redeemed people according to their abounding happiness in their Saviour.
Their blessing is to call upon the name of the Lord. In their assemblies they seek the Lord’s gracious, blessed presence among them. Gathered together, they call on His name, and they know His answer. According to His constant faithfulness, as He promised in His Word, there He is, with His people, to be their God.
There He is, among His people, to delight Himself in their praises and worship. There He is, to bless them with His salvation, His peace and His merciful lovingkindness. There He is, to hear their prayers, and assure them of His gracious answers to them all. There He is, to fill the hearts of His people with the joy of His mighty salvation.
The above words are given to God’s people, who are gathered together for the worship of their God. They are commanded with these blessed commandments to “call upon his name,” and to “make known his deeds among the people.” To be sure, they do this through the preaching of the gospel. They have called one to preach the Word of God to them, and through that call, God has appointed His servant to preach His Word to them. But the special emphasis of this passage belongs to the praise and worship of God with song. “Sing psalms unto him.” These are the inspired words of praise, given to God’s people in the Scriptures themselves. In singing them, God’s people are blessed to recite before their Lord His mighty acts and deeds of creation and salvation. So does Psalm 105 proceed to the end, to celebrate the glorious deeds of the Lord, Israel’s God.
In this holy union of words and music is the gladness and joy of God’s people, to glory in the holy name of their God. In that name they exult. In that name they boast. Their God, whom they love, is the God that doest wondrous things. Their privilege is to see in those wondrous deeds of their God the fullness of their salvation. And as they sing of them, their hearts are raised in sweet rejoicing in their God. He is ever nearer, to receive their worship and to bless their hearts with His glorious salvation, giving Himself to them, forever to be their God.
So may it be our joy and happiness on this Lord’s Day, to obey the commandments of this Psalm. In carrying them out, may our God fill our hearts with His abounding, everlasting joy!
“Let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord.”
“O give thanks unto the Lord; call upon his name: make known his deeds among the people. Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him: talk ye of all his wondrous works. Glory ye in his holy name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord.” Psalm 105:1-3
The blessing of God’s people on the Sabbath Day is well explained by the above words. They tell us of the holy works of the Sabbath, the delights and joys of those that seek the Lord. They address the hearts of God’s beloved Redeemed people according to their abounding happiness in their Saviour.
Their blessing is to call upon the name of the Lord. In their assemblies they seek the Lord’s gracious, blessed presence among them. Gathered together, they call on His name, and they know His answer. According to His constant faithfulness, as He promised in His Word, there He is, with His people, to be their God.
There He is, among His people, to delight Himself in their praises and worship. There He is, to bless them with His salvation, His peace and His merciful lovingkindness. There He is, to hear their prayers, and assure them of His gracious answers to them all. There He is, to fill the hearts of His people with the joy of His mighty salvation.
The above words are given to God’s people, who are gathered together for the worship of their God. They are commanded with these blessed commandments to “call upon his name,” and to “make known his deeds among the people.” To be sure, they do this through the preaching of the gospel. They have called one to preach the Word of God to them, and through that call, God has appointed His servant to preach His Word to them. But the special emphasis of this passage belongs to the praise and worship of God with song. “Sing psalms unto him.” These are the inspired words of praise, given to God’s people in the Scriptures themselves. In singing them, God’s people are blessed to recite before their Lord His mighty acts and deeds of creation and salvation. So does Psalm 105 proceed to the end, to celebrate the glorious deeds of the Lord, Israel’s God.
In this holy union of words and music is the gladness and joy of God’s people, to glory in the holy name of their God. In that name they exult. In that name they boast. Their God, whom they love, is the God that doest wondrous things. Their privilege is to see in those wondrous deeds of their God the fullness of their salvation. And as they sing of them, their hearts are raised in sweet rejoicing in their God. He is ever nearer, to receive their worship and to bless their hearts with His glorious salvation, giving Himself to them, forever to be their God.
So may it be our joy and happiness on this Lord’s Day, to obey the commandments of this Psalm. In carrying them out, may our God fill our hearts with His abounding, everlasting joy!
“Let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord.”
13 March 2013
“Moreover I will endeavour that ye may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance.”
2 Peter 1:15
Long before the risen Jesus told Peter how he would die. “. . . but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.” (John 21:18) These words Jesus spoke not to trouble Peter, but to give him powerful encouragement. Confronted with death, the apostle would not try to escape by denying his Lord, as he did before. Instead he would die the death of a martyr, for the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Now, when Peter penned the above words, he was reflecting on his death, which he knew to be at hand.
Peter’s example leads us in a profitable way. Thinking about death, and especially our own death, must make us sober and reflective. Thoughts about our own death will make us examine our priorities and will often correct our conduct. How do we want others to think of us, after our death? What do we want to leave behind? What do we want our children to think of us? What do we want to leave behind for them?
Peter’s thoughts, recorded under the Spirit’s inspiration, show us the legacy we must endeavour to leave our children: “That ye may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance.”
What things?
To be sure, fame, riches, and power are out of the picture! But neither may we think of our name or reputation. Our concern must not be that we leave behind many fond memories, or a pleasant, agreeable character, or even a vigorous, forceful personality. We may not endeavour to leave material for a nice eulogy at our funeral.
What things?
The things that belong to “the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Verse 8) The things that belong to “the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” (Verse 11)
What blessed things these are, for those who follow after us to keep in remembrance! These are the things of eternal salvation. They will bring them great comfort and peace people in this life. They will support and keep them through their earthly pilgrimage. These are the things that will make them fruitful in all good works as children of light. And they will be the most blessed and glorious end of their lives. And by these things, we look for them to follow after us into everlasting glory, to share that glory with us forever and ever.
So may we keep them in remembrance before our dear ones! May we often recite and enumerate them to our children. May we do so always with delight and great zeal, showing the preciousness of the gospel to them. And may we remind them often, that these are the things that belong to their eternal salvation, and that our greatest desire for them is that they have them always in remembrance.
So may we live and also die for the sake of the testimony of Jesus Christ.
“Moreover I will endeavour that ye may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance.”
2 Peter 1:15
Long before the risen Jesus told Peter how he would die. “. . . but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.” (John 21:18) These words Jesus spoke not to trouble Peter, but to give him powerful encouragement. Confronted with death, the apostle would not try to escape by denying his Lord, as he did before. Instead he would die the death of a martyr, for the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Now, when Peter penned the above words, he was reflecting on his death, which he knew to be at hand.
Peter’s example leads us in a profitable way. Thinking about death, and especially our own death, must make us sober and reflective. Thoughts about our own death will make us examine our priorities and will often correct our conduct. How do we want others to think of us, after our death? What do we want to leave behind? What do we want our children to think of us? What do we want to leave behind for them?
Peter’s thoughts, recorded under the Spirit’s inspiration, show us the legacy we must endeavour to leave our children: “That ye may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance.”
What things?
To be sure, fame, riches, and power are out of the picture! But neither may we think of our name or reputation. Our concern must not be that we leave behind many fond memories, or a pleasant, agreeable character, or even a vigorous, forceful personality. We may not endeavour to leave material for a nice eulogy at our funeral.
What things?
The things that belong to “the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Verse 8) The things that belong to “the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” (Verse 11)
What blessed things these are, for those who follow after us to keep in remembrance! These are the things of eternal salvation. They will bring them great comfort and peace people in this life. They will support and keep them through their earthly pilgrimage. These are the things that will make them fruitful in all good works as children of light. And they will be the most blessed and glorious end of their lives. And by these things, we look for them to follow after us into everlasting glory, to share that glory with us forever and ever.
So may we keep them in remembrance before our dear ones! May we often recite and enumerate them to our children. May we do so always with delight and great zeal, showing the preciousness of the gospel to them. And may we remind them often, that these are the things that belong to their eternal salvation, and that our greatest desire for them is that they have them always in remembrance.
So may we live and also die for the sake of the testimony of Jesus Christ.
12 March 2014
“O Lord, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction, the Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit.”
Jeremiah 16:19
The glory of the Lord is the wonderful comfort and hope of God’s people!
Such is the manner of Jeremiah’s prayer. So He prayed, led by the Spirit. So He recorded this prayer by the Spirit, giving this prayer to us. So it becomes our example to follow, for our comfort and peace.
This comfort and peace prove their true power in times of great affliction. Jeremiah’s day was a day of great affliction. He loved God’s people. Constantly he prayed for their repentance, that they might turn from their sins. He prayed fervently, that their repentance might turn aside the judgment of God hanging over them, the destruction of the beloved city of Jerusalem. But the people whom he loved, and for whom he prayed were relentless in their hateful persecution of him. They hated him for the labour of love he bestowed on them, calling them to repentance for their sins in the name of the Lord.
In the day of affliction, Jeremiah fled to his God. The Lord he confessed to be his strength, his fortress, and his refuge. For the prophet’s weakness the Lord gave him strength. God sustained Him. God emboldened and encouraged him to carry out the work to which He had called him. God surrounded His servant with His almighty power. Jeremiah’s enemies found that power impenetrable. They were unable to carry out their hateful intentions, though they were so many, so strong, and their plots so clever. The Lord was also His servant’s refuge. Jeremiah was safe from harm, secure under the protection of his God.
Jeremiah’s confession of God’s glory was the ground of His security and strength. What kind of God is this, whom Jeremiah has made his refuge? He is the only true God of the whole earth. He is the one to whom belongs all power, glory, and honour. He alone has made the heavens and earth. He alone is Judge over all.
So Jeremiah confessed. Consider the way he stated his confession. He spoke of the latter days. “The Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth.” They shall come with a confession on their lips. With that confession they will declare the folly of their own fathers. “Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit.” That is why they come to the Lord from the ends of the earth. They have cast away their former vanities. They must come to the God who in whom is all strength and power. They must come to the God who is truly the fortress and refuge of His people, all those who trust in Him. In Him will they trust.
Though Jeremiah’s own countrymen will not seek after God, the Lord’s prophet is yet part of a great multitude who will yet come to the Lord, to have Him for their God. They, together with Jeremiah, will prove the greatness of Jeremiah’s God, confessing His glorious name, and saving truth.
So have we encouraged Jeremiah, God’s prophet of old. We who are Gentiles by nature have come to Jeremiah’s God. We have come making a confession about the gods worshipped by our fathers. We have said of our fathers, “Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit.” So we pray also, with Jeremiah, “O Lord, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction.”
So may we also follow after God’s holy prophet in our afflictions and trials. Through our prayers may we also continue to know the blessings of our mighty God, who is our strength, our fortress, and our refuge. May we continue to show His glory and power to generations to come, and to the ends of the earth!
“O Lord, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction, the Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit.”
Jeremiah 16:19
The glory of the Lord is the wonderful comfort and hope of God’s people!
Such is the manner of Jeremiah’s prayer. So He prayed, led by the Spirit. So He recorded this prayer by the Spirit, giving this prayer to us. So it becomes our example to follow, for our comfort and peace.
This comfort and peace prove their true power in times of great affliction. Jeremiah’s day was a day of great affliction. He loved God’s people. Constantly he prayed for their repentance, that they might turn from their sins. He prayed fervently, that their repentance might turn aside the judgment of God hanging over them, the destruction of the beloved city of Jerusalem. But the people whom he loved, and for whom he prayed were relentless in their hateful persecution of him. They hated him for the labour of love he bestowed on them, calling them to repentance for their sins in the name of the Lord.
In the day of affliction, Jeremiah fled to his God. The Lord he confessed to be his strength, his fortress, and his refuge. For the prophet’s weakness the Lord gave him strength. God sustained Him. God emboldened and encouraged him to carry out the work to which He had called him. God surrounded His servant with His almighty power. Jeremiah’s enemies found that power impenetrable. They were unable to carry out their hateful intentions, though they were so many, so strong, and their plots so clever. The Lord was also His servant’s refuge. Jeremiah was safe from harm, secure under the protection of his God.
Jeremiah’s confession of God’s glory was the ground of His security and strength. What kind of God is this, whom Jeremiah has made his refuge? He is the only true God of the whole earth. He is the one to whom belongs all power, glory, and honour. He alone has made the heavens and earth. He alone is Judge over all.
So Jeremiah confessed. Consider the way he stated his confession. He spoke of the latter days. “The Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth.” They shall come with a confession on their lips. With that confession they will declare the folly of their own fathers. “Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit.” That is why they come to the Lord from the ends of the earth. They have cast away their former vanities. They must come to the God who in whom is all strength and power. They must come to the God who is truly the fortress and refuge of His people, all those who trust in Him. In Him will they trust.
Though Jeremiah’s own countrymen will not seek after God, the Lord’s prophet is yet part of a great multitude who will yet come to the Lord, to have Him for their God. They, together with Jeremiah, will prove the greatness of Jeremiah’s God, confessing His glorious name, and saving truth.
So have we encouraged Jeremiah, God’s prophet of old. We who are Gentiles by nature have come to Jeremiah’s God. We have come making a confession about the gods worshipped by our fathers. We have said of our fathers, “Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit.” So we pray also, with Jeremiah, “O Lord, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction.”
So may we also follow after God’s holy prophet in our afflictions and trials. Through our prayers may we also continue to know the blessings of our mighty God, who is our strength, our fortress, and our refuge. May we continue to show His glory and power to generations to come, and to the ends of the earth!
9 March 2014, The Lord’s Day
“I will go into thy house with burnt offerings: I will pay thee my vows, Which my lips have uttered, and my mouth hath spoken, when I was in trouble.” Psalm 66:13, 14
With these words the Holy Spirit calls us to go into the Lord’s house in deep gratitude, there to acknowledge all that the Lord has done for us.
So the Psalmist expresses his personal determination to go into the Lord’s house to offer up burnt offerings, paying the vows he made to the Lord when he was in trouble. These vows he made when he prayed for deliverance from his trouble. As he prayed to the Lord, he determined to glorify the Lord as his own only Deliverer and Saviour. He promised to remember his God who delivered him, and to glorify Him, by offering to Him alone these tokens of thanksgiving.
So may we enter into God’s house today. What better way can there be to demonstrate and show our gratitude for our deliverance from our trouble?
In such trouble were we! We were crushed under the great mountain of our debt, the guilt of our sin. We were wrapped and bound in the heavy cords and chains of sin’s dominion. How they encircled us, holding us captive, not only our limbs, but down to the bottom of our hearts! Such was our enslavement, we could neither want nor seek God’s salvation. We loved those awful bonds, and delighted in them.
From that trouble, the Lord set us free. Graciously He sent His Son to be the atonement for our sins. All our debt He paid with His precious, righteous blood, making us righteous before God. On account of that blood He sent us His Spirit to free us from the power of sin. He has set us free!
So let us go into His house with great thanksgiving!
But what shall we bring? What shall we vow? What shall we offer? No longer a burnt offering, for God’s sacrifice of His Son must be the last offering for sin. Nothing we might lay our hands upon, to bring with us, can be suitable to express properly our gratitude.
Only one thing will do. Only one thing can correspond with the kind of deliverance we have experienced by the cross of Jesus Christ. As He has redeemed us, let us offer up ourselves. Let us offer up our hearts in the worship of our God. Let us offer up our ears, minds, and hearts, to hear, believe, and rejoice in His Word. Let us offer up our hearts and voices with songs of thanksgiving to our God.
In His house, the gathering of His people together, among whom He dwells in blessed fellowship.
Let us so offer up ourselves this Lord’s Day, going into His house, and also every day, in all our life.
“By [Jesus] therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.” Hebrews 13:15
“I will go into thy house with burnt offerings: I will pay thee my vows, Which my lips have uttered, and my mouth hath spoken, when I was in trouble.” Psalm 66:13, 14
With these words the Holy Spirit calls us to go into the Lord’s house in deep gratitude, there to acknowledge all that the Lord has done for us.
So the Psalmist expresses his personal determination to go into the Lord’s house to offer up burnt offerings, paying the vows he made to the Lord when he was in trouble. These vows he made when he prayed for deliverance from his trouble. As he prayed to the Lord, he determined to glorify the Lord as his own only Deliverer and Saviour. He promised to remember his God who delivered him, and to glorify Him, by offering to Him alone these tokens of thanksgiving.
So may we enter into God’s house today. What better way can there be to demonstrate and show our gratitude for our deliverance from our trouble?
In such trouble were we! We were crushed under the great mountain of our debt, the guilt of our sin. We were wrapped and bound in the heavy cords and chains of sin’s dominion. How they encircled us, holding us captive, not only our limbs, but down to the bottom of our hearts! Such was our enslavement, we could neither want nor seek God’s salvation. We loved those awful bonds, and delighted in them.
From that trouble, the Lord set us free. Graciously He sent His Son to be the atonement for our sins. All our debt He paid with His precious, righteous blood, making us righteous before God. On account of that blood He sent us His Spirit to free us from the power of sin. He has set us free!
So let us go into His house with great thanksgiving!
But what shall we bring? What shall we vow? What shall we offer? No longer a burnt offering, for God’s sacrifice of His Son must be the last offering for sin. Nothing we might lay our hands upon, to bring with us, can be suitable to express properly our gratitude.
Only one thing will do. Only one thing can correspond with the kind of deliverance we have experienced by the cross of Jesus Christ. As He has redeemed us, let us offer up ourselves. Let us offer up our hearts in the worship of our God. Let us offer up our ears, minds, and hearts, to hear, believe, and rejoice in His Word. Let us offer up our hearts and voices with songs of thanksgiving to our God.
In His house, the gathering of His people together, among whom He dwells in blessed fellowship.
Let us so offer up ourselves this Lord’s Day, going into His house, and also every day, in all our life.
“By [Jesus] therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.” Hebrews 13:15
8 March 2014
“And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.” Matthew 8:25, 26
“For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole. But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; Thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.” Matthew 9:21, 22
Rebuke in one, encouragement in the other, all about the same faith in Jesus’ divine power.
On the one side there are the disciples of Jesus Christ. They have followed their Master wherever He has gone. Constantly their ears were filled with His teachings. Constantly their eyes were filled with His signs and wonders of power and glory. By their close relation to Christ, their impressions of His power ought to have been ten times deeper than the multitudes who followed Him.
But now they cower with fear and terror, certain of their perishing in an angry sea. Before Jesus rebuked the winds and the sea to make of them a great calm, first He must rebuke the tumult of fear in their hearts. Why should they fear? He is with them. So He speaks to them, “Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?”
On the other side is a woman. She had her infirmity, an issue of blood that had plagued her for twelve years. She looked to Jesus for healing. She understood His power, and trusted it to heal her. So she thought within herself, “If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole.” No need to have Him speak. No need to have Him lay His hand upon her to direct His power toward her. Her faith was that the very hem of his garment held all the power she needed.
To her Jesus gave a most wonderful gift: encouragement. He did not content Himself to give her only the healing she desired. He blessed her faith with words of comfort. “Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole.”
How great is the love of our Lord! How great and glorious is His wisdom in that love. He loves all His sheep, and the measure of that love is determined by His sacrifice for them. For them all He laid down His life. His love is determined to promote the spiritual well-being of all those who believe and trust in Him. So in the wisdom of His love He deals with them as they need. Some, nearer to Him, He must rebuke, causing them sorrow and pain with His words. For their faith ought to be greater than it has shown itself. Others, further off, He will comfort and encourage as they act and walk in faith.
How does He deal with you today? Do you hear His rebuke or His commendation? How does He deal today with your fellow saint? What does your brother or sister in the Lord hear? Whatever you hear from your Lord, be certain it is the Word that you need, and it is the Word that will direct you to Him, for the strengthening of your faith in Him, your Saviour.
“And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.” Matthew 8:25, 26
“For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole. But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; Thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.” Matthew 9:21, 22
Rebuke in one, encouragement in the other, all about the same faith in Jesus’ divine power.
On the one side there are the disciples of Jesus Christ. They have followed their Master wherever He has gone. Constantly their ears were filled with His teachings. Constantly their eyes were filled with His signs and wonders of power and glory. By their close relation to Christ, their impressions of His power ought to have been ten times deeper than the multitudes who followed Him.
But now they cower with fear and terror, certain of their perishing in an angry sea. Before Jesus rebuked the winds and the sea to make of them a great calm, first He must rebuke the tumult of fear in their hearts. Why should they fear? He is with them. So He speaks to them, “Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?”
On the other side is a woman. She had her infirmity, an issue of blood that had plagued her for twelve years. She looked to Jesus for healing. She understood His power, and trusted it to heal her. So she thought within herself, “If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole.” No need to have Him speak. No need to have Him lay His hand upon her to direct His power toward her. Her faith was that the very hem of his garment held all the power she needed.
To her Jesus gave a most wonderful gift: encouragement. He did not content Himself to give her only the healing she desired. He blessed her faith with words of comfort. “Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole.”
How great is the love of our Lord! How great and glorious is His wisdom in that love. He loves all His sheep, and the measure of that love is determined by His sacrifice for them. For them all He laid down His life. His love is determined to promote the spiritual well-being of all those who believe and trust in Him. So in the wisdom of His love He deals with them as they need. Some, nearer to Him, He must rebuke, causing them sorrow and pain with His words. For their faith ought to be greater than it has shown itself. Others, further off, He will comfort and encourage as they act and walk in faith.
How does He deal with you today? Do you hear His rebuke or His commendation? How does He deal today with your fellow saint? What does your brother or sister in the Lord hear? Whatever you hear from your Lord, be certain it is the Word that you need, and it is the Word that will direct you to Him, for the strengthening of your faith in Him, your Saviour.
7 March 2014
“But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” Galatians 6:14
How often the apostle Paul showed himself an example in his epistles. He was a man whose life was filled with struggles, both inward and outward. He strove against the enemies of the gospel that constantly rose up, both from his own countrymen, from the heathen, and even from those in the very churches Christ established through him. He also had his struggles within. He struggled against the flesh, Romans 7. He had bouts of deep anxiety and concern for the fledgling churches of Christ, II Corinthians 1, 11. Even in these struggles the apostle exemplified the Christian life, bringing instruction and encouragement to churches when he shared with them his own struggles.
Paul presented himself as an example of devotion to the gospel, of care for churches, of Christian perseverance through all kinds of obstacles.
But here we have perhaps the most outstanding way in which Paul is an example: of glorying only in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!
The KJV helps us to understand the strength of the phrase that cannot be represented in English with the words, “God forbid!” The closest we might come to an accurate translation would be “may it not be,” but that phrase is far away from the force demanded by the original Greek phrase. The force is simple this: there must be no glorying. The Apostle will have his desires, his thoughts, his words giving no glory, no praise, no honour. There are no accolades nor praises to be found on his lips. He determines to refrain himself from lauding anything or anyone one.
Only one exception: the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The cross! The roughly hewn timbers crudely joined together, to form an instrument only of cruel torture by a death lingering for days and even weeks. In the cross Paul will glory. In that one cross upon which one Man died, slowly bleeding to death, having His ears filled with words of scorn and reproach multiplied by his gloating enemies and those simply passing by.
In the cross of this One, “our Lord Jesus Christ.” “God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Not in His teachings, having such authority. Not in His arguments, putting his enemies to shame. Not in His signs and wonders, many and mighty, testifying to the truth that their Worker was the very Son of God. Not in them, but in the cross. So far does Jesus’ cross surpass all else.
Why “in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ?” Those two pieces of wood were the instruments of Jesus to work the glorious, marvellous, all-surpassing wonder of the salvation of sinners such as the apostle Paul. He knew its wonder in him. “...by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” By Christ crucified, the world was crucified. The world was nailed to the cross, and the world was put to death. The world was crucified to Paul. It was dead to him. So he might view the world with contempt and reproach, its charms and pleasures no longer appealed. No longer had the world its power and influence upon him. Its mastery was forever broken.
By Christ crucified also was Paul crucified to the world. The apostle might now know the contempt and reproach of those who formerly were his allies, Acts 21-26. The apostle might now know the deep hatred and fury of the heathen, whose false religion was threatened by the glorious gospel of the cross of Jesus Christ.
So is the power of the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ to us. By that cross is fulfilled the mother promise of Genesis 3:15, the promise of enmity between the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman. As we hold the world in contempt, and as the world holds us in contempt, there is the glorious power of the cross to save us. There is the salvation of our Lord Jesus Christ, saving us to be the people of the living God, precious and beloved to Him.
Enjoying this blessed salvation, may we have no glory in our hearts, no affection in our minds, no praises upon our lips, save for the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!
“But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” Galatians 6:14
How often the apostle Paul showed himself an example in his epistles. He was a man whose life was filled with struggles, both inward and outward. He strove against the enemies of the gospel that constantly rose up, both from his own countrymen, from the heathen, and even from those in the very churches Christ established through him. He also had his struggles within. He struggled against the flesh, Romans 7. He had bouts of deep anxiety and concern for the fledgling churches of Christ, II Corinthians 1, 11. Even in these struggles the apostle exemplified the Christian life, bringing instruction and encouragement to churches when he shared with them his own struggles.
Paul presented himself as an example of devotion to the gospel, of care for churches, of Christian perseverance through all kinds of obstacles.
But here we have perhaps the most outstanding way in which Paul is an example: of glorying only in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!
The KJV helps us to understand the strength of the phrase that cannot be represented in English with the words, “God forbid!” The closest we might come to an accurate translation would be “may it not be,” but that phrase is far away from the force demanded by the original Greek phrase. The force is simple this: there must be no glorying. The Apostle will have his desires, his thoughts, his words giving no glory, no praise, no honour. There are no accolades nor praises to be found on his lips. He determines to refrain himself from lauding anything or anyone one.
Only one exception: the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The cross! The roughly hewn timbers crudely joined together, to form an instrument only of cruel torture by a death lingering for days and even weeks. In the cross Paul will glory. In that one cross upon which one Man died, slowly bleeding to death, having His ears filled with words of scorn and reproach multiplied by his gloating enemies and those simply passing by.
In the cross of this One, “our Lord Jesus Christ.” “God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Not in His teachings, having such authority. Not in His arguments, putting his enemies to shame. Not in His signs and wonders, many and mighty, testifying to the truth that their Worker was the very Son of God. Not in them, but in the cross. So far does Jesus’ cross surpass all else.
Why “in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ?” Those two pieces of wood were the instruments of Jesus to work the glorious, marvellous, all-surpassing wonder of the salvation of sinners such as the apostle Paul. He knew its wonder in him. “...by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” By Christ crucified, the world was crucified. The world was nailed to the cross, and the world was put to death. The world was crucified to Paul. It was dead to him. So he might view the world with contempt and reproach, its charms and pleasures no longer appealed. No longer had the world its power and influence upon him. Its mastery was forever broken.
By Christ crucified also was Paul crucified to the world. The apostle might now know the contempt and reproach of those who formerly were his allies, Acts 21-26. The apostle might now know the deep hatred and fury of the heathen, whose false religion was threatened by the glorious gospel of the cross of Jesus Christ.
So is the power of the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ to us. By that cross is fulfilled the mother promise of Genesis 3:15, the promise of enmity between the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman. As we hold the world in contempt, and as the world holds us in contempt, there is the glorious power of the cross to save us. There is the salvation of our Lord Jesus Christ, saving us to be the people of the living God, precious and beloved to Him.
Enjoying this blessed salvation, may we have no glory in our hearts, no affection in our minds, no praises upon our lips, save for the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!
6 March 2014
“But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing.” II Thessalonians 3:13
Impossible it is to understand the meaning of this short exhortation without considering what comes before. Before this verse the apostle Paul instructed the church to note those among them who will not work. Instead of working they were disorderly, causing trouble in the church. They were not busy in work, but were busybodies. They were getting involved in other people’s matters and business, causing weariness for them. With authority, the apostle himself rebuked them, and commanded them to work in quietness and to eat their own bread.
Then the apostle turns back to the church, those who did not need that reproof and rebuke. For them he has another instruction: “But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing.” Their calling is to go beyond working quietly with their own hands, and eating their own bread.
“Well doing” is a wonderfully broad word. It addresses the Christian life as full of opportunities given every Christian by God, to work for the wellbeing of others around him. It points the Christian to his neighbour. The neighbour is his wife, his children, his fellow saints in the church. The neighbour is the unbelieving or believing boss or employee. The neighbour is the unbelieving or believing co-worker, and the unbeliever next door or down the street. That neighbour may have definite needs. The Christian’s calling is to do what he can to supply that need, to do him well. That neighbour may not have needs so definite, but the Christian’s calling is to greet him, be friendly, kind, and cheerful, and put himself in readiness to help, should the need arise. The Christian is ready to speak a word of comfort or of encouragement should the occasion arise.
In giving this call to well doing, the Word of God is very honest with us. We can become weary in well doing. We may have difficulty at times simply attending to our own business, to do it with quietness. Well-doing can seem to demand so much more of us that we become weary just thinking about it.
There is help in thinking about the exact meaning of the word translated, “be not weary.” It means to become wearied out of something harmful to us. Just as a toxin or poison may drain the body of its energy, causing great weariness in the body, and even penetrating to the spirit, such can happen in well doing. Because well doing requires so much of us, we can begin to think of it as something evil and harmful to us, rather than something good. How wearisome, then!
The exhortation, then, “be not weary in well doing,” means that we must develop and maintain a good attitude toward well doing, always to see it as beneficial always and never as harmful.
To be sure, always beneficial is well doing to our neighbour, but it is also beneficial to us.
For, first, well doing itself is a powerful instrument of our sanctification. In and through the Christian’s well doing, the Holy Spirit manifests Himself in the working of His glorious power. The Christian’s good deeds are first and primarily the works of God the Spirit in him, by whose working He does them. His good works are by the indwelling, enlivening, and quickening power of the Spirit. In such deeds of well doing, the Christian witnesses first-hand, the almighty working of the Spirit in him.
Second, well doing is the fruit and evidence of a life that is everlasting. Their only source is the gift of the Spirit in the believer’s regeneration. That life is a life that is imperishable, and incorruptible, and that always tend toward the everlasting life of heaven. That life not only manifests itself in the good works we do. That life also is strengthened in us through all well doing.
Thirdly, in such well doing, we lay up treasure in heaven (Matthew 6:20) and are rich toward God (I Timothy 6:18). Where our treasure is, there will our hearts be also. So are we guarded against selfishness and self-seeking, and further enabled to do well. So are we encouraged to continue on in the way of well doing.
So may God grant us many opportunities to be busy in well doing, and may we not be weary in it, sustained and strengthened by the riches of His grace in Christ Jesus our Lord!
“But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing.” II Thessalonians 3:13
Impossible it is to understand the meaning of this short exhortation without considering what comes before. Before this verse the apostle Paul instructed the church to note those among them who will not work. Instead of working they were disorderly, causing trouble in the church. They were not busy in work, but were busybodies. They were getting involved in other people’s matters and business, causing weariness for them. With authority, the apostle himself rebuked them, and commanded them to work in quietness and to eat their own bread.
Then the apostle turns back to the church, those who did not need that reproof and rebuke. For them he has another instruction: “But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing.” Their calling is to go beyond working quietly with their own hands, and eating their own bread.
“Well doing” is a wonderfully broad word. It addresses the Christian life as full of opportunities given every Christian by God, to work for the wellbeing of others around him. It points the Christian to his neighbour. The neighbour is his wife, his children, his fellow saints in the church. The neighbour is the unbelieving or believing boss or employee. The neighbour is the unbelieving or believing co-worker, and the unbeliever next door or down the street. That neighbour may have definite needs. The Christian’s calling is to do what he can to supply that need, to do him well. That neighbour may not have needs so definite, but the Christian’s calling is to greet him, be friendly, kind, and cheerful, and put himself in readiness to help, should the need arise. The Christian is ready to speak a word of comfort or of encouragement should the occasion arise.
In giving this call to well doing, the Word of God is very honest with us. We can become weary in well doing. We may have difficulty at times simply attending to our own business, to do it with quietness. Well-doing can seem to demand so much more of us that we become weary just thinking about it.
There is help in thinking about the exact meaning of the word translated, “be not weary.” It means to become wearied out of something harmful to us. Just as a toxin or poison may drain the body of its energy, causing great weariness in the body, and even penetrating to the spirit, such can happen in well doing. Because well doing requires so much of us, we can begin to think of it as something evil and harmful to us, rather than something good. How wearisome, then!
The exhortation, then, “be not weary in well doing,” means that we must develop and maintain a good attitude toward well doing, always to see it as beneficial always and never as harmful.
To be sure, always beneficial is well doing to our neighbour, but it is also beneficial to us.
For, first, well doing itself is a powerful instrument of our sanctification. In and through the Christian’s well doing, the Holy Spirit manifests Himself in the working of His glorious power. The Christian’s good deeds are first and primarily the works of God the Spirit in him, by whose working He does them. His good works are by the indwelling, enlivening, and quickening power of the Spirit. In such deeds of well doing, the Christian witnesses first-hand, the almighty working of the Spirit in him.
Second, well doing is the fruit and evidence of a life that is everlasting. Their only source is the gift of the Spirit in the believer’s regeneration. That life is a life that is imperishable, and incorruptible, and that always tend toward the everlasting life of heaven. That life not only manifests itself in the good works we do. That life also is strengthened in us through all well doing.
Thirdly, in such well doing, we lay up treasure in heaven (Matthew 6:20) and are rich toward God (I Timothy 6:18). Where our treasure is, there will our hearts be also. So are we guarded against selfishness and self-seeking, and further enabled to do well. So are we encouraged to continue on in the way of well doing.
So may God grant us many opportunities to be busy in well doing, and may we not be weary in it, sustained and strengthened by the riches of His grace in Christ Jesus our Lord!
5 March 2014
“And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked . . .” Ephesians 2:1,2
These words represent an axiom. Simply, they belong together, and cannot be separated in any sense. After all, who can be raised from the dead, but only those who are really and truly dead? There is only a certain kind of force and power that can operate upon the dead, and that power is called properly “quickening.” You cannot be quickened, unless you were first dead.
There are, of course, lesser versions, which do not match up to that word “quickening.” There are works of healing. Whether we point to regular, ordinary healings, or miraculous healings, they belong to a different category than raising from the dead. There are also mistakes and tricks. One is supposed to be dead. Perhaps medically declared dead, perhaps mistaken for dead, or presented to be dead for deception, but when those “dead” are revived, it is not resurrection from the dead.
Passing strange it is, then, that we have such a difficult time with this axiomatic statement the Truth tells us in His Word: “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins.” For we would like to rejoice and hold the first part, quickening, while compromising the second part, “who were dead in trespasses and sins.” But the Scripture cannot be broken. If we are not dead, then we cannot be raised from the dead. If we are unwilling to subscribe to our death in trespasses and sins, neither can we claim to be quickened from that death. At bottom, one cannot be regenerated who is not before totally depraved. The gospel never makes a good man better: it only raises the dead.
Because of our proud tendency to compromise the obvious, the Spirit continues in Ephesians 1:2 to explain what exactly this death is. The kind of death from which we are quickened is not a death of inactivity. This death is not only a lack of responsiveness to any poking or prodding. It is not a death where one is only a corpse lying in a grave doing nothing but rotting. This death is, in fact, highly active.
How active? “Wherein in time past ye walked.” It is a walking death. It is a breathing death. It is a willing, thinking, running death. It is a death in which you walked. It is a death in which you grew up, went to school and perhaps college or university, got married, raised a family, and perhaps ran a business or even a corporation. It is a death which brings about culture, society, and civilization. With all that activity, hustle and bustle, it is death. It is death “in trespasses and sins.” Morally, ethically, the world is run by the spiritually and morally dead.
Then the almighty, glorious, divine wonder: you hath he quickened. From that walking death, the living God quickened you. The Spirit of God infused into your heart the resurrection life of the Son, according to the will of the Father. He raised your will from death to life, your mind from death to life, your limbs from death to life, translating you into His heavenly kingdom.
Now as you enjoy and treasure that life, walking in it, never forget your humble origin: “you hath he quickened, who were dead.” As you remember, glorify and serve Him in that newness of life!
“And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked . . .” Ephesians 2:1,2
These words represent an axiom. Simply, they belong together, and cannot be separated in any sense. After all, who can be raised from the dead, but only those who are really and truly dead? There is only a certain kind of force and power that can operate upon the dead, and that power is called properly “quickening.” You cannot be quickened, unless you were first dead.
There are, of course, lesser versions, which do not match up to that word “quickening.” There are works of healing. Whether we point to regular, ordinary healings, or miraculous healings, they belong to a different category than raising from the dead. There are also mistakes and tricks. One is supposed to be dead. Perhaps medically declared dead, perhaps mistaken for dead, or presented to be dead for deception, but when those “dead” are revived, it is not resurrection from the dead.
Passing strange it is, then, that we have such a difficult time with this axiomatic statement the Truth tells us in His Word: “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins.” For we would like to rejoice and hold the first part, quickening, while compromising the second part, “who were dead in trespasses and sins.” But the Scripture cannot be broken. If we are not dead, then we cannot be raised from the dead. If we are unwilling to subscribe to our death in trespasses and sins, neither can we claim to be quickened from that death. At bottom, one cannot be regenerated who is not before totally depraved. The gospel never makes a good man better: it only raises the dead.
Because of our proud tendency to compromise the obvious, the Spirit continues in Ephesians 1:2 to explain what exactly this death is. The kind of death from which we are quickened is not a death of inactivity. This death is not only a lack of responsiveness to any poking or prodding. It is not a death where one is only a corpse lying in a grave doing nothing but rotting. This death is, in fact, highly active.
How active? “Wherein in time past ye walked.” It is a walking death. It is a breathing death. It is a willing, thinking, running death. It is a death in which you walked. It is a death in which you grew up, went to school and perhaps college or university, got married, raised a family, and perhaps ran a business or even a corporation. It is a death which brings about culture, society, and civilization. With all that activity, hustle and bustle, it is death. It is death “in trespasses and sins.” Morally, ethically, the world is run by the spiritually and morally dead.
Then the almighty, glorious, divine wonder: you hath he quickened. From that walking death, the living God quickened you. The Spirit of God infused into your heart the resurrection life of the Son, according to the will of the Father. He raised your will from death to life, your mind from death to life, your limbs from death to life, translating you into His heavenly kingdom.
Now as you enjoy and treasure that life, walking in it, never forget your humble origin: “you hath he quickened, who were dead.” As you remember, glorify and serve Him in that newness of life!
4 March 2014
“Thou puttest away all the wicked of the earth like dross: therefore I love thy testimonies.” Psalm 119:119
“Testimonies” is perhaps the clearest word that leads us to the living God, who is the Author of the law declared in Holy Scriptures. A man will give his testimony. He will declare what he knows to be true. He will speak of it over and over again. Upon his testimony he will stake his name and reputation as a truthful witness. He is ever ready to take an oath to demonstrate the truth of his statements. Into his testimony he puts all the weight and force of his character. So it is with the law of God. He declares His commandments over and over. He stands behind His Word with all the glory of His being. He explains, expounds, and applies over and over again. After He gave his laws to Moses, He repeated them and applied them through all His prophets, who gave His testimonies in His name.
In this word above, from Psalm 119, we express our love for God’s testimonies as a most ardent affection, and determined desire. We testify that His testimonies are our great delight, to pursue after them, and to cleave after them.
Why?
The reason is given us in the first part of the verse: “Thou puttest away all the wicked of the earth like dross.”
Those words invoke a powerful picture. A refiner of silver has one goal in his refining: pure silver. He takes the silver that he finds, mixed with all kinds of impurities, and puts them in the furnace, heating it up to a temperature where it melts. As he watches the molten metal, he sees its impurities rise to the surface. Through a hollow tube he would blow hot air over the surface of the metal, turning the impurities into a powder, which the same blast of air would then blow away. He would continue this process until only silver was left.
So is the judgement of God with the wicked. They are not silver, but dross. By His mighty judgments, the wicked are forcefully driven out from among the righteous, never to pollute or corrupt them again.
“Therefore I love thy testimonies!”
By His testimonies, we are able to take up the same work as our God. As it is His holy work to purify His righteous people by putting away the wicked of the earth like dross, so it is our holy work to purify ourselves. His testimonies are His gifts, by which we are equipped to follow His way. His testimonies equip us to search out ourselves, our habits, our conduct, our language. His testimonies allow us to search and examine our minds and hearts. In this searching they become the burning fire that separates the dross in us from the silver. The dross we are meant to put away, far from us, that we may be more and more pure silver.
As we take up this purification, we are blessed to see the gracious operations of God within us. We see the silver that is there by the power of His grace to sanctify us who are only dross by nature. We are also able to testify of the grace of God working in us, for it is only by that grace that we can and do use His testimonies to purify ourselves. And as we see this gracious work of God, we know that we shall not be put away as dross, but we shall be saved.
Therefore, let us love the testimonies of our God, and let us grow in our love for them as they refine us!
“Thou puttest away all the wicked of the earth like dross: therefore I love thy testimonies.” Psalm 119:119
“Testimonies” is perhaps the clearest word that leads us to the living God, who is the Author of the law declared in Holy Scriptures. A man will give his testimony. He will declare what he knows to be true. He will speak of it over and over again. Upon his testimony he will stake his name and reputation as a truthful witness. He is ever ready to take an oath to demonstrate the truth of his statements. Into his testimony he puts all the weight and force of his character. So it is with the law of God. He declares His commandments over and over. He stands behind His Word with all the glory of His being. He explains, expounds, and applies over and over again. After He gave his laws to Moses, He repeated them and applied them through all His prophets, who gave His testimonies in His name.
In this word above, from Psalm 119, we express our love for God’s testimonies as a most ardent affection, and determined desire. We testify that His testimonies are our great delight, to pursue after them, and to cleave after them.
Why?
The reason is given us in the first part of the verse: “Thou puttest away all the wicked of the earth like dross.”
Those words invoke a powerful picture. A refiner of silver has one goal in his refining: pure silver. He takes the silver that he finds, mixed with all kinds of impurities, and puts them in the furnace, heating it up to a temperature where it melts. As he watches the molten metal, he sees its impurities rise to the surface. Through a hollow tube he would blow hot air over the surface of the metal, turning the impurities into a powder, which the same blast of air would then blow away. He would continue this process until only silver was left.
So is the judgement of God with the wicked. They are not silver, but dross. By His mighty judgments, the wicked are forcefully driven out from among the righteous, never to pollute or corrupt them again.
“Therefore I love thy testimonies!”
By His testimonies, we are able to take up the same work as our God. As it is His holy work to purify His righteous people by putting away the wicked of the earth like dross, so it is our holy work to purify ourselves. His testimonies are His gifts, by which we are equipped to follow His way. His testimonies equip us to search out ourselves, our habits, our conduct, our language. His testimonies allow us to search and examine our minds and hearts. In this searching they become the burning fire that separates the dross in us from the silver. The dross we are meant to put away, far from us, that we may be more and more pure silver.
As we take up this purification, we are blessed to see the gracious operations of God within us. We see the silver that is there by the power of His grace to sanctify us who are only dross by nature. We are also able to testify of the grace of God working in us, for it is only by that grace that we can and do use His testimonies to purify ourselves. And as we see this gracious work of God, we know that we shall not be put away as dross, but we shall be saved.
Therefore, let us love the testimonies of our God, and let us grow in our love for them as they refine us!
2 March 2014
“They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.” Psalm 84:7
Who are these who in Zion appear before God?
Who shall run the course of the race that is before him? Who shall endure steadfast to the end? Who shall persevere through all trials and tribulations? Who shall overcome every obstacle and cast off every hindrance? Who shall come to Zion, and who shall appear before God?
Those who go from strength to strength. “Every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.”
What does it mean to go from strength to strength?
First, it means to go from strength to weakness, and back to strength. In this way of endurance, those who will appear in Zion before God have a long way to go. They must be and are renewed in strength. They need strength to persevere in their way. As they continue on in their journey to Zion they grow weak. In their weakness, God supplies them with renewed strength, enabling them to carry on again for such a time until He renews them again.
So it is with the people of God. After length of days, “Every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.” But through that length of days, they have their pilgrimage. Over the week, they fight the battle of faith, striving to remain faithful to God in their journey to Zion. In this struggle to endure, they grow weak and weary. How blessed to them is their appointed day of rest, their Sabbath! How they delight to feed in the green pastures and to drink of the living water of the Word of God! So are they renewed in strength to carry on their pilgrimage, at the beginning of another week that will bring them closer to Zion.
Second, going from strength to strength means greater strength and greater vitality. God’s people become stronger. As they feed on the Word of God, they are transformed from glory to glory, renewed more and more after the image of the Son, II Corinthians 3:18. They become spiritually more mature, growing more and more into their Head, Jesus Christ. They become more firmly rooted and grounded in Him by faith, through the working of the Holy Spirit. They become more assured of the eternal Sabbath that shall conclude all their earthly Sabbaths, each Sabbath bringing them nearer to their appearance in Zion before God.
May it be our great delight to receive the strength that shall be ours this Sabbath Day, to know the works of God declared to us in His Word as the power that shall lead us daily to our eternal rest. All, as God has promised in His Word: “Every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.”
“They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.” Psalm 84:7
Who are these who in Zion appear before God?
Who shall run the course of the race that is before him? Who shall endure steadfast to the end? Who shall persevere through all trials and tribulations? Who shall overcome every obstacle and cast off every hindrance? Who shall come to Zion, and who shall appear before God?
Those who go from strength to strength. “Every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.”
What does it mean to go from strength to strength?
First, it means to go from strength to weakness, and back to strength. In this way of endurance, those who will appear in Zion before God have a long way to go. They must be and are renewed in strength. They need strength to persevere in their way. As they continue on in their journey to Zion they grow weak. In their weakness, God supplies them with renewed strength, enabling them to carry on again for such a time until He renews them again.
So it is with the people of God. After length of days, “Every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.” But through that length of days, they have their pilgrimage. Over the week, they fight the battle of faith, striving to remain faithful to God in their journey to Zion. In this struggle to endure, they grow weak and weary. How blessed to them is their appointed day of rest, their Sabbath! How they delight to feed in the green pastures and to drink of the living water of the Word of God! So are they renewed in strength to carry on their pilgrimage, at the beginning of another week that will bring them closer to Zion.
Second, going from strength to strength means greater strength and greater vitality. God’s people become stronger. As they feed on the Word of God, they are transformed from glory to glory, renewed more and more after the image of the Son, II Corinthians 3:18. They become spiritually more mature, growing more and more into their Head, Jesus Christ. They become more firmly rooted and grounded in Him by faith, through the working of the Holy Spirit. They become more assured of the eternal Sabbath that shall conclude all their earthly Sabbaths, each Sabbath bringing them nearer to their appearance in Zion before God.
May it be our great delight to receive the strength that shall be ours this Sabbath Day, to know the works of God declared to us in His Word as the power that shall lead us daily to our eternal rest. All, as God has promised in His Word: “Every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.”
1 March 2014
“It may be the Lord thy God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the living God, and will reprove the words which the Lord thy God hath heard: wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that is left.” Isaiah 37:4
These words were part of the message that good king Hezekiah of Judah, sent to Isaiah, seeking the prophet’s prayers “for the remnant that is left.”
For there was only a remnant left. Sennacherib’s army had devastated the land of Judah with the great army of Assyria. Village after village, town after town, city after city he had taken for the growing empire of Assyria. Now his army surrounded the very capital of Judah, the holy city of Jerusalem. Only a remnant was left. Sennacherib’s method was to cause such despair in this remnant, that they should immediately surrender their city, without a long siege.
Sennacherib was not content, however, only to attack the city of Jerusalem. Part of his method was also to attack the God of this people and this city. As God's people would hear from Jerusalem’s wall Sennacherib’s words of reproach against their God, his design was that they would feel even more hopeless.
Such was the evil pride of Sennacherib, to attack and to reproach.
But therein is also the hope of God’s people. Their God is the living God. He hears the words of reproach spoken against His glorious name. He also hears the words of His people, in supplication to Him. Still they look to Him for refuge. Still they call upon His name to defeat their enemies for them.
So we come to the wonderful bond of Isaiah 37:3. Two glorious concerns are knit together in prayer before God, because God Himself has joined them together. First and foremost is the glory of God. “It may be the Lord thy God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the living God.” Further, that God will take holy action, in jealousy for the glory of His name. “And will reprove the words which the Lord thy God hath heard.” Then follows the second concern, out of the first. “Wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that is left.”
This bond is the bond of the covenant. God is the God of His people. The glory of His name is bound up with them. In gracious love He has placed upon them His name. His glory is their defense. Therefore, prayer for the glory of God’s name is prayer for the salvation of His people. Prayer for the salvation of His people is prayer for the glory of God’s name.
Most evident is this truth in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Head of the church. His glory, the glory of God, is also the glory of the church. His church must be defended and preserved. His church must be saved, all for the glory of His name.
So are we led to pray according to this wondrous combination of grace. So must we pray when we see the church persecuted and bearing reproach for the sake of the truth and the name of Jesus Christ. So must we pray when we hear the name of God and of Christ blasphemed. As we pray, our confidence must be the same as the answer to Isaiah’s prayer, Isaiah 37:36. God will glorify His name, and He will save the people of His name, though only a remnant.
“It may be the Lord thy God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the living God, and will reprove the words which the Lord thy God hath heard: wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that is left.” Isaiah 37:4
These words were part of the message that good king Hezekiah of Judah, sent to Isaiah, seeking the prophet’s prayers “for the remnant that is left.”
For there was only a remnant left. Sennacherib’s army had devastated the land of Judah with the great army of Assyria. Village after village, town after town, city after city he had taken for the growing empire of Assyria. Now his army surrounded the very capital of Judah, the holy city of Jerusalem. Only a remnant was left. Sennacherib’s method was to cause such despair in this remnant, that they should immediately surrender their city, without a long siege.
Sennacherib was not content, however, only to attack the city of Jerusalem. Part of his method was also to attack the God of this people and this city. As God's people would hear from Jerusalem’s wall Sennacherib’s words of reproach against their God, his design was that they would feel even more hopeless.
Such was the evil pride of Sennacherib, to attack and to reproach.
But therein is also the hope of God’s people. Their God is the living God. He hears the words of reproach spoken against His glorious name. He also hears the words of His people, in supplication to Him. Still they look to Him for refuge. Still they call upon His name to defeat their enemies for them.
So we come to the wonderful bond of Isaiah 37:3. Two glorious concerns are knit together in prayer before God, because God Himself has joined them together. First and foremost is the glory of God. “It may be the Lord thy God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the living God.” Further, that God will take holy action, in jealousy for the glory of His name. “And will reprove the words which the Lord thy God hath heard.” Then follows the second concern, out of the first. “Wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that is left.”
This bond is the bond of the covenant. God is the God of His people. The glory of His name is bound up with them. In gracious love He has placed upon them His name. His glory is their defense. Therefore, prayer for the glory of God’s name is prayer for the salvation of His people. Prayer for the salvation of His people is prayer for the glory of God’s name.
Most evident is this truth in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Head of the church. His glory, the glory of God, is also the glory of the church. His church must be defended and preserved. His church must be saved, all for the glory of His name.
So are we led to pray according to this wondrous combination of grace. So must we pray when we see the church persecuted and bearing reproach for the sake of the truth and the name of Jesus Christ. So must we pray when we hear the name of God and of Christ blasphemed. As we pray, our confidence must be the same as the answer to Isaiah’s prayer, Isaiah 37:36. God will glorify His name, and He will save the people of His name, though only a remnant.
28 February 2014
“Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.” Romans 8:7
What a mighty answer we are given to the litany of questions that come before!
These questions are certainly daunting. “Who can be against us?” We think of the numbers of the ungodly that can make us afraid. “Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect?” We think of Satan, the great accuser and slanderer of God’s people. “Who is he that condemneth?” We think of earthly judges and courts that have accused Christians falsely, condemning them to torture, bonds, and even death. “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?” What possibilities are shown to us: tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril and sword!
Before these questions we fear and tremble! We are certainly sinful. Every day we present every kind of ground for our condemnation and judgment. We are also frightfully weak. We often feel so feeble and frail under the lightest burden. We quail before any kind of opposition. We read and hear of those who stand in the midst of terrifying persecution, and who courageously and calmly testify of their hope, and we know we cannot possibly measure up to their example.
Shall we not fail? Shall we not be hopelessly defeated?
Nay!
Not a soft “Nay.” Not a tentative “Nay.” Not even a hint of “maybe” in that “Nay.”
Nay!
Facing them all, gathered together and bent on our destruction, “Nay” must be our answer. “In all these things,” our answer remains, “Nay.”
Because, “in all these things we are more than conquerors!” More literally, “we are hyper-victorious.” Above conquering, higher than triumphant, beyond victorious are we. To the outcome of this contest there is absolutely no question.
Only one reason is there for this hyper-victory. “Through him that loved us.”
Through God, and through God alone. He is the living God, the almighty, the Maker of heaven and earth. He is sovereign over all the affairs of men, and over the hosts of Satan and the fallen angels. He is the omnipotent God, whose will is always accomplished in all his creation, without exception. Through His power shall be our victory.
This victory is assured to us by His great love. There is a reason why God is identified in this manner, “Through him that loved us.” His love assures us that He is determined on our victory. We are dear and precious to Him. We are beloved by Him. By that eternal, present, ongoing love, we are to be assured that, indeed, we are “more than conquerors.” His love is also assured to us in the gift that He has already given us, His dear, beloved, only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ. That proof is presented powerfully in verses 32 and 34, against any opposition and against any condemnation.
As we face the powerful forces arrayed against us today, whether open opposition and reproach, or whether the powerful temptations of the world, the devil, and our flesh, we are to stand, assured that we are “more than conquerors.”
Through Him that loved us!
“Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.” Romans 8:7
What a mighty answer we are given to the litany of questions that come before!
These questions are certainly daunting. “Who can be against us?” We think of the numbers of the ungodly that can make us afraid. “Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect?” We think of Satan, the great accuser and slanderer of God’s people. “Who is he that condemneth?” We think of earthly judges and courts that have accused Christians falsely, condemning them to torture, bonds, and even death. “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?” What possibilities are shown to us: tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril and sword!
Before these questions we fear and tremble! We are certainly sinful. Every day we present every kind of ground for our condemnation and judgment. We are also frightfully weak. We often feel so feeble and frail under the lightest burden. We quail before any kind of opposition. We read and hear of those who stand in the midst of terrifying persecution, and who courageously and calmly testify of their hope, and we know we cannot possibly measure up to their example.
Shall we not fail? Shall we not be hopelessly defeated?
Nay!
Not a soft “Nay.” Not a tentative “Nay.” Not even a hint of “maybe” in that “Nay.”
Nay!
Facing them all, gathered together and bent on our destruction, “Nay” must be our answer. “In all these things,” our answer remains, “Nay.”
Because, “in all these things we are more than conquerors!” More literally, “we are hyper-victorious.” Above conquering, higher than triumphant, beyond victorious are we. To the outcome of this contest there is absolutely no question.
Only one reason is there for this hyper-victory. “Through him that loved us.”
Through God, and through God alone. He is the living God, the almighty, the Maker of heaven and earth. He is sovereign over all the affairs of men, and over the hosts of Satan and the fallen angels. He is the omnipotent God, whose will is always accomplished in all his creation, without exception. Through His power shall be our victory.
This victory is assured to us by His great love. There is a reason why God is identified in this manner, “Through him that loved us.” His love assures us that He is determined on our victory. We are dear and precious to Him. We are beloved by Him. By that eternal, present, ongoing love, we are to be assured that, indeed, we are “more than conquerors.” His love is also assured to us in the gift that He has already given us, His dear, beloved, only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ. That proof is presented powerfully in verses 32 and 34, against any opposition and against any condemnation.
As we face the powerful forces arrayed against us today, whether open opposition and reproach, or whether the powerful temptations of the world, the devil, and our flesh, we are to stand, assured that we are “more than conquerors.”
Through Him that loved us!
27 February 2014
“Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people.” Hebrews 8:9, 10
Not that covenant, but this! Not the old, but the new!
There was that old covenant. The old covenant is well explained in the first verse above. According to His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the Lord delivered their seed out of their harsh and bitter bondage in Egypt. By His hand He overthrew all the power of Israel’s dreadful lords, and brought His people out by glorious signs and wonders. By His deliverance, He claimed them for His own. He showed them the way that He was their God. He gave them the way that they were to be His people.
But that old covenant failed disastrously. This people of God refused to walk in His ways. Their history was a history of provoking their God to anger, by their constant revolt from Him. Even as this covenant was being spelled out to Moses on Mt. Sinai, God’s people were busy worshipping an image and committing fornication with each other. Over and over they provoked their God in the wilderness, when they possessed the land of Canaan, and through their history under their kings.
To be sure, there were bright spots in their history. The days of Joshua, of Samuel, of David, and Solomon, of such good kings as Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, and Josiah, stood out in wonderful relief against the dark and dismal days of this covenant people. There were surely those who through faith did marvelous and glorious deeds. There were the true children of God, trusting in God, and looking to God for salvation, in both Judah and Israel. Even in the dark days of Ahab, God comforted Elijah with the truth that there was a remnant according to the election of grace, a remnant of seven thousand that had not bent the knee to Baal. They enjoyed the comfort and peace of the gospel, though they lived in such darkness. Even under the old covenant, these few had what they had and did what they did under the power of the new covenant, though hidden under the old.
But that old covenant failed. Israel did not continue in God’s covenant. And the Lord regarded them not.
Why did that old covenant fail? It failed because it was a covenant of law. That is, under its terms the Lord demanded of His people, but did not give them what He demanded. That lack is evident from the verse that follows. As in the new covenant, that God would make with His people, He would put his laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts, such He did not do in the old. He did not put his laws into their mind. Nor did He write them in their hearts. In their sad history, they demonstrated that they could not possibly give what God demanded. There was no good thing in them by nature.
But that old covenant, with its complete failure, was to serve the new, better covenant. For the new covenant was not to be a covenant of law, but of gospel. It was not to be a covenant of works, but a covenant of grace. It must be, for it actually to work, and be successful, a covenant of thorough, complete grace. It operating principle is what Augustine phrased so well in his prayer, “Lord, give what thou commandest, and command what thou wilt.” What God requires–His law–that He will give. He gives to His people, every one of them, all that He requires. He requires of them obedience to His law. “I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts.” He requires regeneration. “Ye must be born again.” He gives regeneration. He requires faith. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” He gives faith. He requires perseverance. “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” He gives perseverance.
Such is the glory of this new covenant: So thoroughly will God be the God of His people, that they shall be to Him a people. They will be His people, because He makes them such, all the way through.
Rejoice to be in that new, everlasting covenant of grace! Rejoice to walk in its ways, and to show its power. And remember in it to bless and glorify your God. He has given you everything to be in it, especially the gift of His Son, whose precious blood has brought you in and keeps you in, and which gives you all things.
“Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people.” Hebrews 8:9, 10
Not that covenant, but this! Not the old, but the new!
There was that old covenant. The old covenant is well explained in the first verse above. According to His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the Lord delivered their seed out of their harsh and bitter bondage in Egypt. By His hand He overthrew all the power of Israel’s dreadful lords, and brought His people out by glorious signs and wonders. By His deliverance, He claimed them for His own. He showed them the way that He was their God. He gave them the way that they were to be His people.
But that old covenant failed disastrously. This people of God refused to walk in His ways. Their history was a history of provoking their God to anger, by their constant revolt from Him. Even as this covenant was being spelled out to Moses on Mt. Sinai, God’s people were busy worshipping an image and committing fornication with each other. Over and over they provoked their God in the wilderness, when they possessed the land of Canaan, and through their history under their kings.
To be sure, there were bright spots in their history. The days of Joshua, of Samuel, of David, and Solomon, of such good kings as Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, and Josiah, stood out in wonderful relief against the dark and dismal days of this covenant people. There were surely those who through faith did marvelous and glorious deeds. There were the true children of God, trusting in God, and looking to God for salvation, in both Judah and Israel. Even in the dark days of Ahab, God comforted Elijah with the truth that there was a remnant according to the election of grace, a remnant of seven thousand that had not bent the knee to Baal. They enjoyed the comfort and peace of the gospel, though they lived in such darkness. Even under the old covenant, these few had what they had and did what they did under the power of the new covenant, though hidden under the old.
But that old covenant failed. Israel did not continue in God’s covenant. And the Lord regarded them not.
Why did that old covenant fail? It failed because it was a covenant of law. That is, under its terms the Lord demanded of His people, but did not give them what He demanded. That lack is evident from the verse that follows. As in the new covenant, that God would make with His people, He would put his laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts, such He did not do in the old. He did not put his laws into their mind. Nor did He write them in their hearts. In their sad history, they demonstrated that they could not possibly give what God demanded. There was no good thing in them by nature.
But that old covenant, with its complete failure, was to serve the new, better covenant. For the new covenant was not to be a covenant of law, but of gospel. It was not to be a covenant of works, but a covenant of grace. It must be, for it actually to work, and be successful, a covenant of thorough, complete grace. It operating principle is what Augustine phrased so well in his prayer, “Lord, give what thou commandest, and command what thou wilt.” What God requires–His law–that He will give. He gives to His people, every one of them, all that He requires. He requires of them obedience to His law. “I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts.” He requires regeneration. “Ye must be born again.” He gives regeneration. He requires faith. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” He gives faith. He requires perseverance. “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” He gives perseverance.
Such is the glory of this new covenant: So thoroughly will God be the God of His people, that they shall be to Him a people. They will be His people, because He makes them such, all the way through.
Rejoice to be in that new, everlasting covenant of grace! Rejoice to walk in its ways, and to show its power. And remember in it to bless and glorify your God. He has given you everything to be in it, especially the gift of His Son, whose precious blood has brought you in and keeps you in, and which gives you all things.
24 February 2014
“For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? Do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? Do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” Matthew 5:46-48
Social circles and networks! In them we feel at home. Outside them, you can feel lost and lonely. True is this in reality. At church, at home, among friends is where you feel most comfortable. True is this on the internet and in cyberspace. You also feel a certain comfort contacting and keeping track of what your friends are doing.
What makes all of these comfortable and secure is the exchange of love. You feel comfortable and free giving you love and affection to those whom you know. For you know that you can trust them with your love and affection. You know that, in one way or another, you will receive from them similar tokens of love and affection. You love them because they will love you. You greet them because they will greet you.
You also know that nothing will sour a relationship like unrequited love and affection. Even more, nothing will smother the flame of ardent love like open contempt or hostility shown in return. There are no enemies like former friends.
But exactly here is the perfection of your Father which is in heaven. He loves those who emphatically do not love Him in return. He calls those who hold Him in contempt. He brings into His kingdom those who are nothing but rebellious against Him. He makes His children those who are passionate in their hatred of Him. So He loved you, as He gave His Son for you when you were His enemy, Romans 5:10.
That is His perfection. Your Father in heaven is perfect, making every word He speaks and every deed He does a work of splendid, glorious, shining perfection. It is not up to you to judge whether each action God does is perfect. You cannot so divide. Everything He does is perfect, because He is perfect.
So are you called to be perfect. Be perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. You are here called, in the pursuit of this perfection, to go beyond those that love you. Leave that circle to go to those that hate you and persecute you. Love them. Pray from your heart for them. Speak kind and gentle words to them. Do good to them, all kind of things that benefit them. There are those who will not greet you, holding you in contempt. Go out of your way to greet them, asking them how they are.
In doing so, you will show the perfection that belongs to your heavenly Father. His perfection you will mirror and reflect. But His perfection in you will you also show in those loving deeds and words. For each one is the fruit of His work in you, His perfect work of grace to make you perfect.
Even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect!
“For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? Do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? Do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” Matthew 5:46-48
Social circles and networks! In them we feel at home. Outside them, you can feel lost and lonely. True is this in reality. At church, at home, among friends is where you feel most comfortable. True is this on the internet and in cyberspace. You also feel a certain comfort contacting and keeping track of what your friends are doing.
What makes all of these comfortable and secure is the exchange of love. You feel comfortable and free giving you love and affection to those whom you know. For you know that you can trust them with your love and affection. You know that, in one way or another, you will receive from them similar tokens of love and affection. You love them because they will love you. You greet them because they will greet you.
You also know that nothing will sour a relationship like unrequited love and affection. Even more, nothing will smother the flame of ardent love like open contempt or hostility shown in return. There are no enemies like former friends.
But exactly here is the perfection of your Father which is in heaven. He loves those who emphatically do not love Him in return. He calls those who hold Him in contempt. He brings into His kingdom those who are nothing but rebellious against Him. He makes His children those who are passionate in their hatred of Him. So He loved you, as He gave His Son for you when you were His enemy, Romans 5:10.
That is His perfection. Your Father in heaven is perfect, making every word He speaks and every deed He does a work of splendid, glorious, shining perfection. It is not up to you to judge whether each action God does is perfect. You cannot so divide. Everything He does is perfect, because He is perfect.
So are you called to be perfect. Be perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. You are here called, in the pursuit of this perfection, to go beyond those that love you. Leave that circle to go to those that hate you and persecute you. Love them. Pray from your heart for them. Speak kind and gentle words to them. Do good to them, all kind of things that benefit them. There are those who will not greet you, holding you in contempt. Go out of your way to greet them, asking them how they are.
In doing so, you will show the perfection that belongs to your heavenly Father. His perfection you will mirror and reflect. But His perfection in you will you also show in those loving deeds and words. For each one is the fruit of His work in you, His perfect work of grace to make you perfect.
Even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect!
23 February 2014, The Lord's Day
“O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker. For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.” Psalm 95:6, 7
What wonderful words are these, to bring us into the worship of the Living God today!
In them is the most compelling reason that we should seek God’s presence today in the assembly of His people. That reason is God’s everlasting covenant of grace, its truth and reality confessed by His grateful, joyful people before Him.
For God’s covenant of grace is no mere word of promise, as men account of and speak of promises. Sometimes men make a simple promise, that they will do something. Sometimes they make a conditional promise, that they will do something, but whether they will do it or not depends on whether the one to whom they promise will do his part. Their promises are the promises of men, as weak and divided as the men who make them.
But God is not a man. Nor is God’s covenant like man’s covenant. For God is God. With His promise He gives. Though His promise surely embraces a glorious, wonderful future, it powerfully conveys the present reality: I am your God. His promise is wholly unconditional, for He promises to give all to His people. With His promise God gives Himself. He becomes the God of His people.
Because such is God’s covenant, we have this worship given to us in these verses. Why do we “worship and bow down?” Why do we “kneel before the Lord our maker?” Why do we delight to read these words, or hear them as a call to worship? Why do we delight to speak them to each another? Why do we love to carry them out this day?
Because He is our God. First, “He is our God.” This living, glorious, Triune God has declared this truth first: “I am thy God.” By His Spirit, though faith, these words resound in our hearts. So we say, “He is our God.” Second, He declares the other side of this truth to us: “You are my people. You are my sheep.” These words, too, resound in our hearts by grace. So we say, “We are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of His hand.”
We also remember this day, how this blessed covenant arrangement has been brought about: through the blood of the covenant, shed by Our Mediator and our Head of this covenant, our Lord Jesus Christ. That precious blood, shed on the accursed cross, has sealed that covenant to us and our children, and sealed us and our children to our covenant God. We are forever “the people of his pasture and the sheep of His hand.” His, by His own blood, Acts 20:28.
What cause is ours to worship and bow down, and to kneel before the Lord our Maker! He has made us His people. Let us this day in His presence praise and celebrate the riches of His covenant grace and mercy to us!
“O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker. For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.” Psalm 95:6, 7
What wonderful words are these, to bring us into the worship of the Living God today!
In them is the most compelling reason that we should seek God’s presence today in the assembly of His people. That reason is God’s everlasting covenant of grace, its truth and reality confessed by His grateful, joyful people before Him.
For God’s covenant of grace is no mere word of promise, as men account of and speak of promises. Sometimes men make a simple promise, that they will do something. Sometimes they make a conditional promise, that they will do something, but whether they will do it or not depends on whether the one to whom they promise will do his part. Their promises are the promises of men, as weak and divided as the men who make them.
But God is not a man. Nor is God’s covenant like man’s covenant. For God is God. With His promise He gives. Though His promise surely embraces a glorious, wonderful future, it powerfully conveys the present reality: I am your God. His promise is wholly unconditional, for He promises to give all to His people. With His promise God gives Himself. He becomes the God of His people.
Because such is God’s covenant, we have this worship given to us in these verses. Why do we “worship and bow down?” Why do we “kneel before the Lord our maker?” Why do we delight to read these words, or hear them as a call to worship? Why do we delight to speak them to each another? Why do we love to carry them out this day?
Because He is our God. First, “He is our God.” This living, glorious, Triune God has declared this truth first: “I am thy God.” By His Spirit, though faith, these words resound in our hearts. So we say, “He is our God.” Second, He declares the other side of this truth to us: “You are my people. You are my sheep.” These words, too, resound in our hearts by grace. So we say, “We are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of His hand.”
We also remember this day, how this blessed covenant arrangement has been brought about: through the blood of the covenant, shed by Our Mediator and our Head of this covenant, our Lord Jesus Christ. That precious blood, shed on the accursed cross, has sealed that covenant to us and our children, and sealed us and our children to our covenant God. We are forever “the people of his pasture and the sheep of His hand.” His, by His own blood, Acts 20:28.
What cause is ours to worship and bow down, and to kneel before the Lord our Maker! He has made us His people. Let us this day in His presence praise and celebrate the riches of His covenant grace and mercy to us!
20 February 2014
“Then spake Elisha unto the woman, whose son he had restored to life, saying, Arise, and go thou and thine household, and sojourn wheresoever thou canst sojourn: for the Lord hath called for a famine; and it shall also come upon the land seven years. And the woman arose, and did after the saying of the man of God: and she went with her household, and sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven years. And it came to pass at the seven years’ end, that the woman returned out of the land of the Philistines: and she went forth to cry unto the king for her house and for her land. And the king talked with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying, Tell me, I pray thee, all the great things that Elisha hath done. And it came to pass, as he was telling the king how he had restored a dead body to life, that, behold, the woman, whose son he had restored to life, cried to the king for her house and for her land. And Gehazi said, My lord, O king, this is the woman, and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life. And when the king asked the woman, she told him. So the king appointed unto her a certain officer, saying, Restore all that was hers, and all the fruits of the field since the day that she left the land, even unto now.” 2 Kings 8:1-6
What a wonderful and amazing coordination of the hidden working of God’s providence, and the provisional power of Elisha’s miracles, to work this particular wonder: providing this widow her land, her home, and her food upon her return from sojourning in the land of the Philistines!
How far back we must go to see the roots of this event! We must go back to the miraculous and merciful provision of a son to this Shunamite woman and her husband, and then to the merciful miracle of this son’s resurrection from the dead by Elisha. We must go back to see Naaman the Syrian’s miraculous recovery from leprosy at Elisha’s command, which leprosy left Naaman only to cling to Gehazi because of the latter’s sin of coveteousness and greed.
But then we must move to the providential consequence of these wonders. So by the providence of God a famine was to come to Israel, which sent this same woman, her son, and her house to the land of the Philistine’s, also by the words of Elisha. So by the providence of God she sojourned there for seven years, and returned on a certain day. So by the providence of God Gehazi was led to the court of the king of Israel, and spoke the same day with the king there of all the miracles of Elisha. So by the providence of God, unbeknownst to the king, Gehazi, or this widow, Gehazi wonderfully introduced this widow woman to the king of Israel, to tell him of her plight. And what an answer she received, by the providence of God: her land, her house, and all its fruit for the last seven years fully restored!
Such is the marvellous and wonderful working of God’s providence for His people. The Lord gives and takes away. He gives a son, takes him in death, and gives him back. He heals from a disease, and gives it to another, even as chastisement for sin. He sends a famine and then sends rain. He sends a family out of a country and then brings them back. All to show that He is a God that does wondrous things for His people.
What has He given to you? What has He taken away? Rest in and look for His wisdom, to do wondrous things through them all, that we may tell of the glory of the Lord our God!
“Then spake Elisha unto the woman, whose son he had restored to life, saying, Arise, and go thou and thine household, and sojourn wheresoever thou canst sojourn: for the Lord hath called for a famine; and it shall also come upon the land seven years. And the woman arose, and did after the saying of the man of God: and she went with her household, and sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven years. And it came to pass at the seven years’ end, that the woman returned out of the land of the Philistines: and she went forth to cry unto the king for her house and for her land. And the king talked with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying, Tell me, I pray thee, all the great things that Elisha hath done. And it came to pass, as he was telling the king how he had restored a dead body to life, that, behold, the woman, whose son he had restored to life, cried to the king for her house and for her land. And Gehazi said, My lord, O king, this is the woman, and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life. And when the king asked the woman, she told him. So the king appointed unto her a certain officer, saying, Restore all that was hers, and all the fruits of the field since the day that she left the land, even unto now.” 2 Kings 8:1-6
What a wonderful and amazing coordination of the hidden working of God’s providence, and the provisional power of Elisha’s miracles, to work this particular wonder: providing this widow her land, her home, and her food upon her return from sojourning in the land of the Philistines!
How far back we must go to see the roots of this event! We must go back to the miraculous and merciful provision of a son to this Shunamite woman and her husband, and then to the merciful miracle of this son’s resurrection from the dead by Elisha. We must go back to see Naaman the Syrian’s miraculous recovery from leprosy at Elisha’s command, which leprosy left Naaman only to cling to Gehazi because of the latter’s sin of coveteousness and greed.
But then we must move to the providential consequence of these wonders. So by the providence of God a famine was to come to Israel, which sent this same woman, her son, and her house to the land of the Philistine’s, also by the words of Elisha. So by the providence of God she sojourned there for seven years, and returned on a certain day. So by the providence of God Gehazi was led to the court of the king of Israel, and spoke the same day with the king there of all the miracles of Elisha. So by the providence of God, unbeknownst to the king, Gehazi, or this widow, Gehazi wonderfully introduced this widow woman to the king of Israel, to tell him of her plight. And what an answer she received, by the providence of God: her land, her house, and all its fruit for the last seven years fully restored!
Such is the marvellous and wonderful working of God’s providence for His people. The Lord gives and takes away. He gives a son, takes him in death, and gives him back. He heals from a disease, and gives it to another, even as chastisement for sin. He sends a famine and then sends rain. He sends a family out of a country and then brings them back. All to show that He is a God that does wondrous things for His people.
What has He given to you? What has He taken away? Rest in and look for His wisdom, to do wondrous things through them all, that we may tell of the glory of the Lord our God!
19 February 2014
“The Lord hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength, Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat for thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured: But they that have gathered it shall eat it, and praise the Lord; and they that have brought it together shall drink it in the courts of my holiness.” Isaiah 62:8, 9
These words from God’s prophet, like so many others he spoke, are wonderful words of comfort to the people of God. The power of their comfort is that they follow other words, words of severe judgment.
Those words of judgment are reflected in the promise above. Because they had forsaken Him, God would punish them with severe judgment. They would labour, but their labour would only help their enemies. They would plant and harvest. They would gather and reap. But they would not be sustained by the fruit of their labour. Their enemies would take their grain from them, leaving them starving and destitute. They would carefully tend their grapevines, and they would harvest their grapes. They would tread them in the winepress, draw off the juice, and carefully and patiently ferment their wine. But they would not be able to enjoy and celebrate their labour. Their enemies would seize their wine from them.
And behind the hand of their enemies, laying hold on their corn and wine, was the hand of the Lord. He gave their corn to be meat for their enemies. He gave the sons of the stranger their wine to drink.
But the Lord would be moved to compassion and mercy, even in the midst of judgment. So aroused is He by the multitude of His compassions that He swears with an oath. No greater is there than He, so that He swears by His own strength, “by his right hand, and the arm of his strength.”
No longer! No more! By His right hand, and by the arm of His strength He will deliver His people from their enemies. He will put the sons of the stranger far from them. He will again watch over them and protect them. Under His care they will gather their corn. They will bring together their grapes. They themselves shall eat their corn. Their wine they shall drink.
Even more, they shall eat and drink in holiness to the Lord. Chastened by the Lord’s judgments, they shall learn the fear of the Lord. For the praise of the Lord, they shall gather their corn and eat it. In the courts of the Lord’s holiness, they shall drink the wine that they have brought together. They will remember and rejoice in all that the Lord has done, for by His judgments He has turned them to Him, their God and their Redeemer.
So let us labour. So let us eat and drink the fruits of that labour. Let us eat and drink for nourishment and enjoyment. But most of all, let us eat and drink to the glory of our God, who has delivered us from the bondage of sin into His joyful kingdom.
“The Lord hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength, Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat for thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured: But they that have gathered it shall eat it, and praise the Lord; and they that have brought it together shall drink it in the courts of my holiness.” Isaiah 62:8, 9
These words from God’s prophet, like so many others he spoke, are wonderful words of comfort to the people of God. The power of their comfort is that they follow other words, words of severe judgment.
Those words of judgment are reflected in the promise above. Because they had forsaken Him, God would punish them with severe judgment. They would labour, but their labour would only help their enemies. They would plant and harvest. They would gather and reap. But they would not be sustained by the fruit of their labour. Their enemies would take their grain from them, leaving them starving and destitute. They would carefully tend their grapevines, and they would harvest their grapes. They would tread them in the winepress, draw off the juice, and carefully and patiently ferment their wine. But they would not be able to enjoy and celebrate their labour. Their enemies would seize their wine from them.
And behind the hand of their enemies, laying hold on their corn and wine, was the hand of the Lord. He gave their corn to be meat for their enemies. He gave the sons of the stranger their wine to drink.
But the Lord would be moved to compassion and mercy, even in the midst of judgment. So aroused is He by the multitude of His compassions that He swears with an oath. No greater is there than He, so that He swears by His own strength, “by his right hand, and the arm of his strength.”
No longer! No more! By His right hand, and by the arm of His strength He will deliver His people from their enemies. He will put the sons of the stranger far from them. He will again watch over them and protect them. Under His care they will gather their corn. They will bring together their grapes. They themselves shall eat their corn. Their wine they shall drink.
Even more, they shall eat and drink in holiness to the Lord. Chastened by the Lord’s judgments, they shall learn the fear of the Lord. For the praise of the Lord, they shall gather their corn and eat it. In the courts of the Lord’s holiness, they shall drink the wine that they have brought together. They will remember and rejoice in all that the Lord has done, for by His judgments He has turned them to Him, their God and their Redeemer.
So let us labour. So let us eat and drink the fruits of that labour. Let us eat and drink for nourishment and enjoyment. But most of all, let us eat and drink to the glory of our God, who has delivered us from the bondage of sin into His joyful kingdom.
18 February 2013
“As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.” Psalm 17:15
A sure antidote we have in these words to the poisonous envy of the wicked!
Easy it is to be envious of the wicked, especially as they are described in this Word of God. According to the prior verse, they have their wealth and power by God’s hand. Listen to how the inspired Psalmist describes them. They are those “which have their portion in this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes.”
They are full. They have plenty to eat. They stuff themselves and they are satisfied. They have many children, and are able to leave each of them a wealthy inheritance.
Perhaps even greater temptation to envy is that the Lord has provided them their wealth. The Lord has given them their great wealth and prosperity. The Lord has filled their bellies with His bounty. Even as they use that fullness to persecute and oppress God’s people, God has given them their abilities. By these gifts of the Lord to them, the wicked have become the sword of the Lord and the hand of the Lord against the righteous, verses 13, 14.
How easy it is to be envious at their prosperity! What cause for distress and perhaps even bitterness as they cause such trouble for God’s people!
The mighty antidote for this poisonous envy is ours as we cross the boundary from this world to the next. Across that boundary the Word of God leads us: “As for me . . . ” There is David’s portion. There is the end of God’s people.
What will satisfy him? What will satisfy us?
Not our portion in this life! Not the filling of our bellies with the Lord’s hid treasure! Not the ability to leave our children a rich inheritance! Meager vanities are these compared to what will satisfy us. To behold the Lord’s face in righteousness. To be satisfied, when we awake, with the Lord’s likeness. Only then shall we be satisfied!
No uncertain wish is this, but a sure, certain hope. For this end is sealed to us with the blood of the Son of God Himself, Jesus Christ. This end is established for us with the resurrection and glory of the Son, exalted to the right hand of God. This end is assured us by the pledge of the Holy Spirit’s dwelling in our hearts through faith. So sure is it that we are able to say, “As for me, I will behold . . . I shall be satisfied . . . ”
The face of our God we shall behold. When we awake in glory we shall be satisfied with the likeness of God. One glimpse shall fill us with everlasting joy. Our first look shall make all the troubles and difficulties of the present evil age melt away into nothing. So lovely and so blessed shall be our sight, we shall immediately forget the weight and difficulty of every burden we have borne. Our God shall we see in His wonderful face and likeness of the Son of God Himself, our Saviour Jesus Christ.
May this blessed hope be our confidence. May it be our confidence that our God will lead us safely through all opposition and every trial to see Him face to face. May this confidence free us from any envy of the wicked. And may the Lord even use the wicked and their prosperity to make us cling all the more tightly to our hope in Him!
“As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.” Psalm 17:15
A sure antidote we have in these words to the poisonous envy of the wicked!
Easy it is to be envious of the wicked, especially as they are described in this Word of God. According to the prior verse, they have their wealth and power by God’s hand. Listen to how the inspired Psalmist describes them. They are those “which have their portion in this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes.”
They are full. They have plenty to eat. They stuff themselves and they are satisfied. They have many children, and are able to leave each of them a wealthy inheritance.
Perhaps even greater temptation to envy is that the Lord has provided them their wealth. The Lord has given them their great wealth and prosperity. The Lord has filled their bellies with His bounty. Even as they use that fullness to persecute and oppress God’s people, God has given them their abilities. By these gifts of the Lord to them, the wicked have become the sword of the Lord and the hand of the Lord against the righteous, verses 13, 14.
How easy it is to be envious at their prosperity! What cause for distress and perhaps even bitterness as they cause such trouble for God’s people!
The mighty antidote for this poisonous envy is ours as we cross the boundary from this world to the next. Across that boundary the Word of God leads us: “As for me . . . ” There is David’s portion. There is the end of God’s people.
What will satisfy him? What will satisfy us?
Not our portion in this life! Not the filling of our bellies with the Lord’s hid treasure! Not the ability to leave our children a rich inheritance! Meager vanities are these compared to what will satisfy us. To behold the Lord’s face in righteousness. To be satisfied, when we awake, with the Lord’s likeness. Only then shall we be satisfied!
No uncertain wish is this, but a sure, certain hope. For this end is sealed to us with the blood of the Son of God Himself, Jesus Christ. This end is established for us with the resurrection and glory of the Son, exalted to the right hand of God. This end is assured us by the pledge of the Holy Spirit’s dwelling in our hearts through faith. So sure is it that we are able to say, “As for me, I will behold . . . I shall be satisfied . . . ”
The face of our God we shall behold. When we awake in glory we shall be satisfied with the likeness of God. One glimpse shall fill us with everlasting joy. Our first look shall make all the troubles and difficulties of the present evil age melt away into nothing. So lovely and so blessed shall be our sight, we shall immediately forget the weight and difficulty of every burden we have borne. Our God shall we see in His wonderful face and likeness of the Son of God Himself, our Saviour Jesus Christ.
May this blessed hope be our confidence. May it be our confidence that our God will lead us safely through all opposition and every trial to see Him face to face. May this confidence free us from any envy of the wicked. And may the Lord even use the wicked and their prosperity to make us cling all the more tightly to our hope in Him!
16 February 2014, The Lord’s Day
“The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life. Yea, thou shalt see thy children’s children, and peace upon Israel.” Psalm 128:5,6
In these last two verses we see a turn in the approach of this Psalm. Before it had identified “every one that feareth the Lord.” It has spoken of him as blessed by the Lord in his everyday life. Fearing the Lord and walking in His ways, He is blessed in his labour, his wife, and his children. But now the Psalm turns directly to each of these, and pronounces a blessing upon him directly: “The Lord shall bless thee!”
Whence this blessing? This blessing flows out of Jerusalem, the city of Jehovah’s presence among His people. There is the temple, and the ark of the covenant in the holiest place, the important symbol of the Lord’s presence with His people, in fellowship and friendship with them. Forever He will be their God, to bless them, to care for them, to guide them and provide all their needs. Forever He will take them and make them His people, turning them to Him, circumcising their hearts, forgiving their sins, and writing His law on their hearts, making them willing in the day of His power.
This Lord shall bless thee out of Zion.
Still today is this covenant presence of God known among His people. Not in the earthly city of Jerusalem, but in every place where God’s people assemble together. In those assemblies, where believers and their seed gather to hear God’s Word proclaimed to them, and where they gather to worship their God, confessing His glorious praises in word and song, there is God present among them in a special way. There He testifies to them of His blessing upon them, of grace, mercy, and peace. There He blesses them with His glorious salvation, salvation through the blood of His Son, salvation by the mighty working of His Holy Spirit.
The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion!
What is this blessing?
Thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life. Look for the continued prosperity of the church of Jesus Christ. Look for the people together to seek the true gospel proclaimed to them. Look for them to seek to carry on in the right worship of their God, according to His work. Look for them to seek the government of Christ over them, through the special offices in the church.
Look also for the continuation of that good toward you in the extension of God’s covenant mercies. Look to see your children’s children. Not just their birth, but look for their enjoyment of their own place in Zion, gathering there to worship, and receiving the blessing of God’s Word upon them. Look for their fear of the Lord, their walk in His ways, and their own blessedness in the same fear you enjoy. See their place among God’s people of their own generation, living and walking together in the fear of the Lord, knowing His blessing upon them together. So shall you see peace upon Israel.
All this is the blessing of the Lord out of Zion. Seek that blessedness and look for it with eager expectation, as you fear the Lord and walk in His ways!
“The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life. Yea, thou shalt see thy children’s children, and peace upon Israel.” Psalm 128:5,6
In these last two verses we see a turn in the approach of this Psalm. Before it had identified “every one that feareth the Lord.” It has spoken of him as blessed by the Lord in his everyday life. Fearing the Lord and walking in His ways, He is blessed in his labour, his wife, and his children. But now the Psalm turns directly to each of these, and pronounces a blessing upon him directly: “The Lord shall bless thee!”
Whence this blessing? This blessing flows out of Jerusalem, the city of Jehovah’s presence among His people. There is the temple, and the ark of the covenant in the holiest place, the important symbol of the Lord’s presence with His people, in fellowship and friendship with them. Forever He will be their God, to bless them, to care for them, to guide them and provide all their needs. Forever He will take them and make them His people, turning them to Him, circumcising their hearts, forgiving their sins, and writing His law on their hearts, making them willing in the day of His power.
This Lord shall bless thee out of Zion.
Still today is this covenant presence of God known among His people. Not in the earthly city of Jerusalem, but in every place where God’s people assemble together. In those assemblies, where believers and their seed gather to hear God’s Word proclaimed to them, and where they gather to worship their God, confessing His glorious praises in word and song, there is God present among them in a special way. There He testifies to them of His blessing upon them, of grace, mercy, and peace. There He blesses them with His glorious salvation, salvation through the blood of His Son, salvation by the mighty working of His Holy Spirit.
The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion!
What is this blessing?
Thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life. Look for the continued prosperity of the church of Jesus Christ. Look for the people together to seek the true gospel proclaimed to them. Look for them to seek to carry on in the right worship of their God, according to His work. Look for them to seek the government of Christ over them, through the special offices in the church.
Look also for the continuation of that good toward you in the extension of God’s covenant mercies. Look to see your children’s children. Not just their birth, but look for their enjoyment of their own place in Zion, gathering there to worship, and receiving the blessing of God’s Word upon them. Look for their fear of the Lord, their walk in His ways, and their own blessedness in the same fear you enjoy. See their place among God’s people of their own generation, living and walking together in the fear of the Lord, knowing His blessing upon them together. So shall you see peace upon Israel.
All this is the blessing of the Lord out of Zion. Seek that blessedness and look for it with eager expectation, as you fear the Lord and walk in His ways!
15 February 2014
“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.”
John 10:10, 11
Great is the chasm between that religion called Christianity from all others. That chasm is well described with the above words. Christianity is a religion about giving. Christianity is a religion that is much more than an offer to give. It gives truly, mercifully, and unconditionally. It is about the Good Shepherd, who gives His life for His sheep, that they might live, and live abundantly.
Jesus Himself, this Good Shepherd, helps us to identify and reject all false religions, including false, counterfeit Christianity. He gives us one feature of all these false religions. “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.” These religions are all fundamentally an act of theft. They demand, but they do not give. Do not be deceived, for Jesus describes here their fundamental character and nature, not how they appear. Satan himself often appears as an angel of light; so also do his ministers, 1 Corinthians 11:13-15. These false religions promise much. Perhaps they promise peace and serenity, private or public. Perhaps they promise world domination, world influence, or great, sweeping changes in culture or society. Perhaps they promise health, wealth, and prosperity, or only moral, psychological, and emotional self-improvement. Maybe they even promise forgiveness and eternal life. But, whatever the promise is, your effort and your work are demanded. Everything from lifetime, sworn, death-demanding allegiance or going to the front to give one’s life to Jesus.
Hear the words of Christ, by which he pulls the cloak from all these religions: “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.” Yes, they give, but their promises are empty and hollow. They have no right to give what they hold back until you give your part or do your duty. Their way is entirely opposite of the way of the Good Shepherd. They are thieves, and with their religion they steal, they kill, and they destroy. See how they oppose the gospel of Christ. See how they rob Christ of His glory, replacing His teachings with theirs.
A great chasm between them and Christ we see from His self description. He is no thief. He does not take anything, but He gives.
He came to give. He came to give life. He came to give life in the midst of death. He came to give to those who had nothing to give. They could not earn. They could not merit. They could not satisfy a condition. Christ came to give them life. He came to give them overflowing, abundant, glorious life. So is true Christianity. Faithful to Christ, it preaches and teaches the gospel of the gift of God: life from the Son of God to those who are in death.
Even more, this life the Good Shepherd gives by His own life. In order to give this abundant life, He must give His own life, laying it down in the sacrifice of the cross. His blood He must shed unto death, that those for whom He died might live abundantly. So the true Christianity must confess and proclaim the cross of Christ as the life of the world. The Good Shepherd has come to give life, and has given life through the gift of His life.
Here is the true Christian faith! Here is the true gospel that brings abundant life even today. Rejoice in the possession of this free gift of life from your Good Shepherd. Pursue and keep this faith, and keep far from the thieves that would steal, kill, and destroy.
“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.”
John 10:10, 11
Great is the chasm between that religion called Christianity from all others. That chasm is well described with the above words. Christianity is a religion about giving. Christianity is a religion that is much more than an offer to give. It gives truly, mercifully, and unconditionally. It is about the Good Shepherd, who gives His life for His sheep, that they might live, and live abundantly.
Jesus Himself, this Good Shepherd, helps us to identify and reject all false religions, including false, counterfeit Christianity. He gives us one feature of all these false religions. “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.” These religions are all fundamentally an act of theft. They demand, but they do not give. Do not be deceived, for Jesus describes here their fundamental character and nature, not how they appear. Satan himself often appears as an angel of light; so also do his ministers, 1 Corinthians 11:13-15. These false religions promise much. Perhaps they promise peace and serenity, private or public. Perhaps they promise world domination, world influence, or great, sweeping changes in culture or society. Perhaps they promise health, wealth, and prosperity, or only moral, psychological, and emotional self-improvement. Maybe they even promise forgiveness and eternal life. But, whatever the promise is, your effort and your work are demanded. Everything from lifetime, sworn, death-demanding allegiance or going to the front to give one’s life to Jesus.
Hear the words of Christ, by which he pulls the cloak from all these religions: “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.” Yes, they give, but their promises are empty and hollow. They have no right to give what they hold back until you give your part or do your duty. Their way is entirely opposite of the way of the Good Shepherd. They are thieves, and with their religion they steal, they kill, and they destroy. See how they oppose the gospel of Christ. See how they rob Christ of His glory, replacing His teachings with theirs.
A great chasm between them and Christ we see from His self description. He is no thief. He does not take anything, but He gives.
He came to give. He came to give life. He came to give life in the midst of death. He came to give to those who had nothing to give. They could not earn. They could not merit. They could not satisfy a condition. Christ came to give them life. He came to give them overflowing, abundant, glorious life. So is true Christianity. Faithful to Christ, it preaches and teaches the gospel of the gift of God: life from the Son of God to those who are in death.
Even more, this life the Good Shepherd gives by His own life. In order to give this abundant life, He must give His own life, laying it down in the sacrifice of the cross. His blood He must shed unto death, that those for whom He died might live abundantly. So the true Christianity must confess and proclaim the cross of Christ as the life of the world. The Good Shepherd has come to give life, and has given life through the gift of His life.
Here is the true Christian faith! Here is the true gospel that brings abundant life even today. Rejoice in the possession of this free gift of life from your Good Shepherd. Pursue and keep this faith, and keep far from the thieves that would steal, kill, and destroy.
14 February 2014
“Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.” I Timothy 1:5
What power is expressed in these words! Here is a power to put to shame all the vain talk and all the teachings rejected in their context. Verse 4: “Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith…” Verse 6: “From which some having swerved have turned aside unto vain jangling.” Against all these fables and endless genealogies and vain jangling Scripture sets out “the commandment.”
“The commandment” signifies the Word of God that is meant to take up our lives, and powerfully direct them to the way of true profit and blessing, the very opposite of vanity. That way is well described in the few words above: “charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.”
One word the Bible gives here as the end of the commandment: charity. This word, “charity” the translators of the King James Version chose to use here, rather than “love,” for good reason. The word “charity,” as a synonym for love, emphasizes the giving, sacrificial aspect of love. It is such a love that does not take, but gives. This love has the pure motive of seeking the good and profit of another, and stops at nothing to accomplish that good. Its purest and cleanest expression is the love of God to give His only-begotten Son for the salvation of the world, John 3:16.
What power! What power through the commandment! Here is power to put to shame all the vain words and teachings of men.
Even more power is shown in the words that describe the origin and source of this charity. The Holy Spirit went to great length in this verse to give us the threefold source of this charity. The end of the commandment is to bring this charity “out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.” Only one charity is there. Only one “out of” is there. A pure heart, a good conscience, and faith unfeigned all work wonderfully together to give us this blessed fruit of charity.
The “pure heart” refers to our hearts purified by the grace of God. That grace has entered our hearts to break the power of selfish, ungodly pride that formerly held complete sway. That grace has infused the life of Jesus Christ, as a life of purest, holiest, love for God and men. Grace has turned the heart from sin and from self, to seek to please God alone. That heart desires to give for God’s sake, determined to reflect the abundance of His love.
The “good conscience” refers to a self-knowledge and self-reflection by which we see ourselves and God sees us. This is not the conscience we have by the law, a necessary conscience that brings us in the sorrow of true repentance to seek God’s forgiveness of our sins through the sacrifice Jesus our Lord made on the cross. That, too, is a proper work of our conscience. This good conscience is that we see ourselves as cleansed by the blood of Christ, that we are freed from the taint and pollution of our sins. Without this good conscience we could only hide from God’s presence, and could not even begin to think of doing anything pleasing before God, let alone any true charity. This “good conscience,” then, gives us the boldness to seek and walk in this way of charity.
“Faith unfeigned,” identifies the genuine, true character of faith. It is not a pretentious faith, a faith that merely copies the words and movements of others, or attempts to conform to some outward semblance of faith. It is a sincere faith that truly lives in the heart, and signifies that the believer, in his heart, is truly united to Christ. He experiences and knows in his heart that he is a believer, resting wholly upon God, as God has revealed Himself in His Word, the only Saviour and Redeemer from sin. Through faith, He so receives and enjoys the benefits of God’s love for him through Christ, that his heart follows the heart of God, in the same, selfless giving.
Together these three, a pure heart, a good conscience, and faith unfeigned, work in all their spiritual power by grace, to produce a life characterized by charity.
Such is the end of the commandment. This is the end of the commandment of the Word of God: to love, to give wholly of oneself in that love. For this is the commandment of the Word of God that comes also through faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Its true, real power is the power of the gospel of the love of God through Christ.
In that love may we walk, showing the incomparable power of God’s love to us!
“Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.” I Timothy 1:5
What power is expressed in these words! Here is a power to put to shame all the vain talk and all the teachings rejected in their context. Verse 4: “Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith…” Verse 6: “From which some having swerved have turned aside unto vain jangling.” Against all these fables and endless genealogies and vain jangling Scripture sets out “the commandment.”
“The commandment” signifies the Word of God that is meant to take up our lives, and powerfully direct them to the way of true profit and blessing, the very opposite of vanity. That way is well described in the few words above: “charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.”
One word the Bible gives here as the end of the commandment: charity. This word, “charity” the translators of the King James Version chose to use here, rather than “love,” for good reason. The word “charity,” as a synonym for love, emphasizes the giving, sacrificial aspect of love. It is such a love that does not take, but gives. This love has the pure motive of seeking the good and profit of another, and stops at nothing to accomplish that good. Its purest and cleanest expression is the love of God to give His only-begotten Son for the salvation of the world, John 3:16.
What power! What power through the commandment! Here is power to put to shame all the vain words and teachings of men.
Even more power is shown in the words that describe the origin and source of this charity. The Holy Spirit went to great length in this verse to give us the threefold source of this charity. The end of the commandment is to bring this charity “out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.” Only one charity is there. Only one “out of” is there. A pure heart, a good conscience, and faith unfeigned all work wonderfully together to give us this blessed fruit of charity.
The “pure heart” refers to our hearts purified by the grace of God. That grace has entered our hearts to break the power of selfish, ungodly pride that formerly held complete sway. That grace has infused the life of Jesus Christ, as a life of purest, holiest, love for God and men. Grace has turned the heart from sin and from self, to seek to please God alone. That heart desires to give for God’s sake, determined to reflect the abundance of His love.
The “good conscience” refers to a self-knowledge and self-reflection by which we see ourselves and God sees us. This is not the conscience we have by the law, a necessary conscience that brings us in the sorrow of true repentance to seek God’s forgiveness of our sins through the sacrifice Jesus our Lord made on the cross. That, too, is a proper work of our conscience. This good conscience is that we see ourselves as cleansed by the blood of Christ, that we are freed from the taint and pollution of our sins. Without this good conscience we could only hide from God’s presence, and could not even begin to think of doing anything pleasing before God, let alone any true charity. This “good conscience,” then, gives us the boldness to seek and walk in this way of charity.
“Faith unfeigned,” identifies the genuine, true character of faith. It is not a pretentious faith, a faith that merely copies the words and movements of others, or attempts to conform to some outward semblance of faith. It is a sincere faith that truly lives in the heart, and signifies that the believer, in his heart, is truly united to Christ. He experiences and knows in his heart that he is a believer, resting wholly upon God, as God has revealed Himself in His Word, the only Saviour and Redeemer from sin. Through faith, He so receives and enjoys the benefits of God’s love for him through Christ, that his heart follows the heart of God, in the same, selfless giving.
Together these three, a pure heart, a good conscience, and faith unfeigned, work in all their spiritual power by grace, to produce a life characterized by charity.
Such is the end of the commandment. This is the end of the commandment of the Word of God: to love, to give wholly of oneself in that love. For this is the commandment of the Word of God that comes also through faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Its true, real power is the power of the gospel of the love of God through Christ.
In that love may we walk, showing the incomparable power of God’s love to us!
11 February 2014
“Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.” Ephesians 5:17
How men love to boast of their wisdom! Folly meets with derision and fools with scorn. It is evident to all that men who are only silly and ridiculous in their behaviour will go nowhere in life. To keep company with them is to dance with danger.
On the other hand, men praise understanding, knowledge and wisdom. There are men outstanding for their abilities. Not only do they show strength of mind, they show uncanny ability to turn little into much. They can take a faltering business and make it prosper beyond anyone’s wildest dreams. There are men who are inventive and innovative. They are able to turn ground-breaking ideas into wonderful tools of technology, getting their inventions into everyone’s hands. Others are able to harness the forces of culture and society, and turn them into their own channels at enormous profit.
Every age of men has seen philosophers, men renowned for their long-range thinking. With their ideas they have held sway over the minds of men. Their followers have been able to boast of improving greatly their lives and their cultures and societies. At times critical of their society, following generations have lauded their works, and done their best to implement their teachings for the betterment of all.
Can it possibly be true that the foolish and wise among men are really all alike?
The mighty grace of God through Jesus Christ answers that question. See that grace choosing the foolish as well as the wise, though mostly the foolish according to I Corinthians 1:26, 27. Know the promise of the gospel, going to fools and wise alike, proclaiming, “Whosoever believeth...” “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men.” Titus 2:11
To every one of them, the redeemed wise as well as the redeemed fool, comes this calling: “Wherefore be ye not unwise!”
In truth there is only one wisdom, a wisdom unknown to us by nature. Fallen man cannot even catch the smallest glimpse of this wisdom.
What is this wisdom? This wisdom the “understanding of the will of the Lord.” This wisdom is first the wisdom of the gospel itself, to know Christ crucified as the only way of forgiveness from sin and the hope of eternal life. This wisdom of the gospel is merely to believe on Christ for all forgiveness. This wisdom continues to understand the will of the Lord, extending to His redeemed people in Christ, that they should in constant dependence on Him, work out their salvation with fear and trembling according to His revealed will, His commandments and laws. As the will of the Lord lays out before His children a life filled with every good work, their wisdom is to understand that will, in order to perform it every day.
At bottom, the understanding to which we are called is this: Understanding all that God’s will requires of us, and then understanding the will of God graciously to give us all that He requires.
For that will, let us be no longer unwise. Let us not foolishly go our own way, stubborn and headstrong. Let us not foolishly think to go God’s way a particle by our own resolve, determination, or strength. But let us seek to go only in the way of the Lord. And let us seek to go in that way by His strength alone.
“Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.” Ephesians 5:17
How men love to boast of their wisdom! Folly meets with derision and fools with scorn. It is evident to all that men who are only silly and ridiculous in their behaviour will go nowhere in life. To keep company with them is to dance with danger.
On the other hand, men praise understanding, knowledge and wisdom. There are men outstanding for their abilities. Not only do they show strength of mind, they show uncanny ability to turn little into much. They can take a faltering business and make it prosper beyond anyone’s wildest dreams. There are men who are inventive and innovative. They are able to turn ground-breaking ideas into wonderful tools of technology, getting their inventions into everyone’s hands. Others are able to harness the forces of culture and society, and turn them into their own channels at enormous profit.
Every age of men has seen philosophers, men renowned for their long-range thinking. With their ideas they have held sway over the minds of men. Their followers have been able to boast of improving greatly their lives and their cultures and societies. At times critical of their society, following generations have lauded their works, and done their best to implement their teachings for the betterment of all.
Can it possibly be true that the foolish and wise among men are really all alike?
The mighty grace of God through Jesus Christ answers that question. See that grace choosing the foolish as well as the wise, though mostly the foolish according to I Corinthians 1:26, 27. Know the promise of the gospel, going to fools and wise alike, proclaiming, “Whosoever believeth...” “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men.” Titus 2:11
To every one of them, the redeemed wise as well as the redeemed fool, comes this calling: “Wherefore be ye not unwise!”
In truth there is only one wisdom, a wisdom unknown to us by nature. Fallen man cannot even catch the smallest glimpse of this wisdom.
What is this wisdom? This wisdom the “understanding of the will of the Lord.” This wisdom is first the wisdom of the gospel itself, to know Christ crucified as the only way of forgiveness from sin and the hope of eternal life. This wisdom of the gospel is merely to believe on Christ for all forgiveness. This wisdom continues to understand the will of the Lord, extending to His redeemed people in Christ, that they should in constant dependence on Him, work out their salvation with fear and trembling according to His revealed will, His commandments and laws. As the will of the Lord lays out before His children a life filled with every good work, their wisdom is to understand that will, in order to perform it every day.
At bottom, the understanding to which we are called is this: Understanding all that God’s will requires of us, and then understanding the will of God graciously to give us all that He requires.
For that will, let us be no longer unwise. Let us not foolishly go our own way, stubborn and headstrong. Let us not foolishly think to go God’s way a particle by our own resolve, determination, or strength. But let us seek to go only in the way of the Lord. And let us seek to go in that way by His strength alone.
10 February 2014
“And he said, Lord I believe. And he worshipped him.” John 9:38
Such are the last words and actions revealed to us of the man whom Jesus healed from his blindness.
These words indicate two very different miracles of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The first miracle was physical. For this first miracle, this work of God, was this man born blind. Not for the sake of his sin or for the sin of his parents, but for the sake of the works of God, to be manifest in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. So, without the man’s request or an expression of faith, Jesus made mud of the ground at His feet, mixing it with his spit, dabbed it on the blind man’s eyes, and commanded him to wash his eyes in the pool of Siloam. When he went, obeying Jesus’ command, he “washed, and came seeing.”
So ensued great debate and great controversy. Rather than sharing in this blind man’s joy, and looking to Jesus in reverent worship, the Pharisees held an inquisition. Interrogating the blind man as well as his parents, Jesus’ enemies tried to disprove what this miracle proved, that its Worker was truly the Son of God. They found their cause in the circumstances of the wonder: Jesus had performed this wonder on the Sabbath Day, the Day forbidding the works of men. They found their cause to reject the blind man’s testimony: he was born in sins.
This inquisition of the Pharisees, however, only showed the second wonder wrought on this blind man. Scripture spends the bulk of this story showing this greater wonder, the spiritual opening of the mind and heart of this man born blind. How it must thrill us to follow this man’s testimony. Even as he counters the unbelieving arguments of his opponents, we see faith forming and strengthening in his answers. As he simply repeats his story, standing against the furious scorn of his opponents, we delight in his splendid conclusion: “If this man were not of God, he could do nothing.”
Here, too, are the works of God displayed before our eyes! Here, too, is the purpose for which this man had been born blind, to show the works of God, regeneration and faith! We follow the works of God all the way to this man’s meeting with Jesus. We are filled with delight to hear him say to Jesus, “Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?” We rejoice to know these words, “Lord, I believe, and he worshipped him.”
For these delightful words spoken and this worship given to the Lord, are by Jesus’ sovereign grace alone. Though the blind man was healed by Jesus Himself, he still needed this second, greater miracle. This blind man was twice blind, physically and spiritually. He needed these two divine wonders to make him whole.
How do we know? There were others who witnessed this wonder. The Pharisees heard the blind man’s testimony. They heard the testimony of his parents that he had been born blind. They heard the flawless spiritual logic in the words of this man born blind. But they did not see. They could not see. They were blind.
How do we see? How is it that we delight in these wonders? How do we believe them? How do we worship Jesus with this man born blind? Only by the sight He has restored to us, who were born blind. What works God has manifested in us! So may we show forth His glory in all our life!
“And he said, Lord I believe. And he worshipped him.” John 9:38
Such are the last words and actions revealed to us of the man whom Jesus healed from his blindness.
These words indicate two very different miracles of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The first miracle was physical. For this first miracle, this work of God, was this man born blind. Not for the sake of his sin or for the sin of his parents, but for the sake of the works of God, to be manifest in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. So, without the man’s request or an expression of faith, Jesus made mud of the ground at His feet, mixing it with his spit, dabbed it on the blind man’s eyes, and commanded him to wash his eyes in the pool of Siloam. When he went, obeying Jesus’ command, he “washed, and came seeing.”
So ensued great debate and great controversy. Rather than sharing in this blind man’s joy, and looking to Jesus in reverent worship, the Pharisees held an inquisition. Interrogating the blind man as well as his parents, Jesus’ enemies tried to disprove what this miracle proved, that its Worker was truly the Son of God. They found their cause in the circumstances of the wonder: Jesus had performed this wonder on the Sabbath Day, the Day forbidding the works of men. They found their cause to reject the blind man’s testimony: he was born in sins.
This inquisition of the Pharisees, however, only showed the second wonder wrought on this blind man. Scripture spends the bulk of this story showing this greater wonder, the spiritual opening of the mind and heart of this man born blind. How it must thrill us to follow this man’s testimony. Even as he counters the unbelieving arguments of his opponents, we see faith forming and strengthening in his answers. As he simply repeats his story, standing against the furious scorn of his opponents, we delight in his splendid conclusion: “If this man were not of God, he could do nothing.”
Here, too, are the works of God displayed before our eyes! Here, too, is the purpose for which this man had been born blind, to show the works of God, regeneration and faith! We follow the works of God all the way to this man’s meeting with Jesus. We are filled with delight to hear him say to Jesus, “Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?” We rejoice to know these words, “Lord, I believe, and he worshipped him.”
For these delightful words spoken and this worship given to the Lord, are by Jesus’ sovereign grace alone. Though the blind man was healed by Jesus Himself, he still needed this second, greater miracle. This blind man was twice blind, physically and spiritually. He needed these two divine wonders to make him whole.
How do we know? There were others who witnessed this wonder. The Pharisees heard the blind man’s testimony. They heard the testimony of his parents that he had been born blind. They heard the flawless spiritual logic in the words of this man born blind. But they did not see. They could not see. They were blind.
How do we see? How is it that we delight in these wonders? How do we believe them? How do we worship Jesus with this man born blind? Only by the sight He has restored to us, who were born blind. What works God has manifested in us! So may we show forth His glory in all our life!
6 February 2014
“Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it. Say not unto thy neighbour, Go, and come again, and to morrow I will give; when thou hast it by thee.” Proverbs 3:27, 28
“The curse of the Lord is in the house of the wicked: but he blesseth the habitation of the just.” Proverbs 3:33
Such power we have in the words of Proverbs 3:33 to destroy to the ground any thinking that the riches, health, and prosperity of the wicked signify to them God’s favour or grace! Let his house be so filled with luxurious good and possessions. Let it have fine works of art hanging on its walls and fine music coursing through its rooms. Let it be filled with bright, strong, happy children. Let its evenings see happy throngs of delighted guests feasting on good things. The judgment of God’s Word remains upon it: “The curse of the Lord is in the house of the wicked.”
Far away from the house of the wicked with its residing curse stands another dwelling. This dwelling may be so small compared to the first house. Its rooms may have few pieces of cheap furniture, its occupants only scant clothing to wear. They may go to bed hungry most nights. But this house is far away from the house of the wicked, for it is a habitation of one who is just. This habitation, whatever it is, is blessed by the Lord. Its rooms and cupboards are filled with the blessing of the Lord. His peace rests upon it.
But there is another matter about these two habitations. What is the way to this house of the wicked? How are we to keep our feet in the habitation of the just? A few verses before, Proverbs 3:27, 28 must show us. Here we have something so slight, that it may not seem to make any difference at all. Yet, this is the beginning difference between the house of the wicked and the habitation of the just.
In your hand is good. To your neighbour, the good that you have is due to him. Perhaps you agreed to loan him some money. Perhaps he has agreed to do some work for you in return for some favour. By that agreement or by that work he has accomplished, your good is due to him. You have the ability, when he comes to you, to give it to him. But, because you can, you say to him, “Go. Come again tomorrow, and then I will give it to you.”
With your words to him, you have just set your feet on a pathway. It will lead to the evil devices of verse 29. It will continue on to choosing the ways of the oppressor, set out in verse 31. And it ends in the house of the wicked, filled with the curse of the Lord.
Keep far from the house of the wicked. Keep your feet from that pathway. Constantly ensure that you quickly and freely give all due good. “Owe no man anything, but to love one another.” Romans 13:8
“Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it. Say not unto thy neighbour, Go, and come again, and to morrow I will give; when thou hast it by thee.” Proverbs 3:27, 28
“The curse of the Lord is in the house of the wicked: but he blesseth the habitation of the just.” Proverbs 3:33
Such power we have in the words of Proverbs 3:33 to destroy to the ground any thinking that the riches, health, and prosperity of the wicked signify to them God’s favour or grace! Let his house be so filled with luxurious good and possessions. Let it have fine works of art hanging on its walls and fine music coursing through its rooms. Let it be filled with bright, strong, happy children. Let its evenings see happy throngs of delighted guests feasting on good things. The judgment of God’s Word remains upon it: “The curse of the Lord is in the house of the wicked.”
Far away from the house of the wicked with its residing curse stands another dwelling. This dwelling may be so small compared to the first house. Its rooms may have few pieces of cheap furniture, its occupants only scant clothing to wear. They may go to bed hungry most nights. But this house is far away from the house of the wicked, for it is a habitation of one who is just. This habitation, whatever it is, is blessed by the Lord. Its rooms and cupboards are filled with the blessing of the Lord. His peace rests upon it.
But there is another matter about these two habitations. What is the way to this house of the wicked? How are we to keep our feet in the habitation of the just? A few verses before, Proverbs 3:27, 28 must show us. Here we have something so slight, that it may not seem to make any difference at all. Yet, this is the beginning difference between the house of the wicked and the habitation of the just.
In your hand is good. To your neighbour, the good that you have is due to him. Perhaps you agreed to loan him some money. Perhaps he has agreed to do some work for you in return for some favour. By that agreement or by that work he has accomplished, your good is due to him. You have the ability, when he comes to you, to give it to him. But, because you can, you say to him, “Go. Come again tomorrow, and then I will give it to you.”
With your words to him, you have just set your feet on a pathway. It will lead to the evil devices of verse 29. It will continue on to choosing the ways of the oppressor, set out in verse 31. And it ends in the house of the wicked, filled with the curse of the Lord.
Keep far from the house of the wicked. Keep your feet from that pathway. Constantly ensure that you quickly and freely give all due good. “Owe no man anything, but to love one another.” Romans 13:8
5 February 2014
“These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.” John 11:11
Why did Jesus not satisfy the yearning desire of the two beloved sisters of Lazarus, Mary and Martha? Why did Jesus not regard the message that they rushed? Why did He not hurry back to Bethany, to keep Lazarus from dying? Why did He give no answer except to say cryptically , “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby”?
In the following words and events of John 11 we have our answer. But they lead to another question. Why did Jesus speak the above words to His disciples? As He knew how prone they were to misunderstanding, why did He not tell them plainly, as He did a little after, “Lazarus is dead”?
Why? For the sake of the glory of God!
For, first, the glory of God in the Son of God, is not to be shown only in an act of healing from a deadly sickness. In Lazarus’ case, it was the good pleasure of God and God’s Christ to show the marvellous power of God to raise the dead to life. Even more, that power was to be shown in raising a man who had been dead for four days: Lazarus, who was after four days a lifeless, cold, corrupting corpse. Such a glory was to be shown that would clearly demonstrate its Worker to be the Son of God.
Such is a glorious wonder. Such a wonder must have its purpose with us. Jesus’ words, “I am the resurrection and the life,” are no vain words. He is all we need. His call has called us out of the death of our sin and depravity, to life in His glorious, heavenly kingdom. His call, not subject to our decision, gives us everlasting life. His call will also one day raise us up from our graves, together with all the elect, and translate us bodily, into perfect likeness to our Head and into the abiding glories of heaven. Just as He raised Lazarus, and just as He Himself arose.
Second, Jesus spoke these words to show another side of that glorious, resurrecting power. For Jesus, these words were most proper: “Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.” This glorious exercise of our Lord’s power does not mean a struggle. There will be no contest. There can be no question of which is greater, the power of Jesus or the power of death and the grave. Such is the power of the Resurrection and the Life, that when He calls, it is as simple a matter as rousing a man out of his nightly sleep in the brightness of the morning.
So was it with Lazarus. So was it with our regeneration. So shall it be with the resurrection of the last day.
Oh, the bodies of so many in their graves! So many simply gone to dust, hidden in the earth! So many scattered as ashes to the wind and dissolved in the waters of oceans and seas! So many torn apart and badly disfigured by accident or violence! So many terribly ravaged by disease and wasted by famine! So shall we be, if the Lord tarry.
To us, dead. To Jesus, sleeping.
So, at the appointed time He shall come again. This time, with a shout, and with the trumpet of God. He shall call, and the sleeping shall rise, awakened out of their sleep to live forever, through the power of the Resurrection and the Life.
What blessedness, to sleep in Jesus! What blessedness to show His glorious power when He comes again to awaken us! What glory, to glorify forever the Son of God, to the glory of His and our God!
Let us live and let us die in this great hope!
“These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.” John 11:11
Why did Jesus not satisfy the yearning desire of the two beloved sisters of Lazarus, Mary and Martha? Why did Jesus not regard the message that they rushed? Why did He not hurry back to Bethany, to keep Lazarus from dying? Why did He give no answer except to say cryptically , “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby”?
In the following words and events of John 11 we have our answer. But they lead to another question. Why did Jesus speak the above words to His disciples? As He knew how prone they were to misunderstanding, why did He not tell them plainly, as He did a little after, “Lazarus is dead”?
Why? For the sake of the glory of God!
For, first, the glory of God in the Son of God, is not to be shown only in an act of healing from a deadly sickness. In Lazarus’ case, it was the good pleasure of God and God’s Christ to show the marvellous power of God to raise the dead to life. Even more, that power was to be shown in raising a man who had been dead for four days: Lazarus, who was after four days a lifeless, cold, corrupting corpse. Such a glory was to be shown that would clearly demonstrate its Worker to be the Son of God.
Such is a glorious wonder. Such a wonder must have its purpose with us. Jesus’ words, “I am the resurrection and the life,” are no vain words. He is all we need. His call has called us out of the death of our sin and depravity, to life in His glorious, heavenly kingdom. His call, not subject to our decision, gives us everlasting life. His call will also one day raise us up from our graves, together with all the elect, and translate us bodily, into perfect likeness to our Head and into the abiding glories of heaven. Just as He raised Lazarus, and just as He Himself arose.
Second, Jesus spoke these words to show another side of that glorious, resurrecting power. For Jesus, these words were most proper: “Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.” This glorious exercise of our Lord’s power does not mean a struggle. There will be no contest. There can be no question of which is greater, the power of Jesus or the power of death and the grave. Such is the power of the Resurrection and the Life, that when He calls, it is as simple a matter as rousing a man out of his nightly sleep in the brightness of the morning.
So was it with Lazarus. So was it with our regeneration. So shall it be with the resurrection of the last day.
Oh, the bodies of so many in their graves! So many simply gone to dust, hidden in the earth! So many scattered as ashes to the wind and dissolved in the waters of oceans and seas! So many torn apart and badly disfigured by accident or violence! So many terribly ravaged by disease and wasted by famine! So shall we be, if the Lord tarry.
To us, dead. To Jesus, sleeping.
So, at the appointed time He shall come again. This time, with a shout, and with the trumpet of God. He shall call, and the sleeping shall rise, awakened out of their sleep to live forever, through the power of the Resurrection and the Life.
What blessedness, to sleep in Jesus! What blessedness to show His glorious power when He comes again to awaken us! What glory, to glorify forever the Son of God, to the glory of His and our God!
Let us live and let us die in this great hope!
4 February 2014
“Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.”
Isaiah 9:7
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. Alone.
Before these words, Isaiah declared the affliction of Zebulun and Naphtali, the second time more grievously than the first. After these words, the Lord’s prophet prophesied of the ruin of Ephraim and Samaria. Israel had determined not to submit to the Lord’s judgments on them. Instead piling up again the bricks the Lord tore down, they would build with hewn stone. Instead of using sycamore word for their houses the Lord burned up, they would use cedar. But the Lord would cut them off, his anger not turned away, and his hand stretched out still, against His hardened people.
The zeal of men was for their sin. But the zeal of the Lord of hosts is for His kingdom, to establish it alone. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform it.
Long after David had passed from the scene of Israel’s history, long after the affliction of Zebulun and Naphtali, and long after Ephraim and Samaria were led away by the Lord’s anger in captivity, the Lord performed His glorious work.
His work, driven by His zeal, was to raise up the throne of David in the midst of a wonderful and glorious kingdom. To David He would give such a government and peace whose increase is unending. To David He would give such a kingdom, ordered and established with perfect judgment and justice, so that it would endure “from henceforth even forever.”
This is the kingdom established with no human judgment or justice. No kingdom of Rome or Pilate or Caesar. No kingdom of Alexander the Great, or Philip of Macedon, or of Artaxerxes, or Cyrus, or Nebuchadnezzer, or even of David or of Solomon. This is the kingdom of the Son of God, the true Son of David, King of divine righteousness. This is the kingdom established by the righteous blood shed by the Son of God, to cover the sins that would otherwise mar and ruin this kingdom.
By that divine establishment, so must that kingdom continue forever. Of the increase of its government and peace there shall be no end. Begun in this life, and built up in this world, it must endure through the end of time, to all eternity.
What a privilege to belong to this kingdom! How blessed we are to know our place within it! Not by our running or willing, not by our doing, but by the zeal of the Lord of hosts. So we see this kingdom. So we enter the kingdom. So we delight in its rule and government over us. So we seek it, and so we find it.
So we also see its increase. We see generations gathered into it. We see the Word going out on mission fields, and by that Word those afar off are brought near, into God’s fellowship and friendship. So we see it in our lives, and in the lives of our fellow saints, and in the lives of the covenant seed. David’s rule grows in us as we grow in the grace and knowledge of Him, our Lord and Saviour.
How? By the zeal of the Lord of hosts! His zeal has established His kingdom. His zeal maintains and realizes it. His zeal will keep it. His zeal will perfect it for the unending glory of everlasting life.
May we see His work, and may we rejoice and praise our God, the Lord of hosts, whose zeal will perform all this!
“Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.”
Isaiah 9:7
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. Alone.
Before these words, Isaiah declared the affliction of Zebulun and Naphtali, the second time more grievously than the first. After these words, the Lord’s prophet prophesied of the ruin of Ephraim and Samaria. Israel had determined not to submit to the Lord’s judgments on them. Instead piling up again the bricks the Lord tore down, they would build with hewn stone. Instead of using sycamore word for their houses the Lord burned up, they would use cedar. But the Lord would cut them off, his anger not turned away, and his hand stretched out still, against His hardened people.
The zeal of men was for their sin. But the zeal of the Lord of hosts is for His kingdom, to establish it alone. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform it.
Long after David had passed from the scene of Israel’s history, long after the affliction of Zebulun and Naphtali, and long after Ephraim and Samaria were led away by the Lord’s anger in captivity, the Lord performed His glorious work.
His work, driven by His zeal, was to raise up the throne of David in the midst of a wonderful and glorious kingdom. To David He would give such a government and peace whose increase is unending. To David He would give such a kingdom, ordered and established with perfect judgment and justice, so that it would endure “from henceforth even forever.”
This is the kingdom established with no human judgment or justice. No kingdom of Rome or Pilate or Caesar. No kingdom of Alexander the Great, or Philip of Macedon, or of Artaxerxes, or Cyrus, or Nebuchadnezzer, or even of David or of Solomon. This is the kingdom of the Son of God, the true Son of David, King of divine righteousness. This is the kingdom established by the righteous blood shed by the Son of God, to cover the sins that would otherwise mar and ruin this kingdom.
By that divine establishment, so must that kingdom continue forever. Of the increase of its government and peace there shall be no end. Begun in this life, and built up in this world, it must endure through the end of time, to all eternity.
What a privilege to belong to this kingdom! How blessed we are to know our place within it! Not by our running or willing, not by our doing, but by the zeal of the Lord of hosts. So we see this kingdom. So we enter the kingdom. So we delight in its rule and government over us. So we seek it, and so we find it.
So we also see its increase. We see generations gathered into it. We see the Word going out on mission fields, and by that Word those afar off are brought near, into God’s fellowship and friendship. So we see it in our lives, and in the lives of our fellow saints, and in the lives of the covenant seed. David’s rule grows in us as we grow in the grace and knowledge of Him, our Lord and Saviour.
How? By the zeal of the Lord of hosts! His zeal has established His kingdom. His zeal maintains and realizes it. His zeal will keep it. His zeal will perfect it for the unending glory of everlasting life.
May we see His work, and may we rejoice and praise our God, the Lord of hosts, whose zeal will perform all this!
3 February 2014
“As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.” Colossians 2:6-8
“As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord….and not after Christ.”
So begin and end the words of the three verses above. So runs this text, and so must run our lives: from start to finish, all in Christ. “So walk ye in him.”
What a walk this is, in Christ Jesus the Lord! So many things can be said about this walk. In so many ways Scripture describes this walk. It is a walk in the way of God’s commandments. It is a walk of consecration, separated to pursue the things that belong to the holy, everlasting kingdom of God. It is a walk of wisdom, applying oneself in every area of life to the pursuit of the one goal of God’s glory. It is behaviour and conduct that show in every department the power of salvation, from both the guilt of sin and its domineering, tyrannical power.
But in the words above this walk of the Christian is described according to its source. To that source we must attend, for it properly defines the walk of the Christian at bottom. It does not begin without outward deeds. It begins with a believing heart, a heart which has been regenerated by the Spirit of God. “As ye have therefore received … so walk ye in him.” Verse 6 explains further: “Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught.” In that believing heart dwells Christ by His Spirit. That presence of Christ in the heart so controls and fills the heart that out of it proceeds the desire for and the doing of every good. So are we encouraged: “Walk ye in him.”
As this commandment is given to us, “Walk ye in him,” it must mean more than simply a description of where we are, “in him.” It refers to a conscious, deliberate effort, requiring time and energy, to remain in Christ. It means being busy with the Word of God, hearing it and reading it, studying it and meditating on it. It means taking the name of Christ into your heart and upon your lips, praying often to God the Father through the Mediator He has provided. By the grace of God, in these holy exercises, we become more and more “rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith.”
By these same exercises we also “abound therein with thanksgiving.” The more we know about our election, redemption, and promised glorification in Christ, the more thankful we become. Abounding in faith (and, of course, then, in Christ), we also abound in thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is the powerful motivation of God’s grace to walk in the Lord, keeping His way.
Here, too, is also our protection against all false doctrine. The whole book of Colossians represents a warning against the false doctrines of Gnosticism. Gnosticism tried to graft itself onto Christianity very early on. Gnosticism said “Christ and…” Believe in Christ, but you must also have this other, special knowledge, to be truly complete. There are other points of knowledge. There are other exercises to undertake. Without these other requirements, you cannot have full and complete salvation. With many words Scripture here describes these errors. They are “philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world.” Whatever they are, the final words of verse 8 describe them perfectly and properly: they are “not after Christ.”
There! There is their chief feature. They are “not after Christ.” There is their essential description. There is also our protection from them, why they ought to be immediately distasteful, repugnant, and abhorrent the moment we are exposed to them. They do not take us toward Christ. They do not make us more established in Him. Instead they would lead us away from Him, weakening our fellowship with Him.
So many doctrines are presented to us as we walk in Christ, today and every day. This Word of God gives us a test for every one of them: do they lead to Christ, or away from him? Do they lead to Him? Let us embrace them, cling to them, and grow in them! Do they lead away from Him? Let us abhor and shun them! Let us labour to refute them and disprove them, fighting against them, for our sakes and the church dear to us! So may we continue to walk in Christ, abounding therein with thanksgiving!
“As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.” Colossians 2:6-8
“As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord….and not after Christ.”
So begin and end the words of the three verses above. So runs this text, and so must run our lives: from start to finish, all in Christ. “So walk ye in him.”
What a walk this is, in Christ Jesus the Lord! So many things can be said about this walk. In so many ways Scripture describes this walk. It is a walk in the way of God’s commandments. It is a walk of consecration, separated to pursue the things that belong to the holy, everlasting kingdom of God. It is a walk of wisdom, applying oneself in every area of life to the pursuit of the one goal of God’s glory. It is behaviour and conduct that show in every department the power of salvation, from both the guilt of sin and its domineering, tyrannical power.
But in the words above this walk of the Christian is described according to its source. To that source we must attend, for it properly defines the walk of the Christian at bottom. It does not begin without outward deeds. It begins with a believing heart, a heart which has been regenerated by the Spirit of God. “As ye have therefore received … so walk ye in him.” Verse 6 explains further: “Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught.” In that believing heart dwells Christ by His Spirit. That presence of Christ in the heart so controls and fills the heart that out of it proceeds the desire for and the doing of every good. So are we encouraged: “Walk ye in him.”
As this commandment is given to us, “Walk ye in him,” it must mean more than simply a description of where we are, “in him.” It refers to a conscious, deliberate effort, requiring time and energy, to remain in Christ. It means being busy with the Word of God, hearing it and reading it, studying it and meditating on it. It means taking the name of Christ into your heart and upon your lips, praying often to God the Father through the Mediator He has provided. By the grace of God, in these holy exercises, we become more and more “rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith.”
By these same exercises we also “abound therein with thanksgiving.” The more we know about our election, redemption, and promised glorification in Christ, the more thankful we become. Abounding in faith (and, of course, then, in Christ), we also abound in thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is the powerful motivation of God’s grace to walk in the Lord, keeping His way.
Here, too, is also our protection against all false doctrine. The whole book of Colossians represents a warning against the false doctrines of Gnosticism. Gnosticism tried to graft itself onto Christianity very early on. Gnosticism said “Christ and…” Believe in Christ, but you must also have this other, special knowledge, to be truly complete. There are other points of knowledge. There are other exercises to undertake. Without these other requirements, you cannot have full and complete salvation. With many words Scripture here describes these errors. They are “philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world.” Whatever they are, the final words of verse 8 describe them perfectly and properly: they are “not after Christ.”
There! There is their chief feature. They are “not after Christ.” There is their essential description. There is also our protection from them, why they ought to be immediately distasteful, repugnant, and abhorrent the moment we are exposed to them. They do not take us toward Christ. They do not make us more established in Him. Instead they would lead us away from Him, weakening our fellowship with Him.
So many doctrines are presented to us as we walk in Christ, today and every day. This Word of God gives us a test for every one of them: do they lead to Christ, or away from him? Do they lead to Him? Let us embrace them, cling to them, and grow in them! Do they lead away from Him? Let us abhor and shun them! Let us labour to refute them and disprove them, fighting against them, for our sakes and the church dear to us! So may we continue to walk in Christ, abounding therein with thanksgiving!
2 February 2014
“For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established; That is, that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.” Romans 1:11, 12
With these words the Apostle Paul explained his great motivation for his prayer to see the church at Rome. He longed to see them, and out of that longing he raised fervent prayer to God, that he might be able to come to them.
Some spiritual gift he desired to impart to them. Such a spiritual gift he desired for them, in order that they might be established. He wanted to see them continuing steadfast in their faith, faith that had become renowned through the world. He wanted to see their reputation in faith growing and increasing. And for that growth they had to remain steadfast, continuing in union with Christ, and continuing in the spiritual exercises of worship and service to God through Christ.
Such high-sounding glorious words. With them, we surely want to know what this great spiritual gift might be. What gift should it be that would establish them so firmly, keeping them exactly where they ought to be?
That gift is mutual faith for mutual comfort. Verse 12 simply explains the latter part of verse 11.
This spiritual gift is ours also to receive this Sabbath Day. This spiritual gift is given to us to establish us in faith in Christ. This gift is given to us, that our faith might become so great so as to be “spoken of throughout the world.” Mutual faith, for mutual comfort.
This is the mutuality of the people of God gathering together for worship. In their assembly they exercise their mutual faith. Together they lift their hearts and voices in praise to God through Christ, by faith. Together they hear and believe the reading and preaching of the Scriptures. Together they raise their believing hearts in prayer before God’s throne of grace. There is the practice of mutual faith.
That mutual faith leads to mutual comfort. They together receive the comfort of God’s Word. They together believe the promises they hear proclaimed to them, receiving their substance through faith. They together believe by the Word they together hear that their sins are forgiven. They together believe that all things must work out for their salvation. They together believe that they are more than conquerors in all things through the love of God in Christ Jesus. They together believe that God will make all things turn out to their advantage.
They are able to enjoy their mutual comfort by bearing that Word out of their believing hearts to one another, addressing that Word to all their various needs. In weakness, it brings strength. In sorrow it brings joy. In anxiety it brings peace and calm. In devastation and death it brings hope. God’s people are able to comfort one another.
That faith and the comfort it brings are mutual. Here is the reason why the apostle wanted to see them. He wanted to help them in the faith. He wanted to help them in the comfort of the faith. But he also wanted to be helped in the faith. He also wanted to be comforted in the faith. He knew his own weaknesses. He had his own anxieties. And he knew where to find help: with the saints at Rome.
This great good for the apostle, for which he longed and prayed, is the same great good for us today. So must we long and pray to see our fellow saints. So may we long and pray that we may impart to them some spiritual gift, that they may be established. So may we long and pray that we may be mutually comforted by the mutual faith.
May that longing and prayer find its rich and powerful answer in our worship among God’s people today!
“For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established; That is, that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.” Romans 1:11, 12
With these words the Apostle Paul explained his great motivation for his prayer to see the church at Rome. He longed to see them, and out of that longing he raised fervent prayer to God, that he might be able to come to them.
Some spiritual gift he desired to impart to them. Such a spiritual gift he desired for them, in order that they might be established. He wanted to see them continuing steadfast in their faith, faith that had become renowned through the world. He wanted to see their reputation in faith growing and increasing. And for that growth they had to remain steadfast, continuing in union with Christ, and continuing in the spiritual exercises of worship and service to God through Christ.
Such high-sounding glorious words. With them, we surely want to know what this great spiritual gift might be. What gift should it be that would establish them so firmly, keeping them exactly where they ought to be?
That gift is mutual faith for mutual comfort. Verse 12 simply explains the latter part of verse 11.
This spiritual gift is ours also to receive this Sabbath Day. This spiritual gift is given to us to establish us in faith in Christ. This gift is given to us, that our faith might become so great so as to be “spoken of throughout the world.” Mutual faith, for mutual comfort.
This is the mutuality of the people of God gathering together for worship. In their assembly they exercise their mutual faith. Together they lift their hearts and voices in praise to God through Christ, by faith. Together they hear and believe the reading and preaching of the Scriptures. Together they raise their believing hearts in prayer before God’s throne of grace. There is the practice of mutual faith.
That mutual faith leads to mutual comfort. They together receive the comfort of God’s Word. They together believe the promises they hear proclaimed to them, receiving their substance through faith. They together believe by the Word they together hear that their sins are forgiven. They together believe that all things must work out for their salvation. They together believe that they are more than conquerors in all things through the love of God in Christ Jesus. They together believe that God will make all things turn out to their advantage.
They are able to enjoy their mutual comfort by bearing that Word out of their believing hearts to one another, addressing that Word to all their various needs. In weakness, it brings strength. In sorrow it brings joy. In anxiety it brings peace and calm. In devastation and death it brings hope. God’s people are able to comfort one another.
That faith and the comfort it brings are mutual. Here is the reason why the apostle wanted to see them. He wanted to help them in the faith. He wanted to help them in the comfort of the faith. But he also wanted to be helped in the faith. He also wanted to be comforted in the faith. He knew his own weaknesses. He had his own anxieties. And he knew where to find help: with the saints at Rome.
This great good for the apostle, for which he longed and prayed, is the same great good for us today. So must we long and pray to see our fellow saints. So may we long and pray that we may impart to them some spiritual gift, that they may be established. So may we long and pray that we may be mutually comforted by the mutual faith.
May that longing and prayer find its rich and powerful answer in our worship among God’s people today!
1 February 2014
“Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness.” Colossians 1:13
What a match we are given in these words!
On the one side of this match we are given three words that plainly belong together: strength, might, and power.
These three words are coordinated in order that we might know the strength that is given in us, and therefore to be found in us, according to the prayer of the Apostle, the prayer of Christ for us, and the working of the Holy Spirit in us. We are to be made strong in every way. Included here is not only strength in our nature, but that applied in all our situations and circumstances. “All might” is the word that explains how that strength is to manifest itself in our lives.
This might is matched also to a rule, a divine, infinite rule. We are meant to inquire about God’s power. How great, how high, and how wonderful is His power? As glorious as that power is, so strengthened are we for living in this world.
Now, to what is this strength matched? It is matched to a goal, or an end.
That end is not matched to physical ability. The end is not matched to the abilities and deeds celebrated by the world. It is not related to talents in art, shrewd dealings in business, or besting one’s competitors. In what is the Christian’s strength shown?
God’s power strengthens for “all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness! God’s strength shows its glory in patience. He lays upon His people heavy burdens to bear. He gives them afflictions and trials. He gives them burdens of pain and weakness. He gives them difficulties and hardships in body, mind, and soul. But for those burdens He gives them patience. Patience is the ability to remain under those heavy burdens. They do not give up, but continue on under them.
God’s strength also shows its glory in longsuffering. Closely related to patience, longsuffering speak of the distance that is required in the bearing of these afflictions and trials. There is a time that God requires for the bearing of these burdens. The saints hope and long. They ask, “How long?” They know and are assured that God’s deliverance will certainly come, for he has promised. But there is always a wait. Longsuffering is the ability to endure through to the end, the time of deliverance that God has appointed in. His wisdom.
With this Word of God we understand why. He is pleased to give us difficult circumstances: to bless us with His strength, and to manifest that strength in our patience and longsuffering.
Only with that understanding are we then able to consider this last element that is matched to the strength God gives us. We are to be strengthened by God’s power for patience and longsuffering with joy.
Joy! The Christian’s joy shows its real, true character in suffering. We can think of Paul and Silas’ joy with their feet in the stocks and their backs cut open from the many stripes laid upon them. We can think of the company of the apostles rejoicing after being beating, counting it a privilege to suffer for Jesus’ sake. We can think of Christ’s injunction to us, to rejoice when we are persecuted for. His name’s sake. Christian joy shows its true power only in suffering and trials, because it is a joy that is not of this world. It is independent of earthly circumstances because it is rooted in God, in God’s favour and grace that are everlasting, from eternity to eternity.
Joy in suffering also demonstrates the abundance of God’s strength that He gives for patience and longsuffering. His strength is not merely given in such measure merely to equal the weight of the burdens Christians carry. His strength is abundant and exceeding, beyond any earthly measure. They rejoice that the glorious promise of complete deliverance into liberty is sealed to them with the blood of their dear Lord, whom they follow through suffering to glory.
May this be our prayer, following after the example of the holy apostle. May it be our prayer when we see the suffering of our fellow saints. May we also encourage them by praying with them in their suffering. And as it pleases the Lord to afflict us sometimes with heavy burdens, may we pray for His strength to show His power in our patience and longsuffering with joy.
“Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness.” Colossians 1:13
What a match we are given in these words!
On the one side of this match we are given three words that plainly belong together: strength, might, and power.
These three words are coordinated in order that we might know the strength that is given in us, and therefore to be found in us, according to the prayer of the Apostle, the prayer of Christ for us, and the working of the Holy Spirit in us. We are to be made strong in every way. Included here is not only strength in our nature, but that applied in all our situations and circumstances. “All might” is the word that explains how that strength is to manifest itself in our lives.
This might is matched also to a rule, a divine, infinite rule. We are meant to inquire about God’s power. How great, how high, and how wonderful is His power? As glorious as that power is, so strengthened are we for living in this world.
Now, to what is this strength matched? It is matched to a goal, or an end.
That end is not matched to physical ability. The end is not matched to the abilities and deeds celebrated by the world. It is not related to talents in art, shrewd dealings in business, or besting one’s competitors. In what is the Christian’s strength shown?
God’s power strengthens for “all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness! God’s strength shows its glory in patience. He lays upon His people heavy burdens to bear. He gives them afflictions and trials. He gives them burdens of pain and weakness. He gives them difficulties and hardships in body, mind, and soul. But for those burdens He gives them patience. Patience is the ability to remain under those heavy burdens. They do not give up, but continue on under them.
God’s strength also shows its glory in longsuffering. Closely related to patience, longsuffering speak of the distance that is required in the bearing of these afflictions and trials. There is a time that God requires for the bearing of these burdens. The saints hope and long. They ask, “How long?” They know and are assured that God’s deliverance will certainly come, for he has promised. But there is always a wait. Longsuffering is the ability to endure through to the end, the time of deliverance that God has appointed in. His wisdom.
With this Word of God we understand why. He is pleased to give us difficult circumstances: to bless us with His strength, and to manifest that strength in our patience and longsuffering.
Only with that understanding are we then able to consider this last element that is matched to the strength God gives us. We are to be strengthened by God’s power for patience and longsuffering with joy.
Joy! The Christian’s joy shows its real, true character in suffering. We can think of Paul and Silas’ joy with their feet in the stocks and their backs cut open from the many stripes laid upon them. We can think of the company of the apostles rejoicing after being beating, counting it a privilege to suffer for Jesus’ sake. We can think of Christ’s injunction to us, to rejoice when we are persecuted for. His name’s sake. Christian joy shows its true power only in suffering and trials, because it is a joy that is not of this world. It is independent of earthly circumstances because it is rooted in God, in God’s favour and grace that are everlasting, from eternity to eternity.
Joy in suffering also demonstrates the abundance of God’s strength that He gives for patience and longsuffering. His strength is not merely given in such measure merely to equal the weight of the burdens Christians carry. His strength is abundant and exceeding, beyond any earthly measure. They rejoice that the glorious promise of complete deliverance into liberty is sealed to them with the blood of their dear Lord, whom they follow through suffering to glory.
May this be our prayer, following after the example of the holy apostle. May it be our prayer when we see the suffering of our fellow saints. May we also encourage them by praying with them in their suffering. And as it pleases the Lord to afflict us sometimes with heavy burdens, may we pray for His strength to show His power in our patience and longsuffering with joy.
30 January 2014
"For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the wicked shall perish." Psalm 1:6
The first, little word of this verse tells us that we arrive at the root of this entire Psalm. This last verse is the reason for the blessedness of the man whose "delight is in the law of the Lord." This last verse is also the reason why "the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, or sinners in the congregation of the righteous."
No mere laws of nature are we meant to observe in operation here. Nor are we meant to speak merely of circumstances with their own outcome, only an unbreakable chain of cause and effect. Why is the righteous so blessed? Why is the righteous well compared to a tree planted by the rivers of water? Why is it that whatever he does shall prosper? "The Lord knoweth the way of the righteous."
Why, in turn, are the ungodly "like the chaff which the wind driveth away," so different in their end from the righteous? Why do the ungodly perish in their judgment, banished from the gathering of the righteous? God will not know them. "The way of the ungodly shall perish."
What a stark difference we find in this last verse!
"The Lord knoweth the way of the righteous."
What blessed knowledge this is! This is a knowledge of friendship and fellowship. The Lord studies that way. He delights to know it thoroughly and intimately. He delights in every step of the righteous in the way that they take. He delights in the meditations of their hearts. He delights in the conversations they hold. He delights in their labours. He rejoices to guide them and keep them, making each one "like a tree planted by the rivers of water." He loves to make each one prosperous through the works of his hands.
His knowledge of that way is also by His own walk in it. He walks with the righteous in their way. He graces them with His own companionship and fellowship. Step by step, turn by turn, he constantly remains with them, blessing them with His loving friendship. He is near to them.
But the Lord’s knowledge goes even deeper and is more intimate. The Lord knows the way of the righteous because He Himself has set the righteous on it. In grace He has designed that way and the righteous who should walk in that way, from eternity. By His Spirit He turns His elect into that way of righteousness, and guides and keeps them on it. Without His work, they would only turn aside from it into every path of sin and evil. His knowledge is a knowledge of sovereign grace.
In stark contrast is the way of the ungodly. Their way is completely set apart from the way of the righteous. So far apart is it, that Scripture is completely silent about the Lord’s knowledge of that way. So abhorrent and loathsome is their way, that the Lord will not know it. He is turned from it. All the Lord’s knowledge identified with the way of the righteous is wholly absent from the way of the ungodly.
Instead, "the way of the ungodly shall perish." They shall walk in their way. They shall carry on in their lives, their homes and businesses. As they carry on, they may certainly increase in riches and honour among men. They may bask in the glow of men’s praises for their accomplishments. But the end is near: the way of the ungodly shall perish. It shall perish under the wrath of God against them. The word used by the Hebrew refers to the destruction not of annihilation, but of complete desolation and loss. It is the destructive power of hell, the place to which the way of the ungodly always leads, one way with one end.
There is then only one way for us to take. One way to follow, one way to which we must cling. One way for us to seek God’s grace to keep it. The way of blessing, the way of delight in the law of the Lord. The way He knows. May that way be ours today!
"For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the wicked shall perish." Psalm 1:6
The first, little word of this verse tells us that we arrive at the root of this entire Psalm. This last verse is the reason for the blessedness of the man whose "delight is in the law of the Lord." This last verse is also the reason why "the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, or sinners in the congregation of the righteous."
No mere laws of nature are we meant to observe in operation here. Nor are we meant to speak merely of circumstances with their own outcome, only an unbreakable chain of cause and effect. Why is the righteous so blessed? Why is the righteous well compared to a tree planted by the rivers of water? Why is it that whatever he does shall prosper? "The Lord knoweth the way of the righteous."
Why, in turn, are the ungodly "like the chaff which the wind driveth away," so different in their end from the righteous? Why do the ungodly perish in their judgment, banished from the gathering of the righteous? God will not know them. "The way of the ungodly shall perish."
What a stark difference we find in this last verse!
"The Lord knoweth the way of the righteous."
What blessed knowledge this is! This is a knowledge of friendship and fellowship. The Lord studies that way. He delights to know it thoroughly and intimately. He delights in every step of the righteous in the way that they take. He delights in the meditations of their hearts. He delights in the conversations they hold. He delights in their labours. He rejoices to guide them and keep them, making each one "like a tree planted by the rivers of water." He loves to make each one prosperous through the works of his hands.
His knowledge of that way is also by His own walk in it. He walks with the righteous in their way. He graces them with His own companionship and fellowship. Step by step, turn by turn, he constantly remains with them, blessing them with His loving friendship. He is near to them.
But the Lord’s knowledge goes even deeper and is more intimate. The Lord knows the way of the righteous because He Himself has set the righteous on it. In grace He has designed that way and the righteous who should walk in that way, from eternity. By His Spirit He turns His elect into that way of righteousness, and guides and keeps them on it. Without His work, they would only turn aside from it into every path of sin and evil. His knowledge is a knowledge of sovereign grace.
In stark contrast is the way of the ungodly. Their way is completely set apart from the way of the righteous. So far apart is it, that Scripture is completely silent about the Lord’s knowledge of that way. So abhorrent and loathsome is their way, that the Lord will not know it. He is turned from it. All the Lord’s knowledge identified with the way of the righteous is wholly absent from the way of the ungodly.
Instead, "the way of the ungodly shall perish." They shall walk in their way. They shall carry on in their lives, their homes and businesses. As they carry on, they may certainly increase in riches and honour among men. They may bask in the glow of men’s praises for their accomplishments. But the end is near: the way of the ungodly shall perish. It shall perish under the wrath of God against them. The word used by the Hebrew refers to the destruction not of annihilation, but of complete desolation and loss. It is the destructive power of hell, the place to which the way of the ungodly always leads, one way with one end.
There is then only one way for us to take. One way to follow, one way to which we must cling. One way for us to seek God’s grace to keep it. The way of blessing, the way of delight in the law of the Lord. The way He knows. May that way be ours today!
29 January 2014
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live." John 5:24, 25
From effect to cause is the powerful argument our Lord employed to answer His unbelieving critics.
What is the effect?
First is the effect of verse 24, a wonderful and glorious effect. Here is one that hears Jesus’ word. He listens, he understands, he believes, and he follows after Jesus. He is a disciple, attending Jesus’ words. He follows, walking in the way of his Master and Lord. He also believes on the One that sent Jesus, the living and true God. Through Jesus and by Jesus, He is brought to God, to know that He lives and moves in God’s everlasting kingdom.
In this effect and way of hearing and believing, this same individual is to be assured that he has everlasting life. He is free of all condemnation. He is justified unto life eternal. Already he "is passed from death unto life." Death has no power over him. He is already beyond the reach of that last, great enemy to destroy Him.
Second, is the effect that we are given in the context of these words. There was a man laying by the pool of Bethesda for many years. He had lain there in the hopes of getting into that pool first, when its waters were troubled, in order to be healed. But every time, another was able to reach the pool first, and received the power to be healed. He had not the power to reach the water to be healed. But with Jesus there was no need to move, no need at all to reach the waters first. Without the lame man’s movement or request the Son of God healed him with His voice. "Rise, take up thy bed, and walk." We read then, "And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked."
From effect to cause!
How was it that this lame man came to rise up? How could he take up his bed and walk? This effect surely needed its cause, and a powerful cause at that. The effect could not even have for its cause the lame man’s quick actions to get into the pool of Bethesda before anyone else. He had no such ability. No, there was only one cause: the voice of Jesus.
How is it that a man hears the word of Jesus? How is it that he believes on God, who sent Jesus? How is it that he has everlasting life and freedom from condemnation? How has he passed from death to life? He could not move, for he was dead in sin and unbelief. He had no impulse of free will. No hand to raise. No feet to carry him forward to the front. No movement to make. Nothing.
But the hour came and now is. The Son of God used His voice. He spoke. The dead heard. The dead lived. The dead believed. The dead passed from death to life. So they rose, and so they walked, following their Lord and Master.
So was the hour then. So is the hour now. How do we hear Jesus’ word? How do we believe in God? How are we passed from condemnation into life? Not by our running. Not by our willing. Only by the voice of the Son of God! As we live, hearing and believing, in the enjoyment of our everlasting life, let us give all praise and glory to the Son, who has made us free. With His voice!
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live." John 5:24, 25
From effect to cause is the powerful argument our Lord employed to answer His unbelieving critics.
What is the effect?
First is the effect of verse 24, a wonderful and glorious effect. Here is one that hears Jesus’ word. He listens, he understands, he believes, and he follows after Jesus. He is a disciple, attending Jesus’ words. He follows, walking in the way of his Master and Lord. He also believes on the One that sent Jesus, the living and true God. Through Jesus and by Jesus, He is brought to God, to know that He lives and moves in God’s everlasting kingdom.
In this effect and way of hearing and believing, this same individual is to be assured that he has everlasting life. He is free of all condemnation. He is justified unto life eternal. Already he "is passed from death unto life." Death has no power over him. He is already beyond the reach of that last, great enemy to destroy Him.
Second, is the effect that we are given in the context of these words. There was a man laying by the pool of Bethesda for many years. He had lain there in the hopes of getting into that pool first, when its waters were troubled, in order to be healed. But every time, another was able to reach the pool first, and received the power to be healed. He had not the power to reach the water to be healed. But with Jesus there was no need to move, no need at all to reach the waters first. Without the lame man’s movement or request the Son of God healed him with His voice. "Rise, take up thy bed, and walk." We read then, "And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked."
From effect to cause!
How was it that this lame man came to rise up? How could he take up his bed and walk? This effect surely needed its cause, and a powerful cause at that. The effect could not even have for its cause the lame man’s quick actions to get into the pool of Bethesda before anyone else. He had no such ability. No, there was only one cause: the voice of Jesus.
How is it that a man hears the word of Jesus? How is it that he believes on God, who sent Jesus? How is it that he has everlasting life and freedom from condemnation? How has he passed from death to life? He could not move, for he was dead in sin and unbelief. He had no impulse of free will. No hand to raise. No feet to carry him forward to the front. No movement to make. Nothing.
But the hour came and now is. The Son of God used His voice. He spoke. The dead heard. The dead lived. The dead believed. The dead passed from death to life. So they rose, and so they walked, following their Lord and Master.
So was the hour then. So is the hour now. How do we hear Jesus’ word? How do we believe in God? How are we passed from condemnation into life? Not by our running. Not by our willing. Only by the voice of the Son of God! As we live, hearing and believing, in the enjoyment of our everlasting life, let us give all praise and glory to the Son, who has made us free. With His voice!
28 January 2014
"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way ever lasting." Psalm 139:23, 24
A Spirit-led, and therefore most fitting end to this Psalm we have in the above words. David’s heart he has filled with sweet meditations of the Lord’s omnipresence. He had explored the heights of heaven and the depths of hell. There he knew God’s presence and power, to keep and guide him. He had visited his very beginning in his mother’s womb. He thought of his development from the instant of his conception all the way to his birth. There, too, he rejoiced to confess the guiding presence of his God, to knit bone to sinew, fearfully and wonderfully making him.
Why all these thoughts? Why are we to make his meditation our own via this Psalm?
The conclusion to this Psalm tells us. Only God can direct us where we cannot direct ourselves. To Him we must pray this prayer: "Lead me in the way everlasting!"
However, how can we possibly pray this prayer we must pray?
How can we pray, "Search me, O God, and know my heart"? How can we pray, "Try me, and know my thoughts"? How can we ask God to "see if there be any wicked way in me"? Is not such a prayer a request to be cast off by God? Should this supplication turn to a request to be destroyed by the consuming fire of God’s holy displeasure against sin and the sinner?
Only by the mercy of God in Jesus Christ! Only by the blood of the Lamb that is our peace with God, the sacrifice that brings us into His blessed friendship and fellowship. Only as the living God searches us and tries us, when we are washed in that blood. Only through faith in that blood do we dare to make this supplication before God: "Search me, O God . . . and see if there be any wicked way in me."
By that same mercy of God in Christ we are able to make this prayer and know its certain and sure answer. God will search us and try us. He will know our heart and our thoughts. To our wicked ways He will not abandon us. From those wicked ways He will cleanse us. And He will lead us in the way everlasting. All by His grace!
"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way ever lasting." Psalm 139:23, 24
A Spirit-led, and therefore most fitting end to this Psalm we have in the above words. David’s heart he has filled with sweet meditations of the Lord’s omnipresence. He had explored the heights of heaven and the depths of hell. There he knew God’s presence and power, to keep and guide him. He had visited his very beginning in his mother’s womb. He thought of his development from the instant of his conception all the way to his birth. There, too, he rejoiced to confess the guiding presence of his God, to knit bone to sinew, fearfully and wonderfully making him.
Why all these thoughts? Why are we to make his meditation our own via this Psalm?
The conclusion to this Psalm tells us. Only God can direct us where we cannot direct ourselves. To Him we must pray this prayer: "Lead me in the way everlasting!"
However, how can we possibly pray this prayer we must pray?
How can we pray, "Search me, O God, and know my heart"? How can we pray, "Try me, and know my thoughts"? How can we ask God to "see if there be any wicked way in me"? Is not such a prayer a request to be cast off by God? Should this supplication turn to a request to be destroyed by the consuming fire of God’s holy displeasure against sin and the sinner?
Only by the mercy of God in Jesus Christ! Only by the blood of the Lamb that is our peace with God, the sacrifice that brings us into His blessed friendship and fellowship. Only as the living God searches us and tries us, when we are washed in that blood. Only through faith in that blood do we dare to make this supplication before God: "Search me, O God . . . and see if there be any wicked way in me."
By that same mercy of God in Christ we are able to make this prayer and know its certain and sure answer. God will search us and try us. He will know our heart and our thoughts. To our wicked ways He will not abandon us. From those wicked ways He will cleanse us. And He will lead us in the way everlasting. All by His grace!
26 January 2014, The Lord’s Day
“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28
“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” Exodus 20:8
Two commandments, but at bottom they are one.
Both are commandments to those who work, and both are commandments to leave the work behind in order to rest. Both have the same end and goal in mind. They call you to cease from your work in order to know the glorious works of God through Christ as your rest.
Forsake your works! Forsake your works that make you weary and heavy laden. Forsake your works of vain toil. No longer seek the things of the world that cannot satisfy and are bound to be destroyed in fire at our Lord’s return. Leave behind your ordinary, regular works, the works into which you dove on Monday, and carried on in until Sunday. Leave behind your earthly pleasures and distractions. Hurl them far from you. Drive them far away from your mind, and allow them no entrance.
Leave them all behind, in order to rest. Know today not your works, but the works of God and of God alone.
Turn to know His glorious and powerful works of creation. He commanded, and the worlds sprang into being. He called the light out of darkness, and there was light. A glorious, wonderful home He built for man, and then created man to dwell in it. All without consulting man. All without the aid of man.
Turn to know His glorious and mighty works of judgment. See how men in their foolish pride rebel against God. See how they boast of their strength and power in defiance of their Maker. Then see God’s glory shown in judgment. His enemies He scatters. Their power He shows to be only weakness, their wisdom only folly.
Turn to know His glorious and mighty works of salvation. See how He helps those that are cast down into the dust. See how He raises the dead to life, gives sight to the blind, causes the lame to walk and the dumb to speak. See how He delivers out of judgment and brings out of oppression. See how He pardons sin, and gives righteousness. See how He protects and guards His people, leading them safe to the glory He has prepared for them.
Those works remember! Dwell on them. Meditate upon them. In God’s house rejoice to hear them declared to you.
Rejoice to hear those works declared to you, for they are your rest. By those works, hear your Saviour calling you: “Come to me . . . and I will give you rest.” Here is your blessed rest: all these works are for you and your salvation. Every one of them declares your everlasting safety and security in God’s kingdom.
This is your rest, your peace: creation for you, judgment for you, salvation for you. All God’s works are for you. Nothing can be against you. Through Jesus Christ, your Redeemer from God.
Remember the Sabbath Day!
“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28
“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” Exodus 20:8
Two commandments, but at bottom they are one.
Both are commandments to those who work, and both are commandments to leave the work behind in order to rest. Both have the same end and goal in mind. They call you to cease from your work in order to know the glorious works of God through Christ as your rest.
Forsake your works! Forsake your works that make you weary and heavy laden. Forsake your works of vain toil. No longer seek the things of the world that cannot satisfy and are bound to be destroyed in fire at our Lord’s return. Leave behind your ordinary, regular works, the works into which you dove on Monday, and carried on in until Sunday. Leave behind your earthly pleasures and distractions. Hurl them far from you. Drive them far away from your mind, and allow them no entrance.
Leave them all behind, in order to rest. Know today not your works, but the works of God and of God alone.
Turn to know His glorious and powerful works of creation. He commanded, and the worlds sprang into being. He called the light out of darkness, and there was light. A glorious, wonderful home He built for man, and then created man to dwell in it. All without consulting man. All without the aid of man.
Turn to know His glorious and mighty works of judgment. See how men in their foolish pride rebel against God. See how they boast of their strength and power in defiance of their Maker. Then see God’s glory shown in judgment. His enemies He scatters. Their power He shows to be only weakness, their wisdom only folly.
Turn to know His glorious and mighty works of salvation. See how He helps those that are cast down into the dust. See how He raises the dead to life, gives sight to the blind, causes the lame to walk and the dumb to speak. See how He delivers out of judgment and brings out of oppression. See how He pardons sin, and gives righteousness. See how He protects and guards His people, leading them safe to the glory He has prepared for them.
Those works remember! Dwell on them. Meditate upon them. In God’s house rejoice to hear them declared to you.
Rejoice to hear those works declared to you, for they are your rest. By those works, hear your Saviour calling you: “Come to me . . . and I will give you rest.” Here is your blessed rest: all these works are for you and your salvation. Every one of them declares your everlasting safety and security in God’s kingdom.
This is your rest, your peace: creation for you, judgment for you, salvation for you. All God’s works are for you. Nothing can be against you. Through Jesus Christ, your Redeemer from God.
Remember the Sabbath Day!
25 January 2014
“Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil.” Proverbs 3:7
With these words the Holy Spirit calls us to a lifetime of battle!
To be wise in our own eyes is our natural tendency, God’s judgment over original sin. We want to know things, and act on our knowledge. We want to see the tree as pleasant to see, good for food, and desirable to make one wise. So we know with Eve, and so we reach out with our hands to pick and to eat. So will we know evil and good our way. God’s good we call evil, and shun it. God’s evil we call good and pursue it.
This is our folly, this wisdom of our own eyes! It is the way of destruction, but we are ever ready to run in it.
This Word stops us in our tracks. “Be not wise in thine own eyes.” Give up your way of thinking! Give up your foolish ways! Give up your foolish pride that has you pursuing death!
Instead, fear the Lord!
The fear of the Lord is the fire that banishes the fog and mist of our foolish, vain delusions. That fear alone will show us the complete lunacy of our own, so-called wisdom. When we know the greatness of our God in His wisdom and knowledge, we can no longer be wise in our own eyes, but must be immediately cast down. We must know ourselves to be but brute beasts before His understanding.
This same fear of the Lord is also deep and powerful affection for Him, according to the greatness of His love. In this fear, we do not flee from, but run to our God, knowing His great, eternal love for us, by His Son. By the fear of the Lord we ardently seek Him according to His glory. His infinite wisdom and power become our refuge. Near to Him, hidden in Him, we are safe and secure.
In His fear, not only do we desire Him, but we seek to please Him. He becomes our aim and goal. So what is displeasing to Him becomes displeasing to us. We leave off being wise in our own eyes. No longer is it pleasing to us.
So the fear of the Lord is our power to depart from evil. It is our power to depart from our pride, arrogance, and self-conceit. It is our power to reject the wisdom of our own conceits. The evil we find evil, and flee from it. The good we find good, and pursue it.
Let us grow in that fear, and let us depart from all evil!
“Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil.” Proverbs 3:7
With these words the Holy Spirit calls us to a lifetime of battle!
To be wise in our own eyes is our natural tendency, God’s judgment over original sin. We want to know things, and act on our knowledge. We want to see the tree as pleasant to see, good for food, and desirable to make one wise. So we know with Eve, and so we reach out with our hands to pick and to eat. So will we know evil and good our way. God’s good we call evil, and shun it. God’s evil we call good and pursue it.
This is our folly, this wisdom of our own eyes! It is the way of destruction, but we are ever ready to run in it.
This Word stops us in our tracks. “Be not wise in thine own eyes.” Give up your way of thinking! Give up your foolish ways! Give up your foolish pride that has you pursuing death!
Instead, fear the Lord!
The fear of the Lord is the fire that banishes the fog and mist of our foolish, vain delusions. That fear alone will show us the complete lunacy of our own, so-called wisdom. When we know the greatness of our God in His wisdom and knowledge, we can no longer be wise in our own eyes, but must be immediately cast down. We must know ourselves to be but brute beasts before His understanding.
This same fear of the Lord is also deep and powerful affection for Him, according to the greatness of His love. In this fear, we do not flee from, but run to our God, knowing His great, eternal love for us, by His Son. By the fear of the Lord we ardently seek Him according to His glory. His infinite wisdom and power become our refuge. Near to Him, hidden in Him, we are safe and secure.
In His fear, not only do we desire Him, but we seek to please Him. He becomes our aim and goal. So what is displeasing to Him becomes displeasing to us. We leave off being wise in our own eyes. No longer is it pleasing to us.
So the fear of the Lord is our power to depart from evil. It is our power to depart from our pride, arrogance, and self-conceit. It is our power to reject the wisdom of our own conceits. The evil we find evil, and flee from it. The good we find good, and pursue it.
Let us grow in that fear, and let us depart from all evil!
24 January 2014
“And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness.” Genesis 15:5, 6
The words of the sixth verse of Genesis fifteen echo through all sacred and church history. They stand as the basis for the teaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ in Scripture. They have been used for so much good in the church of Jesus Christ, to defend and maintain the truth of the gospel of justification by faith alone.
Why? Scripture itself leads us to these words of Genesis fifteen, to show to us our own justification, and the justification of every child of God. Scripture uses them to show that our standing before God does not depend on our works, on anything that we do, or on anything in us. What the Bible says here about Abraham, it says about every one of God’s people: all are justified by faith.
For, first, faith follows the Word of God. God speaks. Faith believes Him. Faith believes His Word. Faith takes the promise of God, and faith relies wholly on it. Faith finds it to be true because God said it. Faith does not argue or contradict. Faith does not find fault. As God said to Abraham, “So shall thy seed be,” as many as the stars that filled Abraham’s vision, so Abraham’s faith simply followed that Word of God.
Second, Abraham’s faith rested on that Word of God as something grand and glorious. God’s promise was not ordinary or meager. Just the opposite. God’s promise was incomprehensible in its riches, glory, and power. That promise stood opposite of Abraham’s weakness. As old as the patriarch now was, he as yet had no seed. But that promise stood in perfect harmony with God’s power to fulfill it. It was a Word to be believed, and Abraham believed it. When we stop reckoning with our power to bring something about, and begin reckoning with God’s power to do it, then we are in the way of faith.
The same thing must be true of our faith. Here is the reason why the gospel is proclaimed with the words of verse 6, “ . . . and he counted it to him for righteousness.” Faith brings justification, the gift of God’s righteousness to the sinner, received through faith. By that gift of righteousness, given through faith, the sinner has this standing before God: he is upright, innocent, righteous, and worthy of eternal life. Here is the great question: how is a sinner just before God? By God’s Word! The Word to be believed, the Word to cling to, the Word simply to rest upon! We are justified through faith.
Third, Abraham’s faith rested on Jesus Christ. In that fifth verse, God preached to Abraham the gospel of Jesus Christ. “So shall thy seed be.” Those stars in the heavens, in their vast, innumerable multitude, did not declare to Abraham his seed according to the flesh. They declared his seed according to the promise. According to Romans 9:6-9 and Galatians 3:6-16, when God spoke His promise to Abraham, He spoke of Jesus Christ, the seed, and then of all those in Christ, the true children of Abraham. When Abraham believed the promise of God, He believed in Jesus Christ, his own seed.
So God also preaches His Word to us. He causes it to sound in our ears: His promise of righteousness, complete and perfect, His righteousness given us by His Son, the promised seed of Abraham. When we believe that promise, our faith is imputed to us for righteousness. The sinner is justified! The impossible God has performed!
So by faith we are found in that promise that God made to Abraham so long ago, numbered among his seed. Our place is among that seed, as many the stars in heaven for multitude. So we have our blessed place in that multitude, like Abraham: justified by faith!
“And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness.” Genesis 15:5, 6
The words of the sixth verse of Genesis fifteen echo through all sacred and church history. They stand as the basis for the teaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ in Scripture. They have been used for so much good in the church of Jesus Christ, to defend and maintain the truth of the gospel of justification by faith alone.
Why? Scripture itself leads us to these words of Genesis fifteen, to show to us our own justification, and the justification of every child of God. Scripture uses them to show that our standing before God does not depend on our works, on anything that we do, or on anything in us. What the Bible says here about Abraham, it says about every one of God’s people: all are justified by faith.
For, first, faith follows the Word of God. God speaks. Faith believes Him. Faith believes His Word. Faith takes the promise of God, and faith relies wholly on it. Faith finds it to be true because God said it. Faith does not argue or contradict. Faith does not find fault. As God said to Abraham, “So shall thy seed be,” as many as the stars that filled Abraham’s vision, so Abraham’s faith simply followed that Word of God.
Second, Abraham’s faith rested on that Word of God as something grand and glorious. God’s promise was not ordinary or meager. Just the opposite. God’s promise was incomprehensible in its riches, glory, and power. That promise stood opposite of Abraham’s weakness. As old as the patriarch now was, he as yet had no seed. But that promise stood in perfect harmony with God’s power to fulfill it. It was a Word to be believed, and Abraham believed it. When we stop reckoning with our power to bring something about, and begin reckoning with God’s power to do it, then we are in the way of faith.
The same thing must be true of our faith. Here is the reason why the gospel is proclaimed with the words of verse 6, “ . . . and he counted it to him for righteousness.” Faith brings justification, the gift of God’s righteousness to the sinner, received through faith. By that gift of righteousness, given through faith, the sinner has this standing before God: he is upright, innocent, righteous, and worthy of eternal life. Here is the great question: how is a sinner just before God? By God’s Word! The Word to be believed, the Word to cling to, the Word simply to rest upon! We are justified through faith.
Third, Abraham’s faith rested on Jesus Christ. In that fifth verse, God preached to Abraham the gospel of Jesus Christ. “So shall thy seed be.” Those stars in the heavens, in their vast, innumerable multitude, did not declare to Abraham his seed according to the flesh. They declared his seed according to the promise. According to Romans 9:6-9 and Galatians 3:6-16, when God spoke His promise to Abraham, He spoke of Jesus Christ, the seed, and then of all those in Christ, the true children of Abraham. When Abraham believed the promise of God, He believed in Jesus Christ, his own seed.
So God also preaches His Word to us. He causes it to sound in our ears: His promise of righteousness, complete and perfect, His righteousness given us by His Son, the promised seed of Abraham. When we believe that promise, our faith is imputed to us for righteousness. The sinner is justified! The impossible God has performed!
So by faith we are found in that promise that God made to Abraham so long ago, numbered among his seed. Our place is among that seed, as many the stars in heaven for multitude. So we have our blessed place in that multitude, like Abraham: justified by faith!
22 January 2014
“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” John 14:27
What blessed peace the Lord Jesus Christ gives to you, His own!
There is no peace like the peace the Lord gives. When He uses this word “peace,” to describe His gift to His disciples, He must immediately add a distinguishing and separating word: “my peace.”
His peace is not the peace of the world.
The world has its own peace, so-called. That peace is a peace of mutual love and cooperation. So much more can be accomplished together than separately. It is generally understood that nations can be stronger when there is peace with other nations and peace within a nation. War and violence sap a nation’s strength and potential. When young men die on the battlefield, the strength of a nation in those young men is lost. When violence stalks the city, people are less likely to trust each other for the sake of accomplishing common goals. Fear robs a society of its productivity, one of the goals of anarchists and terrorists.
So there is a pursuit of peace, and people always enjoy their peace with one another. In that peace they prosper in their economy in business. In their relationships they flourish and prosper, laugh and enjoy their abundance. In their peace, they undertake their cultural pursuits. Art and science prosper and their fruits bring benefits to the masses. In peace the children of the world build their homes and raise their families, enjoying their lives.
Yet, there is truly and really no peace. For all this is undertaken apart from God. All this peace is pursued without acknowledgment that it is all the gift of God, the arrangement of His providence. And all this is undertaken and enjoyed in rejection of God. His honor, His glory, and His fear they will not acknowledge. In their peace, they are at war with God. At peace among themselves, they fight Him!
So Christ must describe His gift to you this way: “My peace I give unto you.” His peace is the peace of His atoning, propitiating blood. His peace is peace with God, complete and full reconciliation. His peace makes God your covenant Friend. His peace gives you to God, to belong to Him forever. For it is the peace that He has with the Father eternally. His peace He gives to you.
Not as the world gives, gives He to you. The world gives, and the world takes. In the world, there is always disagreement and strife. The peace of the world is always a fragile peace. Smiles turn to frowns. Smooth, agreeable words turn sharp and bitter. Easy, friendly meetings become bitter and confrontational. Friendship becomes enmity and hatred. Contracts are not honored; treaties are broken. Nations whose ambassadors and diplomats whose faces smiled while shaking hands hurl their weapons of destruction at one another. Their peace turns to war.
Not so with our Lord. Not as the world gives does He give. His peace is an everlasting, unbreakable peace. It is a peace made by His blood, the blood of the everlasting covenant. It is a peace from eternity, rooted in the unbroken fellowship between Father and Son, in the eternal, infinite Spirit. It is a peace determined by divine, eternal, and unconditional election, your election in Christ.
His peace is a peace that endures to eternity. In that peace the Lord will be always and forever your God. In that peace He will watch over you and take care of you. In that peace He will guard and keep you safe from the enmity and hatred of the world you experience. In that peace He will assure you in the midst of every trial that He is your God and His grace is all-sufficient. In that peace, He will infallibly lead you home, to dwell forever with Him.
“Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid!”
What peace!
“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” John 14:27
What blessed peace the Lord Jesus Christ gives to you, His own!
There is no peace like the peace the Lord gives. When He uses this word “peace,” to describe His gift to His disciples, He must immediately add a distinguishing and separating word: “my peace.”
His peace is not the peace of the world.
The world has its own peace, so-called. That peace is a peace of mutual love and cooperation. So much more can be accomplished together than separately. It is generally understood that nations can be stronger when there is peace with other nations and peace within a nation. War and violence sap a nation’s strength and potential. When young men die on the battlefield, the strength of a nation in those young men is lost. When violence stalks the city, people are less likely to trust each other for the sake of accomplishing common goals. Fear robs a society of its productivity, one of the goals of anarchists and terrorists.
So there is a pursuit of peace, and people always enjoy their peace with one another. In that peace they prosper in their economy in business. In their relationships they flourish and prosper, laugh and enjoy their abundance. In their peace, they undertake their cultural pursuits. Art and science prosper and their fruits bring benefits to the masses. In peace the children of the world build their homes and raise their families, enjoying their lives.
Yet, there is truly and really no peace. For all this is undertaken apart from God. All this peace is pursued without acknowledgment that it is all the gift of God, the arrangement of His providence. And all this is undertaken and enjoyed in rejection of God. His honor, His glory, and His fear they will not acknowledge. In their peace, they are at war with God. At peace among themselves, they fight Him!
So Christ must describe His gift to you this way: “My peace I give unto you.” His peace is the peace of His atoning, propitiating blood. His peace is peace with God, complete and full reconciliation. His peace makes God your covenant Friend. His peace gives you to God, to belong to Him forever. For it is the peace that He has with the Father eternally. His peace He gives to you.
Not as the world gives, gives He to you. The world gives, and the world takes. In the world, there is always disagreement and strife. The peace of the world is always a fragile peace. Smiles turn to frowns. Smooth, agreeable words turn sharp and bitter. Easy, friendly meetings become bitter and confrontational. Friendship becomes enmity and hatred. Contracts are not honored; treaties are broken. Nations whose ambassadors and diplomats whose faces smiled while shaking hands hurl their weapons of destruction at one another. Their peace turns to war.
Not so with our Lord. Not as the world gives does He give. His peace is an everlasting, unbreakable peace. It is a peace made by His blood, the blood of the everlasting covenant. It is a peace from eternity, rooted in the unbroken fellowship between Father and Son, in the eternal, infinite Spirit. It is a peace determined by divine, eternal, and unconditional election, your election in Christ.
His peace is a peace that endures to eternity. In that peace the Lord will be always and forever your God. In that peace He will watch over you and take care of you. In that peace He will guard and keep you safe from the enmity and hatred of the world you experience. In that peace He will assure you in the midst of every trial that He is your God and His grace is all-sufficient. In that peace, He will infallibly lead you home, to dwell forever with Him.
“Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid!”
What peace!
20 January 2014
“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” John 15:4, 5
Truer words could not be spoken! It is impossible for a branch to bear fruit of itself. When the vineyard is pruned every year after the grape harvest, the branches lie all over the ground. They will never again bear any fruit. They can only wither and die, separated from the vine. While they were connected to the vine, they lived. So they prospered and flourished, bringing forth grapes, signs of prosperity and luxury. See the same branches. From the vine, connected to the vine, they bore their wonderful fruit. Apart from the vine they can bear no fruit at all.
As with the vine, so with Christ. As with the branches, so with the disciples of Christ. They can bear no fruit, except as they abide in Christ. Their blessedness is to bear much fruit. Their fruit is their works that bring honour and glory to God. These works are works of love to God. They are the worship and service of the one true God. They are works of love, mercy, kindness, and peace to the neighbour for God’s sake. In these works they are to abound and flourish, just as branches are to bring forth an abundance of grapes for a plentiful harvest.
In this abundance of these works the disciples of Christ are to show the glory and power of their Lord. As it is true, that without Him they can do nothing, so they are to show that they are truly Jesus’ disciples, by their works of love. They abide in their Lord, and show by their fruits the power of their Head.
This glorious and blessed truth brings its weight to bear on the beginning words: “Abide in me, and I in you.” How important and necessary it is to abide in Christ! And how important and necessary to know what these words mean!
A command is given to us in these words: “Abide in me.” Following immediately is the activity of Christ: “And I in you.” We are meant to see how Christ abides in us. He abides in us by His Spirit. He has sent His Spirit to His disciples. As the Holy Spirit of Christ comes to dwell in us, so Christ Himself dwells in us. Further, and to the point, Christ’s dwelling in us is a dwelling of loving fellowship. So extraordinary and so powerful is His fellowship by His Spirit that He abides not only with us, but also in us.
So are we to abide in Christ. So great and so powerful is the love His Spirit begets in us that we have fellowship with Christ. By the Spirit, this fellowship is so powerful and glorious, that not only do we abide with Christ, but we abide in Him.
So Christ commands us, “Abide in me.” This is the way of our abiding: to love Him, to seek His grace, to read His Word, to think upon His love, His sacrifice, His exaltation, and to call upon the Father in His name. When faced with all His commandments, even the commandment to abide in Him, seek always His grace. For, without Him we can do nothing.
So abide in Him, bearing much fruit, showing the glory of the true Vine!
“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” John 15:4, 5
Truer words could not be spoken! It is impossible for a branch to bear fruit of itself. When the vineyard is pruned every year after the grape harvest, the branches lie all over the ground. They will never again bear any fruit. They can only wither and die, separated from the vine. While they were connected to the vine, they lived. So they prospered and flourished, bringing forth grapes, signs of prosperity and luxury. See the same branches. From the vine, connected to the vine, they bore their wonderful fruit. Apart from the vine they can bear no fruit at all.
As with the vine, so with Christ. As with the branches, so with the disciples of Christ. They can bear no fruit, except as they abide in Christ. Their blessedness is to bear much fruit. Their fruit is their works that bring honour and glory to God. These works are works of love to God. They are the worship and service of the one true God. They are works of love, mercy, kindness, and peace to the neighbour for God’s sake. In these works they are to abound and flourish, just as branches are to bring forth an abundance of grapes for a plentiful harvest.
In this abundance of these works the disciples of Christ are to show the glory and power of their Lord. As it is true, that without Him they can do nothing, so they are to show that they are truly Jesus’ disciples, by their works of love. They abide in their Lord, and show by their fruits the power of their Head.
This glorious and blessed truth brings its weight to bear on the beginning words: “Abide in me, and I in you.” How important and necessary it is to abide in Christ! And how important and necessary to know what these words mean!
A command is given to us in these words: “Abide in me.” Following immediately is the activity of Christ: “And I in you.” We are meant to see how Christ abides in us. He abides in us by His Spirit. He has sent His Spirit to His disciples. As the Holy Spirit of Christ comes to dwell in us, so Christ Himself dwells in us. Further, and to the point, Christ’s dwelling in us is a dwelling of loving fellowship. So extraordinary and so powerful is His fellowship by His Spirit that He abides not only with us, but also in us.
So are we to abide in Christ. So great and so powerful is the love His Spirit begets in us that we have fellowship with Christ. By the Spirit, this fellowship is so powerful and glorious, that not only do we abide with Christ, but we abide in Him.
So Christ commands us, “Abide in me.” This is the way of our abiding: to love Him, to seek His grace, to read His Word, to think upon His love, His sacrifice, His exaltation, and to call upon the Father in His name. When faced with all His commandments, even the commandment to abide in Him, seek always His grace. For, without Him we can do nothing.
So abide in Him, bearing much fruit, showing the glory of the true Vine!
19 January 2013, The Lord’s Day
“Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.” 2 Corinthians 9:7,8
This wonderful way is yours to take as we go up to the Lord’s Day and engage in that part of worship that is giving.
What a privilege it is to have the giving of material good be part of the spiritual worship of the living God. The spirituality of this material giving lies in the fact that it is a gift from the heart to God. The act itself of putting something in the collection plate is not itself worship. That act lies along the same way as being present when the Word is preached, but not paying any attention to it. It lies along the same way as singing God’s praises without the involvement of the mind or heart, mindlessly repeating the lines of the song. Giving is of faith, and must involve the believing heart. The gift must be given from the heart. Therefore grudging giving and giving of necessity (compulsion) is prohibited.
“According as he purposeth in his heart,” so let every man give!
But there is far more in these two verses. What must fill that purpose of the heart? What must be the guide to every man’s giving from his heart?
That guide is not what you are giving. That guide is what you have been given by God. That guide is presented in the following verse. “God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.”
Your guide is grace! Your guide is the grace that God is able to make abound toward you. How abundant in grace He is to you! He has poured out that grace to you in the precious blood of His Son, by that blood sealing to you your place in His everlasting covenant of grace. In that grace is the mighty, glorious pardon of all your sins. In that grace is your inheritance of eternal salvation. In that grace is the seal of all God’s promises to you, making them Yea and Amen through Christ. His grace pours out upon you the Spirit of Christ, assuring your heart through faith, and renewing you after the image of his Son.
How much grace? Infinite, abundant grace! So much that you “always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.” Such a sufficiency you have, that you yourself may “abound to every good work,” including free, generous, and liberal giving.
Occupy yourself with these thoughts. Be renewed in their abundance as you hear the gospel of God’s sovereign grace proclaimed to you. Out of that abundance, filling the thoughts of your mind and heart, so give cheerfully! “For God loveth a cheerful giver.”
“Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.” 2 Corinthians 9:7,8
This wonderful way is yours to take as we go up to the Lord’s Day and engage in that part of worship that is giving.
What a privilege it is to have the giving of material good be part of the spiritual worship of the living God. The spirituality of this material giving lies in the fact that it is a gift from the heart to God. The act itself of putting something in the collection plate is not itself worship. That act lies along the same way as being present when the Word is preached, but not paying any attention to it. It lies along the same way as singing God’s praises without the involvement of the mind or heart, mindlessly repeating the lines of the song. Giving is of faith, and must involve the believing heart. The gift must be given from the heart. Therefore grudging giving and giving of necessity (compulsion) is prohibited.
“According as he purposeth in his heart,” so let every man give!
But there is far more in these two verses. What must fill that purpose of the heart? What must be the guide to every man’s giving from his heart?
That guide is not what you are giving. That guide is what you have been given by God. That guide is presented in the following verse. “God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.”
Your guide is grace! Your guide is the grace that God is able to make abound toward you. How abundant in grace He is to you! He has poured out that grace to you in the precious blood of His Son, by that blood sealing to you your place in His everlasting covenant of grace. In that grace is the mighty, glorious pardon of all your sins. In that grace is your inheritance of eternal salvation. In that grace is the seal of all God’s promises to you, making them Yea and Amen through Christ. His grace pours out upon you the Spirit of Christ, assuring your heart through faith, and renewing you after the image of his Son.
How much grace? Infinite, abundant grace! So much that you “always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.” Such a sufficiency you have, that you yourself may “abound to every good work,” including free, generous, and liberal giving.
Occupy yourself with these thoughts. Be renewed in their abundance as you hear the gospel of God’s sovereign grace proclaimed to you. Out of that abundance, filling the thoughts of your mind and heart, so give cheerfully! “For God loveth a cheerful giver.”
18 January 2013
“Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them, Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.” Luke 13:23, 24
How often Jesus answered questions put to Him in this way, giving His questioner far more than he expected!
Are there few that be saved? Is there many or only a handful? Will there be a multitude or only a remnant? Who determines how many shall be saved? Does God determine it? Do those that are saved determine?
Do you see the answer to this question in Jesus’ reply? Jesus answered the question three times, but as usual, in a way unexpected.
Yes. There are few that be saved. Far, far fewer than you might expect, who ask this question.
There are, to be sure, those who do not seek to enter into the kingdom of God, the realm of eternal salvation. They do not care about the kingdom. They have no real regard for the guilt of their sin, its punishment, or mostly that their sins are offensive to God.
But Jesus does not even speak about them. He speaks instead about many who are seeking to enter. These, who are many, shall not be able. They are seeking. They are not merely wishing or desiring. They are taking action to enter into the kingdom. In later verses, they are described as having all kinds of reasons for assuming their place in the kingdom. Jesus will say to them, “I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.”
Secondly, you have the command of Christ itself. The question put to Him He answers with far more than a reason or description. He answers with a command: Strive to enter in at the strait gate. That this gate is “strait,” or “tight,” gives another answer. There are few that are saved. The gate is not built to allow many to pass through. This gate is found off the beaten path, so that even those many who seek and are not able to enter do not know it. It is a gate to be carefully discerned, in order to enter into it.
Thirdly, because it is a “strait gate” you must strive to enter into it. It requires effort to squeeze into it, such effort that not very many are willing to put forward for the sake of this kingdom. There are many who will not put forward this effort. So they pass by this strait gate for the broad gate, and suppose they are entering the kingdom of heaven. They determine their own gate, and must be severely disappointed. There is only one gate, a strait gate. That gate is determined by Jesus Himself.
Why are there so few? Why must you strive to enter? Ultimately because what defines this strait gate, into which you must enter, is grace. Before this strait gate is the cross of Jesus Christ. By that cross is the only entering into salvation. That cross forbids all human work and human endeavor to enter. It does not allow man’s goodness or ability to enter. It does not permit the will of man to enter. So many pass by. So many do not enter. Jesus’ cross is still a scandal, since man must still have his part, his work to do, in order to be saved.
Accordingly, that cross of Christ implies another cross, the cross that you must pick up and bear in faithfulness to His cross. You are called to the way of humility and self-denial. You are called constantly to remind yourself that you are saved by grace alone. You are called to walk the way of bearing all suffering willingly, for Jesus’ sake. You are called to endure the contempt and scorn of the world. Such is what Jesus means when He says: Strive to enter in at the strait gate.
So ask, “Are there many that be saved?” Hear and follow the answer of your Lord: “Strive to enter in at the strait gate.”
“Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them, Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.” Luke 13:23, 24
How often Jesus answered questions put to Him in this way, giving His questioner far more than he expected!
Are there few that be saved? Is there many or only a handful? Will there be a multitude or only a remnant? Who determines how many shall be saved? Does God determine it? Do those that are saved determine?
Do you see the answer to this question in Jesus’ reply? Jesus answered the question three times, but as usual, in a way unexpected.
Yes. There are few that be saved. Far, far fewer than you might expect, who ask this question.
There are, to be sure, those who do not seek to enter into the kingdom of God, the realm of eternal salvation. They do not care about the kingdom. They have no real regard for the guilt of their sin, its punishment, or mostly that their sins are offensive to God.
But Jesus does not even speak about them. He speaks instead about many who are seeking to enter. These, who are many, shall not be able. They are seeking. They are not merely wishing or desiring. They are taking action to enter into the kingdom. In later verses, they are described as having all kinds of reasons for assuming their place in the kingdom. Jesus will say to them, “I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.”
Secondly, you have the command of Christ itself. The question put to Him He answers with far more than a reason or description. He answers with a command: Strive to enter in at the strait gate. That this gate is “strait,” or “tight,” gives another answer. There are few that are saved. The gate is not built to allow many to pass through. This gate is found off the beaten path, so that even those many who seek and are not able to enter do not know it. It is a gate to be carefully discerned, in order to enter into it.
Thirdly, because it is a “strait gate” you must strive to enter into it. It requires effort to squeeze into it, such effort that not very many are willing to put forward for the sake of this kingdom. There are many who will not put forward this effort. So they pass by this strait gate for the broad gate, and suppose they are entering the kingdom of heaven. They determine their own gate, and must be severely disappointed. There is only one gate, a strait gate. That gate is determined by Jesus Himself.
Why are there so few? Why must you strive to enter? Ultimately because what defines this strait gate, into which you must enter, is grace. Before this strait gate is the cross of Jesus Christ. By that cross is the only entering into salvation. That cross forbids all human work and human endeavor to enter. It does not allow man’s goodness or ability to enter. It does not permit the will of man to enter. So many pass by. So many do not enter. Jesus’ cross is still a scandal, since man must still have his part, his work to do, in order to be saved.
Accordingly, that cross of Christ implies another cross, the cross that you must pick up and bear in faithfulness to His cross. You are called to the way of humility and self-denial. You are called constantly to remind yourself that you are saved by grace alone. You are called to walk the way of bearing all suffering willingly, for Jesus’ sake. You are called to endure the contempt and scorn of the world. Such is what Jesus means when He says: Strive to enter in at the strait gate.
So ask, “Are there many that be saved?” Hear and follow the answer of your Lord: “Strive to enter in at the strait gate.”
17 January 2014
“Thy God hath commanded thy strength: strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.” Psalm 68:28
The words of this verse are pivotal in two ways.
There is a pivot point in the words of the verse itself. The first is a triumphant declaration of the strength of God’s people. Their strength has been tested and proved on the field of battle. Israel has gained the victory over their enemies. In their joyful triumph they will not boast of their strength, their tactics, or their strategy. They will boast in the Lord. “Thy God hath commanded thy strength.” So they speak and shout to one another. Their delight is that the Lord’s power and glory have been shown in their victory.
So are we taught to give all glory and praise to God for His strength, in any triumph that we accomplish. So are we led to the conclusion of this Psalm: “Blessed be God!”
But this word of praise turns to a prayer. “Strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.” Victory must be fleeting without the Lord’s continued help and blessing. Self-reliance following the Lord’s victory will mean only defeat and utter loss. If God will preserve and keep, and if God will strengthen, only then can God’s people remain strong. His works cannot only be the beginning; they must be the continuance and finishing, if that strength is to endure. Looking at His works for us and in us, our prayer must always be, “Strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.”
But this verse is pivotal in another respect. See what comes before, in verses 26 and 27. There is mentioned “the fountain of Israel.” There is mentioned “little Benjamin,” and “the princes of Judah and their council, the princes of Zebulun, and the princes of Naphtali.”
With them, with Israel, belongs the first part of the prayer: “Thy God hath commanded thy strength.” With them belongs also the second part: “Strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.”
But for the answer to this supplication we pivot to the following verses. How is God to strengthen what He has wrought for Israel? “Because of thy temple at Jerusalem shall kings bring presents unto thee.” “Princes shall come out of Egypt; Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God.” This prayer God answers, with the call of verse 32: “Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the earth; O sing praises unto the Lord.”
The God of Israel, the strength of His people, has heard and answered their prayer. As He gave them the victory, so He strengthened what He had wrought for them. By God’s mighty grace through Christ, we are the answer to this prayer. When we put our confidence in Christ our Head, we are gathered unto His covenant people. Out of that confidence of faith, we delight in the Jerusalem that is above, and we praise and bless the name of Israel’s God, confessing His glory and everlasting power.
So we add our voices to this prayer. We say of our Zion, “Thy God hath commanded thy strength.” So we also make our urgent supplication: “Strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.” And we are assured of His continued, gracious answer, all the way to our Lord’s return.
“Blessed be God!”
“Thy God hath commanded thy strength: strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.” Psalm 68:28
The words of this verse are pivotal in two ways.
There is a pivot point in the words of the verse itself. The first is a triumphant declaration of the strength of God’s people. Their strength has been tested and proved on the field of battle. Israel has gained the victory over their enemies. In their joyful triumph they will not boast of their strength, their tactics, or their strategy. They will boast in the Lord. “Thy God hath commanded thy strength.” So they speak and shout to one another. Their delight is that the Lord’s power and glory have been shown in their victory.
So are we taught to give all glory and praise to God for His strength, in any triumph that we accomplish. So are we led to the conclusion of this Psalm: “Blessed be God!”
But this word of praise turns to a prayer. “Strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.” Victory must be fleeting without the Lord’s continued help and blessing. Self-reliance following the Lord’s victory will mean only defeat and utter loss. If God will preserve and keep, and if God will strengthen, only then can God’s people remain strong. His works cannot only be the beginning; they must be the continuance and finishing, if that strength is to endure. Looking at His works for us and in us, our prayer must always be, “Strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.”
But this verse is pivotal in another respect. See what comes before, in verses 26 and 27. There is mentioned “the fountain of Israel.” There is mentioned “little Benjamin,” and “the princes of Judah and their council, the princes of Zebulun, and the princes of Naphtali.”
With them, with Israel, belongs the first part of the prayer: “Thy God hath commanded thy strength.” With them belongs also the second part: “Strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.”
But for the answer to this supplication we pivot to the following verses. How is God to strengthen what He has wrought for Israel? “Because of thy temple at Jerusalem shall kings bring presents unto thee.” “Princes shall come out of Egypt; Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God.” This prayer God answers, with the call of verse 32: “Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the earth; O sing praises unto the Lord.”
The God of Israel, the strength of His people, has heard and answered their prayer. As He gave them the victory, so He strengthened what He had wrought for them. By God’s mighty grace through Christ, we are the answer to this prayer. When we put our confidence in Christ our Head, we are gathered unto His covenant people. Out of that confidence of faith, we delight in the Jerusalem that is above, and we praise and bless the name of Israel’s God, confessing His glory and everlasting power.
So we add our voices to this prayer. We say of our Zion, “Thy God hath commanded thy strength.” So we also make our urgent supplication: “Strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.” And we are assured of His continued, gracious answer, all the way to our Lord’s return.
“Blessed be God!”
14 January 2014
“Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.” James 1:18, 19
Here is a standard for all of life. Here is where the battle is to be joined for the holy use of the tongue, of the ears, and of the heart. Holiness is in readiness and patience in hearing. Holiness is in the restraint of the lips and tongue. Holiness is in the keeping of the heart from wrath.
Our fight is against wrath. Angry speech refuses to listen but hastens to argue, to judge, and to condemn. This is the malice that seeks not to justify or approve, but to declare guilt, to ruin name and reputation, and to build up one’s self on the ruins of another. We need to listen to the speech of men only for a while to understand how true this Word of God is. So much that passes between the lips of men is either argument or unholy competition.
But the Word of God calls us not to swiftness of speech, but swiftness of hearing. It calls us not to quickness of tongue, but to slowness of speech. We must listen closely and carefully. We must wait until the other person is finished speaking. We must carefully inquire to eliminate any misunderstanding in what we hear. Then we are called to careful, deliberate consideration before we speak. What shall we say? How shall we answer?
But all the above must be based on one fundamental truth. Without this fundamental truth, all we have is some kind of behavioural improvement, but no true holiness.
What is this fundamental truth?
We follow the link given at the beginning of verse 19, “Wherefore.” Wherefore! “Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. Wherefore...” The only holiness of obedience follows out of regeneration, being begotten again. Regeneration is the act of God’s Spirit, to bring salvation to the elect. By this divine work alone, we become new creatures, able to repent and believe and able to bring forth fruits of righteousness and holiness.
However, for our calling, the manner of our regeneration is placed on the foreground: with the word of truth. Our word has not given us this new birth. Our word is only a word of death. It was the word of God, of God’s truth, by which we have been born again.
That truth is now applied to us in a most powerful way: wherefore! “Wherefore, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.” There is the power of our regeneration! There is the reflection of its true manner in our lives! As we have been regenerated, so we are called to act. As we began, regenerated by the word of truth, so we must continue being a kind of firstfruits of God’s creature. We must not hear only that Word of truth by which we have been begotten again. We must stay in that mode of hearing, always swift to hear and always slow to speak. Before God and before men.
Let us be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath, showing the glory of our God, who has begotten us again!
“Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.” James 1:18, 19
Here is a standard for all of life. Here is where the battle is to be joined for the holy use of the tongue, of the ears, and of the heart. Holiness is in readiness and patience in hearing. Holiness is in the restraint of the lips and tongue. Holiness is in the keeping of the heart from wrath.
Our fight is against wrath. Angry speech refuses to listen but hastens to argue, to judge, and to condemn. This is the malice that seeks not to justify or approve, but to declare guilt, to ruin name and reputation, and to build up one’s self on the ruins of another. We need to listen to the speech of men only for a while to understand how true this Word of God is. So much that passes between the lips of men is either argument or unholy competition.
But the Word of God calls us not to swiftness of speech, but swiftness of hearing. It calls us not to quickness of tongue, but to slowness of speech. We must listen closely and carefully. We must wait until the other person is finished speaking. We must carefully inquire to eliminate any misunderstanding in what we hear. Then we are called to careful, deliberate consideration before we speak. What shall we say? How shall we answer?
But all the above must be based on one fundamental truth. Without this fundamental truth, all we have is some kind of behavioural improvement, but no true holiness.
What is this fundamental truth?
We follow the link given at the beginning of verse 19, “Wherefore.” Wherefore! “Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. Wherefore...” The only holiness of obedience follows out of regeneration, being begotten again. Regeneration is the act of God’s Spirit, to bring salvation to the elect. By this divine work alone, we become new creatures, able to repent and believe and able to bring forth fruits of righteousness and holiness.
However, for our calling, the manner of our regeneration is placed on the foreground: with the word of truth. Our word has not given us this new birth. Our word is only a word of death. It was the word of God, of God’s truth, by which we have been born again.
That truth is now applied to us in a most powerful way: wherefore! “Wherefore, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.” There is the power of our regeneration! There is the reflection of its true manner in our lives! As we have been regenerated, so we are called to act. As we began, regenerated by the word of truth, so we must continue being a kind of firstfruits of God’s creature. We must not hear only that Word of truth by which we have been begotten again. We must stay in that mode of hearing, always swift to hear and always slow to speak. Before God and before men.
Let us be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath, showing the glory of our God, who has begotten us again!
13 January 2013
“And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? And still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.” Job 2:3
To what an astounding conversation we are made privy in these words, an exchange between God and Satan! A conversation revealed to us, but hidden from Job, this man God calls “my servant,” and that before Satan.
Satan, consider Job, the servant of the Lord! See how there is none like him in the earth. See how he is a perfect and an upright man. See indeed how Job is one that feareth God and escheweth evil. See, Satan, how he holds fast his integrity. See how he refuses to “curse God and die.” See how the Lord’s servant keeps to his way, though the Lord destroy him without cause!
Be ready, Satan, to see greater things! See the Lord’s servant under greater affliction. See his skin filled with terrifying sores, making him loathsome and putrid. See his flesh wasting off his bones. Hear his friends tormenting him with useless, vain queries and false accusations of various sins. But under these additional burdens, hear also his wondrous confessions, while he maintains his God-given integrity:
“Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him.” Job 13:15
“For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God.” Job 19:26
Listen, Satan, and be put to shame!
As then, so now.
Who is under the spotlight today? Who shall magnify the wondrous, gracious, mysterious power of God to uphold His afflicted and beleaguered saints? Which of His people has He burdened with persecution, with pain, with sorrow, with loneliness, with weakness, or with anguish? Which of them has He chosen to magnify His sustaining, all-sufficient grace. Which servants will He employ to put Satan to shame?
Look out for them. When you find them, pray for them. Be with them, to sympathize with them. Hear them. Help bear their burdens. Speak with them. Comfort them. Encourage them. Look for the grace of God to use your presence, your ears, and your tongue to sustain His burdened servants.
Look for His work, to magnify His grace, and put Satan’s accusations to shame.
“And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? And still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.” Job 2:3
To what an astounding conversation we are made privy in these words, an exchange between God and Satan! A conversation revealed to us, but hidden from Job, this man God calls “my servant,” and that before Satan.
Satan, consider Job, the servant of the Lord! See how there is none like him in the earth. See how he is a perfect and an upright man. See indeed how Job is one that feareth God and escheweth evil. See, Satan, how he holds fast his integrity. See how he refuses to “curse God and die.” See how the Lord’s servant keeps to his way, though the Lord destroy him without cause!
Be ready, Satan, to see greater things! See the Lord’s servant under greater affliction. See his skin filled with terrifying sores, making him loathsome and putrid. See his flesh wasting off his bones. Hear his friends tormenting him with useless, vain queries and false accusations of various sins. But under these additional burdens, hear also his wondrous confessions, while he maintains his God-given integrity:
“Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him.” Job 13:15
“For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God.” Job 19:26
Listen, Satan, and be put to shame!
As then, so now.
Who is under the spotlight today? Who shall magnify the wondrous, gracious, mysterious power of God to uphold His afflicted and beleaguered saints? Which of His people has He burdened with persecution, with pain, with sorrow, with loneliness, with weakness, or with anguish? Which of them has He chosen to magnify His sustaining, all-sufficient grace. Which servants will He employ to put Satan to shame?
Look out for them. When you find them, pray for them. Be with them, to sympathize with them. Hear them. Help bear their burdens. Speak with them. Comfort them. Encourage them. Look for the grace of God to use your presence, your ears, and your tongue to sustain His burdened servants.
Look for His work, to magnify His grace, and put Satan’s accusations to shame.
12 January 2014, The Lord's Day
“Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.” I Thessalonians 5:11
Encouraging words are these, to bring you to the house of the Lord today, and to hear the preaching of His Word.
In that assembly, and in that Word proclaimed to you, anticipate both your comfort and your edification.
Look for comfort for your sin-weary soul from the gospel of Jesus Christ. Listen for the glad tidings of the gospel proclaimed to you, that your forgiveness and redemption lie not within your power or ability, but only in the merits of Jesus Christ. Listen for the call, accordingly, to put all your faith and hope in this one Saviour. Be ready to hear the Word that all your life is in your dear Saviour’s hand, and that there is no power that can pull you out.
Look also for edification. Look to be built up in the faith by that same Word. Look to grow in grace and knowledge. Look for more maturity, more growth, more progress in the kingdom of God. Anticipate renewal of your spiritual strength to go out and fight the battle of faith.
But know that Word you hear is not for you alone. It is for your brothers and sisters in Christ gathered there. It is a Word that comforts you together. It is a Word that edifies you together. As you receive in your souls together the same comfort from the Word of God, you are also built up together. You grow strong, not only individually, but also as a body. As you embrace the Word of life together, you also embrace one another.
Present in God’s house, hearing the Word of comfort and edification, you also approve it. As you together heed that Word for your comfort and edification, you also recommend it to each other. Yes, this is the Word that comforts. Yes, this is the Word that edifies. So you comfort yourselves together, and edify one another.
As you do, so carry on. Today, in the Lord’s house, keeping His Word. So also treasure up that Word in your heart, to use it all through the week. Remember it for yourself and remind one another, to comfort and edify each other all your days.
“Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.” I Thessalonians 5:11
Encouraging words are these, to bring you to the house of the Lord today, and to hear the preaching of His Word.
In that assembly, and in that Word proclaimed to you, anticipate both your comfort and your edification.
Look for comfort for your sin-weary soul from the gospel of Jesus Christ. Listen for the glad tidings of the gospel proclaimed to you, that your forgiveness and redemption lie not within your power or ability, but only in the merits of Jesus Christ. Listen for the call, accordingly, to put all your faith and hope in this one Saviour. Be ready to hear the Word that all your life is in your dear Saviour’s hand, and that there is no power that can pull you out.
Look also for edification. Look to be built up in the faith by that same Word. Look to grow in grace and knowledge. Look for more maturity, more growth, more progress in the kingdom of God. Anticipate renewal of your spiritual strength to go out and fight the battle of faith.
But know that Word you hear is not for you alone. It is for your brothers and sisters in Christ gathered there. It is a Word that comforts you together. It is a Word that edifies you together. As you receive in your souls together the same comfort from the Word of God, you are also built up together. You grow strong, not only individually, but also as a body. As you embrace the Word of life together, you also embrace one another.
Present in God’s house, hearing the Word of comfort and edification, you also approve it. As you together heed that Word for your comfort and edification, you also recommend it to each other. Yes, this is the Word that comforts. Yes, this is the Word that edifies. So you comfort yourselves together, and edify one another.
As you do, so carry on. Today, in the Lord’s house, keeping His Word. So also treasure up that Word in your heart, to use it all through the week. Remember it for yourself and remind one another, to comfort and edify each other all your days.
10 January 2014
“Hell and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied.” Proverbs 27:20
A number of the proverbs of Scripture are comparative proverbs. Sometimes they will use elements of nature or human life to teach wisdom. At other times they will use moral observations to teach wisdom. But this proverb is more unique, as it uses the judgment of God to teach something about us.
The basis of this proverb’s teaching is a simple truth about hell and destruction. Hell is the end of the dead. Destruction is the power of force and death that reaches out of hell to cause great and bitter destruction. Another way to understand both is to see hell as the place of the gathering multitude, and destruction as the force that sweeps men into this final gathering place.
What a powerful picture we are given in this basis! Every day, multitudes pour into that dread place. Accompanying these multitudes are their riches and power and the honour, glory, and praise they received from their fellows. Destroyed with them are their thoughts, words, and deeds. Where are their proud works? Where is their glory? Where is their strength? All brought to desolation and ruin.
Despite all this gathering, hell and destruction are never full. They always seek and gather more in. Never a slowdown. Never a cessation. This gathering is unceasing. Think of the water pouring over Niagara Falls.
All this power and sweeping breadth of destruction is now directed back to man. It is now applied to his eyes. “So the eyes of man are never satisfied.” Such is the sin of greed and lust.
To be sure, there are instances of this greed and lust that manifest themselves in some of the men who are great and notable in this world. They have such a power to gather to themselves what they see. They see with their eyes, they desire what they see, and they are able to get it. They amass to themselves great fortunes or great power. These resources they put to work, in order to satisfy the desire of their eyes. But their eyes are not satisfied. Still they desire more, and attain more. But their eyes are still not satisfied. Though their eyes pass over all their possessions, their eyes still see more to attain.
But there are others who do not have such resources or abilities. They may have very little, but they still have their eyes. Constantly their eyes roam, looking for this and looking for that. They will look and they will desire what they see. Since they cannot obtain, they will dream. They will dream of possessing what they desire. But still their eyes will not be satisfied. They will dream of bigger and better things, if only dream.
Such are the eyes of man: never satisfied. Such are our eyes without the grace of God.
For there is only one object that can satisfy our eyes. There is only one desire for the hearts of men. Only one antidote and safeguard is there against the poisonous greed and lust of our eyes: The living God.
To have our eyes filled with the sight of His glory is their rest, their peace, and their quiet. To behold by faith His glorious works of mercy, truth, and grace, is to know fullness: the fulness of His fellowship and friendship. To have Him, through faith in His works, as our God, is to have all the desire of our heart.
And in that fulness of God is also our glorious deliverance from hell and destruction!
So may we ever turn our eyes to Him, to desire Him and Him alone!
“Hell and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied.” Proverbs 27:20
A number of the proverbs of Scripture are comparative proverbs. Sometimes they will use elements of nature or human life to teach wisdom. At other times they will use moral observations to teach wisdom. But this proverb is more unique, as it uses the judgment of God to teach something about us.
The basis of this proverb’s teaching is a simple truth about hell and destruction. Hell is the end of the dead. Destruction is the power of force and death that reaches out of hell to cause great and bitter destruction. Another way to understand both is to see hell as the place of the gathering multitude, and destruction as the force that sweeps men into this final gathering place.
What a powerful picture we are given in this basis! Every day, multitudes pour into that dread place. Accompanying these multitudes are their riches and power and the honour, glory, and praise they received from their fellows. Destroyed with them are their thoughts, words, and deeds. Where are their proud works? Where is their glory? Where is their strength? All brought to desolation and ruin.
Despite all this gathering, hell and destruction are never full. They always seek and gather more in. Never a slowdown. Never a cessation. This gathering is unceasing. Think of the water pouring over Niagara Falls.
All this power and sweeping breadth of destruction is now directed back to man. It is now applied to his eyes. “So the eyes of man are never satisfied.” Such is the sin of greed and lust.
To be sure, there are instances of this greed and lust that manifest themselves in some of the men who are great and notable in this world. They have such a power to gather to themselves what they see. They see with their eyes, they desire what they see, and they are able to get it. They amass to themselves great fortunes or great power. These resources they put to work, in order to satisfy the desire of their eyes. But their eyes are not satisfied. Still they desire more, and attain more. But their eyes are still not satisfied. Though their eyes pass over all their possessions, their eyes still see more to attain.
But there are others who do not have such resources or abilities. They may have very little, but they still have their eyes. Constantly their eyes roam, looking for this and looking for that. They will look and they will desire what they see. Since they cannot obtain, they will dream. They will dream of possessing what they desire. But still their eyes will not be satisfied. They will dream of bigger and better things, if only dream.
Such are the eyes of man: never satisfied. Such are our eyes without the grace of God.
For there is only one object that can satisfy our eyes. There is only one desire for the hearts of men. Only one antidote and safeguard is there against the poisonous greed and lust of our eyes: The living God.
To have our eyes filled with the sight of His glory is their rest, their peace, and their quiet. To behold by faith His glorious works of mercy, truth, and grace, is to know fullness: the fulness of His fellowship and friendship. To have Him, through faith in His works, as our God, is to have all the desire of our heart.
And in that fulness of God is also our glorious deliverance from hell and destruction!
So may we ever turn our eyes to Him, to desire Him and Him alone!
9 January 2014
“Lord, I have hoped for thy salvation, and done thy commandments.” Psalm 119:166
What a prayer this is to speak before the Lord, the Searcher of hearts!
In the blessed, sweet, and intimate communion of prayer, the child of God is led to open his heart wide before the Lord. His privilege is to bring out of his heart his hope. “Lord, I have hoped for thy salvation.”
This child knows the Lord’s salvation. He knows it by the manifold promises of God. He has the promise of glorious salvation through judgment. He has the promise of His dear Saviour’s return, the very One Who laid down His life for him. He has the promise of the end of all afflictions and trials, of all suffering and pain, of all grief and sorrow. He has the promise of everlasting, unbounded joy, a joy to express in grateful worship to God the Lord without end.
He also knows the Lord’s salvation by the mighty acts and wondrous deeds wrought by His God already. He knows of the flood of Noah’s day. He knows of the deliverance of Israel through the plagues of Egypt and the destruction of Pharaoh’s great host in the waters of the Red Sea. He knows the destruction of Assyria and Babylon and the return of the Jews from their captivity. In all these the child of God knows God’s remembrance of His Word, and His almighty power to perform it.
The child also knows the Lord’s salvation according to his circumstances. He knows his own enemies, those bent on his destruction. He knows his own weakness and frailty before his enemies. But he also knows the Lord is his God. He knows God’s wonderful, loving redemption of him. He belongs to him.
Out of this knowledge he speaks to his God, “Lord, I have hoped for thy salvation.” He needs not to divide his concerns between two or more, a diversified hope. He does not fear putting all his eggs into one basket. He needs no “plan B.” His confession is a confession of entire security, and is unafraid to declare it before the Lord. In his hope he will not be put to shame.
For this hope, the child of God brings before God also his life. Just as he has declared his hope for the Lord’s salvation, so he also declares his way. “I have … done thy commandments.”
With these latter words of this verse the child of God explains the reality and truth of his hope. His doing of the Lord’s commandments marks him off as a servant. In the judgment to come, the wicked will be swept from the face of the earth and cast into hell. But the Lord will remember His servants, to deliver them. With these words the child of God identifies himself before the Lord. He is one of the Lord’s servants, obedient to Him. He will hope in the Lord’s salvation, because he has done the Lord’s commandments.
Second, the doing of the Lord’s commandments clearly indicates the work of the Lord in him. Without the Lord’s gracious working there can be no obedience, no godliness, no love of God or of the neighbour, as God has commanded. The Lord redeems. He pays the ransom. He justifies. He sanctifies. His salvation is mighty and thorough. His payment is in full. He makes righteous and He makes holy. So the child of God can set before God his own obedience as a reason for having his hope in the Lord. For, whom the Lord justifies and sanctifies, He will also glorify.
At the same time this child’s confession of his hope is certain and sure, standing in the Lord’s salvation alone. He has no hope in his obedience of the Lord’s commands. His obedience is far from perfect. Not only does he have his disobedience, his obedience is also polluted by his sinfulness. His obedience is only a small beginning.
Nevertheless, such is the wonder of God’s grace, that we are able to bring our obedience, howsoever small, as a solid proof of our hope. So may we pray with all confidence in our God, “Lord, I have hoped for thy salvation, and done thy commandments.”
“Lord, I have hoped for thy salvation, and done thy commandments.” Psalm 119:166
What a prayer this is to speak before the Lord, the Searcher of hearts!
In the blessed, sweet, and intimate communion of prayer, the child of God is led to open his heart wide before the Lord. His privilege is to bring out of his heart his hope. “Lord, I have hoped for thy salvation.”
This child knows the Lord’s salvation. He knows it by the manifold promises of God. He has the promise of glorious salvation through judgment. He has the promise of His dear Saviour’s return, the very One Who laid down His life for him. He has the promise of the end of all afflictions and trials, of all suffering and pain, of all grief and sorrow. He has the promise of everlasting, unbounded joy, a joy to express in grateful worship to God the Lord without end.
He also knows the Lord’s salvation by the mighty acts and wondrous deeds wrought by His God already. He knows of the flood of Noah’s day. He knows of the deliverance of Israel through the plagues of Egypt and the destruction of Pharaoh’s great host in the waters of the Red Sea. He knows the destruction of Assyria and Babylon and the return of the Jews from their captivity. In all these the child of God knows God’s remembrance of His Word, and His almighty power to perform it.
The child also knows the Lord’s salvation according to his circumstances. He knows his own enemies, those bent on his destruction. He knows his own weakness and frailty before his enemies. But he also knows the Lord is his God. He knows God’s wonderful, loving redemption of him. He belongs to him.
Out of this knowledge he speaks to his God, “Lord, I have hoped for thy salvation.” He needs not to divide his concerns between two or more, a diversified hope. He does not fear putting all his eggs into one basket. He needs no “plan B.” His confession is a confession of entire security, and is unafraid to declare it before the Lord. In his hope he will not be put to shame.
For this hope, the child of God brings before God also his life. Just as he has declared his hope for the Lord’s salvation, so he also declares his way. “I have … done thy commandments.”
With these latter words of this verse the child of God explains the reality and truth of his hope. His doing of the Lord’s commandments marks him off as a servant. In the judgment to come, the wicked will be swept from the face of the earth and cast into hell. But the Lord will remember His servants, to deliver them. With these words the child of God identifies himself before the Lord. He is one of the Lord’s servants, obedient to Him. He will hope in the Lord’s salvation, because he has done the Lord’s commandments.
Second, the doing of the Lord’s commandments clearly indicates the work of the Lord in him. Without the Lord’s gracious working there can be no obedience, no godliness, no love of God or of the neighbour, as God has commanded. The Lord redeems. He pays the ransom. He justifies. He sanctifies. His salvation is mighty and thorough. His payment is in full. He makes righteous and He makes holy. So the child of God can set before God his own obedience as a reason for having his hope in the Lord. For, whom the Lord justifies and sanctifies, He will also glorify.
At the same time this child’s confession of his hope is certain and sure, standing in the Lord’s salvation alone. He has no hope in his obedience of the Lord’s commands. His obedience is far from perfect. Not only does he have his disobedience, his obedience is also polluted by his sinfulness. His obedience is only a small beginning.
Nevertheless, such is the wonder of God’s grace, that we are able to bring our obedience, howsoever small, as a solid proof of our hope. So may we pray with all confidence in our God, “Lord, I have hoped for thy salvation, and done thy commandments.”
6 January 2013
Matthew 7:26-28, “And every one that heareth these saying of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.”
What folly! What cause for scorn and ridicule!
Here is a man that has resources and capability. With his resources and capability he is able to build a house. He prepares his materials. According to his plans and his desires he sets aside the needed stone, timber, roofing, and fasteners. Day after day he makes progress on his house. Slowly it rises up until it stands completed, ready to be his dwelling place.
But look where he has built his house! There it stands, this proud edifice, on the sand by the seashore. It rests on sand, always shifting, always moving. One feels the sand moving beneath his feet as he walks by this house. The waves roll in and withdraw, erasing his footprints. And here this fool has built his house!
Not long is it before this builder’s folly is demonstrated. A storm soon arises with its pouring rains and violent winds. The frenzied waves beat against the house and tear away at the sand upon which this house rests. The wind pushes against its sides. Great is the fall of this house! Great is the folly of the man who has built thus!
So is . . . so is “everyone that heareth these saying of mine, and doeth them not.”
How we can hear! How we can pay attention! How we can well understand what is taught us from the Word of God! We have laid out before us what we must believe. We have laid out before us what we must say and what we must do. The sayings are ever multiplied. We must not think only of the sayings of Christ, but we must also think of all the sayings that come from Christ. We must think of all the Scriptures. We must think of all the expositions and explanations and applications of these Scriptures we hear in the preaching from ministers sent by Christ.
We hear, and we hear well. But our hearing will not answer the question whether we are wise or foolish. The man who heard is compared to the foolish man, which built his house on the sand. The question, whether we are wise or foolish must be answered with what follows our hearing? Shall we do these sayings of Christ?
For there is an integrity in these sayings of Christ. This integrity cannot be mocked. What is this integrity? Simply, Christ has said, “Do!” Our answer cannot be, “I hear.” Our answer cannot be, “I hear, and I will go.” Our answer cannot be, “I hear, and I will do.” And then we do not do as Christ has commanded. Such a stubborn refusal is a complete disregard of His word. His word is not to be so mocked and scorned. Ultimately, we foolishly deny the very sovereignty expressed in His words.
The very house we build must therefore collapse, for it is built on sand. That house we build. Its weight is all assembled together into a complete package. It is a complete, full structure, explaining in so many details how we ought to conduct ourselves in every part of our life. But the more we build it up, the more we testify of our own folly, when we refuse to build it in the proper place.
Not on the sand of stubborn refusal. Neither on the sand of our complete inability. Neither on the sand of our feeble attempts.
But on the rock which is Christ! As we give ourselves to do what our Lord Jesus Christ has commanded, we find out we have no strength or ability. All we have is sand. But we return to Christ, the One who has spoken to us. We return to Him, seeking and finding forgiveness for the inability He has discovered to us. We return to Him, seeking and finding His strength to do what He has commanded.
So we build. We build our house on a rock. Our house is safe from the winds that blow, the rain that falls and the waves that beat against it. It stands, for it is built on the Rock that is Christ.
May such be our wisdom today, from Wisdom Himself, our Lord Jesus Christ!
Matthew 7:26-28, “And every one that heareth these saying of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.”
What folly! What cause for scorn and ridicule!
Here is a man that has resources and capability. With his resources and capability he is able to build a house. He prepares his materials. According to his plans and his desires he sets aside the needed stone, timber, roofing, and fasteners. Day after day he makes progress on his house. Slowly it rises up until it stands completed, ready to be his dwelling place.
But look where he has built his house! There it stands, this proud edifice, on the sand by the seashore. It rests on sand, always shifting, always moving. One feels the sand moving beneath his feet as he walks by this house. The waves roll in and withdraw, erasing his footprints. And here this fool has built his house!
Not long is it before this builder’s folly is demonstrated. A storm soon arises with its pouring rains and violent winds. The frenzied waves beat against the house and tear away at the sand upon which this house rests. The wind pushes against its sides. Great is the fall of this house! Great is the folly of the man who has built thus!
So is . . . so is “everyone that heareth these saying of mine, and doeth them not.”
How we can hear! How we can pay attention! How we can well understand what is taught us from the Word of God! We have laid out before us what we must believe. We have laid out before us what we must say and what we must do. The sayings are ever multiplied. We must not think only of the sayings of Christ, but we must also think of all the sayings that come from Christ. We must think of all the Scriptures. We must think of all the expositions and explanations and applications of these Scriptures we hear in the preaching from ministers sent by Christ.
We hear, and we hear well. But our hearing will not answer the question whether we are wise or foolish. The man who heard is compared to the foolish man, which built his house on the sand. The question, whether we are wise or foolish must be answered with what follows our hearing? Shall we do these sayings of Christ?
For there is an integrity in these sayings of Christ. This integrity cannot be mocked. What is this integrity? Simply, Christ has said, “Do!” Our answer cannot be, “I hear.” Our answer cannot be, “I hear, and I will go.” Our answer cannot be, “I hear, and I will do.” And then we do not do as Christ has commanded. Such a stubborn refusal is a complete disregard of His word. His word is not to be so mocked and scorned. Ultimately, we foolishly deny the very sovereignty expressed in His words.
The very house we build must therefore collapse, for it is built on sand. That house we build. Its weight is all assembled together into a complete package. It is a complete, full structure, explaining in so many details how we ought to conduct ourselves in every part of our life. But the more we build it up, the more we testify of our own folly, when we refuse to build it in the proper place.
Not on the sand of stubborn refusal. Neither on the sand of our complete inability. Neither on the sand of our feeble attempts.
But on the rock which is Christ! As we give ourselves to do what our Lord Jesus Christ has commanded, we find out we have no strength or ability. All we have is sand. But we return to Christ, the One who has spoken to us. We return to Him, seeking and finding forgiveness for the inability He has discovered to us. We return to Him, seeking and finding His strength to do what He has commanded.
So we build. We build our house on a rock. Our house is safe from the winds that blow, the rain that falls and the waves that beat against it. It stands, for it is built on the Rock that is Christ.
May such be our wisdom today, from Wisdom Himself, our Lord Jesus Christ!
5 January 2013, The Lord's Day
Acts 2:41, 47, “Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls . . . And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”
What days these were! On the day of Pentecost, the day Christ poured out His Spirit on. His church, together they increased the church. By the Holy Spirit the risen and ascended Lord brought regeneration, repentance, faith and salvation to those whom He would save. The Spirit twice makes evident this act of Christ in the above words. We do not read of these three thousand souls adding themselves unto the company of the disciples. We read, “ . . . there were added.” The same we learn from the explicit words that follow: “The Lord added daily.” And, lest any should doubt, following are words that reach back into the eternal counsel of God the Father: “such as should be saved.”
Yet, all this work Jesus did, by His Spirit, according to the will of His Father, in such a way that it could be measured and counted. By His holy, glorious work there were these who received the word of the apostle Peter. These were baptized for the forgiveness of their sins. They could thus be counted, and the number found to be on that day three thousand.
So it continued, day after day, in the church of Christ at Jerusalem. “And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”
So it continues to the present day. It is well for you to enter the house of the Lord and gather among His people there. It is well for you to engage, body and soul, heart and mind, in the worship of the Lord. In that assembly, you have the blessed privilege of helping your fellow saints in the praise and worship of the Lord, and helping each other give ears, minds, and hearts, to the Word of God as we hear it preached.
In that assembly, look around you. What do you see? Do not see there the work of men, but see the work of the Lord. See the work of the Triune God. See the work of the risen and ascended Christ, by His Holy Spirit, carrying out the will of God the Father. This day, see the Lord adding to the church daily such as should be saved.
See that work also in yourself. He has powerfully and mysteriously added you to His own body, the church. Know the fruit of that work in your place today in that assembly. Rejoice in it, as you take your place and as you receive the Word preached to you. And give thanks to your Lord, who has added you to His church. You, who “should be saved.”
Acts 2:41, 47, “Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls . . . And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”
What days these were! On the day of Pentecost, the day Christ poured out His Spirit on. His church, together they increased the church. By the Holy Spirit the risen and ascended Lord brought regeneration, repentance, faith and salvation to those whom He would save. The Spirit twice makes evident this act of Christ in the above words. We do not read of these three thousand souls adding themselves unto the company of the disciples. We read, “ . . . there were added.” The same we learn from the explicit words that follow: “The Lord added daily.” And, lest any should doubt, following are words that reach back into the eternal counsel of God the Father: “such as should be saved.”
Yet, all this work Jesus did, by His Spirit, according to the will of His Father, in such a way that it could be measured and counted. By His holy, glorious work there were these who received the word of the apostle Peter. These were baptized for the forgiveness of their sins. They could thus be counted, and the number found to be on that day three thousand.
So it continued, day after day, in the church of Christ at Jerusalem. “And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”
So it continues to the present day. It is well for you to enter the house of the Lord and gather among His people there. It is well for you to engage, body and soul, heart and mind, in the worship of the Lord. In that assembly, you have the blessed privilege of helping your fellow saints in the praise and worship of the Lord, and helping each other give ears, minds, and hearts, to the Word of God as we hear it preached.
In that assembly, look around you. What do you see? Do not see there the work of men, but see the work of the Lord. See the work of the Triune God. See the work of the risen and ascended Christ, by His Holy Spirit, carrying out the will of God the Father. This day, see the Lord adding to the church daily such as should be saved.
See that work also in yourself. He has powerfully and mysteriously added you to His own body, the church. Know the fruit of that work in your place today in that assembly. Rejoice in it, as you take your place and as you receive the Word preached to you. And give thanks to your Lord, who has added you to His church. You, who “should be saved.”
4 January 2014
Jeremiah 18:3-6, “Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.”
The Lord’s prophet obeyed the command of God to go to the potter’s house. There the Lord showed him the potter’s everyday ordinary work, making out of clay vessels for all kinds of uses. As the wheel turned, the potter skilfully applied the strength of his hands and fingers to the lump of clay on that wheel. As he labored for a few minutes on that lump of clay, a flaw became evident. It was obvious to the potter and Jeremiah that this vessel was going to be no good for anything because of the flaw. So the potter collapsed the clay, pushed it back down into its original lump and made another vessel. Simply, he made another vessel as it pleased him.
Then, the Word of the Lord came twice to Jeremiah for emphasis. “Cannot I do with you as this potter?” “As the clay . . . so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.” The Lord is the potter. Israel is the clay. He is able to make whatever He is pleased to make out of the materials before Him.
Powerful expression of God’s absolute sovereignty over all we have in these words! But even more, this picture and these words are directed to a people that are rebellious in their pride. They will be who they want to be! If they want to follow after the Lord, serving and worshipping Him alone, fine. But, if they want to follow after the Lord and also other gods, that must be fine as well. Or, if they want to turn from the Lord altogether, and worship and serve other gods, that must be fine too. They are their own.
Such boldness and arrogance characterizes so much of mankind. Men will be who they want to be, without God. They will be strong in their independence from God. Religious sentimentality is for the poor and the weak, those in need of a crutch to help them cope with reality. Many Christians want to be Christians, without God. They must be independent in their choice to become a Christian, or to be born again. Or they will seek independence in their quest for holiness. One can decide to be holy or remain unholy, all a personal decision.
All of this pride and arrogance cannot abide the powerful, destructive force of what Jeremiah heard in the potter’s house that day. What can the clay say over against the potter? Clay! It is merely the material in the hand of the potter. Its only shape, and its only usefulness, is by the hand and will of the potter. What clay might be of itself, besides being a lump, is only flawed and marred, making it unserviceable for use.
So may we humbly and gladly confess: we are the clay; thou art the potter (Isaiah 64:8). So may we be fit vessels in our Lord’s house, fit and proper for His use, to His glory and praise (II Timothy 2:20, 21).
Jeremiah 18:3-6, “Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.”
The Lord’s prophet obeyed the command of God to go to the potter’s house. There the Lord showed him the potter’s everyday ordinary work, making out of clay vessels for all kinds of uses. As the wheel turned, the potter skilfully applied the strength of his hands and fingers to the lump of clay on that wheel. As he labored for a few minutes on that lump of clay, a flaw became evident. It was obvious to the potter and Jeremiah that this vessel was going to be no good for anything because of the flaw. So the potter collapsed the clay, pushed it back down into its original lump and made another vessel. Simply, he made another vessel as it pleased him.
Then, the Word of the Lord came twice to Jeremiah for emphasis. “Cannot I do with you as this potter?” “As the clay . . . so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.” The Lord is the potter. Israel is the clay. He is able to make whatever He is pleased to make out of the materials before Him.
Powerful expression of God’s absolute sovereignty over all we have in these words! But even more, this picture and these words are directed to a people that are rebellious in their pride. They will be who they want to be! If they want to follow after the Lord, serving and worshipping Him alone, fine. But, if they want to follow after the Lord and also other gods, that must be fine as well. Or, if they want to turn from the Lord altogether, and worship and serve other gods, that must be fine too. They are their own.
Such boldness and arrogance characterizes so much of mankind. Men will be who they want to be, without God. They will be strong in their independence from God. Religious sentimentality is for the poor and the weak, those in need of a crutch to help them cope with reality. Many Christians want to be Christians, without God. They must be independent in their choice to become a Christian, or to be born again. Or they will seek independence in their quest for holiness. One can decide to be holy or remain unholy, all a personal decision.
All of this pride and arrogance cannot abide the powerful, destructive force of what Jeremiah heard in the potter’s house that day. What can the clay say over against the potter? Clay! It is merely the material in the hand of the potter. Its only shape, and its only usefulness, is by the hand and will of the potter. What clay might be of itself, besides being a lump, is only flawed and marred, making it unserviceable for use.
So may we humbly and gladly confess: we are the clay; thou art the potter (Isaiah 64:8). So may we be fit vessels in our Lord’s house, fit and proper for His use, to His glory and praise (II Timothy 2:20, 21).
3 January 2013
Proverbs 23:7, “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.”
A powerful figure leads you and me to this Word of God. “And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite.”
Here you are, sitting at a delicious banquet prepared for you, honored guest! Your seat is before a large table, full of delicious foods made from the finest ingredients. Its wonderful odours fill your nostrils with their delights. Its wine is sparkling and fragrant. Your host, a ruler of your city, is at the head of the table. He implores you: Eat and drink!
If you are a man given to appetite, put a knife to your throat!
Why?
Despite his gracious, inviting words, the heart of your host is not with you. Beware!
Beware, for he is not as he speaks. There is no true intention in his words. What is he? Who is he? He is as he thinks in his heart. His heart is not in this feast. His heart is not with you. His heart is the heart of a ruler. He has other things on his mind and in his heart. He sees you as a prospect or as a tool. His banquet before you is a tool. Its purpose is to gain your compliance with him. If you cannot discern the intentions of his heart, it is better to put a knife to your throat–literally.
Constantly you are being seated before such a table, heaped with delicious foods. The devil and the world are always preparing their tables before you. Constantly they invite you, and encourage you. “Eat and drink!” “Enjoy our bounty!” They will wine and dine you.
But beware! As they speak, they are not! But as they are in their hearts, that they are! Their heart is not with you. It is against you. They have no regard for that food they have before you. They are thinking about what comes with the food and in that food. In that food are all kinds of little, unnoticed hooks, ready to catch at your heart and mind. Those hooks they have designed to become bits and bridles to control and direct you.
If you are a man given to appetite, put a knife to your throat!
May God this day grant us such prudence and discretion to know the temptations of our enemies, as we walk in this world!
Proverbs 23:7, “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.”
A powerful figure leads you and me to this Word of God. “And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite.”
Here you are, sitting at a delicious banquet prepared for you, honored guest! Your seat is before a large table, full of delicious foods made from the finest ingredients. Its wonderful odours fill your nostrils with their delights. Its wine is sparkling and fragrant. Your host, a ruler of your city, is at the head of the table. He implores you: Eat and drink!
If you are a man given to appetite, put a knife to your throat!
Why?
Despite his gracious, inviting words, the heart of your host is not with you. Beware!
Beware, for he is not as he speaks. There is no true intention in his words. What is he? Who is he? He is as he thinks in his heart. His heart is not in this feast. His heart is not with you. His heart is the heart of a ruler. He has other things on his mind and in his heart. He sees you as a prospect or as a tool. His banquet before you is a tool. Its purpose is to gain your compliance with him. If you cannot discern the intentions of his heart, it is better to put a knife to your throat–literally.
Constantly you are being seated before such a table, heaped with delicious foods. The devil and the world are always preparing their tables before you. Constantly they invite you, and encourage you. “Eat and drink!” “Enjoy our bounty!” They will wine and dine you.
But beware! As they speak, they are not! But as they are in their hearts, that they are! Their heart is not with you. It is against you. They have no regard for that food they have before you. They are thinking about what comes with the food and in that food. In that food are all kinds of little, unnoticed hooks, ready to catch at your heart and mind. Those hooks they have designed to become bits and bridles to control and direct you.
If you are a man given to appetite, put a knife to your throat!
May God this day grant us such prudence and discretion to know the temptations of our enemies, as we walk in this world!
1 January 2014
I Timothy 6:18, 19, “That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.”
This verse of Holy Scripture describes the benefits for those who are “rich in this world.” As these rich Christians do not put their trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, they enjoy this benefit. As they do good, being rich in good works, and as they are ready to distribute and willing to communicate (willingly, not by government edict), the above benefits accrue to them.
As they do good, giving generously and liberally, they lay up in store. They save and they invest. They do not lose, but they gain. With every sanctified act of giving they gain a greater, stronger hold on the eternal life promised them and sealed to them by Jesus’ blood.
How?
We appreciate the power of the paradox described here. A man might save what he otherwise would share. He may not be willing to communicate or ready to distribute his wealth. He wants to keep it. His concern is for this present life. As he does not give but keeps, he reinforces that concern. It only grows larger in his mind and greater in his heart. Consequently, thoughts of the time to come and desire for eternal life grow smaller. This man saves, but he actually grows poorer. He becomes poorer in good works. He becomes poorer in the good foundation, and weaker grows his grip on eternal life.
Then, there is the Christian who is rich in good works. As he distributes and communicates out of his willing heart, he grows richer and stronger. To be sure, he has less than before in the riches of this world, but his giving signifies that this present time is not so important to him. He loosens his grip on this world. By his generosity he reinforces his concern for the time to come and eternal life. In his mind and in his heart, the things of heaven become more real. His foundation against the time to come becomes more solid and sure. His hold on eternal life grows stronger. More assured is he of the blessings that lay in store for him.
May this way, by God’s almighty grace, be ours in this new year: rich in good works for the sake of eternal life!
I Timothy 6:18, 19, “That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.”
This verse of Holy Scripture describes the benefits for those who are “rich in this world.” As these rich Christians do not put their trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, they enjoy this benefit. As they do good, being rich in good works, and as they are ready to distribute and willing to communicate (willingly, not by government edict), the above benefits accrue to them.
As they do good, giving generously and liberally, they lay up in store. They save and they invest. They do not lose, but they gain. With every sanctified act of giving they gain a greater, stronger hold on the eternal life promised them and sealed to them by Jesus’ blood.
How?
We appreciate the power of the paradox described here. A man might save what he otherwise would share. He may not be willing to communicate or ready to distribute his wealth. He wants to keep it. His concern is for this present life. As he does not give but keeps, he reinforces that concern. It only grows larger in his mind and greater in his heart. Consequently, thoughts of the time to come and desire for eternal life grow smaller. This man saves, but he actually grows poorer. He becomes poorer in good works. He becomes poorer in the good foundation, and weaker grows his grip on eternal life.
Then, there is the Christian who is rich in good works. As he distributes and communicates out of his willing heart, he grows richer and stronger. To be sure, he has less than before in the riches of this world, but his giving signifies that this present time is not so important to him. He loosens his grip on this world. By his generosity he reinforces his concern for the time to come and eternal life. In his mind and in his heart, the things of heaven become more real. His foundation against the time to come becomes more solid and sure. His hold on eternal life grows stronger. More assured is he of the blessings that lay in store for him.
May this way, by God’s almighty grace, be ours in this new year: rich in good works for the sake of eternal life!
31 December 2013
I Peter 4:7, “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.”
The end of every year ought powerfully to remind us of the truth of this Word of God: the end of all things is at hand.
This day is the last day of another year. The passing of another year has brought the end of all things a year closer. Also, we are reminded that the number of years of this earth is about to be increased by one. So very long ago the Holy Spirit wrote these words to the church. “The end of all things is at hand.” With the passing of another year, how much more is this teaching true!
Finally, we ought to be reminded of the events of this year. In this year more of God’s elect have been saved into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ. The number of the redeemed is that much closer to completion. God’s judgments upon the world continue to be poured out, and iniquity has grown and increased in the earth, crying out more and more for God’s holy vengeance. The entire world has spent another year in travail, groaning and travailing for its liberty.
These all are the things that have their end, and that end is at hand!
Therefore, remember!
This Word of God tells us how we must remember. Our remembrance is a battle. We are inclined to forget. Our three enemies, the devil, the world, and our flesh, would drive this knowledge far away from our minds and hearts. Temptations to drunkenness, worldliness, idolatry, and earthly lusts would take our minds off the subject of the end. So Scripture commands us to be sober, to maintain our minds in firm order. Only in sobriety our minds can remain steadfast, remembering the end of all things.
We are also to remember by being watchful unto prayer. Our watching is not that of a soldier posted on guard duty, peering into the darkness of the night, looking for any sign of the enemy attacking at night. Our watching is that of a merchant looking for his ship loaded with his goods. How he keeps his eyes firmly fixed on the horizon, seeking his hope! As we watch for the end of all things, we seek it in fervent prayer. We pray most ardently, “Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly!” And as we pray, so we watch.
As we watch and as we pray, closing out this old year, let us remember: “The end of all things is at hand.”
I Peter 4:7, “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.”
The end of every year ought powerfully to remind us of the truth of this Word of God: the end of all things is at hand.
This day is the last day of another year. The passing of another year has brought the end of all things a year closer. Also, we are reminded that the number of years of this earth is about to be increased by one. So very long ago the Holy Spirit wrote these words to the church. “The end of all things is at hand.” With the passing of another year, how much more is this teaching true!
Finally, we ought to be reminded of the events of this year. In this year more of God’s elect have been saved into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ. The number of the redeemed is that much closer to completion. God’s judgments upon the world continue to be poured out, and iniquity has grown and increased in the earth, crying out more and more for God’s holy vengeance. The entire world has spent another year in travail, groaning and travailing for its liberty.
These all are the things that have their end, and that end is at hand!
Therefore, remember!
This Word of God tells us how we must remember. Our remembrance is a battle. We are inclined to forget. Our three enemies, the devil, the world, and our flesh, would drive this knowledge far away from our minds and hearts. Temptations to drunkenness, worldliness, idolatry, and earthly lusts would take our minds off the subject of the end. So Scripture commands us to be sober, to maintain our minds in firm order. Only in sobriety our minds can remain steadfast, remembering the end of all things.
We are also to remember by being watchful unto prayer. Our watching is not that of a soldier posted on guard duty, peering into the darkness of the night, looking for any sign of the enemy attacking at night. Our watching is that of a merchant looking for his ship loaded with his goods. How he keeps his eyes firmly fixed on the horizon, seeking his hope! As we watch for the end of all things, we seek it in fervent prayer. We pray most ardently, “Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly!” And as we pray, so we watch.
As we watch and as we pray, closing out this old year, let us remember: “The end of all things is at hand.”
29 December 2013, The Lord's Day
2 Corinthians 13:11, “Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.”
Powerfully and wonderfully do these words bring us before the Word of God in the fellowship of God’s people. They spell out a spiritual recipe for fellowship with God and with His people. They begin as addressed to the church of Jesus Christ, in their relationships with another and with Christ’s apostle. They are the “brethren” in the household of faith.
The commandments that follow address Christ’s goal for them, the goal at which the brethren must aim in their hearts and lives. “Be perfect!” That is, be conformed to the perfection of Jesus Christ, the perfect Son of man. Be so conformed, not only as individual believers, but also as the body of Christ. Then, “Be of good comfort!” That is, be filled with the comfort of God’s Word. Be filled with the assurances of His salvation. Have your hearts and minds occupied with the promises of God’s Word. Be so filled with that good comfort that you overflow in comfort to one another. II Corinthians 1:1-12, I Thessalonians 4:18.
What follow in this verse are the means to that end. “Be of one mind!” “Live in peace!” Think together! Share the same determinations and the same goals! Participate together in your knowledge and understanding. That is, let the Word you hear preached to you together occupy your minds together in fellowship. Let that Word, as proclaimed by your minister, lead you together to Christ and His gospel. Let that Word together lead you to contemplate your lost condition without that Word. Let that Word guide you together in the commandments of the Word, so that you are able together to walk in gratitude.
“Live in peace.” Putting off the contention and strife of vain glory, you will be helped to be of the same mind. Disagreements and contentions must disappear, as you together submit to the one Word of God. As you together share in the riches of the gospel proclaimed to you, you cannot be divided along lines of wealth or popularity. You will rejoice in one another’s goodness from your blessed Saviour, who is rich in grace to all of you.
Through the above, the last words of this verse will be powerfully evident among you. “The God of love and peace shall be with you.” His work will be shown in you. He is perfecting you. He is blessing you with His comfort. He is molding you and making you of one mind. He is granting you His peace. Moreover, He manifests His nearness to you through His works. How are you to enjoy God’s nearness? How are you to be blessed with His fellowship? In being of one mind. In living in peace. In the church, among the brethren, blessed under His Word.
May these blessings be yours today, among the gathering of God’s people, by His blessed Word!
2 Corinthians 13:11, “Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.”
Powerfully and wonderfully do these words bring us before the Word of God in the fellowship of God’s people. They spell out a spiritual recipe for fellowship with God and with His people. They begin as addressed to the church of Jesus Christ, in their relationships with another and with Christ’s apostle. They are the “brethren” in the household of faith.
The commandments that follow address Christ’s goal for them, the goal at which the brethren must aim in their hearts and lives. “Be perfect!” That is, be conformed to the perfection of Jesus Christ, the perfect Son of man. Be so conformed, not only as individual believers, but also as the body of Christ. Then, “Be of good comfort!” That is, be filled with the comfort of God’s Word. Be filled with the assurances of His salvation. Have your hearts and minds occupied with the promises of God’s Word. Be so filled with that good comfort that you overflow in comfort to one another. II Corinthians 1:1-12, I Thessalonians 4:18.
What follow in this verse are the means to that end. “Be of one mind!” “Live in peace!” Think together! Share the same determinations and the same goals! Participate together in your knowledge and understanding. That is, let the Word you hear preached to you together occupy your minds together in fellowship. Let that Word, as proclaimed by your minister, lead you together to Christ and His gospel. Let that Word together lead you to contemplate your lost condition without that Word. Let that Word guide you together in the commandments of the Word, so that you are able together to walk in gratitude.
“Live in peace.” Putting off the contention and strife of vain glory, you will be helped to be of the same mind. Disagreements and contentions must disappear, as you together submit to the one Word of God. As you together share in the riches of the gospel proclaimed to you, you cannot be divided along lines of wealth or popularity. You will rejoice in one another’s goodness from your blessed Saviour, who is rich in grace to all of you.
Through the above, the last words of this verse will be powerfully evident among you. “The God of love and peace shall be with you.” His work will be shown in you. He is perfecting you. He is blessing you with His comfort. He is molding you and making you of one mind. He is granting you His peace. Moreover, He manifests His nearness to you through His works. How are you to enjoy God’s nearness? How are you to be blessed with His fellowship? In being of one mind. In living in peace. In the church, among the brethren, blessed under His Word.
May these blessings be yours today, among the gathering of God’s people, by His blessed Word!
25 December 2013
Matthew 1:10, 11, “When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were coming into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.”
Wise men are these! They were gatherers of knowledge, students of the world around them. They studied the heavens and the earth with their sense. They observed and catalogued the regular workings of the world they saw around them. They were also well read. No doubt they had accumulated a great library of ancient scrolls. Constantly they pored over them. As they studied and meditated, and as they calculated, they were led by the Spirit of God to a certain conclusion. They saw a star of some significance, newly appearing in the heavens. And they concluded that this star signified the birth of a certain King over a certain people, the people of the Jews. But even more, they came to the conclusion that He was their King. It was but fitting that they should find Him and present themselves to Him. They must give Him their honor and worship.
How that star led them! First it led them to the city of Jerusalem, to inquire concerning the whereabouts of Him “that is born King of the Jews.” Then, after they were sent by Herod to Bethlehem, that same star led them directly to the very place where Jesus was.
How great their joy! Their hearts leapt to see their guiding star appearing again, leading them with all apparent eagerness to the home of the King of the Jews. Their joy was abundant, and overflowing. How it showed on their eager faces and poured out in excited words from their joyful lips! Here was the very place of the one they had so eagerly sought in their long journey. Their quest was nearly finished.
Here in Bethlehem! Here was He “that is born King of the Jews.” In this humble, little town. To this humble little dwelling the heavenly star guided their feet. Nothing of significance was to be seen about this home. No crowd was gathered about. There was no line formed of people waiting to see the King. But there the star infallibly led, and inside its door was their joy.
They did not question. They did not doubt. This was the Child, He that was born the King of the Jews. Immediately they fell down in reverent, humble, joyous worship. Here was their King, to receive their honor and glory. To Him they opened their treasures. In loving devotion they bless Him with their gifts. Gold for their King they present. Frankincense in devotion to their God they offer. And myrrh for their suffering Saviour they provide.
How wonderful and how blessed their wisdom! Wisdom to know their King. Wisdom to seek and find Him. And wisdom to worship this divine child-King.
May it ever be our wisdom to join these wise men in the joyful worship of our blessed Saviour, our King, the holy Child of Bethlehem!
Matthew 1:10, 11, “When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were coming into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.”
Wise men are these! They were gatherers of knowledge, students of the world around them. They studied the heavens and the earth with their sense. They observed and catalogued the regular workings of the world they saw around them. They were also well read. No doubt they had accumulated a great library of ancient scrolls. Constantly they pored over them. As they studied and meditated, and as they calculated, they were led by the Spirit of God to a certain conclusion. They saw a star of some significance, newly appearing in the heavens. And they concluded that this star signified the birth of a certain King over a certain people, the people of the Jews. But even more, they came to the conclusion that He was their King. It was but fitting that they should find Him and present themselves to Him. They must give Him their honor and worship.
How that star led them! First it led them to the city of Jerusalem, to inquire concerning the whereabouts of Him “that is born King of the Jews.” Then, after they were sent by Herod to Bethlehem, that same star led them directly to the very place where Jesus was.
How great their joy! Their hearts leapt to see their guiding star appearing again, leading them with all apparent eagerness to the home of the King of the Jews. Their joy was abundant, and overflowing. How it showed on their eager faces and poured out in excited words from their joyful lips! Here was the very place of the one they had so eagerly sought in their long journey. Their quest was nearly finished.
Here in Bethlehem! Here was He “that is born King of the Jews.” In this humble, little town. To this humble little dwelling the heavenly star guided their feet. Nothing of significance was to be seen about this home. No crowd was gathered about. There was no line formed of people waiting to see the King. But there the star infallibly led, and inside its door was their joy.
They did not question. They did not doubt. This was the Child, He that was born the King of the Jews. Immediately they fell down in reverent, humble, joyous worship. Here was their King, to receive their honor and glory. To Him they opened their treasures. In loving devotion they bless Him with their gifts. Gold for their King they present. Frankincense in devotion to their God they offer. And myrrh for their suffering Saviour they provide.
How wonderful and how blessed their wisdom! Wisdom to know their King. Wisdom to seek and find Him. And wisdom to worship this divine child-King.
May it ever be our wisdom to join these wise men in the joyful worship of our blessed Saviour, our King, the holy Child of Bethlehem!
24 December 2013
II Corinthians 8:7, 9, “Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also . . . For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.”
What grace! Here is one particular grace, a grace to stand among many other graces, so many graces that define the Christian’s life as gracious.
This grace is given in abundance. The Corinthians are described as abounding in everything. As they are described as abounding in faith, utterance, knowledge, diligence, love for the company of the apostles, so they must also abound in this particular grace: the grace of giving.
This grace of giving is here celebrated according to two of its features. The Corinthians must abound in their giving. Their generosity and liberality are meant to be freely overflowing out of their hands to the poor saints in Jerusalem. This abundance does not refer simply to quantity. This abundance does not mean piles of gold and silver. But it means that there is a forwardness in giving. Though one may not have a great deal, he gives abundantly when he gives generously and freely.
The second feature of this grace of giving is that it is from the heart. As the apostle wrote, it was not by commandment they were to give, but out of their own hearts. They were to be moved deeply by the poverty of their fellow saints at Jerusalem. That poverty was to impel them to their generous giving for the relief of these poor.
How to abound in this grace? How were the Corinthians to abound in this grace? How are we to abound in this grace of our giving?
Look at, consider deeply, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ!
How rich He was! He was rich with all the glory of God. He was rich in all His brilliant, splendid, shining glory of perfect, pure goodness, holiness, power, and wisdom. His was the power to create the vast abundance of the entire universe, including the vast resources of our small planet. Truly, the cattle on a thousand hills are His.
Though He was rich, vastly rich, beyond our comprehension, yet He became poor.
He became poor! Amazing uniqueness of our Lord Jesus Christ! Before He was born, He deliberated and pondered! In His being conceived and born, He acted and moved according to His determinations. Exercising His sovereignty in His own birth, He became poor. He determined to be conceived in the womb of a woman of no fame, and of no reputation or standing in her society or the world, though of the line of great King David. He chose, upon His birth, to be wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger, because He made no room for Himself in the inn. He chose, in His entire life’s ministry, to have no place to lay His head. And He chose to be lifted up on a cross, having heard His countrymen cry in His ears, “Away with Him!”
Why? Why did He become poor? Not for His sake, but for yours. For your sakes He became poor. He became poor that “ye through his poverty might be rich.” Through His poverty the riches of the kingdom of heaven are yours! Glory, immortality, and everlasting, incorruptible life are yours because of Him. The favour and lovingkindness of the living God are yours without end. His abundant, overflowing peace is yours to enjoy forever and ever. All this He purchased for you with His poverty.
That knowledge is given you. It is given you by the Word of the gospel, sealed to your hearts by the Spirit through faith. You know! You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ!
In that blessed, knowledge, let us “abound in this grace also.” The grace of giving!
II Corinthians 8:7, 9, “Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also . . . For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.”
What grace! Here is one particular grace, a grace to stand among many other graces, so many graces that define the Christian’s life as gracious.
This grace is given in abundance. The Corinthians are described as abounding in everything. As they are described as abounding in faith, utterance, knowledge, diligence, love for the company of the apostles, so they must also abound in this particular grace: the grace of giving.
This grace of giving is here celebrated according to two of its features. The Corinthians must abound in their giving. Their generosity and liberality are meant to be freely overflowing out of their hands to the poor saints in Jerusalem. This abundance does not refer simply to quantity. This abundance does not mean piles of gold and silver. But it means that there is a forwardness in giving. Though one may not have a great deal, he gives abundantly when he gives generously and freely.
The second feature of this grace of giving is that it is from the heart. As the apostle wrote, it was not by commandment they were to give, but out of their own hearts. They were to be moved deeply by the poverty of their fellow saints at Jerusalem. That poverty was to impel them to their generous giving for the relief of these poor.
How to abound in this grace? How were the Corinthians to abound in this grace? How are we to abound in this grace of our giving?
Look at, consider deeply, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ!
How rich He was! He was rich with all the glory of God. He was rich in all His brilliant, splendid, shining glory of perfect, pure goodness, holiness, power, and wisdom. His was the power to create the vast abundance of the entire universe, including the vast resources of our small planet. Truly, the cattle on a thousand hills are His.
Though He was rich, vastly rich, beyond our comprehension, yet He became poor.
He became poor! Amazing uniqueness of our Lord Jesus Christ! Before He was born, He deliberated and pondered! In His being conceived and born, He acted and moved according to His determinations. Exercising His sovereignty in His own birth, He became poor. He determined to be conceived in the womb of a woman of no fame, and of no reputation or standing in her society or the world, though of the line of great King David. He chose, upon His birth, to be wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger, because He made no room for Himself in the inn. He chose, in His entire life’s ministry, to have no place to lay His head. And He chose to be lifted up on a cross, having heard His countrymen cry in His ears, “Away with Him!”
Why? Why did He become poor? Not for His sake, but for yours. For your sakes He became poor. He became poor that “ye through his poverty might be rich.” Through His poverty the riches of the kingdom of heaven are yours! Glory, immortality, and everlasting, incorruptible life are yours because of Him. The favour and lovingkindness of the living God are yours without end. His abundant, overflowing peace is yours to enjoy forever and ever. All this He purchased for you with His poverty.
That knowledge is given you. It is given you by the Word of the gospel, sealed to your hearts by the Spirit through faith. You know! You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ!
In that blessed, knowledge, let us “abound in this grace also.” The grace of giving!
21 December 2013
Luke 1:37, “For with God nothing shall be impossible.”
In these few words the angel Gabriel describes the almighty power of God, His omnipotence.
This power is properly expressed to us in a negative way. To be sure, Scripture expresses the same truth in a positive manner. God does all His good pleasure. He hath done whatsoever He hath pleased. With God all things are possible. But when it is expressed in a negative way, as in Gabriel’s words, that power becomes all the more emphatic: there is nothing impossible with God.
Nothing impossible! How quickly our foolish minds might race to ask foolish questions. Can God make a rock so large that He cannot throw it? Can God sin? Can God make a round square or a square circle?
Away with such foolish questions! How they must pale into insignificance before matters that are truly impossible?
What are these truly impossible things?
How shall sinful men be made right with a holy God? How shall spiritually, morally dead men live? How shall the hell-bound captives be brought instead to heavenly glory and perfection?
Impossible! Impossible with men. Impossible among men. Impossible with you and with me. Among men there is none righteous, no not one. Among men there is none living, but all are dead in trespasses and sins.
Required is one righteous man. Required is one man living. But there is none.
Required is one righteous man, whose righteousness can avail for many. Required is one living man, by whom many might live.
Impossible! There is none among all the sons of men. None among all of Adam’s race.
But with God nothing shall be impossible!
For with God in the beginning there was always the Son of God. Very God of very God, light of light and life of life, righteous with the righteousness of God is the Son.
Then there is the gift of that very Son of God, true God of true God, righteous and living God. The gift of God to be given through the virgin Mary, to be born of her womb and of her flesh. Conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary. To be the Son of God, living and righteous, as a man among men.
With God was He given, a man among men. With God was His righteousness given, to make us righteous. With God was His life given, to make us to live. Not only by His virgin birth, but also by the wonder of His almighty sacrifice on the cross in His flesh. So with His righteousness He makes us righteous, worthy of heaven. So with His life He makes us to live, to believe, to be renewed in His image to holiness and righteousness.
For with God nothing shall be impossible! For us. Within us. For His glory!
Luke 1:37, “For with God nothing shall be impossible.”
In these few words the angel Gabriel describes the almighty power of God, His omnipotence.
This power is properly expressed to us in a negative way. To be sure, Scripture expresses the same truth in a positive manner. God does all His good pleasure. He hath done whatsoever He hath pleased. With God all things are possible. But when it is expressed in a negative way, as in Gabriel’s words, that power becomes all the more emphatic: there is nothing impossible with God.
Nothing impossible! How quickly our foolish minds might race to ask foolish questions. Can God make a rock so large that He cannot throw it? Can God sin? Can God make a round square or a square circle?
Away with such foolish questions! How they must pale into insignificance before matters that are truly impossible?
What are these truly impossible things?
How shall sinful men be made right with a holy God? How shall spiritually, morally dead men live? How shall the hell-bound captives be brought instead to heavenly glory and perfection?
Impossible! Impossible with men. Impossible among men. Impossible with you and with me. Among men there is none righteous, no not one. Among men there is none living, but all are dead in trespasses and sins.
Required is one righteous man. Required is one man living. But there is none.
Required is one righteous man, whose righteousness can avail for many. Required is one living man, by whom many might live.
Impossible! There is none among all the sons of men. None among all of Adam’s race.
But with God nothing shall be impossible!
For with God in the beginning there was always the Son of God. Very God of very God, light of light and life of life, righteous with the righteousness of God is the Son.
Then there is the gift of that very Son of God, true God of true God, righteous and living God. The gift of God to be given through the virgin Mary, to be born of her womb and of her flesh. Conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary. To be the Son of God, living and righteous, as a man among men.
With God was He given, a man among men. With God was His righteousness given, to make us righteous. With God was His life given, to make us to live. Not only by His virgin birth, but also by the wonder of His almighty sacrifice on the cross in His flesh. So with His righteousness He makes us righteous, worthy of heaven. So with His life He makes us to live, to believe, to be renewed in His image to holiness and righteousness.
For with God nothing shall be impossible! For us. Within us. For His glory!
19 December 2013
Proverbs 23:17, “Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long.”
All the day long we need to have the commandment of wisdom speaking in our ear: “Let not thine heart envy sinners.”
That is the way of our minds. That is the tendency of our hearts. We are always in danger of envying sinners.
Envy is the illicit and immoral desire to be in the place of others. Envy desires the social standing or the power and honor that belong to others. Envy wants the talents or the abilities, or the looks that belong to others. Envy would have the wealth or the large homes, the nice cars, or the fabulous jewelry that others boast.
Envy is a special temptation to us in difficulties. When sick, we envy the healthy. When poor, we envy the rich. When cast down with grief, we envy the happy. When anxious and troubled, we envy the carefree.
Envy in the heart is a powerful toxin. It taints and jaundices the heart and mind of the envious. Their desires and thoughts become more and more corrupt. Envy looks at one’s own possessions with contempt. It is the bitter root of murmuring and complaining against God. Envy destroys contentment. Envy engenders ill-will and malice toward others.
This commandment urges us to remove all envy from our heart with all diligence and care. This commandment urges us to bar the gates of our heart against it. No room may there be for it!
In the commandment itself we have already a powerful weapon against envy. Scripture gives us a true identification of those we are not to envy. The Word of God here does not identify the reason for our envy. It does not say, “Let not thine heart envy the rich,” or, “Let not thine heart envy the carefree.” It says, “Let not thine heart envy sinners.” Look not on their wealth, their status, their power! Look not on the quality of their lives! Consider them according to their standing before God. Sinners! What do their honor, their riches, their power mean? Only the wrath of God. Who are you envying? Why?
The most powerful weapon against our envy is given in the last part of the proverb. “But be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long.”
Turn from these sinners with their reasons for your envy! Turn from them to consider the Lord. Put yourself in the fear of the Lord. Think on His majesty, glory, power, righteousness. Think of His absolute sovereignty over all. Think of His power to create and uphold the entire universe. Think of the glorious, incomprehensible, unsearchable riches of His wisdom to create all things by and for His Son Jesus Christ. But think also of the unsearchable riches of his love, grace, and mercy to you through His Son, Jesus Christ. So think and so ponder, until your heart is filled with his fear. Remain in that fear all the day.
There is your blessed freedom from all envy of sinners: the fear of the Lord, all the day long!
Let not thine heart envy sinners!
Proverbs 23:17, “Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long.”
All the day long we need to have the commandment of wisdom speaking in our ear: “Let not thine heart envy sinners.”
That is the way of our minds. That is the tendency of our hearts. We are always in danger of envying sinners.
Envy is the illicit and immoral desire to be in the place of others. Envy desires the social standing or the power and honor that belong to others. Envy wants the talents or the abilities, or the looks that belong to others. Envy would have the wealth or the large homes, the nice cars, or the fabulous jewelry that others boast.
Envy is a special temptation to us in difficulties. When sick, we envy the healthy. When poor, we envy the rich. When cast down with grief, we envy the happy. When anxious and troubled, we envy the carefree.
Envy in the heart is a powerful toxin. It taints and jaundices the heart and mind of the envious. Their desires and thoughts become more and more corrupt. Envy looks at one’s own possessions with contempt. It is the bitter root of murmuring and complaining against God. Envy destroys contentment. Envy engenders ill-will and malice toward others.
This commandment urges us to remove all envy from our heart with all diligence and care. This commandment urges us to bar the gates of our heart against it. No room may there be for it!
In the commandment itself we have already a powerful weapon against envy. Scripture gives us a true identification of those we are not to envy. The Word of God here does not identify the reason for our envy. It does not say, “Let not thine heart envy the rich,” or, “Let not thine heart envy the carefree.” It says, “Let not thine heart envy sinners.” Look not on their wealth, their status, their power! Look not on the quality of their lives! Consider them according to their standing before God. Sinners! What do their honor, their riches, their power mean? Only the wrath of God. Who are you envying? Why?
The most powerful weapon against our envy is given in the last part of the proverb. “But be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long.”
Turn from these sinners with their reasons for your envy! Turn from them to consider the Lord. Put yourself in the fear of the Lord. Think on His majesty, glory, power, righteousness. Think of His absolute sovereignty over all. Think of His power to create and uphold the entire universe. Think of the glorious, incomprehensible, unsearchable riches of His wisdom to create all things by and for His Son Jesus Christ. But think also of the unsearchable riches of his love, grace, and mercy to you through His Son, Jesus Christ. So think and so ponder, until your heart is filled with his fear. Remain in that fear all the day.
There is your blessed freedom from all envy of sinners: the fear of the Lord, all the day long!
Let not thine heart envy sinners!
18 December 2013
Genesis 3:10, 21, “And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. . . . Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them.”
How dreadfully terrible was the condition of our first parents. With their one, reprehensible act, their awful stroke against the blessed and glorious Creator, the judgment was executed. They ate, and they died. In the language of the Belgic Confession they separated themselves from God their life. Their death was their new incompatibility with the living God. Now they could not think of God’s presence as before. Before they only delighted in God’s presence. They walked with their God without any need of clothes, completely naked. All the members of their bodies were altogether pure, righteous, and holy. Soul and body together, they were filled with perfect, glorious righteousness and holiness. They had absolutely nothing to hide from God. Even more, they delighted to be an open book before God.
Such is now their death, that they cannot abide God’s holy presence. No longer is God their wonderful, sovereign Friend. No longer can they delight in His presence. No longer can they with delight race to meet up with their God. Now they are afraid. Now they must flee away.
But God in sheer, sovereign grace, will not allow them merely to flee away and hide themselves. He pursues with His voice, summoning the man. “Where art thou?” So Adam answered. The Lord’s voice made him afraid. He was afraid for his nakedness, and out of his fear he hid himself.
After sin, God renders judgment. But He also declares His mercy. He speaks a word of mercy, of enmity between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent.
But then God works mercifully toward the man and his wife. In wonderful, blessed grace He makes for them coats of skins. With those skins He clothes them. He covers their nakedness. He covers their bodies, which were now instruments of sin, and unrighteous.
What grace! He will not allow them to continue on in their nakedness. Nor will He allow them to continue on wearing their unacceptable, vain, improvised clothing they have made. Such will not cover their nakedness. They must not be allowed to make their own covering. God will make it for them. He will make what will meet with His approval.
What grace! The Lord Himself clothed the sinful couple. He put the coats of skins that He made for them on their naked bodies. He did not hang back. He did not throw their clothing to them, as from a distance, commanding them to put them on. He came near. Gently, tenderly He clothed them.
So graciously the Lord restored them to Himself. Their unrighteousness He covers. No longer need they fear. No longer need they flee. Just as before, now by grace, they might seek the fellowship of their merciful Saviour, knowing His mercy in the very garments now clothing their bodies.
So must we know the mercies of our God to clothe us with His real and true garments. White robes has He made for us to wear. Robes made white with the blood of His Son. Robes that are the righteousness of God in Christ. So also in mercy He has clothed us with our new robes, putting them on us by His gift of faith, by the operation of His Spirit.
In these robes, let us delight in the fellowship of the Lord our God, who has so wondrously clothed us. Let us eagerly run to His presence, to give Him glory and praise, and to tell Him of our needs. And in them may we walk humbly with the Lord our God.
Genesis 3:10, 21, “And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. . . . Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them.”
How dreadfully terrible was the condition of our first parents. With their one, reprehensible act, their awful stroke against the blessed and glorious Creator, the judgment was executed. They ate, and they died. In the language of the Belgic Confession they separated themselves from God their life. Their death was their new incompatibility with the living God. Now they could not think of God’s presence as before. Before they only delighted in God’s presence. They walked with their God without any need of clothes, completely naked. All the members of their bodies were altogether pure, righteous, and holy. Soul and body together, they were filled with perfect, glorious righteousness and holiness. They had absolutely nothing to hide from God. Even more, they delighted to be an open book before God.
Such is now their death, that they cannot abide God’s holy presence. No longer is God their wonderful, sovereign Friend. No longer can they delight in His presence. No longer can they with delight race to meet up with their God. Now they are afraid. Now they must flee away.
But God in sheer, sovereign grace, will not allow them merely to flee away and hide themselves. He pursues with His voice, summoning the man. “Where art thou?” So Adam answered. The Lord’s voice made him afraid. He was afraid for his nakedness, and out of his fear he hid himself.
After sin, God renders judgment. But He also declares His mercy. He speaks a word of mercy, of enmity between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent.
But then God works mercifully toward the man and his wife. In wonderful, blessed grace He makes for them coats of skins. With those skins He clothes them. He covers their nakedness. He covers their bodies, which were now instruments of sin, and unrighteous.
What grace! He will not allow them to continue on in their nakedness. Nor will He allow them to continue on wearing their unacceptable, vain, improvised clothing they have made. Such will not cover their nakedness. They must not be allowed to make their own covering. God will make it for them. He will make what will meet with His approval.
What grace! The Lord Himself clothed the sinful couple. He put the coats of skins that He made for them on their naked bodies. He did not hang back. He did not throw their clothing to them, as from a distance, commanding them to put them on. He came near. Gently, tenderly He clothed them.
So graciously the Lord restored them to Himself. Their unrighteousness He covers. No longer need they fear. No longer need they flee. Just as before, now by grace, they might seek the fellowship of their merciful Saviour, knowing His mercy in the very garments now clothing their bodies.
So must we know the mercies of our God to clothe us with His real and true garments. White robes has He made for us to wear. Robes made white with the blood of His Son. Robes that are the righteousness of God in Christ. So also in mercy He has clothed us with our new robes, putting them on us by His gift of faith, by the operation of His Spirit.
In these robes, let us delight in the fellowship of the Lord our God, who has so wondrously clothed us. Let us eagerly run to His presence, to give Him glory and praise, and to tell Him of our needs. And in them may we walk humbly with the Lord our God.
16 December 2013
I Samuel 15:22, 23, “And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.”
How this Word of God lays its finger exactly on the spot of our hypocrisy! How easily we cloak our rebellion and stubbornness in our worship and our praises!
So was it with Saul. The Lord’s prophet had commanded Saul to destroy completely the Amalekites. Specifically and clearly the Lord placed on Saul the duty to destroy every person and every animal of that nation. He was to be the instrument of the Lord’s righteous judgment on that heathen nation. Though Saul went to battle and defeated the nation, he went his own way, rather than God’s. Saul spared the king of the people and the best of the Amalekite flocks and herds. Saul certainly had his reasons. The king would make a fine, living trophy of the war, to show the Lord’s victory! The flocks and herds were to make a wonderful sacrifice of thanksgiving! All for the glory of God!
Such is often our sinful folly. We propose our way rather than God’s. We approve our proposal and we follow through, to carry it out. We even deliberate on a religious aspect to our way, something pleasing to God. This God will approve. He will certainly be pleased with us. We enter into some financial enterprise that we know is contrary to God’s ways. It involves some compromise. But we intend to give some of the profit to the cause of His kingdom. We can seek the pleasurable experience of some sin, and we can justify it by supposing that it helps us “get by” for our other, Christian duties. We are silent when we ought to speak for God’s glory. We justify our silence, that it allows us to keep the place we have in the service of God. A thousand other ways we contrive to go contrary to God’s ways with our religious justification. A thousand ways we make sacrifice better than obedience.
No! Simply and truly: to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. Our self-justifying ways are only rebellion and stubbornness. They are as the sin of witchcraft, iniquity and idolatry. Our virtues are actually vices.
Let us not say, then, with Saul, “I have performed the commandment of the Lord.” (I Samuel 15:13) Let us rather say, “I have sinned and done wickedly.” Let us seek forgiveness of our before-named “righteousness” from the mercies of God through Jesus Christ. And let us turn from our rebellion to true obedience, in complete dependence on the power of God’s grace to turn us.
To know the blessedness of God’s delight, in obeying His voice.
I Samuel 15:22, 23, “And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.”
How this Word of God lays its finger exactly on the spot of our hypocrisy! How easily we cloak our rebellion and stubbornness in our worship and our praises!
So was it with Saul. The Lord’s prophet had commanded Saul to destroy completely the Amalekites. Specifically and clearly the Lord placed on Saul the duty to destroy every person and every animal of that nation. He was to be the instrument of the Lord’s righteous judgment on that heathen nation. Though Saul went to battle and defeated the nation, he went his own way, rather than God’s. Saul spared the king of the people and the best of the Amalekite flocks and herds. Saul certainly had his reasons. The king would make a fine, living trophy of the war, to show the Lord’s victory! The flocks and herds were to make a wonderful sacrifice of thanksgiving! All for the glory of God!
Such is often our sinful folly. We propose our way rather than God’s. We approve our proposal and we follow through, to carry it out. We even deliberate on a religious aspect to our way, something pleasing to God. This God will approve. He will certainly be pleased with us. We enter into some financial enterprise that we know is contrary to God’s ways. It involves some compromise. But we intend to give some of the profit to the cause of His kingdom. We can seek the pleasurable experience of some sin, and we can justify it by supposing that it helps us “get by” for our other, Christian duties. We are silent when we ought to speak for God’s glory. We justify our silence, that it allows us to keep the place we have in the service of God. A thousand other ways we contrive to go contrary to God’s ways with our religious justification. A thousand ways we make sacrifice better than obedience.
No! Simply and truly: to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. Our self-justifying ways are only rebellion and stubbornness. They are as the sin of witchcraft, iniquity and idolatry. Our virtues are actually vices.
Let us not say, then, with Saul, “I have performed the commandment of the Lord.” (I Samuel 15:13) Let us rather say, “I have sinned and done wickedly.” Let us seek forgiveness of our before-named “righteousness” from the mercies of God through Jesus Christ. And let us turn from our rebellion to true obedience, in complete dependence on the power of God’s grace to turn us.
To know the blessedness of God’s delight, in obeying His voice.
15 December 2013, The Lord's Day
I Corinthians 12:25, 27, “That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. . . . Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.”
The body! The body of Christ! Such glorious and wonderful words of the gospel are declared about you. “Ye are the body of Christ.” Christ is your Head. He has not only died for you, obtaining the full pardon of your sins and your right to everlasting salvation. But He has joined you to Him, making you and Him one. He has also joined you to Him in such a way that He is your Governor and King, so that He rules and you submit, by the wonderful power of His Spirit.
By the power of that wonderful headship, Christ has also joined you to others. The same membership in Christ you enjoy He has also given to them. He has joined them to Him in the same way He has joined you to Him. This unity also comes down to you, to be in you. In Christ’s unity you are also spiritually joined and knit to them.
Who are they? “Ye are . . . members in particular.” Just as you are meant to know your living Lord and your wonderful Saviour clearly and distinctly, so are you to know the fellow members in your body. There they are, the very ones you worship with every Sunday! Together you are the members of Christ’s body “in particular.” So must you distinguish each other and regard each other. Not just members of the same church, but as members of the same Christ.
Therefore, “there should be no schism in the body.” Therefore, “the members should have the same care for one another.”
And, today is the day that “there should be no schism in the body.” Let none so tear himself from the fabric of the body of Christ. (Much less kindle contention or foment strife!) Let not the body of Christ be missing any parts, that she may appear whole before her Lord in worship! May there be no wondering among the members of the body, “Where is my brother or my sister?”
Today is also the day that “the members should have the same care for one another.” Let that care be exercised in the members helping each other to worship, simply by being together in the assembly of God’s people. Let care be exercised as you sing the praises of the Lord, helping each other to raise up joyful voices glorifying His name. Let care for one another be given in your presence before the preaching of the gospel, demonstrating to each other your love and desire for the bread of life.
What blessedness is yours in the body of Christ! Your blessedness is to guard your church against schism. Your blessedness is to care for your fellow members. But your blessedness is also be guarded against schism, by your fellow members. Your blessedness is to be cared for by your fellow members.
Your blessedness! Today, in the fellowship of Christ! With one another!
I Corinthians 12:25, 27, “That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. . . . Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.”
The body! The body of Christ! Such glorious and wonderful words of the gospel are declared about you. “Ye are the body of Christ.” Christ is your Head. He has not only died for you, obtaining the full pardon of your sins and your right to everlasting salvation. But He has joined you to Him, making you and Him one. He has also joined you to Him in such a way that He is your Governor and King, so that He rules and you submit, by the wonderful power of His Spirit.
By the power of that wonderful headship, Christ has also joined you to others. The same membership in Christ you enjoy He has also given to them. He has joined them to Him in the same way He has joined you to Him. This unity also comes down to you, to be in you. In Christ’s unity you are also spiritually joined and knit to them.
Who are they? “Ye are . . . members in particular.” Just as you are meant to know your living Lord and your wonderful Saviour clearly and distinctly, so are you to know the fellow members in your body. There they are, the very ones you worship with every Sunday! Together you are the members of Christ’s body “in particular.” So must you distinguish each other and regard each other. Not just members of the same church, but as members of the same Christ.
Therefore, “there should be no schism in the body.” Therefore, “the members should have the same care for one another.”
And, today is the day that “there should be no schism in the body.” Let none so tear himself from the fabric of the body of Christ. (Much less kindle contention or foment strife!) Let not the body of Christ be missing any parts, that she may appear whole before her Lord in worship! May there be no wondering among the members of the body, “Where is my brother or my sister?”
Today is also the day that “the members should have the same care for one another.” Let that care be exercised in the members helping each other to worship, simply by being together in the assembly of God’s people. Let care be exercised as you sing the praises of the Lord, helping each other to raise up joyful voices glorifying His name. Let care for one another be given in your presence before the preaching of the gospel, demonstrating to each other your love and desire for the bread of life.
What blessedness is yours in the body of Christ! Your blessedness is to guard your church against schism. Your blessedness is to care for your fellow members. But your blessedness is also be guarded against schism, by your fellow members. Your blessedness is to be cared for by your fellow members.
Your blessedness! Today, in the fellowship of Christ! With one another!
13 December 2013
Revelation 11:11, 12, “After three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them. And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.”
Great shall be the joy of the world. In the greatness of that joy they will send gifts to one another. What is the cause of their joy? Their tormentors they have killed. After so long a torment, they finally overcame their tormentors. So relieved are they of this weighty burden, they joyfully leave the bodies of their tormentors in the streets while in their joy they send presents to one another.
But their joy is cut short. When one half of the fourth day has gone by, these two tormentors stand on their feet before all the world. Then they ascended up into heaven in a cloud, while their enemies beheld. Rather than joy and rejoicing, suddenly fear fills the enemies’ hearts. Now their doom is imminent. Their judgment is sealed. Time shall be no more.
Who are these tormentors? What is their torment?
You, the church of Jesus Christ, to whom is committed the preaching of the everlasting gospel! You are the tormentors of the world. The gospel you believe and confess is not only a savour of life unto life, but also of death unto death. The gospel torments. It stings and causes deep pain. Where there is the love of sin, and the love of rebellion against God, the gospel causes sharp, deep pain. The testimony of the church of Jesus Christ becomes a festering, painful sore on the body of wicked mankind.
Such torment is the preaching of the gospel, conducted in the public worship services of the church. The two witnesses are those two or three gathered in the name of the Lord in worship. Such torment is that believing men and women of God carry this Word of the gospel on their lips. They go into the world, bearing testimony to their neighbour of the hope that is in them. The faithful witnesses of God and His truth are the tormentors of the unrighteous.
So the world reacts, gathering up its forces against the church. So the world fights, and so the world finally overcomes, to their great joy and gladness. At last they find relief from their pain. Their sore is finally healed. But then their joy turns to grievous fear. God on high shall have the last Word. He shall summon His faithful witnesses to the glory of heaven. The ungodly shall see, and know their judgment. Their torment becomes greater.
So may we stand for the truth of God’s Word, bearing faithful witness. May we stand for the faithful preaching of God’s Word. May we stand for the truth in the midst of the world. In the tribulation that must follow, may we joyfully anticipate the word of our God to us, “Come up hither!”
Revelation 11:11, 12, “After three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them. And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.”
Great shall be the joy of the world. In the greatness of that joy they will send gifts to one another. What is the cause of their joy? Their tormentors they have killed. After so long a torment, they finally overcame their tormentors. So relieved are they of this weighty burden, they joyfully leave the bodies of their tormentors in the streets while in their joy they send presents to one another.
But their joy is cut short. When one half of the fourth day has gone by, these two tormentors stand on their feet before all the world. Then they ascended up into heaven in a cloud, while their enemies beheld. Rather than joy and rejoicing, suddenly fear fills the enemies’ hearts. Now their doom is imminent. Their judgment is sealed. Time shall be no more.
Who are these tormentors? What is their torment?
You, the church of Jesus Christ, to whom is committed the preaching of the everlasting gospel! You are the tormentors of the world. The gospel you believe and confess is not only a savour of life unto life, but also of death unto death. The gospel torments. It stings and causes deep pain. Where there is the love of sin, and the love of rebellion against God, the gospel causes sharp, deep pain. The testimony of the church of Jesus Christ becomes a festering, painful sore on the body of wicked mankind.
Such torment is the preaching of the gospel, conducted in the public worship services of the church. The two witnesses are those two or three gathered in the name of the Lord in worship. Such torment is that believing men and women of God carry this Word of the gospel on their lips. They go into the world, bearing testimony to their neighbour of the hope that is in them. The faithful witnesses of God and His truth are the tormentors of the unrighteous.
So the world reacts, gathering up its forces against the church. So the world fights, and so the world finally overcomes, to their great joy and gladness. At last they find relief from their pain. Their sore is finally healed. But then their joy turns to grievous fear. God on high shall have the last Word. He shall summon His faithful witnesses to the glory of heaven. The ungodly shall see, and know their judgment. Their torment becomes greater.
So may we stand for the truth of God’s Word, bearing faithful witness. May we stand for the faithful preaching of God’s Word. May we stand for the truth in the midst of the world. In the tribulation that must follow, may we joyfully anticipate the word of our God to us, “Come up hither!”
12 December 2013
I Peter 5:10, “But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.”
In these few words of blessing to the church, the apostle Peter comprehends so many facets of our salvation.
Here are the beginning and the end of our salvation. The beginning? “Who hath called us.” The end? “Unto his eternal glory.” There is the gospel of the fullness of this salvation, from beginning to end in all its power. “By Jesus Christ.” We also have the only source of all this salvation: “the God of all grace.”
But in these few words we are also given the way of our salvation. This way is the main subject of the entire epistle. Suffering! Just as surely as God “hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus,” so has He called us to the way that leads to that eternal glory, the way of suffering.
It is the character of the pilgrim seeking his homeland to suffer. First, he suffers with longing and deep, ardent desire for his heavenly home. To be sure he has patience, submitting to God’s wise time (as longsuffering), waiting in hope for the day of the Lord appointed, not despairing but bearing well the burdens placed upon him. But he never forgets the object of the longing of his heart, to see his dear Saviour face to face, the very One who died for him. He only increases in his firm desire to know and see his Lord’s glory revealed before all the world.
The Christian also suffers in his flesh, his mind, his heart, and his soul. He bears pain and weakness in his body. There are afflictions, anxieties, and torments of mind. There are griefs and sorrows that lay as heavy, oppressive burdens on the heart. The believer’s soul is pained and grieved to see such wicked abominations practiced in the earth in rebellion against His God. The afflictions of the righteous are many.
But a word of comfort follows. These sufferings are only “a while.” They are temporal, lasting for only a time. That “while” will be swallowed up shortly by an eternity of perfect joy and happiness. Our hope for that glory only increases when we know its eternity will end that “while” of our sufferings.
Our comfort from this Word is also that we have our God near us, even within, while we go through these sufferings. He works within, to bless us by His almighty grace. That work of our God in us has so many wonderful facets to it. He makes us perfect. He establishes us. He strengthens us. He settles us. Every one of these works aims at our perseverance to that end of eternal glory. Each one cannot fail, for they are His works, and His alone.
Every one of these works God accomplishes through our suffering. By our sufferings He shakes us out. We have our pride. In that pride we call our weakness strength, our sinfulness righteousness, and our folly wisdom. By them we simply cannot persevere to the end, but must certainly fail. Through suffering our God powerfully demonstrates the truth of who we really are: nothing without Him. He leads us to Him, the fountain of all good. From Him we seek all we need: all. His power, wonderful and glorious, we seek. To make us perfect, establish, strengthen, settle us.
As He carries out His almighty gracious work He also shows its facets before His church and before all the world. The world is meant to gape in awe and wonder. How do they do it? How do these Christians endure such suffering and afflictions? How do they remain hopeful in such circumstances? They must know, whether they admit it or not, only one reason: their God of all grace, who has called them to their eternal glory.
Our blessedness to prove in ourselves this glory of God. When we shall have gone through our sufferings, to arrive at our eternal glory, we will gladly and joyfully know only one reason for our arrival. It was our God alone, who made us perfect, established, strengthened and settled us. He brought us all the way.
“To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.”
I Peter 5:10, “But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.”
In these few words of blessing to the church, the apostle Peter comprehends so many facets of our salvation.
Here are the beginning and the end of our salvation. The beginning? “Who hath called us.” The end? “Unto his eternal glory.” There is the gospel of the fullness of this salvation, from beginning to end in all its power. “By Jesus Christ.” We also have the only source of all this salvation: “the God of all grace.”
But in these few words we are also given the way of our salvation. This way is the main subject of the entire epistle. Suffering! Just as surely as God “hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus,” so has He called us to the way that leads to that eternal glory, the way of suffering.
It is the character of the pilgrim seeking his homeland to suffer. First, he suffers with longing and deep, ardent desire for his heavenly home. To be sure he has patience, submitting to God’s wise time (as longsuffering), waiting in hope for the day of the Lord appointed, not despairing but bearing well the burdens placed upon him. But he never forgets the object of the longing of his heart, to see his dear Saviour face to face, the very One who died for him. He only increases in his firm desire to know and see his Lord’s glory revealed before all the world.
The Christian also suffers in his flesh, his mind, his heart, and his soul. He bears pain and weakness in his body. There are afflictions, anxieties, and torments of mind. There are griefs and sorrows that lay as heavy, oppressive burdens on the heart. The believer’s soul is pained and grieved to see such wicked abominations practiced in the earth in rebellion against His God. The afflictions of the righteous are many.
But a word of comfort follows. These sufferings are only “a while.” They are temporal, lasting for only a time. That “while” will be swallowed up shortly by an eternity of perfect joy and happiness. Our hope for that glory only increases when we know its eternity will end that “while” of our sufferings.
Our comfort from this Word is also that we have our God near us, even within, while we go through these sufferings. He works within, to bless us by His almighty grace. That work of our God in us has so many wonderful facets to it. He makes us perfect. He establishes us. He strengthens us. He settles us. Every one of these works aims at our perseverance to that end of eternal glory. Each one cannot fail, for they are His works, and His alone.
Every one of these works God accomplishes through our suffering. By our sufferings He shakes us out. We have our pride. In that pride we call our weakness strength, our sinfulness righteousness, and our folly wisdom. By them we simply cannot persevere to the end, but must certainly fail. Through suffering our God powerfully demonstrates the truth of who we really are: nothing without Him. He leads us to Him, the fountain of all good. From Him we seek all we need: all. His power, wonderful and glorious, we seek. To make us perfect, establish, strengthen, settle us.
As He carries out His almighty gracious work He also shows its facets before His church and before all the world. The world is meant to gape in awe and wonder. How do they do it? How do these Christians endure such suffering and afflictions? How do they remain hopeful in such circumstances? They must know, whether they admit it or not, only one reason: their God of all grace, who has called them to their eternal glory.
Our blessedness to prove in ourselves this glory of God. When we shall have gone through our sufferings, to arrive at our eternal glory, we will gladly and joyfully know only one reason for our arrival. It was our God alone, who made us perfect, established, strengthened and settled us. He brought us all the way.
“To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.”
10 December 2013
Psalm 26:9-11, “Gather not my soul with sinners, nor my life with bloody men; In whose hands is mischief, and their right hand is full of bribes. But as for me, I will walk in mine integrity: redeem me, and be merciful unto me.”
Integrity!
This blessed word speaks of a heart and mind that is free of division and duplicity. Integrity is the simple unity of the inner man, by which the individual is upright before God. This harmony between what is outward and this inward integrity is called sincerity. As this integrity is consistent over time it becomes steadfastness.
This integrity is the walk that David determines for himself. It is his aim and goal. He will labour to bring his heart and mind to a single point of unity: to aim all he has to the glory of God. Then, he is determined that his outward conduct, his walk, will also be in perfect conformity to his unified heart and mind.
In this walk in his integrity, David distinguishes himself before the Lord from the sinners and the bloody men he placed before the Lord. They have no integrity. They are hypocrites and their duplicitous devices are many. In their hands is mischief. Their hands are ready to work all kinds of evil. They are ready to rob and persecute the poor under their disguised righteousness. They know what they are about. Further, their right hand is full of bribes. They will bribe to turn away the eyes of justice from seeing their robbery and oppression. Should they be approached by the justice ready to apprehend and punish them, they are ready with their bribes to turn that justice away. They assure themselves that they will never face justice.
The purpose of David’s self-distinction reaches back to his supplication of verse 9. He shudders at the thought of being gathered with these sinners and bloody men. He does not want to suffer the vengeance of God he knows God has in store for them. But even more, he does not want to be cast away from God’s gracious presence. So before the Lord He places this distinction. He is not like them.
David’s purpose also reaches ahead to his supplication that follows his determination, his supplication that God “redeem me, and be merciful unto me.” So far from being gathered with sinners and bloody men, he prays to be lifted up in God’s gracious redemption given through his mercy.
David’s integrity and walk in his integrity are no ground for his supplication. His only ground is the mercy of God, the mercy that provides the ground for his redemption, the mercy of God in Jesus Christ. Instead, David’s integrity and walk in integrity are the reasons for his supplication. He calls attention to this distinguishing feature as proof of God’s redemption and mercy to him already. He therefore asks the Lord to continue distinguishing him, to continue redeeming him, and to continue showing him mercy.
So may we have and hold this determination with David, by God’s grace. May He lead and guide us, giving us our integrity and a faithful walk in it. And may we continue to place our firm trust in Him, though we walk among this crooked and perverse generation, that He will always distinguish us in His righteous judgment, to redeem us and be merciful to us always.
May He bring to perfection that good work He has begun in us! Philippians 1:6, Psalm 138:8.
Psalm 26:9-11, “Gather not my soul with sinners, nor my life with bloody men; In whose hands is mischief, and their right hand is full of bribes. But as for me, I will walk in mine integrity: redeem me, and be merciful unto me.”
Integrity!
This blessed word speaks of a heart and mind that is free of division and duplicity. Integrity is the simple unity of the inner man, by which the individual is upright before God. This harmony between what is outward and this inward integrity is called sincerity. As this integrity is consistent over time it becomes steadfastness.
This integrity is the walk that David determines for himself. It is his aim and goal. He will labour to bring his heart and mind to a single point of unity: to aim all he has to the glory of God. Then, he is determined that his outward conduct, his walk, will also be in perfect conformity to his unified heart and mind.
In this walk in his integrity, David distinguishes himself before the Lord from the sinners and the bloody men he placed before the Lord. They have no integrity. They are hypocrites and their duplicitous devices are many. In their hands is mischief. Their hands are ready to work all kinds of evil. They are ready to rob and persecute the poor under their disguised righteousness. They know what they are about. Further, their right hand is full of bribes. They will bribe to turn away the eyes of justice from seeing their robbery and oppression. Should they be approached by the justice ready to apprehend and punish them, they are ready with their bribes to turn that justice away. They assure themselves that they will never face justice.
The purpose of David’s self-distinction reaches back to his supplication of verse 9. He shudders at the thought of being gathered with these sinners and bloody men. He does not want to suffer the vengeance of God he knows God has in store for them. But even more, he does not want to be cast away from God’s gracious presence. So before the Lord He places this distinction. He is not like them.
David’s purpose also reaches ahead to his supplication that follows his determination, his supplication that God “redeem me, and be merciful unto me.” So far from being gathered with sinners and bloody men, he prays to be lifted up in God’s gracious redemption given through his mercy.
David’s integrity and walk in his integrity are no ground for his supplication. His only ground is the mercy of God, the mercy that provides the ground for his redemption, the mercy of God in Jesus Christ. Instead, David’s integrity and walk in integrity are the reasons for his supplication. He calls attention to this distinguishing feature as proof of God’s redemption and mercy to him already. He therefore asks the Lord to continue distinguishing him, to continue redeeming him, and to continue showing him mercy.
So may we have and hold this determination with David, by God’s grace. May He lead and guide us, giving us our integrity and a faithful walk in it. And may we continue to place our firm trust in Him, though we walk among this crooked and perverse generation, that He will always distinguish us in His righteous judgment, to redeem us and be merciful to us always.
May He bring to perfection that good work He has begun in us! Philippians 1:6, Psalm 138:8.
9 December 2013
Deuteronomy 9:29, “Yet they are thy people and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest out by thy mighty power and by thy stretched out arm.”
Yet!
That word begins this verse that describes the good of the children of Israel. This verse, begun with such a word, is the last verse of Deuteronomy 9 which has much to say about this people. The sentence is given against God’s people in verse 6, “ . . . for thou art a stiffnecked people.” All the way from the sixth verse to the twenty-ninth, is the incontrovertible proof for that sentence. Through all their wandering in the wilderness Israel proved one thing: they were a stiffnecked people. As Moses recited this awful history, He spoke the words of verse 24, “Ye have been rebellious against the Lord from the day that I knew you.”
Yet!
Yet this people is to receive the land of Canaan. They are to expect that the Lord will give them the land that He promised to their fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They are called to look for their God’s blessings upon them in that wealthy place.
Why?
Because they are God’s people. They are His inheritance. They are precious to Him. They are His by redemption. He has worked by His glorious, almighty power to deliver them from the power of their oppressor, Egypt. His deliverance has made them His own. Not their righteousness. Definitely not.
How we must remember!
How we must remember such about the church of Jesus Christ! How often we might say of the people we call, “my church,” how stiffnecked and stubborn they are! We might say that they are uppity or backward. We might say that there is so little difference between them and the world, except the confession they make and the truth that they speak. We might produce a long list of the sins we see in the members of the church. We might think of all the ways they demonstrate a hardened attitude toward the Word of God.
Of these thoughts we might draw some conclusions. Why bother? Why bother sticking with such a group? Why bother investing personally, heart and soul, in them? Why bother coming to the worship services? Why belong to them?
Yet!
Yet they are thy people and thine inheritance. Yet they are thine by thy pardon of their sins by the blood of thy Son. Yet they are thine by the power of thy Spirit to break the bonds of their sin.
And, therefore, thy people must be my people! I belong among them.
How we must remember such also about ourselves! Who are we, but stiffnecked, stubborn, and rebellious? Every day to ourselves we give a thousand reasons for our own indictment. We contribute a mountain of evidence why the Lord should be no longer gracious to us. We give ample reason why He should not bring us to the holy glory of heaven.
Why does the Lord continue with us? Why does He never leave us, nor forsake us?
Yet!
We are His. We are His people and His inheritance. He has made us by His own, free work. We are His by the blood of His Son. We are His through His redemption, breaking the power of sin and Satan that held us captive.
So are we knit together as God’s people. To remain together, to help one another, to encourage one another, and also to enjoy each other. For the church is His work alone, for His glory and His praise.
Deuteronomy 9:29, “Yet they are thy people and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest out by thy mighty power and by thy stretched out arm.”
Yet!
That word begins this verse that describes the good of the children of Israel. This verse, begun with such a word, is the last verse of Deuteronomy 9 which has much to say about this people. The sentence is given against God’s people in verse 6, “ . . . for thou art a stiffnecked people.” All the way from the sixth verse to the twenty-ninth, is the incontrovertible proof for that sentence. Through all their wandering in the wilderness Israel proved one thing: they were a stiffnecked people. As Moses recited this awful history, He spoke the words of verse 24, “Ye have been rebellious against the Lord from the day that I knew you.”
Yet!
Yet this people is to receive the land of Canaan. They are to expect that the Lord will give them the land that He promised to their fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They are called to look for their God’s blessings upon them in that wealthy place.
Why?
Because they are God’s people. They are His inheritance. They are precious to Him. They are His by redemption. He has worked by His glorious, almighty power to deliver them from the power of their oppressor, Egypt. His deliverance has made them His own. Not their righteousness. Definitely not.
How we must remember!
How we must remember such about the church of Jesus Christ! How often we might say of the people we call, “my church,” how stiffnecked and stubborn they are! We might say that they are uppity or backward. We might say that there is so little difference between them and the world, except the confession they make and the truth that they speak. We might produce a long list of the sins we see in the members of the church. We might think of all the ways they demonstrate a hardened attitude toward the Word of God.
Of these thoughts we might draw some conclusions. Why bother? Why bother sticking with such a group? Why bother investing personally, heart and soul, in them? Why bother coming to the worship services? Why belong to them?
Yet!
Yet they are thy people and thine inheritance. Yet they are thine by thy pardon of their sins by the blood of thy Son. Yet they are thine by the power of thy Spirit to break the bonds of their sin.
And, therefore, thy people must be my people! I belong among them.
How we must remember such also about ourselves! Who are we, but stiffnecked, stubborn, and rebellious? Every day to ourselves we give a thousand reasons for our own indictment. We contribute a mountain of evidence why the Lord should be no longer gracious to us. We give ample reason why He should not bring us to the holy glory of heaven.
Why does the Lord continue with us? Why does He never leave us, nor forsake us?
Yet!
We are His. We are His people and His inheritance. He has made us by His own, free work. We are His by the blood of His Son. We are His through His redemption, breaking the power of sin and Satan that held us captive.
So are we knit together as God’s people. To remain together, to help one another, to encourage one another, and also to enjoy each other. For the church is His work alone, for His glory and His praise.
8 December 2013
Ephesians 4:11, 12, “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.”
What things your Lord has in store for you today!
Today is the day of your perfecting! Your Lord has a goal for you: complete and entire conformity to Him. He will make you a full partaker of His glory. He will make you so that you are able to behold Him in His glory with rejoicing and gladness. He will make you a perfect saint, only purest righteousness, holiness, and knowledge of God running through your whole nature. Today is a step closer to that perfection for you. Closer you will be brought to that wonderful, blessed goal.
Today is a day for you. It is also a day for you as a member of the body of Christ. For today is the day of the edifying of the body of Christ. The Lord has in mind today the building up of that body. To be sure, He will build up that body by gathering more of His elect to Himself. He will increase His church in number by His Word and Spirit. But this Word of God has in mind the strength of that body of Christ in its glorious unity. Christ will increase your faith and the faith of the other members so that each grows closer to the other in love. The whole body will be built up through the strength of each member in the bonds and ties that subsist among them. Your increase will be an increase in solidarity. Your increase will be an increase in fitness.
Why today? Christ has determined to perfect His saints and edify His body by other gifts that He has given. These gifts are not gifts of things, but of men. At the time the Spirit wrote these words to the saints at Ephesus and to the faithful, there were apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastors and teachers. All those offices were appointed and filled by Christ Himself from His glory in heaven. Now He gives from Heaven pastors and teachers. To them He gives “the work of the ministry” among you. On the earth, among the saints and before the body of Christ, they proclaim His Word. As they carry out the work Christ gave them to do, preaching and teaching the gospel, with it Christ perfects the saints and edifies His body.
Your blessedness today, is to receive those gifts of Christ. Your blessedness is to hear the Word brought by pastors and teachers given by Christ. Your blessedness is to by perfected and edified by that Word.
Look for those blessings, all from the hand of your risen and ascended Lord Jesus Christ. And as you receive, give Him thanks!
Ephesians 4:11, 12, “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.”
What things your Lord has in store for you today!
Today is the day of your perfecting! Your Lord has a goal for you: complete and entire conformity to Him. He will make you a full partaker of His glory. He will make you so that you are able to behold Him in His glory with rejoicing and gladness. He will make you a perfect saint, only purest righteousness, holiness, and knowledge of God running through your whole nature. Today is a step closer to that perfection for you. Closer you will be brought to that wonderful, blessed goal.
Today is a day for you. It is also a day for you as a member of the body of Christ. For today is the day of the edifying of the body of Christ. The Lord has in mind today the building up of that body. To be sure, He will build up that body by gathering more of His elect to Himself. He will increase His church in number by His Word and Spirit. But this Word of God has in mind the strength of that body of Christ in its glorious unity. Christ will increase your faith and the faith of the other members so that each grows closer to the other in love. The whole body will be built up through the strength of each member in the bonds and ties that subsist among them. Your increase will be an increase in solidarity. Your increase will be an increase in fitness.
Why today? Christ has determined to perfect His saints and edify His body by other gifts that He has given. These gifts are not gifts of things, but of men. At the time the Spirit wrote these words to the saints at Ephesus and to the faithful, there were apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastors and teachers. All those offices were appointed and filled by Christ Himself from His glory in heaven. Now He gives from Heaven pastors and teachers. To them He gives “the work of the ministry” among you. On the earth, among the saints and before the body of Christ, they proclaim His Word. As they carry out the work Christ gave them to do, preaching and teaching the gospel, with it Christ perfects the saints and edifies His body.
Your blessedness today, is to receive those gifts of Christ. Your blessedness is to hear the Word brought by pastors and teachers given by Christ. Your blessedness is to by perfected and edified by that Word.
Look for those blessings, all from the hand of your risen and ascended Lord Jesus Christ. And as you receive, give Him thanks!
7 December 2013
Revelation 13:10, “He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity; he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.”
These words give us a brilliant light to shine on the dark, sinister and evil kingdom of antichrist. The beast will rise up out of the surging seas of the ungodly. Glory and honor and worship will be given him. After him the nations will wonder, devoting and committing their whole-hearted allegiance to him. Then he will take up war against the faithful. Power will be given to him to overcome them. At his hand the faithful will be led into captivity. At his command they will be killed with the sword.
But the Word of God gives far more than a mere description of what shall come to pass, determined by the counsel of God. In the words above the Spirit gives us a word to be the patience and faith of the saints, exactly as antichrist makes war and overcomes them.
Yes! He will lead into captivity. Antichrist will command: Round them up and bring them to these places. Multitudes of his followers will gladly hear and follow their lord. They will drag out of their homes the saints. They will search high and low for them, and arrest them. They will test and try them, and those who refuse to worship their beloved leader they will drag to their prisons and camps.
But then, there is this word of God: He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity.
Yes! He will kill with the sword. Those that refuse to worship him or his image he will have killed. He may first threaten with the sword, to tempt the saints to apostasy. But when the saints refuse, their blood he will certainly shed. He will not merely threaten. The saints will, by the grace of God, through patience and faith, remain steadfast, confessing the true Christ, Jesus their Lord. Then he will kill them with the sword, drenching the earth with the blood of the saints.
But then, there is this word of God: He that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword.
That simple, that faithful and true. Judgment will come, and judgment will come soon.
Here is the patience and the faith of the saints. What blessedness is theirs! As they are torn from their places by their captors, they have a word from their God to believe and trust. As they face the sword, seeing its awful use before their eyes against their fellow saints, and feeling it on their own necks, they have a word from their God to believe and trust.
So faith in that word of God becomes their patience. They bear their identification as saints, and the burden of reproach, scorn, and violence that follows. They do not cast it off, but remain. They bear their captivity. They bear the threat of the sword. So they are overcome, in appearance. But the reality is that they overcome through faith, which is their victory.
So through patience and faith they will see the truth of the word of God. They shall see with their eyes him who took them captivity taken into captivity. They shall see with their eyes him who killed them with the sword killed with the sword, II Thessalonians 2:8, Revelation 19:15.
Today we witness much of the development of the antichristian kingdom. Countries formerly Christian are strenuously shaking off every last vestige of Christianity. They labor to trample underfoot divine institutions and laws, even the rule of law itself. Persecution of Christians is on the increase over the world. False religions grow stronger even as we see the expression of Christianity grow more and more feeble and diseased through accommodation to the world. We can only wonder how antichrist will draw it all together into one kingdom.
Through it all, may we enjoy the solid patience and faith of the saints: He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword.
Revelation 13:10, “He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity; he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.”
These words give us a brilliant light to shine on the dark, sinister and evil kingdom of antichrist. The beast will rise up out of the surging seas of the ungodly. Glory and honor and worship will be given him. After him the nations will wonder, devoting and committing their whole-hearted allegiance to him. Then he will take up war against the faithful. Power will be given to him to overcome them. At his hand the faithful will be led into captivity. At his command they will be killed with the sword.
But the Word of God gives far more than a mere description of what shall come to pass, determined by the counsel of God. In the words above the Spirit gives us a word to be the patience and faith of the saints, exactly as antichrist makes war and overcomes them.
Yes! He will lead into captivity. Antichrist will command: Round them up and bring them to these places. Multitudes of his followers will gladly hear and follow their lord. They will drag out of their homes the saints. They will search high and low for them, and arrest them. They will test and try them, and those who refuse to worship their beloved leader they will drag to their prisons and camps.
But then, there is this word of God: He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity.
Yes! He will kill with the sword. Those that refuse to worship him or his image he will have killed. He may first threaten with the sword, to tempt the saints to apostasy. But when the saints refuse, their blood he will certainly shed. He will not merely threaten. The saints will, by the grace of God, through patience and faith, remain steadfast, confessing the true Christ, Jesus their Lord. Then he will kill them with the sword, drenching the earth with the blood of the saints.
But then, there is this word of God: He that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword.
That simple, that faithful and true. Judgment will come, and judgment will come soon.
Here is the patience and the faith of the saints. What blessedness is theirs! As they are torn from their places by their captors, they have a word from their God to believe and trust. As they face the sword, seeing its awful use before their eyes against their fellow saints, and feeling it on their own necks, they have a word from their God to believe and trust.
So faith in that word of God becomes their patience. They bear their identification as saints, and the burden of reproach, scorn, and violence that follows. They do not cast it off, but remain. They bear their captivity. They bear the threat of the sword. So they are overcome, in appearance. But the reality is that they overcome through faith, which is their victory.
So through patience and faith they will see the truth of the word of God. They shall see with their eyes him who took them captivity taken into captivity. They shall see with their eyes him who killed them with the sword killed with the sword, II Thessalonians 2:8, Revelation 19:15.
Today we witness much of the development of the antichristian kingdom. Countries formerly Christian are strenuously shaking off every last vestige of Christianity. They labor to trample underfoot divine institutions and laws, even the rule of law itself. Persecution of Christians is on the increase over the world. False religions grow stronger even as we see the expression of Christianity grow more and more feeble and diseased through accommodation to the world. We can only wonder how antichrist will draw it all together into one kingdom.
Through it all, may we enjoy the solid patience and faith of the saints: He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword.
6 December 2013
John 15:16-18, “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. These things I command you, that ye love one another. If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.”
What things we are to lose in these three verses!
First is our loss of self-determination. How have we come to be the disciples of Christ? We hear our Lord: “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you.” He called Peter, James, John, and the other disciples. They heard Jesus’ call. They turned from what they were doing and they followed Him. But now Jesus tells them that they did not choose Him. He chose them. So with us. We did not choose Him. He chose us. So goes our self-determination, and with it our pride.
Second is our loss of self. This loss of self comes with the command of Christ to love one another. By this love commanded us, we are called to imitate the love of Christ He showed on Calvary’s cross, laying down His very life to save His disciples. So he commands us to lay down our lives for one another. Nothing is to be held back. All must be given for the well-being of the other.
Third is our loss of the world. No longer are we to expect the love of the world. No longer are we welcome into the bosom of its fellowship. Its care and support must vanish into nothing. Instead we are to expect hardship and persecution rising against us out of the world’s hatred.
All this loss fades into insignificance before the gain that is ours.
Our gain is the cause of our loss.
For, first, we gain the certainty and assurance of our place in God’s everlasting kingdom. That certainty is ours by Christ’s choice of us. No certainty could be ours had we chosen. There could be no certainty of continuing in the service of Christ to bear fruit. Neither could there be any certainty of that fruit remaining.
Second, we gain Christ! We gain His everlasting love and fellowship. He has chosen us to be His. He has chosen us to ask of the Father in His name, that we might receive all things from His blessed hand. We gain His service, and abundance of fruit in that service. We gain the love of Christ, not only to receive His love, but also to love Him in return.
Third, we gain the fellowship of the love of one another. In this fellowship of Christ, we are not alone, but are surrounded by fellow disciples. They have been all chosen and ordained to bear fruit that remains. In and of that fruit we share, the fruit of Christ’s love that first chooses and ordains.
So, let us lose. Let us lose ourselves. Let us lose the love of the world and endure its hatred. Let us lose joyfully and gladly.
For so great is our gain: Christ and His love!
John 15:16-18, “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. These things I command you, that ye love one another. If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.”
What things we are to lose in these three verses!
First is our loss of self-determination. How have we come to be the disciples of Christ? We hear our Lord: “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you.” He called Peter, James, John, and the other disciples. They heard Jesus’ call. They turned from what they were doing and they followed Him. But now Jesus tells them that they did not choose Him. He chose them. So with us. We did not choose Him. He chose us. So goes our self-determination, and with it our pride.
Second is our loss of self. This loss of self comes with the command of Christ to love one another. By this love commanded us, we are called to imitate the love of Christ He showed on Calvary’s cross, laying down His very life to save His disciples. So he commands us to lay down our lives for one another. Nothing is to be held back. All must be given for the well-being of the other.
Third is our loss of the world. No longer are we to expect the love of the world. No longer are we welcome into the bosom of its fellowship. Its care and support must vanish into nothing. Instead we are to expect hardship and persecution rising against us out of the world’s hatred.
All this loss fades into insignificance before the gain that is ours.
Our gain is the cause of our loss.
For, first, we gain the certainty and assurance of our place in God’s everlasting kingdom. That certainty is ours by Christ’s choice of us. No certainty could be ours had we chosen. There could be no certainty of continuing in the service of Christ to bear fruit. Neither could there be any certainty of that fruit remaining.
Second, we gain Christ! We gain His everlasting love and fellowship. He has chosen us to be His. He has chosen us to ask of the Father in His name, that we might receive all things from His blessed hand. We gain His service, and abundance of fruit in that service. We gain the love of Christ, not only to receive His love, but also to love Him in return.
Third, we gain the fellowship of the love of one another. In this fellowship of Christ, we are not alone, but are surrounded by fellow disciples. They have been all chosen and ordained to bear fruit that remains. In and of that fruit we share, the fruit of Christ’s love that first chooses and ordains.
So, let us lose. Let us lose ourselves. Let us lose the love of the world and endure its hatred. Let us lose joyfully and gladly.
For so great is our gain: Christ and His love!
4 December 2013
II Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”
Not slack, but long-suffering!
Oh, those scoffers! Here they come, walking after their own lusts. Blasphemous words fill their mouths. How they talk about God! They call Him slack! They scoff, “Where is the promise of his coming?” They observe the way things are and the way things have been. They compare those ways. With their feeble, sinful minds they hastily drive their limited observations to their own, lustful conclusion. Things have always and forever been that way. They shall always and forever be that way. Therefore, the Lord is slack concerning His promise. He is not coming and He will never come.
So these scoffers walk after their own lusts in the last days. The walk and the talk of such men are themselves signs of the last days! Unbeknownst to them, with their words they fulfill the prophecy of II Peter 3:3. By their scoffing they demonstrate that the Lord is mindful of His promise. When their scoffing fills your ears, hear through their mockery the Lord’s Word to you: “I am coming quickly.”
Not slack, but longsuffering!
Why does the Lord put up with that scoffing? Why does He let men carry on in their wicked, vain speeches to one another? Why does He allow them to encourage one another? Why does He permit their vain words to assault our ears and trouble our minds? Why does He not fulfill His promise now, and show Himself on the clouds of glory?
Because God is a longsuffering God. He puts up with all this scoffing because He has a greater purpose in His heart. That purpose is so great that He tolerates for now the great wickedness of men. That purpose is “to us-ward.” He puts up with it for our sakes.
The Holy Spirit goes on to tell us how God is longsuffering toward us. He is not willing that any of us should perish. All must certainly be brought to the repentance of salvation. All must be given the time to turn from sin, perhaps even from the sin of scoffing. All must be given the time to flee from the wrath to come. All must be given occasion to come to the cross of Christ in that repentance, to have their sins washed away by the blood of the Lamb.
Such is God’s sovereign determination. In fact, so strong is this determination that every single one of us must repent of their sins and be saved. If one of us should not come to repentance, perishing in rebellion, then the Lord would not fulfill the promise of His coming.
What comfort abounds to us from these words! We have the comfort of knowing by the words of the scoffers that the Lord’s purpose is right on schedule: These are the last days. We have the comfort of knowing our Lord’s faithfulness to keep the promise of His return: He shall come again to perfect us, and to bring us to live with Him forever in heaven. And we have the comfort that on that day He will bring all of us to that glory. Not one will be left behind. For the Lord is most of all, “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”
Not slack, but longsuffering!
II Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”
Not slack, but long-suffering!
Oh, those scoffers! Here they come, walking after their own lusts. Blasphemous words fill their mouths. How they talk about God! They call Him slack! They scoff, “Where is the promise of his coming?” They observe the way things are and the way things have been. They compare those ways. With their feeble, sinful minds they hastily drive their limited observations to their own, lustful conclusion. Things have always and forever been that way. They shall always and forever be that way. Therefore, the Lord is slack concerning His promise. He is not coming and He will never come.
So these scoffers walk after their own lusts in the last days. The walk and the talk of such men are themselves signs of the last days! Unbeknownst to them, with their words they fulfill the prophecy of II Peter 3:3. By their scoffing they demonstrate that the Lord is mindful of His promise. When their scoffing fills your ears, hear through their mockery the Lord’s Word to you: “I am coming quickly.”
Not slack, but longsuffering!
Why does the Lord put up with that scoffing? Why does He let men carry on in their wicked, vain speeches to one another? Why does He allow them to encourage one another? Why does He permit their vain words to assault our ears and trouble our minds? Why does He not fulfill His promise now, and show Himself on the clouds of glory?
Because God is a longsuffering God. He puts up with all this scoffing because He has a greater purpose in His heart. That purpose is so great that He tolerates for now the great wickedness of men. That purpose is “to us-ward.” He puts up with it for our sakes.
The Holy Spirit goes on to tell us how God is longsuffering toward us. He is not willing that any of us should perish. All must certainly be brought to the repentance of salvation. All must be given the time to turn from sin, perhaps even from the sin of scoffing. All must be given the time to flee from the wrath to come. All must be given occasion to come to the cross of Christ in that repentance, to have their sins washed away by the blood of the Lamb.
Such is God’s sovereign determination. In fact, so strong is this determination that every single one of us must repent of their sins and be saved. If one of us should not come to repentance, perishing in rebellion, then the Lord would not fulfill the promise of His coming.
What comfort abounds to us from these words! We have the comfort of knowing by the words of the scoffers that the Lord’s purpose is right on schedule: These are the last days. We have the comfort of knowing our Lord’s faithfulness to keep the promise of His return: He shall come again to perfect us, and to bring us to live with Him forever in heaven. And we have the comfort that on that day He will bring all of us to that glory. Not one will be left behind. For the Lord is most of all, “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”
Not slack, but longsuffering!
3 December 2013
Psalm 46:10, “Be still and know that I am God.”
Mark 4:39, “And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.”
How you can tremble and quiver! How your fears can grip your heart and anxieties trouble your mind! How your thoughts can race, looking for an answer to your urgent questions, or a solution to your vexing problems! You can stand on the brink of ruin and despair, gravity itself seeming to pull you over the edge!
You feel the earth being removed, the mountains being carried into the midst of the sea. You hear the waters roaring and being troubled. You see the mountains shaking with the swelling of those waters. What is certain? What is solid?
In that trouble the Word of God comes to you, “Be still and know that I am God.”
“Be still!” A commandment for you to obey. Calm yourself. Compose yourself. Still your trembling heart. Settle your troubled mind. Come to peace.
The way of that stillness and peace is given in the following Word: “Know that I am God.” Your God is the One that is speaking to you, His servant. He has graciously redeemed you. You belong to Him by the precious blood of His Son. You are His, to obey Him and serve Him. You belong to Him, to hear Him say to you, “Be still!” You belong to Him, to listen to His way of your peace: “Know that I am God!” Your Saviour and your Redeemer is God. Your Lord and Master is divine. Upon this truth you must dwell. This glorious wonder you must grasp with your heart and soul. There is your peace: know that your Lord is God. Not looking at your circumstances, your burdens and afflictions, your grief and sorrows, or the multitude of your sins.
But even more, with this command God also gives you His peace. His command you must compare with Jesus’ command to the sea, “Peace, be still!” With His Word He sends His Spirit, Who will accomplish that Word in you. He fills your heart and mind with His peace and calm. As you turn to Him, and as you know that He is God, He is turning you to Him, and He is giving you that knowledge of heart, that He is God.
Therefore, “Be still, and know that I am God.”
Psalm 46:10, “Be still and know that I am God.”
Mark 4:39, “And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.”
How you can tremble and quiver! How your fears can grip your heart and anxieties trouble your mind! How your thoughts can race, looking for an answer to your urgent questions, or a solution to your vexing problems! You can stand on the brink of ruin and despair, gravity itself seeming to pull you over the edge!
You feel the earth being removed, the mountains being carried into the midst of the sea. You hear the waters roaring and being troubled. You see the mountains shaking with the swelling of those waters. What is certain? What is solid?
In that trouble the Word of God comes to you, “Be still and know that I am God.”
“Be still!” A commandment for you to obey. Calm yourself. Compose yourself. Still your trembling heart. Settle your troubled mind. Come to peace.
The way of that stillness and peace is given in the following Word: “Know that I am God.” Your God is the One that is speaking to you, His servant. He has graciously redeemed you. You belong to Him by the precious blood of His Son. You are His, to obey Him and serve Him. You belong to Him, to hear Him say to you, “Be still!” You belong to Him, to listen to His way of your peace: “Know that I am God!” Your Saviour and your Redeemer is God. Your Lord and Master is divine. Upon this truth you must dwell. This glorious wonder you must grasp with your heart and soul. There is your peace: know that your Lord is God. Not looking at your circumstances, your burdens and afflictions, your grief and sorrows, or the multitude of your sins.
But even more, with this command God also gives you His peace. His command you must compare with Jesus’ command to the sea, “Peace, be still!” With His Word He sends His Spirit, Who will accomplish that Word in you. He fills your heart and mind with His peace and calm. As you turn to Him, and as you know that He is God, He is turning you to Him, and He is giving you that knowledge of heart, that He is God.
Therefore, “Be still, and know that I am God.”
2 December 2013
John 17:17, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.”
This petition Jesus raised up the night he was betrayed as part of His prayer to His Father in heaven, what is known as Jesus’ “High Priestly Prayer.” The eve of His departure from His disciples by His suffering and death on the cross saw Him making fervent intercession for His disciples. But we must also know He prays this same prayer for us every day.
Our faithful High Priest prays every day for our justification, that His Father would impute His righteousness to His covenant people. Our faithful High Priest prays every day for our preservation, that His Father would keep and protect us from the world, even as we are in the world. So He prays for our sanctification.
His Father hears those prayers and answers them, for the sake of His Son. He imputes the Son’s perfect righteousness to them. They are justified before God and in the forum of their consciences. He preserves them in their blessed salvation by His irresistible grace and mighty Spirit. So He also sanctifies them, making them more and more holy. So are we sanctified every day as the Father hears and answers the prayers of the Son.
This blessed prayer of our High Priest includes also the means of our sanctification: “through thy truth.” Even further, Christ’s prayer includes a doctrine for the disciples to understand and remember: “thy word is truth.”
According to this divine arrangement, recalled by our High Priest in His prayer, the truth of God’s Word is the tool for sanctification. We can express this petition in this way. “Sanctify them, and give them thy truth through thy Word in order that they may be sanctified.”
We are sanctified through the truth. Our sanctification becomes very definite and very clear in its truth. Cut apart and away are all false forms of sanctification. No sanctification is there without faith. No sanctification is there without the truth. Unbelievers are not sanctified, no matter how regular, outstanding, devoted, and sacrificial their lives may appear. The scribes, Pharisees, chief priests, and elders of the people were not sanctified, despite their sanctimonious appearance. For they had no use for the Truth Himself, but crucified Him. We meet people who have a powerful, moral standing before other men, appearing most holy to our eyes. They are careful in their walk, more careful than we. But they are bitterly opposed to the truth, denying the Trinity, denying salvation by grace alone, or denying the authority of God’s Word. But they are not sanctified in answer to Jesus’ supplication. We think of the sober words of II Thessalonians 2:10-12, followed by the glorious word of verse 13.
God’s people are sanctified through the truth.
For first, the truth empties out a man. It empties a man of himself, his pride, his power, his wisdom. It shows him that he is vain, but dust. It turns his power to weakness and his wisdom to folly. Then, having dissolved his pretenses, the Word shows him what he does have: his transgressions and his depravity. But the truth does not leave him there, but brings him before his blessed, merciful High Priest. By his High Priest he is cleansed of his sin, blessed with the blessings of salvation, among those blessings he receives sanctification through the truth.
The truth then properly directs him to his High Priest and to his heavenly Father, to glorify them according to the truth. Out of the mighty impulse of sheer gratitude for gracious salvation, he delights to labour in the service of his Redeemer. And the more he hears and reads, and knows the truth, the greater becomes his love and delight to walk in all the commandments of his God. So he loves the truth because by it he is sanctified. He cannot turn from it. He cannot compromise it. Instead He clings to it, and grows in it.
May such be our way today: sanctified through the truth.
The blessed answer to our High Priest’s prayer.
John 17:17, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.”
This petition Jesus raised up the night he was betrayed as part of His prayer to His Father in heaven, what is known as Jesus’ “High Priestly Prayer.” The eve of His departure from His disciples by His suffering and death on the cross saw Him making fervent intercession for His disciples. But we must also know He prays this same prayer for us every day.
Our faithful High Priest prays every day for our justification, that His Father would impute His righteousness to His covenant people. Our faithful High Priest prays every day for our preservation, that His Father would keep and protect us from the world, even as we are in the world. So He prays for our sanctification.
His Father hears those prayers and answers them, for the sake of His Son. He imputes the Son’s perfect righteousness to them. They are justified before God and in the forum of their consciences. He preserves them in their blessed salvation by His irresistible grace and mighty Spirit. So He also sanctifies them, making them more and more holy. So are we sanctified every day as the Father hears and answers the prayers of the Son.
This blessed prayer of our High Priest includes also the means of our sanctification: “through thy truth.” Even further, Christ’s prayer includes a doctrine for the disciples to understand and remember: “thy word is truth.”
According to this divine arrangement, recalled by our High Priest in His prayer, the truth of God’s Word is the tool for sanctification. We can express this petition in this way. “Sanctify them, and give them thy truth through thy Word in order that they may be sanctified.”
We are sanctified through the truth. Our sanctification becomes very definite and very clear in its truth. Cut apart and away are all false forms of sanctification. No sanctification is there without faith. No sanctification is there without the truth. Unbelievers are not sanctified, no matter how regular, outstanding, devoted, and sacrificial their lives may appear. The scribes, Pharisees, chief priests, and elders of the people were not sanctified, despite their sanctimonious appearance. For they had no use for the Truth Himself, but crucified Him. We meet people who have a powerful, moral standing before other men, appearing most holy to our eyes. They are careful in their walk, more careful than we. But they are bitterly opposed to the truth, denying the Trinity, denying salvation by grace alone, or denying the authority of God’s Word. But they are not sanctified in answer to Jesus’ supplication. We think of the sober words of II Thessalonians 2:10-12, followed by the glorious word of verse 13.
God’s people are sanctified through the truth.
For first, the truth empties out a man. It empties a man of himself, his pride, his power, his wisdom. It shows him that he is vain, but dust. It turns his power to weakness and his wisdom to folly. Then, having dissolved his pretenses, the Word shows him what he does have: his transgressions and his depravity. But the truth does not leave him there, but brings him before his blessed, merciful High Priest. By his High Priest he is cleansed of his sin, blessed with the blessings of salvation, among those blessings he receives sanctification through the truth.
The truth then properly directs him to his High Priest and to his heavenly Father, to glorify them according to the truth. Out of the mighty impulse of sheer gratitude for gracious salvation, he delights to labour in the service of his Redeemer. And the more he hears and reads, and knows the truth, the greater becomes his love and delight to walk in all the commandments of his God. So he loves the truth because by it he is sanctified. He cannot turn from it. He cannot compromise it. Instead He clings to it, and grows in it.
May such be our way today: sanctified through the truth.
The blessed answer to our High Priest’s prayer.
1 December 2013, The Lord's Day
Luke 4:16, “And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.”
Blessed custom of our Lord Jesus Christ!
Our Lord had His habits. He had His routine. He had His ways. Chief and blessed among them all was this: He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath Day. He had His time, that day of the week. He had His place, the synagogue. Let any ask on that day and at that time of that day, “Where can I find Jesus?” The answer would be forthcoming, “In the synagogue, of course.”
There He was to be found, customarily among God’s people. There He engaged in the worship of His heavenly Father. There He enjoyed fellowship with the people of His God. There He received the benefit of the Word and the worship of God’s people together.
Such was the constant practice of the very Son of God. He is eternally in the bosom of the Father, the only begotten! He is very God of very God, light of light! He is a full partaker of all the knowledge of the living God. He knows all there is to know about God. In His flesh, while on earth, He could know God through every sunrise, by the leaf of every tree, with the whisper of every breeze. Yet, there He was, as was His custom, mingled among God’s people, being led in worship by another. In the synagogue, on the Sabbath Day.
How much more ought we to have this same custom as our Lord Jesus Christ! How much more ought we to be found in the assembly of God’s people on our Sabbath! For we are but weak and foolish in our knowledge and understanding of our heavenly Father. How we need the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ! How we need the fellowship and communion of God’s people in our worship, to help us!
May our Lord’s custom be ours, His disciples!
But the Holy Spirit also calls our attention to this synagogue in Nazareth this way: “where he had been brought up.” Such was his custom from his training and instruction from his parents. Every sabbath Joseph and Mary went to the synagogue in Nazareth. Every sabbath they took with them Mary’s son, as well as their other sons. In them all they by unfailing practice instilled this blessed custom.
May such be our privilege also this day, as well as every Sabbath, to instill this custom in our children. May our children be as familiar with their church as Jesus was with the synagoge of Nazareth! So may we bring them with us, our blessed custom. For such is their place too: among God’s people, joined together in the worship of our heavenly Father.
As His custom, so also ours!
Luke 4:16, “And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.”
Blessed custom of our Lord Jesus Christ!
Our Lord had His habits. He had His routine. He had His ways. Chief and blessed among them all was this: He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath Day. He had His time, that day of the week. He had His place, the synagogue. Let any ask on that day and at that time of that day, “Where can I find Jesus?” The answer would be forthcoming, “In the synagogue, of course.”
There He was to be found, customarily among God’s people. There He engaged in the worship of His heavenly Father. There He enjoyed fellowship with the people of His God. There He received the benefit of the Word and the worship of God’s people together.
Such was the constant practice of the very Son of God. He is eternally in the bosom of the Father, the only begotten! He is very God of very God, light of light! He is a full partaker of all the knowledge of the living God. He knows all there is to know about God. In His flesh, while on earth, He could know God through every sunrise, by the leaf of every tree, with the whisper of every breeze. Yet, there He was, as was His custom, mingled among God’s people, being led in worship by another. In the synagogue, on the Sabbath Day.
How much more ought we to have this same custom as our Lord Jesus Christ! How much more ought we to be found in the assembly of God’s people on our Sabbath! For we are but weak and foolish in our knowledge and understanding of our heavenly Father. How we need the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ! How we need the fellowship and communion of God’s people in our worship, to help us!
May our Lord’s custom be ours, His disciples!
But the Holy Spirit also calls our attention to this synagogue in Nazareth this way: “where he had been brought up.” Such was his custom from his training and instruction from his parents. Every sabbath Joseph and Mary went to the synagogue in Nazareth. Every sabbath they took with them Mary’s son, as well as their other sons. In them all they by unfailing practice instilled this blessed custom.
May such be our privilege also this day, as well as every Sabbath, to instill this custom in our children. May our children be as familiar with their church as Jesus was with the synagoge of Nazareth! So may we bring them with us, our blessed custom. For such is their place too: among God’s people, joined together in the worship of our heavenly Father.
As His custom, so also ours!
29 November 2013
Acts 2:23, “Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.”
All in one verse. All in one sentence. All a powerful unity. You do not read: “Although delivered by the determinate counsel . . . ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.” There is no concession here. Nor do you read: “He was delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God; but ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.” There is no opposition here.
For, it was the almighty, unconditional, sovereign determining counsel and foreknowledge of God that delivered the Son of God to the death of the cross. That counsel determined the way of that glorious, mighty sacrifice to save from sin. The foreknowledge of God extended to all the details, all that was done by wicked minds and wicked hands to bring His Son to that sacrifice. No detail was overlooked. No part was left in the arbitrary hands of men.
So far from absolving or excusing these who crucified and slew the Son of God, these words lead properly to the Spirit-let indictment: “Ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.”
Stunning! God had His counsel. These men had theirs. Their counsel agreed: Christ had to be crucified and slain. God had His hand stretched out, to accomplish His counsel. With His hand He delivered His son to be crucified and slain. So also these men. They took and by their hands, they crucified and slew the same Son of God. The same work they accomplished. And in that same act is revealed the glorious righteousness and tender mercy of God and the vile, shameful depravity and treachery of men.
This agreement, so far from excusing or absolving the multitude, increased their guilt and condemnation. They did not excuse themselves by the counsel of God. Neither did they take refuge in a paradox. They did not complain that Peter’s words were “too high for them.” No, the Holy Spirit impressed these words on them, powerfully showing them their guilt and condemnation. So were they pricked in their heart. So they said, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”
So ought a healthy, living, Spirit-applied knowledge of God’s absolute and complete sovereignty over all things affect us. Surrounding us, over us, and within us is a holy and righteous God. All His works and all His ways are holy and righteous. By us and through us, He is accomplishing His determinate counsel and foreknowledge. Always in absolute pure, righteousness and holiness. Even when we sin, He is that near. He is that close.
Therefore (the Spirit’s “therefore”), let us tremble and quake with fear over our sins. How great our guilt and how great our condemnation before this holy God! Then let us repent and by faith in the gospel and our baptism in the name of Jesus Christ know the glorious and wonderful remission of our sins. All by this same God who so graciously delivered up His Son by His determinate counsel and foreknowledge!
Acts 2:23, “Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.”
All in one verse. All in one sentence. All a powerful unity. You do not read: “Although delivered by the determinate counsel . . . ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.” There is no concession here. Nor do you read: “He was delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God; but ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.” There is no opposition here.
For, it was the almighty, unconditional, sovereign determining counsel and foreknowledge of God that delivered the Son of God to the death of the cross. That counsel determined the way of that glorious, mighty sacrifice to save from sin. The foreknowledge of God extended to all the details, all that was done by wicked minds and wicked hands to bring His Son to that sacrifice. No detail was overlooked. No part was left in the arbitrary hands of men.
So far from absolving or excusing these who crucified and slew the Son of God, these words lead properly to the Spirit-let indictment: “Ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.”
Stunning! God had His counsel. These men had theirs. Their counsel agreed: Christ had to be crucified and slain. God had His hand stretched out, to accomplish His counsel. With His hand He delivered His son to be crucified and slain. So also these men. They took and by their hands, they crucified and slew the same Son of God. The same work they accomplished. And in that same act is revealed the glorious righteousness and tender mercy of God and the vile, shameful depravity and treachery of men.
This agreement, so far from excusing or absolving the multitude, increased their guilt and condemnation. They did not excuse themselves by the counsel of God. Neither did they take refuge in a paradox. They did not complain that Peter’s words were “too high for them.” No, the Holy Spirit impressed these words on them, powerfully showing them their guilt and condemnation. So were they pricked in their heart. So they said, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”
So ought a healthy, living, Spirit-applied knowledge of God’s absolute and complete sovereignty over all things affect us. Surrounding us, over us, and within us is a holy and righteous God. All His works and all His ways are holy and righteous. By us and through us, He is accomplishing His determinate counsel and foreknowledge. Always in absolute pure, righteousness and holiness. Even when we sin, He is that near. He is that close.
Therefore (the Spirit’s “therefore”), let us tremble and quake with fear over our sins. How great our guilt and how great our condemnation before this holy God! Then let us repent and by faith in the gospel and our baptism in the name of Jesus Christ know the glorious and wonderful remission of our sins. All by this same God who so graciously delivered up His Son by His determinate counsel and foreknowledge!
28 November 2013
Matthew 13:49, 50, “So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”
Comfort abounds to the child of God from this explanation of Christ. There is relief for his distress in the midst of the church when he comes into contact with much evil and evil-doers, right in the church of Jesus Christ.
For there are always the wicked among the just in the church on earth. Sometimes there are many wicked among the just in the church on earth. Perhaps Christian discipline, that key of the kingdom, is ignored and shamefully neglected in a church. There are the wicked, but nothing is done to separate them out of the church, following the direction of God’s Word in Matthew 18. Perhaps the preaching of the gospel, the other key of the kingdom, is weak. Sin is no longer preached against. The call to repent of sin and to forsake it, is hardly ever mentioned. The law is no longer explained and applied in the church. In that church there are yet the just. They repent of their sin and fight against it, putting their trust in Christ alone for their salvation. They live in godliness and holiness, confessing His name and truth. Yet, right next to them are these wicked. Shall the just be overcome by the wicked? Will the just be forgotten by God, destroyed together with the wicked? Does the very presence of the wicked mean that the just are no longer so?
No. Wait.
Sometimes there are a few wicked among the just. There are other churches where discipline is faithfully exercised. The preaching is faithful. Sinners are constantly rebuked and admonished to turn from their sins to Christ, and following after Christ. There are results to this work. The impenitent are removed from the fellowship of the church. The preaching offends the ungodly hypocrites so that they leave for churches that are friendly to them. But in these churches there will still be wicked among the just. Hypocrites will remain, who perhaps give hints of their true character once in a while. There will be those who successfully evade the elder’s work of discipline. There they are and there they remain: the wicked among the just. Need the just worry? Need the just fear? Will the Lord destroy the just with the wicked?
No. Wait. The end is coming.
The work that men are either unwilling or unable to do the angels themselves will do at the end of the world.
To be sure, the angels have their work to save the just from among the wicked of the world. That work will be perfectly carried out, the separation accomplished to a man. Every single righteous man, woman, and child will be delivered into perfect salvation. Every single one of the wicked will be delivered to their condemnation.
But the angels will be given another work. This work, too, they will carry out perfectly. They “shall come forth and sever the wicked from among the just.” There will be no more hypocrisy. There will be no more evasion. The wicked and the just will be completely separated from each other. Having fully separated the wicked from the just, the angels will then cast the wicked “into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”
For the just, there is comfort and consolation. You will not be swept away with the wicked. You will not be rooted up together. You are forever safe in the hand of your God, who knows and keeps forever all His own.
For the wicked hypocrites who hide and carefully practice their evasive moves, there is no comfort or consolation. Your place in the church is only for a season. There is no grace or peace to you, but only the threat of final, ultimate severance from your pretended place. Flee from and forsake your wicked hypocrisy! Flee from the wrath to come! Flee to the cross, and then take your proper place in the church, as just, among the just.
Matthew 13:49, 50, “So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”
Comfort abounds to the child of God from this explanation of Christ. There is relief for his distress in the midst of the church when he comes into contact with much evil and evil-doers, right in the church of Jesus Christ.
For there are always the wicked among the just in the church on earth. Sometimes there are many wicked among the just in the church on earth. Perhaps Christian discipline, that key of the kingdom, is ignored and shamefully neglected in a church. There are the wicked, but nothing is done to separate them out of the church, following the direction of God’s Word in Matthew 18. Perhaps the preaching of the gospel, the other key of the kingdom, is weak. Sin is no longer preached against. The call to repent of sin and to forsake it, is hardly ever mentioned. The law is no longer explained and applied in the church. In that church there are yet the just. They repent of their sin and fight against it, putting their trust in Christ alone for their salvation. They live in godliness and holiness, confessing His name and truth. Yet, right next to them are these wicked. Shall the just be overcome by the wicked? Will the just be forgotten by God, destroyed together with the wicked? Does the very presence of the wicked mean that the just are no longer so?
No. Wait.
Sometimes there are a few wicked among the just. There are other churches where discipline is faithfully exercised. The preaching is faithful. Sinners are constantly rebuked and admonished to turn from their sins to Christ, and following after Christ. There are results to this work. The impenitent are removed from the fellowship of the church. The preaching offends the ungodly hypocrites so that they leave for churches that are friendly to them. But in these churches there will still be wicked among the just. Hypocrites will remain, who perhaps give hints of their true character once in a while. There will be those who successfully evade the elder’s work of discipline. There they are and there they remain: the wicked among the just. Need the just worry? Need the just fear? Will the Lord destroy the just with the wicked?
No. Wait. The end is coming.
The work that men are either unwilling or unable to do the angels themselves will do at the end of the world.
To be sure, the angels have their work to save the just from among the wicked of the world. That work will be perfectly carried out, the separation accomplished to a man. Every single righteous man, woman, and child will be delivered into perfect salvation. Every single one of the wicked will be delivered to their condemnation.
But the angels will be given another work. This work, too, they will carry out perfectly. They “shall come forth and sever the wicked from among the just.” There will be no more hypocrisy. There will be no more evasion. The wicked and the just will be completely separated from each other. Having fully separated the wicked from the just, the angels will then cast the wicked “into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”
For the just, there is comfort and consolation. You will not be swept away with the wicked. You will not be rooted up together. You are forever safe in the hand of your God, who knows and keeps forever all His own.
For the wicked hypocrites who hide and carefully practice their evasive moves, there is no comfort or consolation. Your place in the church is only for a season. There is no grace or peace to you, but only the threat of final, ultimate severance from your pretended place. Flee from and forsake your wicked hypocrisy! Flee from the wrath to come! Flee to the cross, and then take your proper place in the church, as just, among the just.
27 November 2013
I Kings 3:7-10, “And now, O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in. And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people? And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.”
This prayer of Israel’s new king must lead us before God’s throne of grace with the same petition and the same urgency.
No, none of us is king over God’s people. None of us will be expected to carry out such duties as were Solomon’s.
Yet the same ground is ours in three ways. First, we are in the same position as Solomon: the servants of the Lord, redeemed by the blood of Christ, and beloved of God in that blood. The very same act of God gives us both our station to occupy and the promise of His provision to carry it out. Just as with Solomon, the Lord has placed us His servants, each one in his station.
Second, as we consider all the duties, tasks, and labours that belong to our station, we must come to the same conclusion as Solomon: “I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.” If we cannot say these words before the Lord, we do not have an adequate grasp of our station and all it involves. Consider it carefully. See it in the light of God’s grace that makes that calling holy for you to take up in holiness. We must approach God for His help with the solid conviction that without it we are only helpless.
Third, we must know our place to be the same as Solomon’s, “in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen.” As we find our place among God’s covenant people, elect, called, and justified, we understand our calling to perform our work in pure holiness and righteousness. We want no little child to be offended or to stumble, lest we find a millstone tied about our neck. We wish to be both a powerful, provoking example and an encouragement to all our fellow-servants, old and young. We want together to be faithful servants in the kingdom of God.
Then, as we look at our calling, whatever it may be, we must say with Solomon, “Who is able?” That question must lead us to our God with the urgent supplication on our lips, “Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart.”
So let us pray for an understanding heart, seeking the wisdom we need from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness nor shadow of turning. And as Solomon’s speech was pleasing to the Lord, so may we know He is pleased to hear our speech, and to grant us the wisdom we need.
I Kings 3:7-10, “And now, O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in. And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people? And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.”
This prayer of Israel’s new king must lead us before God’s throne of grace with the same petition and the same urgency.
No, none of us is king over God’s people. None of us will be expected to carry out such duties as were Solomon’s.
Yet the same ground is ours in three ways. First, we are in the same position as Solomon: the servants of the Lord, redeemed by the blood of Christ, and beloved of God in that blood. The very same act of God gives us both our station to occupy and the promise of His provision to carry it out. Just as with Solomon, the Lord has placed us His servants, each one in his station.
Second, as we consider all the duties, tasks, and labours that belong to our station, we must come to the same conclusion as Solomon: “I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.” If we cannot say these words before the Lord, we do not have an adequate grasp of our station and all it involves. Consider it carefully. See it in the light of God’s grace that makes that calling holy for you to take up in holiness. We must approach God for His help with the solid conviction that without it we are only helpless.
Third, we must know our place to be the same as Solomon’s, “in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen.” As we find our place among God’s covenant people, elect, called, and justified, we understand our calling to perform our work in pure holiness and righteousness. We want no little child to be offended or to stumble, lest we find a millstone tied about our neck. We wish to be both a powerful, provoking example and an encouragement to all our fellow-servants, old and young. We want together to be faithful servants in the kingdom of God.
Then, as we look at our calling, whatever it may be, we must say with Solomon, “Who is able?” That question must lead us to our God with the urgent supplication on our lips, “Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart.”
So let us pray for an understanding heart, seeking the wisdom we need from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness nor shadow of turning. And as Solomon’s speech was pleasing to the Lord, so may we know He is pleased to hear our speech, and to grant us the wisdom we need.
11 November 2013
II Corinthians 6:17, “Wherefore come ye out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”
How to be received? How to have the Almighty as our Father? How to be the sons and daughters of the Lord?
To be sure, not as a very beginning. John 1:13 speaks of all the children of God according to their very beginning, their new birth. “Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” As no child brings about his birth, so with every child of God. God alone, by His Spirit, makes each of His children by the wondrous work of regeneration.
As is this beginning, so it is all the way through the life of the child of God, all the way to the end. Regeneration is the gift of the life of Jesus Christ, raised to the everlasting life of heaven. That life is infused into the child of God in His regeneration, as an imperishable and uncorruptible life. Both by its own nature, and the almighty protection of the Spirit, it must have its end in eternal glory.
Yet the calling of the Word of God above is most certainly true. Its weight and force must have an effect on us. The Word of God gives it as an urgent, necessary call.
How are we to receive this call? First, it is the simple command to behave according to our new nature. By the grace of God in regeneration, we have a new nature. But that new nature does not destroy the old nature. The new unseats the old, casting the old off the throne of the heart. But the believer still has the old within him. That old nature operates according to its nature. It lives in sin. It pursues sin. It clings to sin. It always seeks to enter in “among them.” Our flesh does not go by itself. It drags us along with it. This calling always comes to us: “Come out from among them, and be ye separate!” In other words, we must take pains to ensure that our whole nature lines up with the new man, instead of the old.
Second, this calling must determine our course here. We are called by God to occupy in this world. We are called to serve our God in the station and calling He has appointed us. In our place, we are called to labour out of all that is new in us. This labour not only means that we conduct ourselves according to God’s commandments. It also means that we strive to be the Lord’s servants in all that work. We see the Lord behind our earthly employers or customers, that He through them gives us our work, and then the calling to do it all in conscious dependence on His strength and gifts and to the glory of His name. In this calling this very is very clear. Spiritually, ethically, morally, we separate ourselves from the vanity of the world’s work, in order to seek the things that are above.
God’s sovereign grace saves us according to the manner of our creation and regeneration. He does not save us merely as pulling pieces of wood out of a fire. He saves us as willing, thinking, active creatures. So He speaks to us, giving us commands for us to hear with our ears, to embrace with our hearts, and to obey with our whole being. And as He outwardly commands He wonderfully works the grace of obedience.
Accordingly He also promises. He promises the most beautiful promise, giving our hearts a marvelous incentive. The words of this promise are cast in the language of covenant and the family. “I will receive you.” “I … will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters.” What delight to us! Here is the blessed end of salvation! To have God as our God, even as our Father! To be the people of God, even the sons and daughters of God! Yes! Let us come out from among them. Let us surely be separate.
For the glory of that promise, let us in humble dependence on God’s grace come out from among them and be separate! Let us be vigilant to know every bond and tie of our old man to this world of sin and unbelief, to cut it through. Let us be diligent to consecrate our all to our God, today and every day. So may we receive grace for grace!
II Corinthians 6:17, “Wherefore come ye out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”
How to be received? How to have the Almighty as our Father? How to be the sons and daughters of the Lord?
To be sure, not as a very beginning. John 1:13 speaks of all the children of God according to their very beginning, their new birth. “Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” As no child brings about his birth, so with every child of God. God alone, by His Spirit, makes each of His children by the wondrous work of regeneration.
As is this beginning, so it is all the way through the life of the child of God, all the way to the end. Regeneration is the gift of the life of Jesus Christ, raised to the everlasting life of heaven. That life is infused into the child of God in His regeneration, as an imperishable and uncorruptible life. Both by its own nature, and the almighty protection of the Spirit, it must have its end in eternal glory.
Yet the calling of the Word of God above is most certainly true. Its weight and force must have an effect on us. The Word of God gives it as an urgent, necessary call.
How are we to receive this call? First, it is the simple command to behave according to our new nature. By the grace of God in regeneration, we have a new nature. But that new nature does not destroy the old nature. The new unseats the old, casting the old off the throne of the heart. But the believer still has the old within him. That old nature operates according to its nature. It lives in sin. It pursues sin. It clings to sin. It always seeks to enter in “among them.” Our flesh does not go by itself. It drags us along with it. This calling always comes to us: “Come out from among them, and be ye separate!” In other words, we must take pains to ensure that our whole nature lines up with the new man, instead of the old.
Second, this calling must determine our course here. We are called by God to occupy in this world. We are called to serve our God in the station and calling He has appointed us. In our place, we are called to labour out of all that is new in us. This labour not only means that we conduct ourselves according to God’s commandments. It also means that we strive to be the Lord’s servants in all that work. We see the Lord behind our earthly employers or customers, that He through them gives us our work, and then the calling to do it all in conscious dependence on His strength and gifts and to the glory of His name. In this calling this very is very clear. Spiritually, ethically, morally, we separate ourselves from the vanity of the world’s work, in order to seek the things that are above.
God’s sovereign grace saves us according to the manner of our creation and regeneration. He does not save us merely as pulling pieces of wood out of a fire. He saves us as willing, thinking, active creatures. So He speaks to us, giving us commands for us to hear with our ears, to embrace with our hearts, and to obey with our whole being. And as He outwardly commands He wonderfully works the grace of obedience.
Accordingly He also promises. He promises the most beautiful promise, giving our hearts a marvelous incentive. The words of this promise are cast in the language of covenant and the family. “I will receive you.” “I … will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters.” What delight to us! Here is the blessed end of salvation! To have God as our God, even as our Father! To be the people of God, even the sons and daughters of God! Yes! Let us come out from among them. Let us surely be separate.
For the glory of that promise, let us in humble dependence on God’s grace come out from among them and be separate! Let us be vigilant to know every bond and tie of our old man to this world of sin and unbelief, to cut it through. Let us be diligent to consecrate our all to our God, today and every day. So may we receive grace for grace!
10 November 2013, The Lord's Day
Psalm 12:6, “The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.”
What a blessed privilege it is to leave the days of the past week behind, and to come to the Sabbath Day!
Our privilege this Sabbath Day is to leave behind all the vain words of men. How many of these words have we endured this week from the lips of men. We need only think of verse 2. “They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak.” Men have opened their mouths. With their words they have practiced deceit. They promised deceitfully. They denied deceitfully. Trapped by their own lying words, they twist their own words to avoid responsibility. Who is to be believed? Who is to be trusted? Is a man’s word any good?
For what do we leave behind these words of men today? Let us leave their voices very far behind us, to give our attention to the pure words of the Lord. As vain as the words of men, so pure are the words of the Lord. They are to be compared to the purity of silver that is purified seven times in a furnace of earth.
How pure are the words of the Lord! His words of truth are absolutely pure. All that His Word has to say about the heavens and the earth, of angels and men, of kings and nations, of wind and waves, and of the sun and earth is true. It is wholly dependable. All that His Word has to say about the history of man, of his splendid, brilliant creation in the very image of God, and his deplorable revolt from his Maker, into the depths of total depravity is altogether correct. All that Word has to teach about the gospel of salvation from sin through the one sacrifice of the only-begotten Son on the cross is wonderfully true. When that Word shows that all salvation, from beginning to end is all from God, ways and means included, that Word does not err. All the promises of that Word of God cannot fail. They must all be fulfilled by God’s almighty power. For they are all “Yea” and “Amen” in Christ, to the glory of God. As that Word shows the way of gratitude to God for that salvation, teaching its commandments as the way in which we must go, that Word will not lead us astray.
Our privilege this day is to be immersed in these pure words of God. How blessed we are to have our Sabbath. God in His goodness has given us this day for His pure words, to hear them preached, to meditate upon them, to read them and think about them in our homes, with our families, and with our fellow saints! As we consider, we the purity of the Lord’s words, in stark contrast to the vain, deceitful words of men. Scripture proves their purity: always God is faithful to His Word.
As we examine them, we are more convinced of the purity of the gospel and its promises to us. Our salvation is secure, without any flaws or imperfections. As we meditate upon these words, we know more of their glory and beauty. They convey to us the riches of the kingdom of God, and the wealth of His everlasting grace and favour.
May we delight in those pure words today! May they purify us for His worship and service today, and in the week to come, as we again take up our walk among the vain words of men!
Psalm 12:6, “The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.”
What a blessed privilege it is to leave the days of the past week behind, and to come to the Sabbath Day!
Our privilege this Sabbath Day is to leave behind all the vain words of men. How many of these words have we endured this week from the lips of men. We need only think of verse 2. “They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak.” Men have opened their mouths. With their words they have practiced deceit. They promised deceitfully. They denied deceitfully. Trapped by their own lying words, they twist their own words to avoid responsibility. Who is to be believed? Who is to be trusted? Is a man’s word any good?
For what do we leave behind these words of men today? Let us leave their voices very far behind us, to give our attention to the pure words of the Lord. As vain as the words of men, so pure are the words of the Lord. They are to be compared to the purity of silver that is purified seven times in a furnace of earth.
How pure are the words of the Lord! His words of truth are absolutely pure. All that His Word has to say about the heavens and the earth, of angels and men, of kings and nations, of wind and waves, and of the sun and earth is true. It is wholly dependable. All that His Word has to say about the history of man, of his splendid, brilliant creation in the very image of God, and his deplorable revolt from his Maker, into the depths of total depravity is altogether correct. All that Word has to teach about the gospel of salvation from sin through the one sacrifice of the only-begotten Son on the cross is wonderfully true. When that Word shows that all salvation, from beginning to end is all from God, ways and means included, that Word does not err. All the promises of that Word of God cannot fail. They must all be fulfilled by God’s almighty power. For they are all “Yea” and “Amen” in Christ, to the glory of God. As that Word shows the way of gratitude to God for that salvation, teaching its commandments as the way in which we must go, that Word will not lead us astray.
Our privilege this day is to be immersed in these pure words of God. How blessed we are to have our Sabbath. God in His goodness has given us this day for His pure words, to hear them preached, to meditate upon them, to read them and think about them in our homes, with our families, and with our fellow saints! As we consider, we the purity of the Lord’s words, in stark contrast to the vain, deceitful words of men. Scripture proves their purity: always God is faithful to His Word.
As we examine them, we are more convinced of the purity of the gospel and its promises to us. Our salvation is secure, without any flaws or imperfections. As we meditate upon these words, we know more of their glory and beauty. They convey to us the riches of the kingdom of God, and the wealth of His everlasting grace and favour.
May we delight in those pure words today! May they purify us for His worship and service today, and in the week to come, as we again take up our walk among the vain words of men!
9 November 2013
Psalm 105:5, “Remember his marvellous works that he hath done; his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth.”
Psalm 105:8, “He hath remembered his covenant for ever, the word which he commanded to a thousand generations.”
Remember the remembrance of God! Memorialize His memory!
Psalm 105 helps us to remember the remembrance of our God. God is the God of promise, promising to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob His covenant promise. He promised to be the God of them, and of their seed after them. He promised to give them the land of Canaan.
God remembered His promise. His remembrance, however, is different than man’s. God does not remember with a mere thought: Oh, yes! He remembers with mighty deeds. So the Psalm continues. He protected the patriarchs. He visited famine upon Egypt, to bring the seed of Jacob to the land of their affliction and bondage, in order to deliver them out according to His promise. As they wandered in the wilderness, their God provided them with water from the rock, and bread from heaven. He brought them into the land He promised their fathers so many years before.
So God remembers! So we remember that God remembers!
Yet, we have something far greater to remember and memorialize. We have the remembrance of God’s promise of Genesis 3:15. Long before God promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, He promised salvation to our first parents, when they had revolted from their Maker. Long after God brought Israel into Canaan, and after Israel was brought to ruin in captivity, He sent into the world the promised Savior, the one seed of the covenant, Galatians 3:16.
God remembers! So we remember that God remembers!
He remembers His people, every one of them. He remembers them with the salvation He commands, to a thousand generations. He remembers them with great wonders and the judgments of his mouth. He delivers them from the cruel bondage of sin and Satan. He breaks open the gates and doors of their prison, bursts in sunder their bands, and leads them into His glorious, everlasting, heavenly kingdom! He raises them from the dead, calls them out of darkness into His marvelous light, causes them to believe, and sanctifies and purifies them with the blood of His Son, making them holy to Himself. He guards and keeps them in this salvation so that not one of them is lost. He brings every one of them infallibly to glory in ways mysterious and wonderful, showing the power of His grace.
As we remember, peace and comfort fill our hearts. We remember that God always remembers His covenant, the word He commanded to a thousand generations. That word He commanded reaches to us. He will never forget us. He will always remember us. Though we live as so few in a world of so many and so filled with perils on every side, we must fear not. The God of His covenant remembers! He will remember with marvelous works that He will do, wonders, and the judgments of his mouth!
So shall we remember forever more to the everlasting praise and glory of our God in the heavenly Jerusalem!
Psalm 105:5, “Remember his marvellous works that he hath done; his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth.”
Psalm 105:8, “He hath remembered his covenant for ever, the word which he commanded to a thousand generations.”
Remember the remembrance of God! Memorialize His memory!
Psalm 105 helps us to remember the remembrance of our God. God is the God of promise, promising to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob His covenant promise. He promised to be the God of them, and of their seed after them. He promised to give them the land of Canaan.
God remembered His promise. His remembrance, however, is different than man’s. God does not remember with a mere thought: Oh, yes! He remembers with mighty deeds. So the Psalm continues. He protected the patriarchs. He visited famine upon Egypt, to bring the seed of Jacob to the land of their affliction and bondage, in order to deliver them out according to His promise. As they wandered in the wilderness, their God provided them with water from the rock, and bread from heaven. He brought them into the land He promised their fathers so many years before.
So God remembers! So we remember that God remembers!
Yet, we have something far greater to remember and memorialize. We have the remembrance of God’s promise of Genesis 3:15. Long before God promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, He promised salvation to our first parents, when they had revolted from their Maker. Long after God brought Israel into Canaan, and after Israel was brought to ruin in captivity, He sent into the world the promised Savior, the one seed of the covenant, Galatians 3:16.
God remembers! So we remember that God remembers!
He remembers His people, every one of them. He remembers them with the salvation He commands, to a thousand generations. He remembers them with great wonders and the judgments of his mouth. He delivers them from the cruel bondage of sin and Satan. He breaks open the gates and doors of their prison, bursts in sunder their bands, and leads them into His glorious, everlasting, heavenly kingdom! He raises them from the dead, calls them out of darkness into His marvelous light, causes them to believe, and sanctifies and purifies them with the blood of His Son, making them holy to Himself. He guards and keeps them in this salvation so that not one of them is lost. He brings every one of them infallibly to glory in ways mysterious and wonderful, showing the power of His grace.
As we remember, peace and comfort fill our hearts. We remember that God always remembers His covenant, the word He commanded to a thousand generations. That word He commanded reaches to us. He will never forget us. He will always remember us. Though we live as so few in a world of so many and so filled with perils on every side, we must fear not. The God of His covenant remembers! He will remember with marvelous works that He will do, wonders, and the judgments of his mouth!
So shall we remember forever more to the everlasting praise and glory of our God in the heavenly Jerusalem!
8 November 2013
Luke 15:31, 32, “And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine. It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found.”
Fair and proper words are these to answer the anger of the prodigal’s elder brother. At the same time they give every reason why the elder brother should also “make merry and be glad.”
These are words of joy and gladness for the elder brother himself. What has been his own place in this household? How long has he enjoyed it? “Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine.” Always the elder son has been with his father. He is the heir to the possessions of his father. Those facts will never change. He must understand the security of his place. And his place in his father’s house ought always to be a cause of great joy and peace to him.
Such must be the joy and peace of God’s children who have known and enjoyed God’s covenant mercies from their youth. They were raised by believing parents who knew God’s covenant mercies toward them, and knew those mercies as promised also to their seed. In their upbringing these children always knew God as their God. They grew up in the church, brought there by their believing parents. They remember having always heard the preaching of God’s Word. They remember having always believed that Word. They remember having always prayed to the Lord daily and constantly, first led by their parents and then on their own.
To them these words the Father speaks: “Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine.” Such is their joy.
But that joy is not for them only, but also for those who are restored! There are also those who were dead. There are also those who were lost. They were not near. They were afar off. They were not in the house. They were far from home, wandering and stumbling in the cold and rainy darkness, the wind chasing all around them. But in the midst of their wandering, they came to themselves. They heard the call to turn from their ways of death, to the way of life. They heard the Word that called them to the Father through Jesus Christ. They believed, and came home. With great joy and gladness the Father receives them into His home. Yes, they were defiled and corrupted. The stink of their worldly filth might still cling to them, though their Father has fully accepted them. Yes, they had devoured their Father’s living with harlots. But now they are received home, safe and sound.
That joyful reception must be also the joy of those who always have been in the house. It is the joy of the Father. It is the joy of the dead, lost sinner who is now at home in the house of the Father. In that joy the brother who has always been in his Father’s house must also rejoice. The household of faith is increased! The brotherhood grows!
Indeed, the Father’s house is quite large enough, and his wealth quite broad enough! The elder brother need not fear for his place in the house. He need not be anxious that it will no longer be true, that all that the Father has is his. He has nothing to lose, but everything to gain with the addition of another brother.
So let us pray for the growth of the church of Jesus Christ. And when we see that growth by the grace of our heavenly Father, let us make merry and be glad. For the lost is found!
Luke 15:31, 32, “And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine. It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found.”
Fair and proper words are these to answer the anger of the prodigal’s elder brother. At the same time they give every reason why the elder brother should also “make merry and be glad.”
These are words of joy and gladness for the elder brother himself. What has been his own place in this household? How long has he enjoyed it? “Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine.” Always the elder son has been with his father. He is the heir to the possessions of his father. Those facts will never change. He must understand the security of his place. And his place in his father’s house ought always to be a cause of great joy and peace to him.
Such must be the joy and peace of God’s children who have known and enjoyed God’s covenant mercies from their youth. They were raised by believing parents who knew God’s covenant mercies toward them, and knew those mercies as promised also to their seed. In their upbringing these children always knew God as their God. They grew up in the church, brought there by their believing parents. They remember having always heard the preaching of God’s Word. They remember having always believed that Word. They remember having always prayed to the Lord daily and constantly, first led by their parents and then on their own.
To them these words the Father speaks: “Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine.” Such is their joy.
But that joy is not for them only, but also for those who are restored! There are also those who were dead. There are also those who were lost. They were not near. They were afar off. They were not in the house. They were far from home, wandering and stumbling in the cold and rainy darkness, the wind chasing all around them. But in the midst of their wandering, they came to themselves. They heard the call to turn from their ways of death, to the way of life. They heard the Word that called them to the Father through Jesus Christ. They believed, and came home. With great joy and gladness the Father receives them into His home. Yes, they were defiled and corrupted. The stink of their worldly filth might still cling to them, though their Father has fully accepted them. Yes, they had devoured their Father’s living with harlots. But now they are received home, safe and sound.
That joyful reception must be also the joy of those who always have been in the house. It is the joy of the Father. It is the joy of the dead, lost sinner who is now at home in the house of the Father. In that joy the brother who has always been in his Father’s house must also rejoice. The household of faith is increased! The brotherhood grows!
Indeed, the Father’s house is quite large enough, and his wealth quite broad enough! The elder brother need not fear for his place in the house. He need not be anxious that it will no longer be true, that all that the Father has is his. He has nothing to lose, but everything to gain with the addition of another brother.
So let us pray for the growth of the church of Jesus Christ. And when we see that growth by the grace of our heavenly Father, let us make merry and be glad. For the lost is found!
7 November 2013
I Kings 8:57, 58, “The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fathers: let him not leave us, nor forsake us: that he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers.”
Most beautiful and wonderful is this prayer of wise King Solomon respecting God’s everlasting covenant of grace. Here is most clearly an example of the “new in the old concealed.”
For, first, this prayer establishes a very powerful ground for its supplication. “The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fathers.” He is the living, eternal God. He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He promised to be with them, and He was with them all their days. He guided them, provided their needs, protected them, and brought them through their earthly sojourn to the heavenly city they sought by faith. The Lord was faithful to His promise. He remembered His promise to the three patriarchs when He delivered their seed from their bitter bondage in Egypt, destroying their enemy with His mighty, wonderful plagues, capped with the drowning of Pharaoh’s army in the Red Sea. He continued with them through their wilderness wanderings, in mercy forgiving their hardness of heart while chastening them for their rebellion. At last the Lord brought them into the land of Canaan, the place He promised to their fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Now Solomon makes His supplication. As the Lord was with them, so may He be with us! As the Lord continued with them, so may He continue with us! As the Lord continued with them, in spite of their wandering, their sins, their murmuring and complaining, and even their outright rebellion, so may He continue graciously with us. We acknowledge our own sins, complaining, and rebellion. Therefore, “Let him not leave us, nor forsake us.”
But then Solomon turns in his prayer to a much deeper subject, and also as part of God’s covenant of grace. In his prayer Solomon acknowledges what is required of the people of God: “to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers.” God commanded. He commanded father Abraham: “Walk before me, and be thou perfect,” Genesis 17:1. He commanded the children of Israel, giving them the Ten Commandments, written on tables of stone. He commanded them, in short, to be His people. They must be His, in their way of living, their deeds, their words, and even their thoughts, the holy people of the Lord, their holy God.
Knowing all that is required of them, Solomon must also pray this prayer: “The Lord our God be with us … that he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways …” All that God commands, He must also give. All that God requires, He must bring. Otherwise there cannot be any obedience, or even any covenant. There cannot be any love. There cannot be any faith. There cannot even be the inclination of our hearts to Him!
How brightly this new concealed in the old shines so brightly in the new! “By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained, that we should walk in them,” Ephesians 2:8-10.
So are we taught, and so must we pray this prayer of Israel’s King. Let us offer this supplication in the unity of the church of Jesus Christ. “The Lord our God be with us … that he may incline our hearts unto him.” This prayer is ours to pray as the generation after our fathers, remembering our place in God’s covenant of grace. This prayer is ours to pray for our children after us, that the Lord will incline their hearts unto Him, in His remembrance of His covenant. This prayer is ours to pray for our fellow saints always, especially as we sit together under the preaching of the gospel. This prayer is ours to pray for God’s people in all lands, for all those “afar off, as many as the Lord our God shall call,” Acts 2:39.
The Lord our God be with us … that He may incline our hearts unto Him!
I Kings 8:57, 58, “The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fathers: let him not leave us, nor forsake us: that he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers.”
Most beautiful and wonderful is this prayer of wise King Solomon respecting God’s everlasting covenant of grace. Here is most clearly an example of the “new in the old concealed.”
For, first, this prayer establishes a very powerful ground for its supplication. “The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fathers.” He is the living, eternal God. He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He promised to be with them, and He was with them all their days. He guided them, provided their needs, protected them, and brought them through their earthly sojourn to the heavenly city they sought by faith. The Lord was faithful to His promise. He remembered His promise to the three patriarchs when He delivered their seed from their bitter bondage in Egypt, destroying their enemy with His mighty, wonderful plagues, capped with the drowning of Pharaoh’s army in the Red Sea. He continued with them through their wilderness wanderings, in mercy forgiving their hardness of heart while chastening them for their rebellion. At last the Lord brought them into the land of Canaan, the place He promised to their fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Now Solomon makes His supplication. As the Lord was with them, so may He be with us! As the Lord continued with them, so may He continue with us! As the Lord continued with them, in spite of their wandering, their sins, their murmuring and complaining, and even their outright rebellion, so may He continue graciously with us. We acknowledge our own sins, complaining, and rebellion. Therefore, “Let him not leave us, nor forsake us.”
But then Solomon turns in his prayer to a much deeper subject, and also as part of God’s covenant of grace. In his prayer Solomon acknowledges what is required of the people of God: “to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers.” God commanded. He commanded father Abraham: “Walk before me, and be thou perfect,” Genesis 17:1. He commanded the children of Israel, giving them the Ten Commandments, written on tables of stone. He commanded them, in short, to be His people. They must be His, in their way of living, their deeds, their words, and even their thoughts, the holy people of the Lord, their holy God.
Knowing all that is required of them, Solomon must also pray this prayer: “The Lord our God be with us … that he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways …” All that God commands, He must also give. All that God requires, He must bring. Otherwise there cannot be any obedience, or even any covenant. There cannot be any love. There cannot be any faith. There cannot even be the inclination of our hearts to Him!
How brightly this new concealed in the old shines so brightly in the new! “By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained, that we should walk in them,” Ephesians 2:8-10.
So are we taught, and so must we pray this prayer of Israel’s King. Let us offer this supplication in the unity of the church of Jesus Christ. “The Lord our God be with us … that he may incline our hearts unto him.” This prayer is ours to pray as the generation after our fathers, remembering our place in God’s covenant of grace. This prayer is ours to pray for our children after us, that the Lord will incline their hearts unto Him, in His remembrance of His covenant. This prayer is ours to pray for our fellow saints always, especially as we sit together under the preaching of the gospel. This prayer is ours to pray for God’s people in all lands, for all those “afar off, as many as the Lord our God shall call,” Acts 2:39.
The Lord our God be with us … that He may incline our hearts unto Him!
6 November 2013
Matthew 11:28-30, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
How wise and unfathomable are the works of God! Nothing goes off the tracks. Nothing ever fails to be accomplished. All of God’s counsel is performed. Never is it thwarted.
Never does that will of God fail when Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum refuse to repent at the preaching of both John the Baptist and Jesus. Even after these cities’ stubborn refusal, making their condemnation greater than Tyre, Sidon, and Sodom, Christ speaks an amazing word. He declares that the whole matter was of the Lord. More amazing, He expresses the same by means of a prayer of thanksgiving. “I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth…”
Even more amazing is the wonderful grace follows. The call of the gospel does not cease, though cities refuse. Though the wrath of God hangs heavily wherever that call is despised, God continues to send it at His will and good pleasure. Even though Christ will be crucified for that gospel—indeed because He will be crucified—He still calls.
The reason Christ still calls is God’s eternal good pleasure. It is not only the Father’s good pleasure to hide from the wise and the prudent. It is also His good pleasure—and we may say His chief delight—to reveal the things of the kingdom “unto babes.” Accordingly He calls these “babes.” Yes, the gospel call, though generally expressed to Chorazin, to Bethsaida, and to Capernaum, is a particular call.
Hear the blessed, particular call: “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden.” Those who labour and are heavy laden must hear these summons addressed directly to them. How this word must garner their attention and prick up their ears. Here is your Christ calling you! Staggering underneath your heavy load, labouring under so heavy a burden, He tells you, “Come unto me.”
What reason He gives you to come to Him! That great labour and that heavy burden He calls you to lay at His feet. He will take it from you. He will do all your heavy labour for you, taking your yoke from you. He will lay your burden on His own blessed shoulders, carrying it for you. No more guilt. No more cruel, bitter service to Satan under the wrath of God. He will give you His easy yoke to carry, and His light burden to bear.
Additional reason He gives. He will not turn you away. He will not be gruff, harsh, or hard with you. He is no sadistic tyrant, no brutal dictator. He will not tear you apart or cut you down with harsh, angry words. Why take His yoke upon you? Why learn of Him? “For I am meek and lowly in heart.” You will find not a particle of pride or self-importance in Him. From Him you will receive always and only tender, gentle care.
“And ye shall find rest unto your souls.” Rest there is from Him to you. Peaceful, quiet, gentle tranquility, to fill your soul. That rest is sure, through all the storms and troubles of life. That rest remains through all the sorrows of this present life. It is the rest of your Saviour’s constant care.
We who labour and are heavy laden have the great privilege to know that our Saviour is calling us to Himself. Are you labouring? Are you heavy laden? Christ calls you to Him. For your great labour, He has His easy yoke for you to put on. For your heavy load, He has his light burden for you to shoulder. You will find Him meek and lowly in heart. You will find rest unto your souls.
So rejoice in your Saviour! And serve Him with gladness! With the light yoke and easy burden of grateful service to your blessed Lord.
Matthew 11:28-30, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
How wise and unfathomable are the works of God! Nothing goes off the tracks. Nothing ever fails to be accomplished. All of God’s counsel is performed. Never is it thwarted.
Never does that will of God fail when Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum refuse to repent at the preaching of both John the Baptist and Jesus. Even after these cities’ stubborn refusal, making their condemnation greater than Tyre, Sidon, and Sodom, Christ speaks an amazing word. He declares that the whole matter was of the Lord. More amazing, He expresses the same by means of a prayer of thanksgiving. “I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth…”
Even more amazing is the wonderful grace follows. The call of the gospel does not cease, though cities refuse. Though the wrath of God hangs heavily wherever that call is despised, God continues to send it at His will and good pleasure. Even though Christ will be crucified for that gospel—indeed because He will be crucified—He still calls.
The reason Christ still calls is God’s eternal good pleasure. It is not only the Father’s good pleasure to hide from the wise and the prudent. It is also His good pleasure—and we may say His chief delight—to reveal the things of the kingdom “unto babes.” Accordingly He calls these “babes.” Yes, the gospel call, though generally expressed to Chorazin, to Bethsaida, and to Capernaum, is a particular call.
Hear the blessed, particular call: “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden.” Those who labour and are heavy laden must hear these summons addressed directly to them. How this word must garner their attention and prick up their ears. Here is your Christ calling you! Staggering underneath your heavy load, labouring under so heavy a burden, He tells you, “Come unto me.”
What reason He gives you to come to Him! That great labour and that heavy burden He calls you to lay at His feet. He will take it from you. He will do all your heavy labour for you, taking your yoke from you. He will lay your burden on His own blessed shoulders, carrying it for you. No more guilt. No more cruel, bitter service to Satan under the wrath of God. He will give you His easy yoke to carry, and His light burden to bear.
Additional reason He gives. He will not turn you away. He will not be gruff, harsh, or hard with you. He is no sadistic tyrant, no brutal dictator. He will not tear you apart or cut you down with harsh, angry words. Why take His yoke upon you? Why learn of Him? “For I am meek and lowly in heart.” You will find not a particle of pride or self-importance in Him. From Him you will receive always and only tender, gentle care.
“And ye shall find rest unto your souls.” Rest there is from Him to you. Peaceful, quiet, gentle tranquility, to fill your soul. That rest is sure, through all the storms and troubles of life. That rest remains through all the sorrows of this present life. It is the rest of your Saviour’s constant care.
We who labour and are heavy laden have the great privilege to know that our Saviour is calling us to Himself. Are you labouring? Are you heavy laden? Christ calls you to Him. For your great labour, He has His easy yoke for you to put on. For your heavy load, He has his light burden for you to shoulder. You will find Him meek and lowly in heart. You will find rest unto your souls.
So rejoice in your Saviour! And serve Him with gladness! With the light yoke and easy burden of grateful service to your blessed Lord.
3 November 2013
Luke 5:1-3, “And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret, And saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets. And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon’s, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship.”
How different are these circumstances from ours today!
By the lake of Gennesaret, the Sea of Galilee by the town of the same name, Jesus began to teach a number of people that had gathered about Him. The crowd began to swell and surged forward, each member eager to hear the words that passed from His lips. So they “pressed upon him to hear the word of God.”
Jesus worked to relieve this pressure. He went to one of the two boats on the shore, the one belonging to Simon (later, Simon Peter, surnamed by Christ), entered in, and asked him to push out a little from the shore. The multitude would see Him out in the water, a little distance away from them. They could see they could not come closer to Him. Each would be content with his place on the shore, and no longer press.
What a sight to see! What a word to hear! Outdoors, among such a multitude, quiet and still, that they might hear every Word of God preached by the Saviour!
How different things are for us today. Our Lord is now in heaven, no longer upon the earth. No longer is He here, personally and immediately to preach to us from a boat, put out a little from the shore. No longer is it ours to be outdoors, among such a multitude of people pressing forward to hear the Word of God preached. Now we gather in churches, to hear ministers of the gospel expound and apply the Scriptures to us. Now it is possible in free countries to gather in churches to hear preaching.
Despite these differences, there is one thing that does not change. What the people of Luke 5:1-3 heard, we are blessed also to hear, the Word of God. What the people gathered and pressed upon Jesus to hear, we also are able to hear, the Word of God preached to us. Jesus preached the Word of God. He quoted. He explained. He applied. He rebuked and corrected. He encouraged and praised. But also today. As Jesus has sent His ministers to the people, and as those ministers faithfully labor in their office, the Word of God is still preached.
As we have this Word of God preached, let us also press forward to hear the Word of God. May we be just as eager to hear these faithful servants of the Lord faithfully preach the Word of God, as those people were eager to hear Christ preach the Word of God. May that eagerness strengthen us in our preparation to go to the Lord’s house, to hear that Word. May we hunger and thirst for the Bread of life to be broken to us. Let us fill our souls with humility and meekness, to be led by that Word wherever it leads us. Let us be ready press forward to follow that Word into the depths of our hearts, where it shows us our sins, and then to Calvary’s cross to know our redemption from sin, and then to the way of grateful worship and service to our God our Saviour. And as we enter into the Lord’s house, may we so press forward, straining to hear every syllable of that precious Word of God preached to us. By that Word may we press into the kingdom of heaven!
Luke 5:1-3, “And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret, And saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets. And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon’s, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship.”
How different are these circumstances from ours today!
By the lake of Gennesaret, the Sea of Galilee by the town of the same name, Jesus began to teach a number of people that had gathered about Him. The crowd began to swell and surged forward, each member eager to hear the words that passed from His lips. So they “pressed upon him to hear the word of God.”
Jesus worked to relieve this pressure. He went to one of the two boats on the shore, the one belonging to Simon (later, Simon Peter, surnamed by Christ), entered in, and asked him to push out a little from the shore. The multitude would see Him out in the water, a little distance away from them. They could see they could not come closer to Him. Each would be content with his place on the shore, and no longer press.
What a sight to see! What a word to hear! Outdoors, among such a multitude, quiet and still, that they might hear every Word of God preached by the Saviour!
How different things are for us today. Our Lord is now in heaven, no longer upon the earth. No longer is He here, personally and immediately to preach to us from a boat, put out a little from the shore. No longer is it ours to be outdoors, among such a multitude of people pressing forward to hear the Word of God preached. Now we gather in churches, to hear ministers of the gospel expound and apply the Scriptures to us. Now it is possible in free countries to gather in churches to hear preaching.
Despite these differences, there is one thing that does not change. What the people of Luke 5:1-3 heard, we are blessed also to hear, the Word of God. What the people gathered and pressed upon Jesus to hear, we also are able to hear, the Word of God preached to us. Jesus preached the Word of God. He quoted. He explained. He applied. He rebuked and corrected. He encouraged and praised. But also today. As Jesus has sent His ministers to the people, and as those ministers faithfully labor in their office, the Word of God is still preached.
As we have this Word of God preached, let us also press forward to hear the Word of God. May we be just as eager to hear these faithful servants of the Lord faithfully preach the Word of God, as those people were eager to hear Christ preach the Word of God. May that eagerness strengthen us in our preparation to go to the Lord’s house, to hear that Word. May we hunger and thirst for the Bread of life to be broken to us. Let us fill our souls with humility and meekness, to be led by that Word wherever it leads us. Let us be ready press forward to follow that Word into the depths of our hearts, where it shows us our sins, and then to Calvary’s cross to know our redemption from sin, and then to the way of grateful worship and service to our God our Saviour. And as we enter into the Lord’s house, may we so press forward, straining to hear every syllable of that precious Word of God preached to us. By that Word may we press into the kingdom of heaven!
2 November 2013
John 13:34, 35, “A new commandment I give unto you; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”
This new commandment could not be given at a more appropriate time. For, first, its model was to be demonstrated the very next day. Then the disciples’ Lord and Master would serve His disciples loving them in His bitter and shameful death on the cross. By that sacrifice to death on the cross, He must both abide its apparent loss and defeat at the hands of His enemies, and accomplish the everlasting righteousness and salvation of all His own. So would He love them, and so must they love one another.
Second, by this very same act He would leave His disciples. By virtue of His resurrection from the dead, He would return to life, but not to life with His disciples. He would visit them and teach them before His ascension into heaven, but no longer would he walk with them. He was going away. How were they to be His disciples? No longer could they follow Him wherever He walked. They were now to walk the same way He walked: the walk of complete, full love. Solid irrefutable proof were they to bear before all men that they were the disciples of Christ, by their love one to another.
No longer were they to argue and quarrel among themselves, who was the greatest. No longer were they to be jealous or envious at the positions the other held, whether nearer or farther, whether more honored or less honored. No longer were they to keep track who was more approved or rebuked by their Lord. “Love one another.” “As I have loved you.”
This commanded love is a love of deeds. This commanded love is a love of self-denying determination to bless the other. It cannot rest until self is expended for the other’s well-being, strength, and security. This love gives from the heart freely for the sake of the beloved. It is not motivated by self-regard, either repayment or the praise of men. Its entire gratification is the well-being of the brother or the sister.
This love also is to be the glue that practically joins into one the members of the church of Jesus Christ. According to Ephesians 4:16, it is “that which every joint supplieth,” that is the point at which the members of the church interact in love toward each other. The outpouring of love, in deeds, toward one another, is to be a binding force among God’s people, constantly drawing them closer together.
And the world must look on with wonder. Yes, the world must despise these Christians. They must hate the servants just as they hated their Lord. But they must also wonder at the way and degree in which they love one another. The jealousy, quarrelling, contention, and striving that reign among them are altogether absent among the disciples of Christ.
So must this love characterize our fellowship in the church of Jesus Christ. Such love must constantly be our aim and goal in its fellowship. As we fall short, we go to our Master and Lord, our example. In His very example of love, we seek and find forgiveness for our evil shortcomings. Here, too, is the only power to love this selflessly. That very act of love on the cross is our power to die more and more to the hatred of selfishness. As we meditate on the wonder of that cross, there we also find the power that conforms us more and more to our Lord in His love for us.
So may we love one another! So may all men know that we are His disciples!
John 13:34, 35, “A new commandment I give unto you; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”
This new commandment could not be given at a more appropriate time. For, first, its model was to be demonstrated the very next day. Then the disciples’ Lord and Master would serve His disciples loving them in His bitter and shameful death on the cross. By that sacrifice to death on the cross, He must both abide its apparent loss and defeat at the hands of His enemies, and accomplish the everlasting righteousness and salvation of all His own. So would He love them, and so must they love one another.
Second, by this very same act He would leave His disciples. By virtue of His resurrection from the dead, He would return to life, but not to life with His disciples. He would visit them and teach them before His ascension into heaven, but no longer would he walk with them. He was going away. How were they to be His disciples? No longer could they follow Him wherever He walked. They were now to walk the same way He walked: the walk of complete, full love. Solid irrefutable proof were they to bear before all men that they were the disciples of Christ, by their love one to another.
No longer were they to argue and quarrel among themselves, who was the greatest. No longer were they to be jealous or envious at the positions the other held, whether nearer or farther, whether more honored or less honored. No longer were they to keep track who was more approved or rebuked by their Lord. “Love one another.” “As I have loved you.”
This commanded love is a love of deeds. This commanded love is a love of self-denying determination to bless the other. It cannot rest until self is expended for the other’s well-being, strength, and security. This love gives from the heart freely for the sake of the beloved. It is not motivated by self-regard, either repayment or the praise of men. Its entire gratification is the well-being of the brother or the sister.
This love also is to be the glue that practically joins into one the members of the church of Jesus Christ. According to Ephesians 4:16, it is “that which every joint supplieth,” that is the point at which the members of the church interact in love toward each other. The outpouring of love, in deeds, toward one another, is to be a binding force among God’s people, constantly drawing them closer together.
And the world must look on with wonder. Yes, the world must despise these Christians. They must hate the servants just as they hated their Lord. But they must also wonder at the way and degree in which they love one another. The jealousy, quarrelling, contention, and striving that reign among them are altogether absent among the disciples of Christ.
So must this love characterize our fellowship in the church of Jesus Christ. Such love must constantly be our aim and goal in its fellowship. As we fall short, we go to our Master and Lord, our example. In His very example of love, we seek and find forgiveness for our evil shortcomings. Here, too, is the only power to love this selflessly. That very act of love on the cross is our power to die more and more to the hatred of selfishness. As we meditate on the wonder of that cross, there we also find the power that conforms us more and more to our Lord in His love for us.
So may we love one another! So may all men know that we are His disciples!
1 November 2013
Luke 1:13, “But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.”
Luke 1:6, 7, “And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.”
So many years had now passed since this couple had first established their home, a covenant home. They lived and walked before God as His people. They lived in His fellowship and communion. The Scripture above notes their godliness. They were righteous before God. They walked blameless in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord. They prayed to the Lord, worshipping Him from their hearts.
As all the people of God, they had one great desire: to know the Lord’s covenant continued with them through the gift of children, a godly seed. So they prayed to the Lord for children. So they waited upon the Lord for children. So they prayed and so they waited. For years they prayed and waited, and now those years had stretched into decades. We well suppose that by the time Zacharias was waiting on the Lord in the temple that they had long ceased praying. For “they both were now well stricken in years.”
But now is the time that Zacharias’ prayer is heard by the Lord. Now is the time for Elisabeth to bear Zacharias a son. And such a son! His name would be called John. For he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He was to be the forerunner of the Messiah Himself. And the wonder of John’s birth, to the aged Zacharias and Elisabeth, was to show his special place in the history of God’s redemption of His people.
How great the Lord’s answer to their prayers!
So must we be encouraged to pray, and to wait upon the Lord to whom we pray. So often when we pray, we have our own idea about the Lord’s answer. We come to Him in our prayer, our petitions and supplications shaped and molded by the answer we think appropriate. That answer we will often spell out. Then we wait. And we wait. We may pray and wait for a long time. It may seem that God has not heard our prayer. We may even take God’s lack of action as His answer of No. We then properly reconcile ourselves to His answer, resting in His Fatherly wisdom.
But we ought also to be prepared for such an answer as to exceed wonderfully our greatest expectations. When time is long past, and our prayers are long finished, then marvellously God will give us what we sought. Godly parents will pray for a wayward son. They will pray for years and years, perhaps never hearing from that son. They may even become sporadic in those prayers and even cease. Then their son appears, having turned from his wicked, wandering ways back to the Lord. The Lord has heard, and the Lord has answered! Or, we can think of parents who pray so fervently for the recovery and healing of their sick infant. The prayers of their loving hearts are joined with the prayers of their family and their church. Yet, the Lord is pleased instead to take that sick infant home to glory to be with Him. But how wonderfully their prayer is answered in the resurrection of the dead. The sorrow that attended their whole life on earth will be changed to unbounded joy when they are joined together in the everlasting wonder of the new heavens and earth, made perfect in glory.
So let us pray, and let us wait, to see what great things the Lord will do in His wisdom and in His time.
Luke 1:13, “But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.”
Luke 1:6, 7, “And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.”
So many years had now passed since this couple had first established their home, a covenant home. They lived and walked before God as His people. They lived in His fellowship and communion. The Scripture above notes their godliness. They were righteous before God. They walked blameless in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord. They prayed to the Lord, worshipping Him from their hearts.
As all the people of God, they had one great desire: to know the Lord’s covenant continued with them through the gift of children, a godly seed. So they prayed to the Lord for children. So they waited upon the Lord for children. So they prayed and so they waited. For years they prayed and waited, and now those years had stretched into decades. We well suppose that by the time Zacharias was waiting on the Lord in the temple that they had long ceased praying. For “they both were now well stricken in years.”
But now is the time that Zacharias’ prayer is heard by the Lord. Now is the time for Elisabeth to bear Zacharias a son. And such a son! His name would be called John. For he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He was to be the forerunner of the Messiah Himself. And the wonder of John’s birth, to the aged Zacharias and Elisabeth, was to show his special place in the history of God’s redemption of His people.
How great the Lord’s answer to their prayers!
So must we be encouraged to pray, and to wait upon the Lord to whom we pray. So often when we pray, we have our own idea about the Lord’s answer. We come to Him in our prayer, our petitions and supplications shaped and molded by the answer we think appropriate. That answer we will often spell out. Then we wait. And we wait. We may pray and wait for a long time. It may seem that God has not heard our prayer. We may even take God’s lack of action as His answer of No. We then properly reconcile ourselves to His answer, resting in His Fatherly wisdom.
But we ought also to be prepared for such an answer as to exceed wonderfully our greatest expectations. When time is long past, and our prayers are long finished, then marvellously God will give us what we sought. Godly parents will pray for a wayward son. They will pray for years and years, perhaps never hearing from that son. They may even become sporadic in those prayers and even cease. Then their son appears, having turned from his wicked, wandering ways back to the Lord. The Lord has heard, and the Lord has answered! Or, we can think of parents who pray so fervently for the recovery and healing of their sick infant. The prayers of their loving hearts are joined with the prayers of their family and their church. Yet, the Lord is pleased instead to take that sick infant home to glory to be with Him. But how wonderfully their prayer is answered in the resurrection of the dead. The sorrow that attended their whole life on earth will be changed to unbounded joy when they are joined together in the everlasting wonder of the new heavens and earth, made perfect in glory.
So let us pray, and let us wait, to see what great things the Lord will do in His wisdom and in His time.
31 October 2013
Ezekiel 37:3-6, “And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest. Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord.”
Can these bones live?
In his vision from the Lord Ezekiel has looked and he has considered carefully this valley of dry bones. He has circled it, looking upon it from a distance. He has been brought near to see up close. In that open valley there were very many, and they were very dry. He could see they were cracked and brittle, their surfaces checkered and bleached under the hot sun and blasted by the dry wind. As far as those dry bones are concerned life is strictly impossible. The answer to the Lord’s question is an assured No. But God’s prophet is wise. He knows that he is not to reckon with the condition of the bones, but with the almighty power and will of God. He answers not with the pride of man but with the wisdom from above, “O Lord God, thou knowest.”
Ezekiel’s wonderful privilege is not only to see the Lord’s answer to His own question, but also to be the instrument of that answer. The Lord commands him to “prophesy upon these bones.” Ezekiel’s prophecy is to be a prophecy of the Lord’s work upon these dry bones. He is called to command them to hear: “Listen, you dry bones!” “Hear the Word of the Lord.” So He is commanded by God to prophesy the works of the Lord, announcing that work to the multitude of dry bones in that valley.
What will the Lord do? He will cause His breath (the Hebrew word also translated “Spirit”) to enter into them. They would thus live. He will lay sinews upon those bones, joining bone to bone. He will then bring flesh upon these bones, and cover the flesh with skin, and put breath (again, “Spirit”), so that they would live.
The result? They will know that He is the Lord, Jehovah. Their very life is proof that He is the Lord. By that life they must know. In that life the whole house of Israel must know.
So is the wonder of our salvation, the wonder of the Israel of God, all the children of promise, the true seed of Abraham according to promise. We were those dry bones, filling up that valley. In us was no hope, no life, not a flicker of a possibility. But the preaching has come to us, declaring God the only Saviour, who saves by Himself for the glory of His name. To us it has been prophesied that God lays the sinews, that He brings up flesh, that He covers with skin, and that He puts in our breath, to make us live. So we hear, and so we live. So we come to believe, entering the kingdom of heaven and seeking after God’s face. We, who were only dry, dead bones.
As we live this day, in the service of our God, walking before Him, let us know that He is the Lord, the Lord who has made us by His grace alone. Let us also pray for the continued progress of this Word of the Lord, to raise the dead to life, that all the house of Israel may know that He is the Lord!
Ezekiel 37:3-6, “And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest. Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord.”
Can these bones live?
In his vision from the Lord Ezekiel has looked and he has considered carefully this valley of dry bones. He has circled it, looking upon it from a distance. He has been brought near to see up close. In that open valley there were very many, and they were very dry. He could see they were cracked and brittle, their surfaces checkered and bleached under the hot sun and blasted by the dry wind. As far as those dry bones are concerned life is strictly impossible. The answer to the Lord’s question is an assured No. But God’s prophet is wise. He knows that he is not to reckon with the condition of the bones, but with the almighty power and will of God. He answers not with the pride of man but with the wisdom from above, “O Lord God, thou knowest.”
Ezekiel’s wonderful privilege is not only to see the Lord’s answer to His own question, but also to be the instrument of that answer. The Lord commands him to “prophesy upon these bones.” Ezekiel’s prophecy is to be a prophecy of the Lord’s work upon these dry bones. He is called to command them to hear: “Listen, you dry bones!” “Hear the Word of the Lord.” So He is commanded by God to prophesy the works of the Lord, announcing that work to the multitude of dry bones in that valley.
What will the Lord do? He will cause His breath (the Hebrew word also translated “Spirit”) to enter into them. They would thus live. He will lay sinews upon those bones, joining bone to bone. He will then bring flesh upon these bones, and cover the flesh with skin, and put breath (again, “Spirit”), so that they would live.
The result? They will know that He is the Lord, Jehovah. Their very life is proof that He is the Lord. By that life they must know. In that life the whole house of Israel must know.
So is the wonder of our salvation, the wonder of the Israel of God, all the children of promise, the true seed of Abraham according to promise. We were those dry bones, filling up that valley. In us was no hope, no life, not a flicker of a possibility. But the preaching has come to us, declaring God the only Saviour, who saves by Himself for the glory of His name. To us it has been prophesied that God lays the sinews, that He brings up flesh, that He covers with skin, and that He puts in our breath, to make us live. So we hear, and so we live. So we come to believe, entering the kingdom of heaven and seeking after God’s face. We, who were only dry, dead bones.
As we live this day, in the service of our God, walking before Him, let us know that He is the Lord, the Lord who has made us by His grace alone. Let us also pray for the continued progress of this Word of the Lord, to raise the dead to life, that all the house of Israel may know that He is the Lord!
30 October 2013
I Peter 4:7-9, “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer. And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. Use hospitality one to another without grudging.”
The very first words of these verses tell us the truth: The end of all things is at hand. The End is near! Yes, the very words that are put on signs held up and sandwich signs worn by the “crazy Christians” portrayed in the media are the same truth that Scripture here declares. Jesus’ coming is at hand. The final warfare, the resurrection, the judgment, the burning of the old and the making of a new heavens and earth are just around the corner.
But Scripture continues on, to apply this truth. “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore…” How can this possibly be? If the end of all things is at hand, why be anything at all? Why do anything at all? Shouldn’t we simply be looking up into heaven, so that we can see the absolute first token of this great event?
Amazingly, because the end is at hand the first thing you must do is remain sober and watch unto prayer. Otherwise you will surely forget that the end of all things is at hand. Drunkenness (either literal or figurative—overwhelmed with hedonistic pleasure seeking of any kind) will make it impossible truly to know and reckon with Jesus’ return. In constant sobriety stay mindful of the Lord’s return, in its truth and its marvelous, surpassing glory. While watching, give yourself to the work of prayer, specifically seeking for and asking for the return of Jesus, praying, “Lord Jesus, Come quickly!” Let the ever-increasing wickedness, especially the wickedness of blasphemy and the persecution of Christians, goad you on to more fervent prayers for the Savior’s return in judgment.
Then these other exhortations follow, also because “the end of all things is at hand.” Have not just charity among yourselves, but fervent charity. Be in hot pursuit of charity. Be zealous to promote thoughts of affection and delight toward your fellow saints, to see them as the wonderful works of God in Christ, conforming them to His wonderful image. Out of that charity (being charitable), delight to lavish tokens of kindness and affection on them. That way of charity will be powerful to “cover the multitude of sins.” Rather than finding all kinds of occasions for offense and mistrust, charity will overcome them to love. Charity will give all good, rather than repay evil with evil.
In the same way, be hospitable to one another. Receive in love. Be forward in fellowship. Invite in goodwill. Do not grudge, out of ill finding fault will that raises barriers to fellowship. In charity set aside every grudge, rather than harboring them.
Why? Because “the end of things is at hand.” For the sake of that end, you need your fellow-saints, and your fellow-saints need you. Great things are at hand: great apostasy, the great tribulation with its great persecution, the rise of the antichrist and his great kingdom, determined to wipe God’s people from the face of the earth. Before these entities, you are not meant to stand alone, but are meant to stand together. “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” All of these things make for a strong church, able to stand well against all opposing forces, and able to continue shining as a city on a hill that cannot be hid.
For the truth stand, and stand together! Be cemented together, through sobriety and watching to prayer. Have fervent charity among yourselves, and be hospitable.
Why? The end of all things is at hand.
I Peter 4:7-9, “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer. And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. Use hospitality one to another without grudging.”
The very first words of these verses tell us the truth: The end of all things is at hand. The End is near! Yes, the very words that are put on signs held up and sandwich signs worn by the “crazy Christians” portrayed in the media are the same truth that Scripture here declares. Jesus’ coming is at hand. The final warfare, the resurrection, the judgment, the burning of the old and the making of a new heavens and earth are just around the corner.
But Scripture continues on, to apply this truth. “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore…” How can this possibly be? If the end of all things is at hand, why be anything at all? Why do anything at all? Shouldn’t we simply be looking up into heaven, so that we can see the absolute first token of this great event?
Amazingly, because the end is at hand the first thing you must do is remain sober and watch unto prayer. Otherwise you will surely forget that the end of all things is at hand. Drunkenness (either literal or figurative—overwhelmed with hedonistic pleasure seeking of any kind) will make it impossible truly to know and reckon with Jesus’ return. In constant sobriety stay mindful of the Lord’s return, in its truth and its marvelous, surpassing glory. While watching, give yourself to the work of prayer, specifically seeking for and asking for the return of Jesus, praying, “Lord Jesus, Come quickly!” Let the ever-increasing wickedness, especially the wickedness of blasphemy and the persecution of Christians, goad you on to more fervent prayers for the Savior’s return in judgment.
Then these other exhortations follow, also because “the end of all things is at hand.” Have not just charity among yourselves, but fervent charity. Be in hot pursuit of charity. Be zealous to promote thoughts of affection and delight toward your fellow saints, to see them as the wonderful works of God in Christ, conforming them to His wonderful image. Out of that charity (being charitable), delight to lavish tokens of kindness and affection on them. That way of charity will be powerful to “cover the multitude of sins.” Rather than finding all kinds of occasions for offense and mistrust, charity will overcome them to love. Charity will give all good, rather than repay evil with evil.
In the same way, be hospitable to one another. Receive in love. Be forward in fellowship. Invite in goodwill. Do not grudge, out of ill finding fault will that raises barriers to fellowship. In charity set aside every grudge, rather than harboring them.
Why? Because “the end of things is at hand.” For the sake of that end, you need your fellow-saints, and your fellow-saints need you. Great things are at hand: great apostasy, the great tribulation with its great persecution, the rise of the antichrist and his great kingdom, determined to wipe God’s people from the face of the earth. Before these entities, you are not meant to stand alone, but are meant to stand together. “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” All of these things make for a strong church, able to stand well against all opposing forces, and able to continue shining as a city on a hill that cannot be hid.
For the truth stand, and stand together! Be cemented together, through sobriety and watching to prayer. Have fervent charity among yourselves, and be hospitable.
Why? The end of all things is at hand.
29 October 2013
Mark 15:38, “And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom.”
Exodus 26:33, “And thou shalt hang up the vail under the taches, that thou mayest bring in thither within the vail the ark of the testimony: and the vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy.”
Hebrews 10:19, 20 “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh…”
For how many years that veil hung, dividing between the holy place and the most holy! Into the holy place went the priests every day to perform the temple service. They tended the table of showbread and the golden candlestick and the altar of incense. As they performed their duties they could not help but look at that veil of separation, beyond which was the most holy place, and that most significant object in Israel’s religion, the ark of the covenant of Jehovah, the chief symbol of His presence among His people. Indeed the materials to which they daily attended on this side of that veil all pointed to that veil and what lay beyond it.
The strength of that veil, hiding the ark from view, was not its fabric with all its weight and thickness, nor all its beautiful but imposing needlework. That veil hung there as a great barrier according to the law of God Himself. It was made and hung at His command with the prohibition of entering within the veil every day of the year but one, the Day of Atonement. Then, and only once on that day, was the High Priest to go behind the veil, to sprinkle the blood of the sacrifice on the mercy seat above the ark of the covenant.
So that veil hung every day, every year, through centuries, and through millennia, shielding the ark of the covenant, from view. (Though in Jesus’ day history/legend has it a large rock was substituted for the ark, which had been taken by the Babylonians.) But one day it tore. Its imposing thickness and height did not matter. For it was no human hand that tore that long-hanging veil. The hand of God grasped that veil. The hand of God tore it into two, from top to bottom. We might wonder if anyone was present to see it, but surely its sound filled the entire temple. They surely looked then, and were no doubt filled with awe and amazement. There was the veil, torn into two.
The tearing of the veil was the end. It was the end of the entire Old Testament economy of sacrifices and offerings, for atonement and consecration of God’s covenant people. The purpose of those sacrifices and offerings was always to point ahead to the one sacrifice that was to make the people forever perfect. Now they must end. Their purpose was to point to the sacrifice of God’s perfect, spotless Lamb, offered by God’s perfect, spotless, sinless priest, the Lamb Himself. Now, the very tearing of that veil of the temple must point to the sacrifice taking place outside the walls of Jerusalem, approving it as the only sacrifice that truly takes away all sin.
But that tearing of the veil was also a beginning, a wonderful and marvelous beginning. The old must make way for the new. For the old veil, torn by God, makes way for a new veil. And the new veil is no longer a barrier but it is a living, wide open, bold way. This new veil is the flesh of Jesus Christ Himself. He is the true temple of God in His body. He is the covenant Head and Mediator. He is the ark of the covenant, the veil of the temple, the temple itself, the most holy place, and the holy place. Through Him and by Him, God dwells with His people, in living friendship and fellowship.
By Him alone do we have full access to God. And since He is the Son of God we have boldness to enter God’s presence. His flesh has opened the way, and His blood has sanctified its ground.
Let us take that way to our God, with joyful boldness, to enter the most holy place of heaven itself! There let us bring our praises with gladness and joy, and pour out of our hearts all our supplications and petitions!
Mark 15:38, “And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom.”
Exodus 26:33, “And thou shalt hang up the vail under the taches, that thou mayest bring in thither within the vail the ark of the testimony: and the vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy.”
Hebrews 10:19, 20 “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh…”
For how many years that veil hung, dividing between the holy place and the most holy! Into the holy place went the priests every day to perform the temple service. They tended the table of showbread and the golden candlestick and the altar of incense. As they performed their duties they could not help but look at that veil of separation, beyond which was the most holy place, and that most significant object in Israel’s religion, the ark of the covenant of Jehovah, the chief symbol of His presence among His people. Indeed the materials to which they daily attended on this side of that veil all pointed to that veil and what lay beyond it.
The strength of that veil, hiding the ark from view, was not its fabric with all its weight and thickness, nor all its beautiful but imposing needlework. That veil hung there as a great barrier according to the law of God Himself. It was made and hung at His command with the prohibition of entering within the veil every day of the year but one, the Day of Atonement. Then, and only once on that day, was the High Priest to go behind the veil, to sprinkle the blood of the sacrifice on the mercy seat above the ark of the covenant.
So that veil hung every day, every year, through centuries, and through millennia, shielding the ark of the covenant, from view. (Though in Jesus’ day history/legend has it a large rock was substituted for the ark, which had been taken by the Babylonians.) But one day it tore. Its imposing thickness and height did not matter. For it was no human hand that tore that long-hanging veil. The hand of God grasped that veil. The hand of God tore it into two, from top to bottom. We might wonder if anyone was present to see it, but surely its sound filled the entire temple. They surely looked then, and were no doubt filled with awe and amazement. There was the veil, torn into two.
The tearing of the veil was the end. It was the end of the entire Old Testament economy of sacrifices and offerings, for atonement and consecration of God’s covenant people. The purpose of those sacrifices and offerings was always to point ahead to the one sacrifice that was to make the people forever perfect. Now they must end. Their purpose was to point to the sacrifice of God’s perfect, spotless Lamb, offered by God’s perfect, spotless, sinless priest, the Lamb Himself. Now, the very tearing of that veil of the temple must point to the sacrifice taking place outside the walls of Jerusalem, approving it as the only sacrifice that truly takes away all sin.
But that tearing of the veil was also a beginning, a wonderful and marvelous beginning. The old must make way for the new. For the old veil, torn by God, makes way for a new veil. And the new veil is no longer a barrier but it is a living, wide open, bold way. This new veil is the flesh of Jesus Christ Himself. He is the true temple of God in His body. He is the covenant Head and Mediator. He is the ark of the covenant, the veil of the temple, the temple itself, the most holy place, and the holy place. Through Him and by Him, God dwells with His people, in living friendship and fellowship.
By Him alone do we have full access to God. And since He is the Son of God we have boldness to enter God’s presence. His flesh has opened the way, and His blood has sanctified its ground.
Let us take that way to our God, with joyful boldness, to enter the most holy place of heaven itself! There let us bring our praises with gladness and joy, and pour out of our hearts all our supplications and petitions!
27 October 2013
Psalm 99:1, 2, “The Lord reigneth; let the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubims; let the earth be moved. The Lord is great in Zion; and he is high above all the people.”
The Lord is great in Zion!
The Lord is great in all places. He is great in the heavens above, where is His glorious throne, surrounded by the hosts of heaven, the angels and the souls of the redeemed. He is great with all the brilliant, splendid light of His glory that illuminates every space and every corner in that blessed place. He is great in the earth, where he shows His glory and power as Creator through all the things that are made. He is great in His judgments of salvation and destruction.
Yet He is so much greater that the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain Him. He is absolute, pure, infinite being. He is great.
He is great in His reign and His dominion over all. He is high above all the people. All His will and good pleasure He does through heaven and earth, and among all peoples and nations. Among them, through them, and upon them, He always does what He has decreed and ordained. In all His rule, there is not a single point where His will is frustrated or hindered.
Therefore, let the people tremble! Therefore let the earth be moved!
The Lord is great in Zion! Yes, here is cause for us to tremble with fear, even as the earth is to tremble at the presence of the Lord, who sits between the cherubim. Our fear is the blessed wonderful fear of the Lord who is our God. Our fear is the childlike awe and wonder that the Lord our God is near to us in the greatness of His tender love, kindness, and mercy. We tremble on account of the riches of His grace and mercy poured out upon us through the cross of His only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ.
The Lord is great in Zion because that is the place where His people gather together to know this great God is among them. There they see that He is their God forever and ever. It is the place where He has determined to manifest Himself in His grace and mercy to them, dwelling among them in His blessed friendship.
As it was in Bible times, so it is now. God is pleased to show His glory and His truth through the preaching of the gospel, where His people gather together to worship Him. In that blessed place He testifies of His love for His people, the love that has done such mighty deeds to reconcile them to Himself when they were sinners and ungodly. He testifies of His constant care, His guidance and provision. He shows them all that He will do for them, the power of His love to bring them to be with Him forever in His heavenly home.
May that love draw us in love to gather in Zion this sabbath day! May we tremble with fear at the greatness of the love of our God! And may our praises of His name ring out to His glory, the Lord who reigns!
Psalm 99:1, 2, “The Lord reigneth; let the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubims; let the earth be moved. The Lord is great in Zion; and he is high above all the people.”
The Lord is great in Zion!
The Lord is great in all places. He is great in the heavens above, where is His glorious throne, surrounded by the hosts of heaven, the angels and the souls of the redeemed. He is great with all the brilliant, splendid light of His glory that illuminates every space and every corner in that blessed place. He is great in the earth, where he shows His glory and power as Creator through all the things that are made. He is great in His judgments of salvation and destruction.
Yet He is so much greater that the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain Him. He is absolute, pure, infinite being. He is great.
He is great in His reign and His dominion over all. He is high above all the people. All His will and good pleasure He does through heaven and earth, and among all peoples and nations. Among them, through them, and upon them, He always does what He has decreed and ordained. In all His rule, there is not a single point where His will is frustrated or hindered.
Therefore, let the people tremble! Therefore let the earth be moved!
The Lord is great in Zion! Yes, here is cause for us to tremble with fear, even as the earth is to tremble at the presence of the Lord, who sits between the cherubim. Our fear is the blessed wonderful fear of the Lord who is our God. Our fear is the childlike awe and wonder that the Lord our God is near to us in the greatness of His tender love, kindness, and mercy. We tremble on account of the riches of His grace and mercy poured out upon us through the cross of His only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ.
The Lord is great in Zion because that is the place where His people gather together to know this great God is among them. There they see that He is their God forever and ever. It is the place where He has determined to manifest Himself in His grace and mercy to them, dwelling among them in His blessed friendship.
As it was in Bible times, so it is now. God is pleased to show His glory and His truth through the preaching of the gospel, where His people gather together to worship Him. In that blessed place He testifies of His love for His people, the love that has done such mighty deeds to reconcile them to Himself when they were sinners and ungodly. He testifies of His constant care, His guidance and provision. He shows them all that He will do for them, the power of His love to bring them to be with Him forever in His heavenly home.
May that love draw us in love to gather in Zion this sabbath day! May we tremble with fear at the greatness of the love of our God! And may our praises of His name ring out to His glory, the Lord who reigns!
26 October 2013
Mark 7:33-34, “And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue; And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Eph-phatha, that is, Be opened.”
“And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech.” This man, a deaf-mute, could not hear the gospel of the kingdom of God from Jesus’ mouth. He could not open his mouth and express his desire to Jesus for healing. But he did have his friends. His friends brought him to Jesus. They used their mouths to ask Jesus to heal their friend, laying his hand upon him.
But Jesus had other ideas. In the wonderful riches of his love, He would preach to this man according to his need. He gave His time and his care to this poor deaf-mute. First, Jesus took him aside from the multitude, so that this man might be able to concentrate his attention on Jesus’ actions without the distraction of the multitude. Then Jesus “spoke” to him by means of a wonderfully contrived sign language. Putting His fingers into his ears, and touching his tongue with His spit, Jesus explained what He was about to do. By looking up into heaven, this man watching His eyes turn heavenward, Jesus showed that He would heal by the power of His heavenly Father. In sighing, exhaling deeply, Jesus showed that such power to heal would come also from deep within Him, from the Spirit of the Father within Him. Even with His command, Eph-phatha, framing the word with his lips and tongue, Jesus will show that He commands, so that it is done.
So the deaf is made to hear, and the dumb to speak, astonishing the multitude beyond measure!
Wonderful, accommodating love!
Is our salvation really any different than this man deaf and dumb? To be sure, by nature we are incapable of hearing the gospel. We have no ears to hear it. By nature we are entirely predisposed to hardness of heart against it. By nature we have no tongue, either to ask forgiveness of our sin or eternal life. We have no tongue to confess our sins, or that the Lord is God. Our ears must be opened, and our hearts softened, even regenerated. Only then can we see and enter the kingdom of God.
But even more fundamental, we are mere creatures of dust. We are of the earth, earthy. We are finite. How can we know the things of the eternal, infinite, absolute, self-sufficient God? How can we know the God who dwells in light unapproachable? His Word must come to us in the language of men. His Son must come to us in the likeness of our sinful flesh. He must teach us in parables, by similitudes, and likenesses, leading us to the kingdom of God and to enter it, all by His grace.
Out of His great love He teaches us. He places His fingers in our ears, and touches our tongues with His finger. He will raise us from our death. He will give us ears to hear, minds to understand, hearts to believe, and mouths to confess to His praise and glory. And He does. He commands our salvation, and we are saved. Our Saviour leads us every step of the way to His eternal kingdom.
Let us be astonished beyond measure, and let us praise the name of our Saviour, “He hath done all things well!”
Mark 7:33-34, “And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue; And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Eph-phatha, that is, Be opened.”
“And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech.” This man, a deaf-mute, could not hear the gospel of the kingdom of God from Jesus’ mouth. He could not open his mouth and express his desire to Jesus for healing. But he did have his friends. His friends brought him to Jesus. They used their mouths to ask Jesus to heal their friend, laying his hand upon him.
But Jesus had other ideas. In the wonderful riches of his love, He would preach to this man according to his need. He gave His time and his care to this poor deaf-mute. First, Jesus took him aside from the multitude, so that this man might be able to concentrate his attention on Jesus’ actions without the distraction of the multitude. Then Jesus “spoke” to him by means of a wonderfully contrived sign language. Putting His fingers into his ears, and touching his tongue with His spit, Jesus explained what He was about to do. By looking up into heaven, this man watching His eyes turn heavenward, Jesus showed that He would heal by the power of His heavenly Father. In sighing, exhaling deeply, Jesus showed that such power to heal would come also from deep within Him, from the Spirit of the Father within Him. Even with His command, Eph-phatha, framing the word with his lips and tongue, Jesus will show that He commands, so that it is done.
So the deaf is made to hear, and the dumb to speak, astonishing the multitude beyond measure!
Wonderful, accommodating love!
Is our salvation really any different than this man deaf and dumb? To be sure, by nature we are incapable of hearing the gospel. We have no ears to hear it. By nature we are entirely predisposed to hardness of heart against it. By nature we have no tongue, either to ask forgiveness of our sin or eternal life. We have no tongue to confess our sins, or that the Lord is God. Our ears must be opened, and our hearts softened, even regenerated. Only then can we see and enter the kingdom of God.
But even more fundamental, we are mere creatures of dust. We are of the earth, earthy. We are finite. How can we know the things of the eternal, infinite, absolute, self-sufficient God? How can we know the God who dwells in light unapproachable? His Word must come to us in the language of men. His Son must come to us in the likeness of our sinful flesh. He must teach us in parables, by similitudes, and likenesses, leading us to the kingdom of God and to enter it, all by His grace.
Out of His great love He teaches us. He places His fingers in our ears, and touches our tongues with His finger. He will raise us from our death. He will give us ears to hear, minds to understand, hearts to believe, and mouths to confess to His praise and glory. And He does. He commands our salvation, and we are saved. Our Saviour leads us every step of the way to His eternal kingdom.
Let us be astonished beyond measure, and let us praise the name of our Saviour, “He hath done all things well!”
25 October 2013
Psalm 16: 5, 6, “The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot. The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.”
What joy and gladness fill David’s heart as he looks over his place in life!
He considers everything about him. He considers his heritage. Most narrowly, this refers to that piece of land which a man would receive from his father, who in turn would receive it from his father, and so on, to the very time when each tribe, house, and family received its parcel from the Lord when Israel received Canaan from the Lord. As each received its place in the land, the members of that household knew that fulfillment of God’s covenant promise to Abraham, that to the patriarch’s seed He would give the land.
More broadly, David uses this word to encompass his entire life. Understood is the providential government of God attending to every detail of the Psalmist’s life, up to this point. All things David must call his heritage. And all of it he calls good. “I have a goodly heritage.”
His view also extends to the very definition of his heritage. He looks over all of his heritage, going to its very ends. Those are “the lines,” that sharply and clearly define the boundaries of his heritage. Going even to those ends, and examining them closely, he is able to say, “The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places.” He then concludes, “Yea, I have a goodly heritage.”
How can this be?
Has David simply forgotten? Has he forgotten his life on the run from Saul? Did he forget the dangers that constantly attended him while fleeing from Saul’s demonic anger? Has he forgotten his imminent peril when he first fled to Achish, king of Gath, for safety, and escaped only by feigning madness? Has he forgotten his despair of life, being surrounded and cut off by his enemies?
No, he has not forgotten. No, there is only one reason why David why he can say the lines were fallen unto him in pleasant places, that a goodly heritage was his. It was all due to the God that maintained his lot. He makes the most proper beginning, in considering his life. Not with the lines nor with his heritage, but with the Lord does he begin. “The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup.”
Note the power of those words. Not that the Lord had given David the portion of his inheritance. Not that the Lord had given to David his cup. The portion of David’s inheritance was the Lord himself. The Lord Himself was the portion of David’s cup. The Lord was David’s God.
So let us reckon with our heritage and our lines. So may we find our heritage good, and our lines fallen to us in pleasant places. Whether we have much or little. Whether we have health or sickness. Whether we have anxieties or tranquility. Whether we are persecuted or free. None of these will make our heritage goodly, nor put our lines in pleasant places. The Lord is our God. We have a goodly heritage!
Psalm 16: 5, 6, “The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot. The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.”
What joy and gladness fill David’s heart as he looks over his place in life!
He considers everything about him. He considers his heritage. Most narrowly, this refers to that piece of land which a man would receive from his father, who in turn would receive it from his father, and so on, to the very time when each tribe, house, and family received its parcel from the Lord when Israel received Canaan from the Lord. As each received its place in the land, the members of that household knew that fulfillment of God’s covenant promise to Abraham, that to the patriarch’s seed He would give the land.
More broadly, David uses this word to encompass his entire life. Understood is the providential government of God attending to every detail of the Psalmist’s life, up to this point. All things David must call his heritage. And all of it he calls good. “I have a goodly heritage.”
His view also extends to the very definition of his heritage. He looks over all of his heritage, going to its very ends. Those are “the lines,” that sharply and clearly define the boundaries of his heritage. Going even to those ends, and examining them closely, he is able to say, “The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places.” He then concludes, “Yea, I have a goodly heritage.”
How can this be?
Has David simply forgotten? Has he forgotten his life on the run from Saul? Did he forget the dangers that constantly attended him while fleeing from Saul’s demonic anger? Has he forgotten his imminent peril when he first fled to Achish, king of Gath, for safety, and escaped only by feigning madness? Has he forgotten his despair of life, being surrounded and cut off by his enemies?
No, he has not forgotten. No, there is only one reason why David why he can say the lines were fallen unto him in pleasant places, that a goodly heritage was his. It was all due to the God that maintained his lot. He makes the most proper beginning, in considering his life. Not with the lines nor with his heritage, but with the Lord does he begin. “The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup.”
Note the power of those words. Not that the Lord had given David the portion of his inheritance. Not that the Lord had given to David his cup. The portion of David’s inheritance was the Lord himself. The Lord Himself was the portion of David’s cup. The Lord was David’s God.
So let us reckon with our heritage and our lines. So may we find our heritage good, and our lines fallen to us in pleasant places. Whether we have much or little. Whether we have health or sickness. Whether we have anxieties or tranquility. Whether we are persecuted or free. None of these will make our heritage goodly, nor put our lines in pleasant places. The Lord is our God. We have a goodly heritage!
23 October 2013
Psalm 14:5, 6, “There were they in great fear: for God is in the generation of the righteous. Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor, because the Lord is his refuge.”
The way of these two verses becomes clear when we realize that their order does not follow the world’s order of time. These two verses do not tell a story so much as they present an argument, moving from conclusion to its reason. Why are the fools now in great fear, who so proudly boasted in their hearts, “There is no God”? Fearlessly they boasted. They prattled on about the “nonsense of religion.” Perhaps they called it “the opiate of the masses.” They were above all that.
But then they came to great fear. Their pride instantly vanished. Their boasting died on their lips.
How did this happen?
These proud fools tried to prove their vain boast. They went about to shame the counsel of the righteous poor. These righteous poor walked in their wisdom. In their wisdom they took up their place in the earth, in the service of the Lord their God. They earned their meager living with the work the Lord daily gave them. They endeavoured to maintain their homes and families in the fear of the Lord. They bestowed their careful labour on their children, seeking to raise them in true wisdom. Because they set their hearts on the Lord, rather than on earthly riches, so were their treasures. Poor materially, yet rich spiritually, they were happy in the Lord.
So these righteous poor became a target for these proud fools. The ungodly atheists attacked the righteous poor. They worked to shame their counsel and overthrow their wisdom, persecuting them in their pride. So might they laugh in their triumph over these poor, “There is no God!”
But then their proud laughter died on their lips. They came to great fear. For God had His proof. As these fools went to shame the counsel of the poor, because the Lord was his refuge, they found the truth. “God is in the generation of the righteous.” “The Lord is his refuge.” The Lord is the helper of the upright, the poor, and the oppressed. He is the helper of the fatherless and the widow.
So it is always, over and over again. So it is always the program of the ungodly fools. Not content with boasting only, they must try to shame the counsel of the poor. They must argue and intimidate and shame by their words. They will move beyond words to blows, beatings, imprisonment, torture, and killing when and where they can. Such will be the way of antichrist when he comes to power. The fool will boast, “There is no God.” His boast he will prove by his persecution.
So it will also be said of him and of the ungodly fools, “There were they in great fear.” They will see the sign of the Son of man in the heavens, coming in judgment. Their boastful pride will in an instant turn to deep, bitter shame at the sight.
Yes, God is in the generation of the righteous. Yes, the Lord will be their refuge. So may we trust, and so may we pray: “Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion! When the Lord bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.”
Psalm 14:5, 6, “There were they in great fear: for God is in the generation of the righteous. Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor, because the Lord is his refuge.”
The way of these two verses becomes clear when we realize that their order does not follow the world’s order of time. These two verses do not tell a story so much as they present an argument, moving from conclusion to its reason. Why are the fools now in great fear, who so proudly boasted in their hearts, “There is no God”? Fearlessly they boasted. They prattled on about the “nonsense of religion.” Perhaps they called it “the opiate of the masses.” They were above all that.
But then they came to great fear. Their pride instantly vanished. Their boasting died on their lips.
How did this happen?
These proud fools tried to prove their vain boast. They went about to shame the counsel of the righteous poor. These righteous poor walked in their wisdom. In their wisdom they took up their place in the earth, in the service of the Lord their God. They earned their meager living with the work the Lord daily gave them. They endeavoured to maintain their homes and families in the fear of the Lord. They bestowed their careful labour on their children, seeking to raise them in true wisdom. Because they set their hearts on the Lord, rather than on earthly riches, so were their treasures. Poor materially, yet rich spiritually, they were happy in the Lord.
So these righteous poor became a target for these proud fools. The ungodly atheists attacked the righteous poor. They worked to shame their counsel and overthrow their wisdom, persecuting them in their pride. So might they laugh in their triumph over these poor, “There is no God!”
But then their proud laughter died on their lips. They came to great fear. For God had His proof. As these fools went to shame the counsel of the poor, because the Lord was his refuge, they found the truth. “God is in the generation of the righteous.” “The Lord is his refuge.” The Lord is the helper of the upright, the poor, and the oppressed. He is the helper of the fatherless and the widow.
So it is always, over and over again. So it is always the program of the ungodly fools. Not content with boasting only, they must try to shame the counsel of the poor. They must argue and intimidate and shame by their words. They will move beyond words to blows, beatings, imprisonment, torture, and killing when and where they can. Such will be the way of antichrist when he comes to power. The fool will boast, “There is no God.” His boast he will prove by his persecution.
So it will also be said of him and of the ungodly fools, “There were they in great fear.” They will see the sign of the Son of man in the heavens, coming in judgment. Their boastful pride will in an instant turn to deep, bitter shame at the sight.
Yes, God is in the generation of the righteous. Yes, the Lord will be their refuge. So may we trust, and so may we pray: “Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion! When the Lord bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.”
22 October 2013
Matthew 27: 12-14, “And when he was accused of the chief priests and elders, he answered nothing. Then said Pilate unto him, Hearest thou not how many things they witness against thee? And he answered him to never a word; insomuch that the governor marvelled greatly.”
Isaiah 53:7, “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.”
Pilate, Judea’s governor marveled greatly, remarkable for the jaded, cynical skeptic that he was. To be sure, he witnessed a marvelous thing. Before him was a man, on the verge of being condemned to death. Opposing this man were his own religious leaders, hurling accusation after accusation against him. No doubt that Pilate could see these charges were false, if only from the deep hatred on his accusers’ faces. But, wonder of wonders, this man had nothing to say. This righteous teacher faced with such accusations of wickedness, was wholly silent. He did not defend. He did not counter-charge. He had nothing to say.
So Pilate marveled greatly. So we must marvel greatly. But even greater must be our marveling. We know this man not merely to be any human being falsely charged and accused of crimes making him worthy of death. But He is the very Son of God. So far from being a criminal, He is the pure, spotless, holy Son of God! So far from being not guilty of charges, He has absolutely no guilt at all! No guilt of any sin is His. No taint of any depravity is His. His is only thorough, absolutely perfect holiness and righteousness that stand upright before the bar of a perfectly holy God, the Searcher of hearts! Let the Jewish leaders, Pontius Pilate, and the whole world be condemned, but not this One, the Son of God.
There He stands, accused but silent. And we must marvel greatly.
We marvel greatly because this silence is also glorious. It is a wonderful fulfillment of the prophecy of the Scriptures, of Isaiah 53:7. While Jesus remains silent before Pilate, the Scriptures speak loudly and clearly about that silence. Written so long before, they explain that this is the silence of the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. Jesus’ silence explains to us that He is the Messiah, the Redeemer sent by God for the redemption of the world.
His silence makes us marvel greatly: He is the Saviour, our Saviour.
This marvel becomes even greater when we understand the very point of the His powerful silence. His silence is His suffering. He was sent by His heavenly Father to be the suffering Saviour, to work marvelous redemption by all His suffering. So He was sent to bear the wrath of God, hanging on the cross during the three hours of terrible darkness. But He was also sent by His heavenly Father to bear the words of men. He was sent to bear their words cast in his teeth while on the cross, the words of the leaders pouring out their envenomed spite on Him, and even the words of those crucified with Him. He was sent also to bear these words of unjust accusation cast against Him before Pontius Pilate.
Perfectly He bore those unjust, evil words. Silently He listened, taking them into His ears, into His mind, and into the depths of His heart. He drank without pause all their bitter dregs. He drank in all their wicked poison, to course in all the channels and recesses of His holy heart, eating away with all destructive power. He drank this cup, given into His hands by His Father. He drank it in silent submission.
In His silence, we are silent. And we marvel greatly. What a Saviour, this Lamb of God!
Matthew 27: 12-14, “And when he was accused of the chief priests and elders, he answered nothing. Then said Pilate unto him, Hearest thou not how many things they witness against thee? And he answered him to never a word; insomuch that the governor marvelled greatly.”
Isaiah 53:7, “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.”
Pilate, Judea’s governor marveled greatly, remarkable for the jaded, cynical skeptic that he was. To be sure, he witnessed a marvelous thing. Before him was a man, on the verge of being condemned to death. Opposing this man were his own religious leaders, hurling accusation after accusation against him. No doubt that Pilate could see these charges were false, if only from the deep hatred on his accusers’ faces. But, wonder of wonders, this man had nothing to say. This righteous teacher faced with such accusations of wickedness, was wholly silent. He did not defend. He did not counter-charge. He had nothing to say.
So Pilate marveled greatly. So we must marvel greatly. But even greater must be our marveling. We know this man not merely to be any human being falsely charged and accused of crimes making him worthy of death. But He is the very Son of God. So far from being a criminal, He is the pure, spotless, holy Son of God! So far from being not guilty of charges, He has absolutely no guilt at all! No guilt of any sin is His. No taint of any depravity is His. His is only thorough, absolutely perfect holiness and righteousness that stand upright before the bar of a perfectly holy God, the Searcher of hearts! Let the Jewish leaders, Pontius Pilate, and the whole world be condemned, but not this One, the Son of God.
There He stands, accused but silent. And we must marvel greatly.
We marvel greatly because this silence is also glorious. It is a wonderful fulfillment of the prophecy of the Scriptures, of Isaiah 53:7. While Jesus remains silent before Pilate, the Scriptures speak loudly and clearly about that silence. Written so long before, they explain that this is the silence of the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. Jesus’ silence explains to us that He is the Messiah, the Redeemer sent by God for the redemption of the world.
His silence makes us marvel greatly: He is the Saviour, our Saviour.
This marvel becomes even greater when we understand the very point of the His powerful silence. His silence is His suffering. He was sent by His heavenly Father to be the suffering Saviour, to work marvelous redemption by all His suffering. So He was sent to bear the wrath of God, hanging on the cross during the three hours of terrible darkness. But He was also sent by His heavenly Father to bear the words of men. He was sent to bear their words cast in his teeth while on the cross, the words of the leaders pouring out their envenomed spite on Him, and even the words of those crucified with Him. He was sent also to bear these words of unjust accusation cast against Him before Pontius Pilate.
Perfectly He bore those unjust, evil words. Silently He listened, taking them into His ears, into His mind, and into the depths of His heart. He drank without pause all their bitter dregs. He drank in all their wicked poison, to course in all the channels and recesses of His holy heart, eating away with all destructive power. He drank this cup, given into His hands by His Father. He drank it in silent submission.
In His silence, we are silent. And we marvel greatly. What a Saviour, this Lamb of God!
21 October 2013
Luke 7:48, “And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven.”
What a sweet, simple word this is in the ears of this woman who is a sinner!
Yes, Simon the Pharisee, into whose lavish home this woman came, calls her a sinner. But he has no idea. He knows not its weighty burden. He is secure in his smug self-righteousness. Nor will he then know the sweet simplicity of Jesus’ word to this woman. It has no place in his heart, swollen with self-righteous pride.
But it is that very burden of sin that brings this woman into the home of Simon the Pharisee. It brings her straight into the citadel of merit’s proud boasting. It leads her into this multitude of perfectly pure men, to bear all their looks of hateful scorn and contempt, and to hear their whisperings of shameful reproach. But she will gladly bear them all, to bestow upon her Lord and Saviour the tokens of her deep affection and love.
Her love! Her love is the love of a sinner who knows the great weight of her debt before God. So many and so great were her sins, she knew not how to look up. She knew no way of freedom. She was destitute, without a hope of restoration. Then she heard Jesus’ preaching and teaching of the gospel of forgiveness. She heard the authority of His teaching and preaching, its authenticity sealed by miracles. And she believed, only believed, having nothing of her own but sin and guilt!
Yes, that love brings her into the home of Simon the Pharisee. That love brings her into his home, to go straight to Jesus. That love pours forth in a fountain of tears to wash the feet of her dear Saviour. Her love is the drying of Jesus’ feet with her hair. That love joyfully anoints those feet with soothing, restoring ointment.
In that bond of love are they knit together. In that bond her blessedness is to hear the affirming Word from her Savior, “Thy sins are forgiven.” Spoken to her with all the authority of the Son of God! Her sins are indeed and truly forgiven. Every spot gone, she is whiter than snow! Wonderful, glorious love knit together Saviour and saved.
In this house, the house of Simon the Pharisee! There they are together in this house of enmity toward them both. There they are together, under the baleful glare of their self-righteous enemies and alike condemned. There they are, sharing between them the tokens of contempt and loathing from the heart of their host.
There may we also stand, with this Saviour and his saved. There we go, to the cross of Jesus Christ, the cross set out in the pure preaching of the gospel. Our way to that cross takes us through the multitudes of the self-righteous. You hear them boasting of man’s own goodness. You hear them promoting the goodness of man’s free will, of man’s ability to choose to believe the gospel. You hear their scorn of the gospel of Christ, that He died to save unrighteous sinners. How they must likewise scorn us when we deny any goodness in man, and come only with our sins to our Saviour. There will we stand, knit in love to our Saviour. There will we rejoiced to be hated as our Saviour was hated.
Why? Because we hear from Him the same sweet, simple Word, “Thy sins are forgiven.”
Luke 7:48, “And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven.”
What a sweet, simple word this is in the ears of this woman who is a sinner!
Yes, Simon the Pharisee, into whose lavish home this woman came, calls her a sinner. But he has no idea. He knows not its weighty burden. He is secure in his smug self-righteousness. Nor will he then know the sweet simplicity of Jesus’ word to this woman. It has no place in his heart, swollen with self-righteous pride.
But it is that very burden of sin that brings this woman into the home of Simon the Pharisee. It brings her straight into the citadel of merit’s proud boasting. It leads her into this multitude of perfectly pure men, to bear all their looks of hateful scorn and contempt, and to hear their whisperings of shameful reproach. But she will gladly bear them all, to bestow upon her Lord and Saviour the tokens of her deep affection and love.
Her love! Her love is the love of a sinner who knows the great weight of her debt before God. So many and so great were her sins, she knew not how to look up. She knew no way of freedom. She was destitute, without a hope of restoration. Then she heard Jesus’ preaching and teaching of the gospel of forgiveness. She heard the authority of His teaching and preaching, its authenticity sealed by miracles. And she believed, only believed, having nothing of her own but sin and guilt!
Yes, that love brings her into the home of Simon the Pharisee. That love brings her into his home, to go straight to Jesus. That love pours forth in a fountain of tears to wash the feet of her dear Saviour. Her love is the drying of Jesus’ feet with her hair. That love joyfully anoints those feet with soothing, restoring ointment.
In that bond of love are they knit together. In that bond her blessedness is to hear the affirming Word from her Savior, “Thy sins are forgiven.” Spoken to her with all the authority of the Son of God! Her sins are indeed and truly forgiven. Every spot gone, she is whiter than snow! Wonderful, glorious love knit together Saviour and saved.
In this house, the house of Simon the Pharisee! There they are together in this house of enmity toward them both. There they are together, under the baleful glare of their self-righteous enemies and alike condemned. There they are, sharing between them the tokens of contempt and loathing from the heart of their host.
There may we also stand, with this Saviour and his saved. There we go, to the cross of Jesus Christ, the cross set out in the pure preaching of the gospel. Our way to that cross takes us through the multitudes of the self-righteous. You hear them boasting of man’s own goodness. You hear them promoting the goodness of man’s free will, of man’s ability to choose to believe the gospel. You hear their scorn of the gospel of Christ, that He died to save unrighteous sinners. How they must likewise scorn us when we deny any goodness in man, and come only with our sins to our Saviour. There will we stand, knit in love to our Saviour. There will we rejoiced to be hated as our Saviour was hated.
Why? Because we hear from Him the same sweet, simple Word, “Thy sins are forgiven.”
20 October 2013, The Lord's Day
Psalm 111:1, 9, “Praise ye the Lord, I will praise the Lord with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation. … He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name.”
Worshipping in the church of Jesus Christ, among the gathering of His people today, is the proper exercise of the truth of salvation.
The truth of salvation declared in the ninth verse of this Psalm is the way of God in His covenant with His people. “He hath commanded his covenant forever.” The commandment of God makes, establishes, fulfills and realizes His covenant. It is a divine covenant from beginning to end. Only because He commanded it can it be “forever.” If this covenant were dependent in any way on man’s abilities, it could not be “forever.”
This commandment of the Lord is also described in the words that come before, “He sent redemption unto His people.” To be sure, the center and heart of God’s commanding His covenant was the sending of the Word become flesh to shed His blood on the cross. For His blood was the blood of the covenant. The blood of Christ sealed the promises of that covenant to every one of its members. But the sending of redemption is the application of that blood to them. In that blood the Spirit washes them, delivering them from the guilt and bondage of their sins, and bringing them into the glorious liberty and life of the kingdom of God. They are redeemed! They who were no people of God are now His people! God is their God forever and ever!
By this wonderful redemption and by commanding His covenant forever, God has shown the reverence and holiness of His name. He, for the glory of His name, sent redemption unto His people. He, for the praise of His name, has commanded His covenant forever.
Your blessedness is to enter into the midst of that great work today. Today is the day of the gathering of the people of God’s covenant. In the preaching of the gospel today among His people, God will send redemption. He will command His covenant. He gathers His people to Himself by His Word and Spirit. In that gathering His name, holy and reverend, will be praised. Your blessing is to gather in “in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.” Your blessing is to praise the Lord there with your whole heart, to praise Him for your place in that covenant and among that people, by His sovereign grace alone.
Praise ye the Lord!
Psalm 111:1, 9, “Praise ye the Lord, I will praise the Lord with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation. … He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name.”
Worshipping in the church of Jesus Christ, among the gathering of His people today, is the proper exercise of the truth of salvation.
The truth of salvation declared in the ninth verse of this Psalm is the way of God in His covenant with His people. “He hath commanded his covenant forever.” The commandment of God makes, establishes, fulfills and realizes His covenant. It is a divine covenant from beginning to end. Only because He commanded it can it be “forever.” If this covenant were dependent in any way on man’s abilities, it could not be “forever.”
This commandment of the Lord is also described in the words that come before, “He sent redemption unto His people.” To be sure, the center and heart of God’s commanding His covenant was the sending of the Word become flesh to shed His blood on the cross. For His blood was the blood of the covenant. The blood of Christ sealed the promises of that covenant to every one of its members. But the sending of redemption is the application of that blood to them. In that blood the Spirit washes them, delivering them from the guilt and bondage of their sins, and bringing them into the glorious liberty and life of the kingdom of God. They are redeemed! They who were no people of God are now His people! God is their God forever and ever!
By this wonderful redemption and by commanding His covenant forever, God has shown the reverence and holiness of His name. He, for the glory of His name, sent redemption unto His people. He, for the praise of His name, has commanded His covenant forever.
Your blessedness is to enter into the midst of that great work today. Today is the day of the gathering of the people of God’s covenant. In the preaching of the gospel today among His people, God will send redemption. He will command His covenant. He gathers His people to Himself by His Word and Spirit. In that gathering His name, holy and reverend, will be praised. Your blessing is to gather in “in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.” Your blessing is to praise the Lord there with your whole heart, to praise Him for your place in that covenant and among that people, by His sovereign grace alone.
Praise ye the Lord!
16 October 2013
Psalm 142:3, “When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou knewest my path.”
Powerful help and comfort is here afforded to the child of God when his spirit is overwhelmed within him.
David, this man after God’s own heart and the sweet psalmist of Israel, was overwhelmed in his spirit. His spirit was wrapped up in gloom, grief, and sorrow. His was overwhelmed, feeling enveloped in ever-growing shades of darkness. He could not penetrate through that darkness to know God’s goodness and kindness toward him.
Note well, his spirit was overwhelmed within him. This was his certain condition according to his surrounding circumstances, in the cave, according to the heading of the Psalm. Being trapped by the overwhelming forces of Saul, his bleak outward condition entered into his consciousness and wrapped itself around his spirit. He had no strength of spirit left, cast wholly into shades of darkness and gloom.
So he knew, so he thought.
So sometimes knows the child of God. So sometimes he thinks. His spirit is overwhelmed within him. He is enveloped in shades of darkness, a great thick covering cast over him. There is no light. His way is darkness. There is no light for him to see his way. He fears to go anywhere, lest he fall to his destruction. He does not know his path. He cannot see the way, and he cannot know the end.
But that is not the whole story. Following is the wonderful and blessed knowledge of God. Though David does not know his path, God does. God knows David’s path, that it leads through all dangers and troubles to his blessed end of glory. God knows that path according to His own providence, as He will bring David along that pathway. God knows that path according to the end that He has ordained for His servant by His eternal decree of unconditional election. God knows that path as already completed, having brought David to that eternal glory appointed for him (Romans 8:30).
When God knew David’s path, David did not know. When his spirit was overwhelmed in him, David did not know his path. Nor did David know that God knew. David’s praise of God’s knowledge looks back to that time when his spirit was overwhelmed. “When my spirit was overwhelmed, then thou knewest my path.”
David here gives his spiritual history to you and me through this Psalm. Guided by the Spirit of God, David tells us about our paths. God always knows them. Especially when our spirit is overwhelmed within us, David’s testimony must speak powerfully to us. When our spirit is overwhelmed, and we do not know our pathway, God knows it. God knows it in grace, and God will keep us on it.
May this knowledge always be our confidence! May it also be our confidence to give to those whose spirits are overwhelmed within them, to tell them that God knows their path in His grace and everlasting mercies.
Psalm 142:3, “When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou knewest my path.”
Powerful help and comfort is here afforded to the child of God when his spirit is overwhelmed within him.
David, this man after God’s own heart and the sweet psalmist of Israel, was overwhelmed in his spirit. His spirit was wrapped up in gloom, grief, and sorrow. His was overwhelmed, feeling enveloped in ever-growing shades of darkness. He could not penetrate through that darkness to know God’s goodness and kindness toward him.
Note well, his spirit was overwhelmed within him. This was his certain condition according to his surrounding circumstances, in the cave, according to the heading of the Psalm. Being trapped by the overwhelming forces of Saul, his bleak outward condition entered into his consciousness and wrapped itself around his spirit. He had no strength of spirit left, cast wholly into shades of darkness and gloom.
So he knew, so he thought.
So sometimes knows the child of God. So sometimes he thinks. His spirit is overwhelmed within him. He is enveloped in shades of darkness, a great thick covering cast over him. There is no light. His way is darkness. There is no light for him to see his way. He fears to go anywhere, lest he fall to his destruction. He does not know his path. He cannot see the way, and he cannot know the end.
But that is not the whole story. Following is the wonderful and blessed knowledge of God. Though David does not know his path, God does. God knows David’s path, that it leads through all dangers and troubles to his blessed end of glory. God knows that path according to His own providence, as He will bring David along that pathway. God knows that path according to the end that He has ordained for His servant by His eternal decree of unconditional election. God knows that path as already completed, having brought David to that eternal glory appointed for him (Romans 8:30).
When God knew David’s path, David did not know. When his spirit was overwhelmed in him, David did not know his path. Nor did David know that God knew. David’s praise of God’s knowledge looks back to that time when his spirit was overwhelmed. “When my spirit was overwhelmed, then thou knewest my path.”
David here gives his spiritual history to you and me through this Psalm. Guided by the Spirit of God, David tells us about our paths. God always knows them. Especially when our spirit is overwhelmed within us, David’s testimony must speak powerfully to us. When our spirit is overwhelmed, and we do not know our pathway, God knows it. God knows it in grace, and God will keep us on it.
May this knowledge always be our confidence! May it also be our confidence to give to those whose spirits are overwhelmed within them, to tell them that God knows their path in His grace and everlasting mercies.
15 October 2013
Revelation 11:18, “And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.”
At the beginning and end of this verse are the reasons for the judgments of the Lord described in the middle.
How great are these judgments! Giving strength to every one of them is the burning wrath of God. That wrath is the operating force of His holy jealousy for the glory of his name. “Thy wrath is come.” That wrath is “the time of the dead, that they should be judged.” That wrath is manifested to deliver the prophets and saints from their persecution at the hands of the ungodly, to reward them for their patient suffering (James 5:8-11). That wrath is the judgment of the wicked who constantly reproached those that feared God’s name, small and great. In that judgement shall those that fear the Lord’s name finally know everlasting peace in the kingdom of their God and of their Christ!
In the end of this verse is the judgment of God’s great wrath declared in a most striking way: “and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.”
Who are these that destroy the earth? Are they those who pollute the earth with their chemical spills and dumps into land and streams? Are they those who spew millions of cubic feet of toxic smoke into the air from their industrial chimneys? Are they those who refuse to recycle? Are they those who continue to drive vehicles that fail their smog tests?
No.
Who are these that destroy the earth? Are they of “the green movement,” the environmentalists? Are they those with the words “carbon footprint” and “climate change,” constantly on their lips, or who in former days talked about “global warming,” or, “saving the planet”? Are they those who protest oil pipelines and coal-fired electrical plants? Are they those who carefully recycle and are conscientious about their own “environmental impact”?
Maybe.
The above questions do not determine who they are “that destroy the earth.” These questions do not who they are that shall be destroyed by the wrath of God in judgment.
Who are they that destroy the earth, whom God shall destroy?
The earth is destroyed by the moral pollutions of men. The ungodly indulge themselves more and more freely in their sins. The immoral join together in encouraging one another in the way of godlessness. The wicked find new ways of publicly promoting their abominable and shameful practices, overrunning the earth with wickedness over airwaves, cables, and print. The earth is soaked with the blood of innocents. Not only are the laws of God’s Word and His creation ordinances overthrown. They are overthrown with the approval of those in high places.
How great is this destruction of the earth! How great will be the destruction of those that destroy the earth! Judgment surely comes! God’s wrath is coming and the time of the dead. Let us be ready, found sober, watching and praying. Let us be found clinging to the cross of Jesus Christ, the only refuge from the holy wrath of God, the refuge He Himself as graciously provided.
Revelation 11:18, “And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.”
At the beginning and end of this verse are the reasons for the judgments of the Lord described in the middle.
How great are these judgments! Giving strength to every one of them is the burning wrath of God. That wrath is the operating force of His holy jealousy for the glory of his name. “Thy wrath is come.” That wrath is “the time of the dead, that they should be judged.” That wrath is manifested to deliver the prophets and saints from their persecution at the hands of the ungodly, to reward them for their patient suffering (James 5:8-11). That wrath is the judgment of the wicked who constantly reproached those that feared God’s name, small and great. In that judgement shall those that fear the Lord’s name finally know everlasting peace in the kingdom of their God and of their Christ!
In the end of this verse is the judgment of God’s great wrath declared in a most striking way: “and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.”
Who are these that destroy the earth? Are they those who pollute the earth with their chemical spills and dumps into land and streams? Are they those who spew millions of cubic feet of toxic smoke into the air from their industrial chimneys? Are they those who refuse to recycle? Are they those who continue to drive vehicles that fail their smog tests?
No.
Who are these that destroy the earth? Are they of “the green movement,” the environmentalists? Are they those with the words “carbon footprint” and “climate change,” constantly on their lips, or who in former days talked about “global warming,” or, “saving the planet”? Are they those who protest oil pipelines and coal-fired electrical plants? Are they those who carefully recycle and are conscientious about their own “environmental impact”?
Maybe.
The above questions do not determine who they are “that destroy the earth.” These questions do not who they are that shall be destroyed by the wrath of God in judgment.
Who are they that destroy the earth, whom God shall destroy?
The earth is destroyed by the moral pollutions of men. The ungodly indulge themselves more and more freely in their sins. The immoral join together in encouraging one another in the way of godlessness. The wicked find new ways of publicly promoting their abominable and shameful practices, overrunning the earth with wickedness over airwaves, cables, and print. The earth is soaked with the blood of innocents. Not only are the laws of God’s Word and His creation ordinances overthrown. They are overthrown with the approval of those in high places.
How great is this destruction of the earth! How great will be the destruction of those that destroy the earth! Judgment surely comes! God’s wrath is coming and the time of the dead. Let us be ready, found sober, watching and praying. Let us be found clinging to the cross of Jesus Christ, the only refuge from the holy wrath of God, the refuge He Himself as graciously provided.
14 October 2013
Psalm 103:1, 2, “Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.”
A powerful calling we are given here, to bring us into the Lord’s presence with thanksgiving. The Word of God gives us a calling to bring to our own souls. We are to rouse up our own souls to bless the Lord, through the praise of His holy name.
What a calling we have to give to our souls: to bless the Lord!
How is such a thing possible? How can we bless the Lord? What do we have to give to Him? How can we make Him blessed? How can we possibly add to Him? Is not the Lord our God the absolute, perfect, and overflowing fountain of all good? Is He not forever blessed within Himself, a perfect God, infinite in being, filled with His own delightful fellowship as the Triune God? Is He not Himself the perfection of all goodness, lacking absolutely nothing at all? All true.
How can we give anything to Him? Has not His hand made everything that we might lay our hands upon? Would it not be mere sham and pretense to take something in our hand to give to Him as if He did not possess it first? Are not the cattle on a thousand hills all His? Are not the very praises we offer up to Him, the fruit of His grace and Spirit working within us? All true.
And still we have this blessed, wonderful calling to give to our souls: “Bless the Lord, O my soul.” In our hearts we know that this is no sham and no pretense. For as we command our souls, we find them ready to obey. The ground of that obedience is even given to us in the end: forget not all his benefits.
Exactly! There is the wonder of what we bring and give to God from our souls. We are able to bless Him, not by having anything to give to Him, but by knowing all His benefits. As He has done everything for us, and given to us all things, our privilege is to tell Him about it. This is our thanksgiving. We stand in the presence of the Lord, and tell Him of all His gifts and blessings to us. We delight to remember them and account of them before the Lord. Then we ascribe all blessing to Him. We bless Him. We bless His holy name. We ascribe to Him all blessing, identifying and naming Him as the ever-blessed God. We declare that He alone is the fountain of all goodness, and there is no other Good, no other Blessed, than He.
For this purpose He has made us, and for this purpose He has redeemed us in Christ: to bless His name forever and ever! Let us rejoice to fulfill this purpose of our God, filled with the blessed knowledge of His infinite blessing to us! “Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.”
Psalm 103:1, 2, “Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.”
A powerful calling we are given here, to bring us into the Lord’s presence with thanksgiving. The Word of God gives us a calling to bring to our own souls. We are to rouse up our own souls to bless the Lord, through the praise of His holy name.
What a calling we have to give to our souls: to bless the Lord!
How is such a thing possible? How can we bless the Lord? What do we have to give to Him? How can we make Him blessed? How can we possibly add to Him? Is not the Lord our God the absolute, perfect, and overflowing fountain of all good? Is He not forever blessed within Himself, a perfect God, infinite in being, filled with His own delightful fellowship as the Triune God? Is He not Himself the perfection of all goodness, lacking absolutely nothing at all? All true.
How can we give anything to Him? Has not His hand made everything that we might lay our hands upon? Would it not be mere sham and pretense to take something in our hand to give to Him as if He did not possess it first? Are not the cattle on a thousand hills all His? Are not the very praises we offer up to Him, the fruit of His grace and Spirit working within us? All true.
And still we have this blessed, wonderful calling to give to our souls: “Bless the Lord, O my soul.” In our hearts we know that this is no sham and no pretense. For as we command our souls, we find them ready to obey. The ground of that obedience is even given to us in the end: forget not all his benefits.
Exactly! There is the wonder of what we bring and give to God from our souls. We are able to bless Him, not by having anything to give to Him, but by knowing all His benefits. As He has done everything for us, and given to us all things, our privilege is to tell Him about it. This is our thanksgiving. We stand in the presence of the Lord, and tell Him of all His gifts and blessings to us. We delight to remember them and account of them before the Lord. Then we ascribe all blessing to Him. We bless Him. We bless His holy name. We ascribe to Him all blessing, identifying and naming Him as the ever-blessed God. We declare that He alone is the fountain of all goodness, and there is no other Good, no other Blessed, than He.
For this purpose He has made us, and for this purpose He has redeemed us in Christ: to bless His name forever and ever! Let us rejoice to fulfill this purpose of our God, filled with the blessed knowledge of His infinite blessing to us! “Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.”
13 October 2013, The Lord's Day
Acts 13:26, “Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent.”
Today is the blessed opportunity to know the truth of these words!
So long ago were these words spoken by the apostle Paul on his first missionary journey. The beginning of this chapter records the church’s ordination of Paul and Barnabas for this work under the direction of the Holy Spirit. The church of Antioch in Syria called and sent them for this work. So it was that these two missionaries arrived at Antioch in Pisidia, of Asia Minor, to preach the gospel. As they addressed the gathering of that synagogue, they might speak these words, “To you is the word of this salvation sent.”
As Paul spoke, so was that congregation to hear. So were they also to believe: To us is this word of salvation sent. Though so many of that synagogue would the next week contradict that word and blaspheme, judging themselves unworthy of everlasting life, there were others. These others had been ordained to eternal life. These others believed. And how glad they were to know the truth: To us is the word of this salvation sent!
Such is your blessed opportunity today, to know the truth of these same words!
As you enter the house of the Lord, you do so for the sake that blessed Word. You desire to hear the preaching of the Word by an ordained minister of the gospel. You desire to hear that Word purely preached by a faithful servant of that Word. For the Lord has given to Him the Word, in order that he should proclaim it to you. Then, as you hear that Word proclaimed, you are able to know its glorious wonder. “To you is the word of this salvation sent.” Sent, not by this man or that man. Sent by the living God, the God of your salvation through Jesus Christ.
The Word of this salvation is sent to you. The Word is sent to you, for you to believe. The Word is sent to you, to make you know your ordination to eternal life, giving you the blessed joy and peace of your salvation. It is sent to you, to make you know the forgiveness of your sins, and the hope of glory at Jesus’ blessed return. It is sent to you, to fill you with strength to run with patience the race that is set before you.
So go to the Lord’s house today! Hear the preaching, believe it, rejoice in it, and give thanks for it: the Word sent to you!
Acts 13:26, “Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent.”
Today is the blessed opportunity to know the truth of these words!
So long ago were these words spoken by the apostle Paul on his first missionary journey. The beginning of this chapter records the church’s ordination of Paul and Barnabas for this work under the direction of the Holy Spirit. The church of Antioch in Syria called and sent them for this work. So it was that these two missionaries arrived at Antioch in Pisidia, of Asia Minor, to preach the gospel. As they addressed the gathering of that synagogue, they might speak these words, “To you is the word of this salvation sent.”
As Paul spoke, so was that congregation to hear. So were they also to believe: To us is this word of salvation sent. Though so many of that synagogue would the next week contradict that word and blaspheme, judging themselves unworthy of everlasting life, there were others. These others had been ordained to eternal life. These others believed. And how glad they were to know the truth: To us is the word of this salvation sent!
Such is your blessed opportunity today, to know the truth of these same words!
As you enter the house of the Lord, you do so for the sake that blessed Word. You desire to hear the preaching of the Word by an ordained minister of the gospel. You desire to hear that Word purely preached by a faithful servant of that Word. For the Lord has given to Him the Word, in order that he should proclaim it to you. Then, as you hear that Word proclaimed, you are able to know its glorious wonder. “To you is the word of this salvation sent.” Sent, not by this man or that man. Sent by the living God, the God of your salvation through Jesus Christ.
The Word of this salvation is sent to you. The Word is sent to you, for you to believe. The Word is sent to you, to make you know your ordination to eternal life, giving you the blessed joy and peace of your salvation. It is sent to you, to make you know the forgiveness of your sins, and the hope of glory at Jesus’ blessed return. It is sent to you, to fill you with strength to run with patience the race that is set before you.
So go to the Lord’s house today! Hear the preaching, believe it, rejoice in it, and give thanks for it: the Word sent to you!
11 October 2013
I Samuel 17:45, “Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.”
What an uneven, lopsided clash this must be, with its present outcome absolutely determined before the engagement! David’s description of the battle declares its end. His supreme confidence he explains to the Philistine of Gath. Before battle is joined, David tells why he must overcome and why Goliath must certainly fall.
For all Goliath has on his side is weakness, the vain power of man. He has his spear, the shaft of which was like a weaver’s beam and its head the weight of six hundred shekels of iron. He had his sword and his spear which matched in weight and size. Then there was the champion of the Philistine army himself, Goliath, probably twice David’s height. The giant had all his experience in battle, and had been trained for battle from his youth.
With the eye of flesh Goliath estimated and calculated. So he contemptuously cursed David by his gods. So with the eye of flesh Saul reckoned. So with the eye of flesh the army of Israel reckoned. So with the eye of flesh David’s brothers estimated. According to the flesh, they refused to fight. According to the flesh, they thought David mad for this foolish venture, which must end in the boy’s death.
But with the eye of flesh David did not reckon. In his reckoning the outcome was completely the opposite and even more certain: Goliath had no chance of surviving this encounter. The Philistine champion was as good as dead. David’s judgment was the conviction of faith. In that conviction he stood up against the Philistine and was ready to run to his victory over the giant of Gath. His confidence was not that he had his shepherd’s sling and his five smooth stones in his shepherd’s bag. His confidence was entirely in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel. God would certainly avenge His name, the name He had placed on the army of Israel, His covenant people. God would avenge the glory of his name on Goliath, because the giant defied Him.
As David knew, so it was. For the Lord’s servant this victory of the shepherd boy of Bethlehem over the Philistine champion was no surprise. The Lord saw to the glory of His name, the name which Israel’s champion confessed to be his strength in the day of battle.
So are we taught how to see and how to fight in assurance of certain victory. How great are our enemies? What are their weapons and tactics? How formidable are our obstacles? How heavy are our burdens? How grievous our difficulties? Should we reckon with the eye of flesh and the thoughts of men, all would be lost. In despair we must flee and hide ourselves from them all. But with the judgment of faith, we must know exactly the opposite. Victory and triumph must certainly be ours, by the name of the Lord of hosts.
That name let us know, by the Word of God we read, study, and meditate upon. That name let us call upon in worship and especially in prayer. In that name let us always trust. And in that name let us always fight, and always overcome, to the glory of “the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel.”
I Samuel 17:45, “Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.”
What an uneven, lopsided clash this must be, with its present outcome absolutely determined before the engagement! David’s description of the battle declares its end. His supreme confidence he explains to the Philistine of Gath. Before battle is joined, David tells why he must overcome and why Goliath must certainly fall.
For all Goliath has on his side is weakness, the vain power of man. He has his spear, the shaft of which was like a weaver’s beam and its head the weight of six hundred shekels of iron. He had his sword and his spear which matched in weight and size. Then there was the champion of the Philistine army himself, Goliath, probably twice David’s height. The giant had all his experience in battle, and had been trained for battle from his youth.
With the eye of flesh Goliath estimated and calculated. So he contemptuously cursed David by his gods. So with the eye of flesh Saul reckoned. So with the eye of flesh the army of Israel reckoned. So with the eye of flesh David’s brothers estimated. According to the flesh, they refused to fight. According to the flesh, they thought David mad for this foolish venture, which must end in the boy’s death.
But with the eye of flesh David did not reckon. In his reckoning the outcome was completely the opposite and even more certain: Goliath had no chance of surviving this encounter. The Philistine champion was as good as dead. David’s judgment was the conviction of faith. In that conviction he stood up against the Philistine and was ready to run to his victory over the giant of Gath. His confidence was not that he had his shepherd’s sling and his five smooth stones in his shepherd’s bag. His confidence was entirely in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel. God would certainly avenge His name, the name He had placed on the army of Israel, His covenant people. God would avenge the glory of his name on Goliath, because the giant defied Him.
As David knew, so it was. For the Lord’s servant this victory of the shepherd boy of Bethlehem over the Philistine champion was no surprise. The Lord saw to the glory of His name, the name which Israel’s champion confessed to be his strength in the day of battle.
So are we taught how to see and how to fight in assurance of certain victory. How great are our enemies? What are their weapons and tactics? How formidable are our obstacles? How heavy are our burdens? How grievous our difficulties? Should we reckon with the eye of flesh and the thoughts of men, all would be lost. In despair we must flee and hide ourselves from them all. But with the judgment of faith, we must know exactly the opposite. Victory and triumph must certainly be ours, by the name of the Lord of hosts.
That name let us know, by the Word of God we read, study, and meditate upon. That name let us call upon in worship and especially in prayer. In that name let us always trust. And in that name let us always fight, and always overcome, to the glory of “the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel.”
10 October 2013
Isaiah 12:2, “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation.”
Wonderful and powerful is this confession of God’s child, following the mercies of God. Through the cross of Jesus Christ, the atoning sacrifice, the Lord’s anger is turned away, and glorious comfort streams to His people. So they with joy draw water out of the wells of salvation. So they speak out of that abundant, overflowing joy, “Behold, God is my salvation . . .”
Simple is this confession because simple is this salvation: God is my salvation! God the Father has willed and determined this salvation eternally in His sovereign, unconditional decree of election. God the Son is the Mediator, the priest who sacrificed Himself, laying the whole foundation of salvation in His righteous blood. God the Holy Spirit is the Applier of this salvation, working it with all power in the elect. In this blessed knowledge, the child of God cries out, “Behold, God is my salvation!”
This confession is the glorious height of God’s everlasting covenant of grace. He does not merely bestow salvation. He does not merely elect, lay down His life, and apply salvation. By these actions He gives Himself to His people. So thoroughly and completely He gives Himself, the believer can say, “Behold, God is my salvation!” In God’s everlasting arms he rests. Under the blessed shadow of His wings he hides himself.
This confession is also the triumphant power before every enemy. “I will trust, and not be afraid.” Notice carefully the order of this trust. The believer does not trust in order to make God what He was not before, namely his salvation. He does not say here, “I trust that God is my salvation.” Faith says, “Behold, God is my salvation.” Then faith continues, “I will trust, and not be afraid.” Whoever and whatever the enemy, rising up against him with threatening power, the believer answers, “I will trust, and not be afraid.” Let the devil rage, and the world collected together in battle against the church. Let the old flesh assert itself against the new man with all subtlety. “I will trust, and not be afraid.”
Why? “The Lord Jehovah is my strength and song; he also is become my salvation.” The Lord Jehovah has already shown His victorious power. He has become “my salvation.” He has taken away the guilt of my sin and His anger against that guilt, washing me in the blood of His Son. The heaviest burden He has taken away from my stooped shoulders and bent back. He has already broken the bonds and chains of my depravity, setting me free to worship and serve Him. He is become my salvation. In my heart is His strength and His song, given to be mine forever.
“Behold, God is my salvation!” May it be our cry, today and always.
Isaiah 12:2, “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation.”
Wonderful and powerful is this confession of God’s child, following the mercies of God. Through the cross of Jesus Christ, the atoning sacrifice, the Lord’s anger is turned away, and glorious comfort streams to His people. So they with joy draw water out of the wells of salvation. So they speak out of that abundant, overflowing joy, “Behold, God is my salvation . . .”
Simple is this confession because simple is this salvation: God is my salvation! God the Father has willed and determined this salvation eternally in His sovereign, unconditional decree of election. God the Son is the Mediator, the priest who sacrificed Himself, laying the whole foundation of salvation in His righteous blood. God the Holy Spirit is the Applier of this salvation, working it with all power in the elect. In this blessed knowledge, the child of God cries out, “Behold, God is my salvation!”
This confession is the glorious height of God’s everlasting covenant of grace. He does not merely bestow salvation. He does not merely elect, lay down His life, and apply salvation. By these actions He gives Himself to His people. So thoroughly and completely He gives Himself, the believer can say, “Behold, God is my salvation!” In God’s everlasting arms he rests. Under the blessed shadow of His wings he hides himself.
This confession is also the triumphant power before every enemy. “I will trust, and not be afraid.” Notice carefully the order of this trust. The believer does not trust in order to make God what He was not before, namely his salvation. He does not say here, “I trust that God is my salvation.” Faith says, “Behold, God is my salvation.” Then faith continues, “I will trust, and not be afraid.” Whoever and whatever the enemy, rising up against him with threatening power, the believer answers, “I will trust, and not be afraid.” Let the devil rage, and the world collected together in battle against the church. Let the old flesh assert itself against the new man with all subtlety. “I will trust, and not be afraid.”
Why? “The Lord Jehovah is my strength and song; he also is become my salvation.” The Lord Jehovah has already shown His victorious power. He has become “my salvation.” He has taken away the guilt of my sin and His anger against that guilt, washing me in the blood of His Son. The heaviest burden He has taken away from my stooped shoulders and bent back. He has already broken the bonds and chains of my depravity, setting me free to worship and serve Him. He is become my salvation. In my heart is His strength and His song, given to be mine forever.
“Behold, God is my salvation!” May it be our cry, today and always.
9 October 2013
Proverbs 20:24, “Man’s goings are of the Lord; how can a man then understand his own way?”
Psalm 19:12, “Who can understand his errors? Cleanse thou me from secret faults.”
These few words from the Word of God must fill us with a sense of awe and wonder at our own natures. Indeed we are fearfully and wonderfully made.
“How can a man then understand his own way?” This truth confronts us every day. How can we understand the way that our hearts and our minds interact together to lead us to use the instruments of our body, from the movement of our eyes to the controlled movements of our hands? How do we form words with our breath, throat, tongue, teeth, and lips, all to convey the thoughts that are within our hearts and minds? How are we able to take up such a complicated task as driving a car on a busy freeway while concentrating on a problem at work or having a conversation with a passenger about faraway things?
But at the bottom of Scripture’s question in Psalm 20:24 is the right basis for the above question. “How can a man then understand his way?” For, “Man’s goings are of the Lord.” The confession of God’s absolute sovereignty over every man makes this question important. It is a question, then, to make us fear and tremble. It is a question to give us pause whenever we try to plumb the depths of our hearts and minds.
How many there are who foolishly refuse to follow this Word of God! They are most emphatic that man’s goings are not of the Lord. God is not sovereign over the most significant way of a man, many declare. The decision to believe on Jesus is of man and of man alone, so they say. God does not make a man believe. All God does is present the choice and outwardly encourage a man to believe. Maybe God will give a little bit of grace to make a man able to choose. Such thoughts are not the thoughts of God, nor true wisdom, according to Proverbs 20:24. The Word of God is clear: a man cannot understand his own way!
But look to the Lord! Man’s goings are of Him! The Lord knows, and the Lord speaks. “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you . . . ” John 15:16. It is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. Romans 9:16.
However the real point of Proverbs 20:24 and of Psalm 19:12 lies in a different direction. Here is cause for fear and trembling. What we do not know, God knows. We know all our ways are sinful. Whenever we sin, we see what we have done. Our sins, whether they are actions, words, or only thoughts, they are the end of a process that begins we know not where in the depths of our hearts. We do not know, but God knows. “Man’s goings are of the Lord.” As we know from God’s Word that all our sins proceed of the depravity that is in our hearts, we can only tremble to think of what the Lord sees in the depths of our hearts, looking where we ourselves cannot go. What a vile, polluted, ugly stench of a fountain resides there, next to which the Holy Spirit works by the sweetest, purest grace!
Therefore, the Word of God teaches us to pray: “Cleanse thou me from secret faults.” Marvelous and wonderful petition! This Word from God takes us to the places of our heart we cannot see or know. We are taught to pray for their cleansing in the blood of Christ. We assured of a gracious answer because our gracious God has so taught us to pray. We are also assured that as our Lord knows, so He cleanses, making those places white as snow before His holy and righteous eyes.
What grace! There is grace to teach us, grace to lead us, grace to forgive, and grace to cleanse, all from our gracious God, who know all our ways in grace. Let us give thanks and praise that grace now and forever!
Proverbs 20:24, “Man’s goings are of the Lord; how can a man then understand his own way?”
Psalm 19:12, “Who can understand his errors? Cleanse thou me from secret faults.”
These few words from the Word of God must fill us with a sense of awe and wonder at our own natures. Indeed we are fearfully and wonderfully made.
“How can a man then understand his own way?” This truth confronts us every day. How can we understand the way that our hearts and our minds interact together to lead us to use the instruments of our body, from the movement of our eyes to the controlled movements of our hands? How do we form words with our breath, throat, tongue, teeth, and lips, all to convey the thoughts that are within our hearts and minds? How are we able to take up such a complicated task as driving a car on a busy freeway while concentrating on a problem at work or having a conversation with a passenger about faraway things?
But at the bottom of Scripture’s question in Psalm 20:24 is the right basis for the above question. “How can a man then understand his way?” For, “Man’s goings are of the Lord.” The confession of God’s absolute sovereignty over every man makes this question important. It is a question, then, to make us fear and tremble. It is a question to give us pause whenever we try to plumb the depths of our hearts and minds.
How many there are who foolishly refuse to follow this Word of God! They are most emphatic that man’s goings are not of the Lord. God is not sovereign over the most significant way of a man, many declare. The decision to believe on Jesus is of man and of man alone, so they say. God does not make a man believe. All God does is present the choice and outwardly encourage a man to believe. Maybe God will give a little bit of grace to make a man able to choose. Such thoughts are not the thoughts of God, nor true wisdom, according to Proverbs 20:24. The Word of God is clear: a man cannot understand his own way!
But look to the Lord! Man’s goings are of Him! The Lord knows, and the Lord speaks. “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you . . . ” John 15:16. It is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. Romans 9:16.
However the real point of Proverbs 20:24 and of Psalm 19:12 lies in a different direction. Here is cause for fear and trembling. What we do not know, God knows. We know all our ways are sinful. Whenever we sin, we see what we have done. Our sins, whether they are actions, words, or only thoughts, they are the end of a process that begins we know not where in the depths of our hearts. We do not know, but God knows. “Man’s goings are of the Lord.” As we know from God’s Word that all our sins proceed of the depravity that is in our hearts, we can only tremble to think of what the Lord sees in the depths of our hearts, looking where we ourselves cannot go. What a vile, polluted, ugly stench of a fountain resides there, next to which the Holy Spirit works by the sweetest, purest grace!
Therefore, the Word of God teaches us to pray: “Cleanse thou me from secret faults.” Marvelous and wonderful petition! This Word from God takes us to the places of our heart we cannot see or know. We are taught to pray for their cleansing in the blood of Christ. We assured of a gracious answer because our gracious God has so taught us to pray. We are also assured that as our Lord knows, so He cleanses, making those places white as snow before His holy and righteous eyes.
What grace! There is grace to teach us, grace to lead us, grace to forgive, and grace to cleanse, all from our gracious God, who know all our ways in grace. Let us give thanks and praise that grace now and forever!
8 October 2013
Matthew 15:1-3, “Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying, Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they wash not their hands when they eat bread. But he answered and said unto them, why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?”
18-19, “But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.”
The above words define two complete and whole systems of righteousness, two systems which are in irreconcilable war with each other. Their professors were at war, and their doctrines were at war. These verses from Matthew 15 also give us that warfare at its very heart.
First, the Pharisees brought their complaint to Jesus about his disciples. How was it possible that Jesus’s disciples could really be disciples of Jesus, this teacher of the law? How could they be true disciples of God’s law? They were transgressors. They were great in guilt. What was their sin that made them so guilty? They did not wash their hands when they ate bread!
Observe carefully what Jesus’ disciples transgressed. Understand it by the question the Pharisees asked Jesus. They transgressed “the tradition of the elders.” The elders had their traditions. One of the many traditions was washing hands before eating. But all the emphasis was placed not on “the tradition of the elders,” but on the transgression of that tradition. This word, “transgress,” is the word often used for sin.
Second, Jesus’ answer draws up the battle line. Jesus’ answer was a question for them, very similar to their question of Him. “Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?” While they were so offended that Jesus’ disciples transgressed the tradition of the elders, they feared not at all to transgress the commandment of God. Above that, the very way of their transgression of God’s commandments was by keeping their tradition.
Jesus followed his question with an explanation: a man might neglect the care of his father and mother by devoting the portion set aside for their care to the Lord. So he might be applauded for his religious devotion to the Lord, giving ever so much money. But that money was really taken from his parents, leaving his parents without care.
Such was the conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees. So many of the exchanges in the gospel accounts were skirmishes in this unrelenting warfare. So many of Jesus’ teachings attacked this false system of righteousness. It was also the way that led him to the cross of Calvary. As Jesus constantly exposed the awful, evil root of the Pharisee’s system of legalistic merit, they became more hateful. Rather than repent, the Pharisees would not rest until they saw this “teacher” hanging on the cross, accused of blasphemy.
But you and I must follow the words of Christ in verses 18-20 to get to the heart of the conflict: the heart of man. Why this great battle? Simply, legalism and works-righteousness simply cannot be a matter of the heart. Legalism and works-righteousness must be about the washing of the hands. Man can put his hands in the water, to wash away the outside. Man can sprinkle the water of baptism. But man cannot change his heart, to cleanse it of sin, or to change its ways. The things that come out of the heart defile the man. Legalism and works righteousness must turn away from the commandments of God, which expose the defilement of the heart. Then it must substitute another, the tradition of the elders.
There is only one side for us to take in the conflict: the commandments of God, leading to our hearts. Let us know that we cannot change our hearts, to cleanse them of their sins or to change their ways. Let us know only our helplessness that we might know only the power of our Lord Jesus Christ to save us. Let us know only the power of Christ’s blood to cleanse our hearts of their defilements and pollution, howsoever deep they run. Let us know only the power of Christ’s Spirit to change the ways of our wicked, rebellious hearts. In that knowledge, let us give all glory to the God of our salvation!
Matthew 15:1-3, “Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying, Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they wash not their hands when they eat bread. But he answered and said unto them, why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?”
18-19, “But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.”
The above words define two complete and whole systems of righteousness, two systems which are in irreconcilable war with each other. Their professors were at war, and their doctrines were at war. These verses from Matthew 15 also give us that warfare at its very heart.
First, the Pharisees brought their complaint to Jesus about his disciples. How was it possible that Jesus’s disciples could really be disciples of Jesus, this teacher of the law? How could they be true disciples of God’s law? They were transgressors. They were great in guilt. What was their sin that made them so guilty? They did not wash their hands when they ate bread!
Observe carefully what Jesus’ disciples transgressed. Understand it by the question the Pharisees asked Jesus. They transgressed “the tradition of the elders.” The elders had their traditions. One of the many traditions was washing hands before eating. But all the emphasis was placed not on “the tradition of the elders,” but on the transgression of that tradition. This word, “transgress,” is the word often used for sin.
Second, Jesus’ answer draws up the battle line. Jesus’ answer was a question for them, very similar to their question of Him. “Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?” While they were so offended that Jesus’ disciples transgressed the tradition of the elders, they feared not at all to transgress the commandment of God. Above that, the very way of their transgression of God’s commandments was by keeping their tradition.
Jesus followed his question with an explanation: a man might neglect the care of his father and mother by devoting the portion set aside for their care to the Lord. So he might be applauded for his religious devotion to the Lord, giving ever so much money. But that money was really taken from his parents, leaving his parents without care.
Such was the conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees. So many of the exchanges in the gospel accounts were skirmishes in this unrelenting warfare. So many of Jesus’ teachings attacked this false system of righteousness. It was also the way that led him to the cross of Calvary. As Jesus constantly exposed the awful, evil root of the Pharisee’s system of legalistic merit, they became more hateful. Rather than repent, the Pharisees would not rest until they saw this “teacher” hanging on the cross, accused of blasphemy.
But you and I must follow the words of Christ in verses 18-20 to get to the heart of the conflict: the heart of man. Why this great battle? Simply, legalism and works-righteousness simply cannot be a matter of the heart. Legalism and works-righteousness must be about the washing of the hands. Man can put his hands in the water, to wash away the outside. Man can sprinkle the water of baptism. But man cannot change his heart, to cleanse it of sin, or to change its ways. The things that come out of the heart defile the man. Legalism and works righteousness must turn away from the commandments of God, which expose the defilement of the heart. Then it must substitute another, the tradition of the elders.
There is only one side for us to take in the conflict: the commandments of God, leading to our hearts. Let us know that we cannot change our hearts, to cleanse them of their sins or to change their ways. Let us know only our helplessness that we might know only the power of our Lord Jesus Christ to save us. Let us know only the power of Christ’s blood to cleanse our hearts of their defilements and pollution, howsoever deep they run. Let us know only the power of Christ’s Spirit to change the ways of our wicked, rebellious hearts. In that knowledge, let us give all glory to the God of our salvation!
7 October 2013
Matthew 24:45, 46, “Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.”
Who is the faithful and wise servant? Who is the servant that will know his blessedness from his lord when he returns?
He is not the evil servant of the verses that follow. Not one that beats his fellow servants under him and spends his days in drunkenness. No blessing for him! The lord of that servant “shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
Nor is he the servant that will be found by his lord when he returns in the condition of groaning and pining for his lord. How eagerly this servant will receive his Lord, with cries and shouts of joy and happiness. At long last the awaited day, the return of the lord! He may explain that every day he has waited on the road to see if his lord should return. He may explain that he has looked and searched to find out when his lord will return. He has talked to so many other people, trying to see if there were any that knew the day or the hour. Yet, the lord returns to no household, but a shambles. Everything is in disrepair and ruin. The servants of the household are fled, taking up other places and other work in order to get their food. This servant is neither faithful nor wise. Nor will he be blessed by his lord.
Who will be blessed by his lord? Which is the faithful and wise servant? When his lord cometh, he shall find that servant doing exactly what his lord gave him to do. The lord will find his servant faithful in his duties. The lord will find him ruling over his household, ordering, governing, maintaining it in loving care. The lord will find him giving the servants their food in due season. The lord will find evidence everywhere of his servant’s faithful awaiting for his return.
So may your Lord find you, His servant! What work has He given you today? In your home, among your family? The errands that you run? In your school, the assignments you are given? In your office, in your shop, in your barn and field, on the jobsite? Your blessedness will be to have your Lord find you so doing when He returns. Your blessedness will be to have your Lord find you a wise and faithful servant, and bless you.
So may you labor today with all diligence, seeking for that wisdom and faithfulness you need from your Lord, the fountain of all grace!
Matthew 24:45, 46, “Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.”
Who is the faithful and wise servant? Who is the servant that will know his blessedness from his lord when he returns?
He is not the evil servant of the verses that follow. Not one that beats his fellow servants under him and spends his days in drunkenness. No blessing for him! The lord of that servant “shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
Nor is he the servant that will be found by his lord when he returns in the condition of groaning and pining for his lord. How eagerly this servant will receive his Lord, with cries and shouts of joy and happiness. At long last the awaited day, the return of the lord! He may explain that every day he has waited on the road to see if his lord should return. He may explain that he has looked and searched to find out when his lord will return. He has talked to so many other people, trying to see if there were any that knew the day or the hour. Yet, the lord returns to no household, but a shambles. Everything is in disrepair and ruin. The servants of the household are fled, taking up other places and other work in order to get their food. This servant is neither faithful nor wise. Nor will he be blessed by his lord.
Who will be blessed by his lord? Which is the faithful and wise servant? When his lord cometh, he shall find that servant doing exactly what his lord gave him to do. The lord will find his servant faithful in his duties. The lord will find him ruling over his household, ordering, governing, maintaining it in loving care. The lord will find him giving the servants their food in due season. The lord will find evidence everywhere of his servant’s faithful awaiting for his return.
So may your Lord find you, His servant! What work has He given you today? In your home, among your family? The errands that you run? In your school, the assignments you are given? In your office, in your shop, in your barn and field, on the jobsite? Your blessedness will be to have your Lord find you so doing when He returns. Your blessedness will be to have your Lord find you a wise and faithful servant, and bless you.
So may you labor today with all diligence, seeking for that wisdom and faithfulness you need from your Lord, the fountain of all grace!
6 October 2013, The Lord's Day
2 Corinthians 2:14-16, “Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place. For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?"
What smell will you smell today? What smell will you smell in the house of God today? Are you going to go to church today so that you can smell that smell?
Look for that sweet savour of Christ. Smell it deeply, as the savour of life unto life. It is the pleasing odor of a sacrifice that is delightful and pleasing to God. It smells of reconciliation and peace, the complete satisfaction of God’s justice, wholly accomplished to His glory and praise. As that gospel of Jesus’ righteous sacrifice is preached, that smell also goes to you. In your nose it becomes a sweet savor of life unto life. That sweet savor not only tells you of the life that is in Christ. As it enters your nose with its sweet smell, it also tells you of your life in Christ. This sweet savour of the gospel, as with other odors, is blessed, powerful assurance.
For that sweet savour of the gospel is not a sweet savour of life to all men. To others it is a sweet savour of death. In it they smell their death. The very same odor enters their noses as a bitter and repugnant smell. As they reject that gospel, that gospel tells them they are hopelessly lost as they stand outside of Christ, refusing to believe on Him. As they harden their hearts against the gospel, they become all the more inexcusable.
The above is why you will not find the world crowding the places where the sweet savour of Christ is smell. But it is also why there are many houses of worship where that sweet savour has been replaced by a noxious odor, the odor of man’s greatness, of man’s goodness, of man’s righteousness, or of man’s ability. It is a savour pleasing to so many. It enters into their noses, and they delight in it. But it is no savour of life.
Therefore make sure you smell the sweet savour of Christ. This is the pure gospel of Christ, preached in the Lord’s house. It is preached by the faithful preachers of the apostles’ doctrine. They will preach with the sincerity described in verse 17 of this chapter, not corrupting the word.
Look for that smell! Let that sweet smell of Christ enter into your nose. Breathe it deeply. Rejoice in it, and live.
2 Corinthians 2:14-16, “Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place. For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?"
What smell will you smell today? What smell will you smell in the house of God today? Are you going to go to church today so that you can smell that smell?
Look for that sweet savour of Christ. Smell it deeply, as the savour of life unto life. It is the pleasing odor of a sacrifice that is delightful and pleasing to God. It smells of reconciliation and peace, the complete satisfaction of God’s justice, wholly accomplished to His glory and praise. As that gospel of Jesus’ righteous sacrifice is preached, that smell also goes to you. In your nose it becomes a sweet savor of life unto life. That sweet savor not only tells you of the life that is in Christ. As it enters your nose with its sweet smell, it also tells you of your life in Christ. This sweet savour of the gospel, as with other odors, is blessed, powerful assurance.
For that sweet savour of the gospel is not a sweet savour of life to all men. To others it is a sweet savour of death. In it they smell their death. The very same odor enters their noses as a bitter and repugnant smell. As they reject that gospel, that gospel tells them they are hopelessly lost as they stand outside of Christ, refusing to believe on Him. As they harden their hearts against the gospel, they become all the more inexcusable.
The above is why you will not find the world crowding the places where the sweet savour of Christ is smell. But it is also why there are many houses of worship where that sweet savour has been replaced by a noxious odor, the odor of man’s greatness, of man’s goodness, of man’s righteousness, or of man’s ability. It is a savour pleasing to so many. It enters into their noses, and they delight in it. But it is no savour of life.
Therefore make sure you smell the sweet savour of Christ. This is the pure gospel of Christ, preached in the Lord’s house. It is preached by the faithful preachers of the apostles’ doctrine. They will preach with the sincerity described in verse 17 of this chapter, not corrupting the word.
Look for that smell! Let that sweet smell of Christ enter into your nose. Breathe it deeply. Rejoice in it, and live.
5 October 2013
Psalm 115:2, 3, “Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God? But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.”
Wherefore indeed! Why indeed!
To be sure, it is easy to understand why the heathen ask their question, “Where is now their God?” Their foolish question rises out of the foolishness of their idolatry. Where are their false, idol gods? Look over to their high places. Look to their temples. In those high places and in those temples are their false gods. See their images standing. See their gods ensconced in their thrones. There are their gods: Baal, Molech, and Chemosh. There they are, with their deaf ears, their dumb mouths, and lifeless limbs. Since they cannot move, there can be no doubt where they are: right where their worshipers have placed them.
So the heathen will say of you and me: “Where is now their God?”
Wonderful is our answer. “Our God is in the heavens.” Our God is in the heavens because He is the infinite God. He is our God upon the earth, and He is our God in the heavens, because heaven and earth are too small to contain Him. He cannot be limited to a throne or house because He is limitless and boundless. We are able to say that He is in the heavens because there is His glorious throne, the only throne, far below which are all other thrones and dominions, of gods and men.
But the answer given by this Word of God is pointed and sharp. Proof that our God is in the heavens is that “He hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.” He is not limited in power. He is not limited to some territory, bounded by some land, or possessing some dominion over a part of creation. He is unlimited in will. He has His good pleasure, His sovereign determination about what He will do. That determination is not hedged in by the determinations of others. More, his determination is never thwarted. Nothing that He wants to do is He unable to do, including the salvation of Israel. He hath done whatsoever He hath pleased!
He was pleased to send His only begotten Son into the world, to take upon Himself the likeness of sinful flesh. He hath done it. He was pleased to sacrifice His only begotten Son in the flesh to the afflictions and torments of the cross for Israel’s salvation. He hath done it. He was pleased to deliver His elect from the bitter bondage of sin and the blindness of unbelief. He hath done it. He was pleased to renew dead sinners into the image of His Son. He hath done it.
Yes. “Our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.” In our God let us triumph and rejoice, ever trusting in Him who is our help and our shield!
Psalm 115:2, 3, “Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God? But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.”
Wherefore indeed! Why indeed!
To be sure, it is easy to understand why the heathen ask their question, “Where is now their God?” Their foolish question rises out of the foolishness of their idolatry. Where are their false, idol gods? Look over to their high places. Look to their temples. In those high places and in those temples are their false gods. See their images standing. See their gods ensconced in their thrones. There are their gods: Baal, Molech, and Chemosh. There they are, with their deaf ears, their dumb mouths, and lifeless limbs. Since they cannot move, there can be no doubt where they are: right where their worshipers have placed them.
So the heathen will say of you and me: “Where is now their God?”
Wonderful is our answer. “Our God is in the heavens.” Our God is in the heavens because He is the infinite God. He is our God upon the earth, and He is our God in the heavens, because heaven and earth are too small to contain Him. He cannot be limited to a throne or house because He is limitless and boundless. We are able to say that He is in the heavens because there is His glorious throne, the only throne, far below which are all other thrones and dominions, of gods and men.
But the answer given by this Word of God is pointed and sharp. Proof that our God is in the heavens is that “He hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.” He is not limited in power. He is not limited to some territory, bounded by some land, or possessing some dominion over a part of creation. He is unlimited in will. He has His good pleasure, His sovereign determination about what He will do. That determination is not hedged in by the determinations of others. More, his determination is never thwarted. Nothing that He wants to do is He unable to do, including the salvation of Israel. He hath done whatsoever He hath pleased!
He was pleased to send His only begotten Son into the world, to take upon Himself the likeness of sinful flesh. He hath done it. He was pleased to sacrifice His only begotten Son in the flesh to the afflictions and torments of the cross for Israel’s salvation. He hath done it. He was pleased to deliver His elect from the bitter bondage of sin and the blindness of unbelief. He hath done it. He was pleased to renew dead sinners into the image of His Son. He hath done it.
Yes. “Our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.” In our God let us triumph and rejoice, ever trusting in Him who is our help and our shield!
4 October 2013
Psalm 2:12, “Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.”
What wonderful and terrible events are painted before our eyes by this second Psalm! What matters are here delivered to the church of Jesus Christ to form her worship of God her Redeemer! Here is the terrible clashing of arms in rebellion against the sovereign God the nations, and the response of His laughter.
How the nations rage! In their furious rage they struggle with might and main to throw off the yoke of God their Maker. In their wars they strive against the boundaries He appointed them in His providence, pillaging the goods of other lands, enslaving peoples, and capturing new territories. In their wicked depravity, they rush to take the glory that belongs to God alone and to give that glory to themselves and their idols. They endeavor with their imagination to overthrow God’s ordinances with their own perversions, turning everything upside down. And they turn their attention to God’s people in the earth, either to spill their blood on the earth or to seduce them from their God.
Such hatred and rage does Scripture give them, and that for the church to remember in her praises.
But the church must then distinguish and celebrate another voice that answers, the voice of God that overcomes this rage of the nations. Far above, from the heavens is heard the Lord’s contemptuous laughter. So little does He think of their clashing rage. His decree stands forever. Into the hand of His Son, now glorified and exalted to His right hand, He gives all these nations. The Son will answer their furious rage with His rod of iron. With that rod He will dash them in pieces.
Of the Son’s judgment they are warned. Let them put away their furious raging, and lay down their arms! Let them kiss the Son, lest He be angry. Only when His wrath is kindled a little, they will perish from the way.
Among all this raging of the nations amidst the laughter of God is a powerful word of blessing. In the midst of this great warfare of the ages, there is the blessed church, the people of God. On the earth, among all these furiously raging nations, she is blessed. She possess and enjoys her quiet, comforting peace on earth, while the Son’s wrath is kindled, and the nations perish under His anger.
“Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him.” Out of all these furiously raging nations here these come, called by the blessed gospel of the Son. To the only begotten Son of God they come. In God’s king, enthroned on Zion’s holy hill they put their trust. And they are blessed. They are blessed with peace, the favor of God through the Son. Freed are they from wrath. Freed are they from the raging of the nations.
By that trust in the Son, may we rejoice and serve Him under His blessed care and love!
Psalm 2:12, “Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.”
What wonderful and terrible events are painted before our eyes by this second Psalm! What matters are here delivered to the church of Jesus Christ to form her worship of God her Redeemer! Here is the terrible clashing of arms in rebellion against the sovereign God the nations, and the response of His laughter.
How the nations rage! In their furious rage they struggle with might and main to throw off the yoke of God their Maker. In their wars they strive against the boundaries He appointed them in His providence, pillaging the goods of other lands, enslaving peoples, and capturing new territories. In their wicked depravity, they rush to take the glory that belongs to God alone and to give that glory to themselves and their idols. They endeavor with their imagination to overthrow God’s ordinances with their own perversions, turning everything upside down. And they turn their attention to God’s people in the earth, either to spill their blood on the earth or to seduce them from their God.
Such hatred and rage does Scripture give them, and that for the church to remember in her praises.
But the church must then distinguish and celebrate another voice that answers, the voice of God that overcomes this rage of the nations. Far above, from the heavens is heard the Lord’s contemptuous laughter. So little does He think of their clashing rage. His decree stands forever. Into the hand of His Son, now glorified and exalted to His right hand, He gives all these nations. The Son will answer their furious rage with His rod of iron. With that rod He will dash them in pieces.
Of the Son’s judgment they are warned. Let them put away their furious raging, and lay down their arms! Let them kiss the Son, lest He be angry. Only when His wrath is kindled a little, they will perish from the way.
Among all this raging of the nations amidst the laughter of God is a powerful word of blessing. In the midst of this great warfare of the ages, there is the blessed church, the people of God. On the earth, among all these furiously raging nations, she is blessed. She possess and enjoys her quiet, comforting peace on earth, while the Son’s wrath is kindled, and the nations perish under His anger.
“Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him.” Out of all these furiously raging nations here these come, called by the blessed gospel of the Son. To the only begotten Son of God they come. In God’s king, enthroned on Zion’s holy hill they put their trust. And they are blessed. They are blessed with peace, the favor of God through the Son. Freed are they from wrath. Freed are they from the raging of the nations.
By that trust in the Son, may we rejoice and serve Him under His blessed care and love!
3 October 2013
Matthew 10:28-31, “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But there very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.”
“Fear not them ... rather fear him ... Fear ye not therefore . . . ”
So far from being confusing, these three commands belong exactly together. So joined are they that you cannot obey one without obeying all three together. You cannot live your life free of fear unless you do not fear men and unless you fear God.
“Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul.” How this fear can dominate and grip the soul! This fear, the fear of men, is a powerful motivating force. This fear is the source of weakness and compromise in the Christian’s life. “What will others think?” “What will they do to me?” “Will they like me?” “Will they accept me?” These are the thoughts that trouble you. These are the thoughts that creep in and determine your decisions, and then your behaviours. What you buy, how you dress, and how you talk will show these influences. You work a little harder under the eyes of your employer or your teacher.
“Fear not them.” Your Lord’s reason? They can only kill the body! Yes, they can kill the body! Right there is your fear. These are the men who can turn into unruly mobs, killing, burning, committing atrocities, especially against Christians. More and more you read of this truth which church history has always confirmed, the fulfillment of Jesus’ Word. Not only does Jesus admit the fact, He makes it the ground of His teaching: Fear not them which kill the body. The real power of this ground is that the killing of the body is the limitation. They are not able to kill the soul. Their power extends only to the things of this earthly life, this life which is so very short, only an eye blink before the vastness of eternity.
So are you brought to the contrast, the contrast that must swallow up all fear of men. Whom must you fear? “Rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Here is the destruction of both soul and body, the whole of the human nature. Here is the everlasting destruction of hell. Here is a destructive power that always presses down, always rips apart, always thoroughly burns, but never annihilates. It is an everlasting, almighty force for destruction, brought against body and soul, through which body and soul endure forever. Yes, this One you must fear, the living, holy, and righteous God.
And, fearing Him, how can you possibly fear men?
Still, this fear of God is your freedom from fear. This God is “your Father.” This is the God without whose will not one sparrow falls to the ground. And these are the sparrows which are sold only for a farthing a pair! Of how much more value are you in His sight? This is your Father, who has adopted you by the precious blood of His only begotten Son. With that blood He has made Himself your Father and you His child. That same precious blood has redeemed you from the everlasting destruction of body and soul in hell.
Fear ye not therefore! May this freedom from fear be your confidence as make your way through the world of men this day. May it be your freedom to do the will of your Father in heaven, walking in His blessed fear.
Matthew 10:28-31, “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But there very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.”
“Fear not them ... rather fear him ... Fear ye not therefore . . . ”
So far from being confusing, these three commands belong exactly together. So joined are they that you cannot obey one without obeying all three together. You cannot live your life free of fear unless you do not fear men and unless you fear God.
“Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul.” How this fear can dominate and grip the soul! This fear, the fear of men, is a powerful motivating force. This fear is the source of weakness and compromise in the Christian’s life. “What will others think?” “What will they do to me?” “Will they like me?” “Will they accept me?” These are the thoughts that trouble you. These are the thoughts that creep in and determine your decisions, and then your behaviours. What you buy, how you dress, and how you talk will show these influences. You work a little harder under the eyes of your employer or your teacher.
“Fear not them.” Your Lord’s reason? They can only kill the body! Yes, they can kill the body! Right there is your fear. These are the men who can turn into unruly mobs, killing, burning, committing atrocities, especially against Christians. More and more you read of this truth which church history has always confirmed, the fulfillment of Jesus’ Word. Not only does Jesus admit the fact, He makes it the ground of His teaching: Fear not them which kill the body. The real power of this ground is that the killing of the body is the limitation. They are not able to kill the soul. Their power extends only to the things of this earthly life, this life which is so very short, only an eye blink before the vastness of eternity.
So are you brought to the contrast, the contrast that must swallow up all fear of men. Whom must you fear? “Rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Here is the destruction of both soul and body, the whole of the human nature. Here is the everlasting destruction of hell. Here is a destructive power that always presses down, always rips apart, always thoroughly burns, but never annihilates. It is an everlasting, almighty force for destruction, brought against body and soul, through which body and soul endure forever. Yes, this One you must fear, the living, holy, and righteous God.
And, fearing Him, how can you possibly fear men?
Still, this fear of God is your freedom from fear. This God is “your Father.” This is the God without whose will not one sparrow falls to the ground. And these are the sparrows which are sold only for a farthing a pair! Of how much more value are you in His sight? This is your Father, who has adopted you by the precious blood of His only begotten Son. With that blood He has made Himself your Father and you His child. That same precious blood has redeemed you from the everlasting destruction of body and soul in hell.
Fear ye not therefore! May this freedom from fear be your confidence as make your way through the world of men this day. May it be your freedom to do the will of your Father in heaven, walking in His blessed fear.
2 October 2013
Daniel 2:44, 45, “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure."
The last is the first. The last is the best. Across the stage of the world’s history have these kingdoms marched in their parades. They have boasted in their glory. With their vast power they conquered great swaths of the world’s territory for themselves. With their battles and wars, and their strategies and tactics they have conquered wondrously. Their feats of strength and skill are celebrated and applauded to this day. Their tactics and strategies are still studied in the present.
In these very victories, however, they demonstrate their weakness. They rose. They fell. Each kingdom was taken by a succeeding kingdom. Though Caesar came, saw, and conquered, the conqueror became the conquered. The last kingdom, Rome, was not so much conquered as fell in its own decay and ruin. The head of gold must give way to the chest and arms of silver, and so on.
But not the last! The last is a new kingdom. It is not a kingdom of men, but the kingdom of God. Unlike the other kingdoms, destroyed one after another, this kingdom shall never be destroyed. It shall stand forever. This kingdom shall not be left to other people. It simply cannot be taken over by another people, led by another king. It shall instead “break in pieces and consume all these nations, and it shall stand forever.”
According to this inspired dream of Nebuchadnezzer and its inspired interpretation by Daniel, giving in the inspired Scriptures, this new kingdom is the reason behind the present disarray of earthly powers, governments, and kingdoms. For the sake of this new kingdom, the old are ravaged, broken, and consumed. For in that confused mass of earthly kingdoms, the kingdom of the God of heaven is growing and increasing with every generation.
As we live in time of the dream’s fulfillment, we must learn the lesson. These kingdoms must fail because they are of the kings of men. Power and might, strategy and tactics, are ultimately of no consequence. The work of men must be brought to ruin before the glorious work of the God of heaven.
As we live in the glorious kingdom of our God, we must learn another lesson. Why can our kingdom never be destroyed? How can it never be left to other people? How shall it stand forever? Because it is cut out of the mountain without hands. Because the God of heaven shall set it up. God alone! Without the help of man. Were this kingdom to depend on man in any way, its endurance would be not just uncertain, but strictly impossible. Established by God, it must endure. For that reason “the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.”
What a dream for Nebuchadnezzer! But what a dream also for Daniel, and his three friends, as well as for us! This dream was the gospel of their kingdom. This dream is the gospel of our kingdom. As it was to be their confidence even in their service to Nebuchadnezzer, so may it be our confidence as we carry on in our callings in this world. May it be our confidence and joy as we live in the midst of the rising and falling of the little kingdoms of men.
Daniel 2:44, 45, “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure."
The last is the first. The last is the best. Across the stage of the world’s history have these kingdoms marched in their parades. They have boasted in their glory. With their vast power they conquered great swaths of the world’s territory for themselves. With their battles and wars, and their strategies and tactics they have conquered wondrously. Their feats of strength and skill are celebrated and applauded to this day. Their tactics and strategies are still studied in the present.
In these very victories, however, they demonstrate their weakness. They rose. They fell. Each kingdom was taken by a succeeding kingdom. Though Caesar came, saw, and conquered, the conqueror became the conquered. The last kingdom, Rome, was not so much conquered as fell in its own decay and ruin. The head of gold must give way to the chest and arms of silver, and so on.
But not the last! The last is a new kingdom. It is not a kingdom of men, but the kingdom of God. Unlike the other kingdoms, destroyed one after another, this kingdom shall never be destroyed. It shall stand forever. This kingdom shall not be left to other people. It simply cannot be taken over by another people, led by another king. It shall instead “break in pieces and consume all these nations, and it shall stand forever.”
According to this inspired dream of Nebuchadnezzer and its inspired interpretation by Daniel, giving in the inspired Scriptures, this new kingdom is the reason behind the present disarray of earthly powers, governments, and kingdoms. For the sake of this new kingdom, the old are ravaged, broken, and consumed. For in that confused mass of earthly kingdoms, the kingdom of the God of heaven is growing and increasing with every generation.
As we live in time of the dream’s fulfillment, we must learn the lesson. These kingdoms must fail because they are of the kings of men. Power and might, strategy and tactics, are ultimately of no consequence. The work of men must be brought to ruin before the glorious work of the God of heaven.
As we live in the glorious kingdom of our God, we must learn another lesson. Why can our kingdom never be destroyed? How can it never be left to other people? How shall it stand forever? Because it is cut out of the mountain without hands. Because the God of heaven shall set it up. God alone! Without the help of man. Were this kingdom to depend on man in any way, its endurance would be not just uncertain, but strictly impossible. Established by God, it must endure. For that reason “the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.”
What a dream for Nebuchadnezzer! But what a dream also for Daniel, and his three friends, as well as for us! This dream was the gospel of their kingdom. This dream is the gospel of our kingdom. As it was to be their confidence even in their service to Nebuchadnezzer, so may it be our confidence as we carry on in our callings in this world. May it be our confidence and joy as we live in the midst of the rising and falling of the little kingdoms of men.
1 October 2013
Ezekiel 43:10, “Thou son of man, shew the house to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities: and let them measure the pattern.”
Let us admit: Ezekiel 40 to 48 are some of the most difficult chapters of the Bible to read through. We find it difficult to translate the words that we read in these chapters into the pattern of the temple and its courts and surrounding area. We find it almost impossible to envision the “pattern,” which the house of Israel was to “measure.”
But exactly in those details is the power of this tenth verse of Ezekiel 43:10. This Word of God commands the prophet to show this house in its pattern to the house of Israel. The Lord’s purpose is that the house of Israel “may be ashamed of their iniquities.”
How can this pattern be a cause for shame to the house of Israel? The answer lies in the details of this pattern. Each small, tiny detail of the temple was to be a small dagger in the heart of this rebellious, perverse, apostate house. While that house was busy in its counsels to depart from God in every conceivable way, God had His counsel. While Israel was inventing new ways to show contempt for its God, God was determining the new temple He would build for His people. While Israel was running away from God, He was contemplating the temple He would rebuild, a new dwelling place among them.
Those details were to drive deeply into the hearts of Israel the wonderful faithfulness of their God. That wonderful faithfulness was to show the deep horror of their faithlessness.
Such a plan must also make us ashamed. How much time and labor we expend in departing from God by our sins and iniquities! How much perversity is ours in searching out avenues of hypocrisy! How often we boldly and shamelessly break His covenant. Yet, there is God, always with His new city, the Holy Jerusalem, all measured, ready to come down from heaven as a bride adorned for her husband. There is the plan determined for us, written in Revelation 21.
Let us read. Let us measure the pattern. And may we be ashamed of our iniquities. May that shame lead us to the sacrifice of the Lamb of God, whose blood alone is the sure guarantee of our everlasting place in the holy city of God, the new heavenly Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 43:10, “Thou son of man, shew the house to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities: and let them measure the pattern.”
Let us admit: Ezekiel 40 to 48 are some of the most difficult chapters of the Bible to read through. We find it difficult to translate the words that we read in these chapters into the pattern of the temple and its courts and surrounding area. We find it almost impossible to envision the “pattern,” which the house of Israel was to “measure.”
But exactly in those details is the power of this tenth verse of Ezekiel 43:10. This Word of God commands the prophet to show this house in its pattern to the house of Israel. The Lord’s purpose is that the house of Israel “may be ashamed of their iniquities.”
How can this pattern be a cause for shame to the house of Israel? The answer lies in the details of this pattern. Each small, tiny detail of the temple was to be a small dagger in the heart of this rebellious, perverse, apostate house. While that house was busy in its counsels to depart from God in every conceivable way, God had His counsel. While Israel was inventing new ways to show contempt for its God, God was determining the new temple He would build for His people. While Israel was running away from God, He was contemplating the temple He would rebuild, a new dwelling place among them.
Those details were to drive deeply into the hearts of Israel the wonderful faithfulness of their God. That wonderful faithfulness was to show the deep horror of their faithlessness.
Such a plan must also make us ashamed. How much time and labor we expend in departing from God by our sins and iniquities! How much perversity is ours in searching out avenues of hypocrisy! How often we boldly and shamelessly break His covenant. Yet, there is God, always with His new city, the Holy Jerusalem, all measured, ready to come down from heaven as a bride adorned for her husband. There is the plan determined for us, written in Revelation 21.
Let us read. Let us measure the pattern. And may we be ashamed of our iniquities. May that shame lead us to the sacrifice of the Lamb of God, whose blood alone is the sure guarantee of our everlasting place in the holy city of God, the new heavenly Jerusalem.
30 September 2013
I Corinthians 6:9-11, “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.”
Sharp words of judgment are here followed by sweet words of grace. The only way to know the wonderful sweetness of the latter is through the former. To get to the church, the assembly of the elect and the company of the redeemed, you must go through this awful, filthy and polluted crowd of sinners. Here they are: unrighteous, fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, effeminate, abusers of themselves with mankind, thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, extortioners. Despite their high standing, their riches, or their power, they shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Twice is their place mentioned. They are outside the kingdom of heaven.
These words are the ground for the warning administered prior to the administration of the Lord’s Supper in Reformed churches. These words identify those that are worthy of the Christian discipline of the church through her elders.
Now you arrive at the words that follow, words that concern that blessed company of God’s holy, peculiar people.
But who are these? Who are this people, beloved of God, chosen by Him before the foundation of the world? “Such were some of you.” This assembly of the elect has in it those who were thieves, drunkards, effeminate, abusers of themselves with mankind. You go through this company of defiled polluted people, to get to the church, and you find in this company those who were among that first company! Even more, in the church you find what joins you so closely to them who were in that former evil company. Not only were they washed in the blood of Jesus, you also were washed in that blood. Not only were they sanctified, you were sanctified. They were justified, and you are justified. All in the same name, the name of the Lord Jesus. All by the same Spirit, the Spirit of your God.
Why? We are all by nature of that same, first company. We all shared the same root of sin, and the same condemnation under our first father, Adam. We were all outside of the kingdom, banished by God’s judgment. The only difference is the grace of God: His washing, His sanctification, and His justification. The only difference is the name of the Lord Jesus. The only difference is the Spirit of God.
As you go into this world today, you will find yourself in the company of the first kind. As you read and watch the news, dominated by that company of the first kind, remember. Remember that “such were some of you.” Remember the only difference between you and them, the grace of God that makes all the difference. Remember, and be humbled. Remember, and be grateful. Remember, and give thanks to God for the name of the Lord Jesus and the Spirit of your God.
I Corinthians 6:9-11, “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.”
Sharp words of judgment are here followed by sweet words of grace. The only way to know the wonderful sweetness of the latter is through the former. To get to the church, the assembly of the elect and the company of the redeemed, you must go through this awful, filthy and polluted crowd of sinners. Here they are: unrighteous, fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, effeminate, abusers of themselves with mankind, thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, extortioners. Despite their high standing, their riches, or their power, they shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Twice is their place mentioned. They are outside the kingdom of heaven.
These words are the ground for the warning administered prior to the administration of the Lord’s Supper in Reformed churches. These words identify those that are worthy of the Christian discipline of the church through her elders.
Now you arrive at the words that follow, words that concern that blessed company of God’s holy, peculiar people.
But who are these? Who are this people, beloved of God, chosen by Him before the foundation of the world? “Such were some of you.” This assembly of the elect has in it those who were thieves, drunkards, effeminate, abusers of themselves with mankind. You go through this company of defiled polluted people, to get to the church, and you find in this company those who were among that first company! Even more, in the church you find what joins you so closely to them who were in that former evil company. Not only were they washed in the blood of Jesus, you also were washed in that blood. Not only were they sanctified, you were sanctified. They were justified, and you are justified. All in the same name, the name of the Lord Jesus. All by the same Spirit, the Spirit of your God.
Why? We are all by nature of that same, first company. We all shared the same root of sin, and the same condemnation under our first father, Adam. We were all outside of the kingdom, banished by God’s judgment. The only difference is the grace of God: His washing, His sanctification, and His justification. The only difference is the name of the Lord Jesus. The only difference is the Spirit of God.
As you go into this world today, you will find yourself in the company of the first kind. As you read and watch the news, dominated by that company of the first kind, remember. Remember that “such were some of you.” Remember the only difference between you and them, the grace of God that makes all the difference. Remember, and be humbled. Remember, and be grateful. Remember, and give thanks to God for the name of the Lord Jesus and the Spirit of your God.
29 September 2013, The Lord's Day
Matthew 4:4, “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God."
In answer to Satan’s temptation to His hunger, our Saviour used the sword of the Spirit, God’s Word. He used one of the Scriptures that He hid in His heart, Deuteronomy 8:3. With this Word of God, Jesus overcame the devil’s temptation. With it Jesus also overcame the force of His own physical hunger, to know His rest in God. Such He knew to be the great need of His whole nature: “every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”
How is your hunger today? Is it the hunger that was the hunger of your Lord? May your hunger not be for the bread that does not truly satisfy! Much less may your Sabbath Day be exchanged for labor for that bread that does not truly satisfy!
No! Instead may your hunger today be for spiritual, heavenly, bread. May your work today be the pursuit of every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Feed abundantly and richly upon the feast of God’s Word. Go to the place where the bread of life is opened up and given to you. Eat there. Be satisfied there.
In order to go properly there, and in order to eat properly there, know how that Word of God is there, every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. First, what defines the house of God is the presence of the Holy Scriptures, the Word of God. Is God’s Word there? Is it honored and esteemed? Is it the rule of the worship there? Are those gathered there under the government of that Word? Second, is the Word of God read there? Is it given a place of prominence? Third, is the Word of God explained, declared, and applied? Does the preaching bring the Word to you? Are you led by the preacher to the Word of God?
In those ways God opens His mouth to send you His Word. He opens His mouth when He declares His holy Scriptures. He opened His mouth to send you His servant, giving Him the calling to bring you His Word. Hear that mouth of God speaking, and sending His Word to you, as you hear His servant preach to you.
There is the Word that brings you life, abundant, joyful, everlasting life. Hear that Word, and by it alone live unto your God, who so richly feeds you!
Matthew 4:4, “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God."
In answer to Satan’s temptation to His hunger, our Saviour used the sword of the Spirit, God’s Word. He used one of the Scriptures that He hid in His heart, Deuteronomy 8:3. With this Word of God, Jesus overcame the devil’s temptation. With it Jesus also overcame the force of His own physical hunger, to know His rest in God. Such He knew to be the great need of His whole nature: “every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”
How is your hunger today? Is it the hunger that was the hunger of your Lord? May your hunger not be for the bread that does not truly satisfy! Much less may your Sabbath Day be exchanged for labor for that bread that does not truly satisfy!
No! Instead may your hunger today be for spiritual, heavenly, bread. May your work today be the pursuit of every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Feed abundantly and richly upon the feast of God’s Word. Go to the place where the bread of life is opened up and given to you. Eat there. Be satisfied there.
In order to go properly there, and in order to eat properly there, know how that Word of God is there, every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. First, what defines the house of God is the presence of the Holy Scriptures, the Word of God. Is God’s Word there? Is it honored and esteemed? Is it the rule of the worship there? Are those gathered there under the government of that Word? Second, is the Word of God read there? Is it given a place of prominence? Third, is the Word of God explained, declared, and applied? Does the preaching bring the Word to you? Are you led by the preacher to the Word of God?
In those ways God opens His mouth to send you His Word. He opens His mouth when He declares His holy Scriptures. He opened His mouth to send you His servant, giving Him the calling to bring you His Word. Hear that mouth of God speaking, and sending His Word to you, as you hear His servant preach to you.
There is the Word that brings you life, abundant, joyful, everlasting life. Hear that Word, and by it alone live unto your God, who so richly feeds you!
28 September 2013
Micah 6:7,8, “Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.”
A sharp contrast stands between these two pictures. There is the contrast of two ways, and there is the contrast of the Lord’s disapproval and His approval.
Will the Lord be pleased? The answer is a clear sharp, No. So far from being pleased, with such sacrifices God is displeased.
Why should he be displeased? Are not these sacrifices a confession of sin? Do they not show knowledge that sin cannot be left alone, but something must be done about it? Do they not demonstrate the truth of atonement? What is the problem with them?
The problems are many. In these words are found the vain thoughts of man. See how far these sacrifices go: not according to the law of God, but far beyond. Thousands of rams, ten thousands of rivers of oil, or one’s firstborn, the fruit of his body. So much for so much–that is the thinking of men opposed to the gospel. They will pay for their sins. They will make their own atonement. Such is a mockery of the sacrificial system instituted by God, the system to show the gospel of God’s grace, forgiveness of sins through the promised Lamb of God. These offers shoved aside that gospel for the sake of merit and bargaining. With their questions they treated God as if the Most High were like all the gods of the heathen: to be bargained with for the goods He might give. They treated Him like an equal, whose forgiveness was negotiable, and with whom they might conduct their business transaction.
No wonder these questions were so displeasing! May God graciously keep us from these evil thoughts!
On the other side of this contrast is placed blessed fellowship with God. How great is this contrast! So far from negotiation, and so far from merit, this other side is itself built on reconciliation. It is atonement accomplished. It is reconciliation made. It is the way built on trust in the mercy of God, through the gospel of grace. It is the end of salvation from transgression and the sins of the soul. Here is the good. Here is what God requires: to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.
Here is the blessed way. It is not standing over against God. It not sitting across the table, negotiating with God, ending with a stiff, formal handshake or bow, ready to end the transaction and go back home. It is a life and a walk with God. It is to do as God does: justly. It is to love mercy, as God loves mercy. It is to walk near to God in the blessed, daily conscious of His greatness and majesty and his nearness. It is that blessedness that makes you so very small, but so very blessed to have this great God so near to you. It is also a walk under the constant shadow of the cross of Jesus Christ, that glorious meeting-place of God’s justice and mercy, and the humbling of all our pride. Walking there we find the power to put off unrighteousness and to put on righteousness, and to put off cold indifference to become truly merciful.
So may our walk be today: humbly, with our God!
Micah 6:7,8, “Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.”
A sharp contrast stands between these two pictures. There is the contrast of two ways, and there is the contrast of the Lord’s disapproval and His approval.
Will the Lord be pleased? The answer is a clear sharp, No. So far from being pleased, with such sacrifices God is displeased.
Why should he be displeased? Are not these sacrifices a confession of sin? Do they not show knowledge that sin cannot be left alone, but something must be done about it? Do they not demonstrate the truth of atonement? What is the problem with them?
The problems are many. In these words are found the vain thoughts of man. See how far these sacrifices go: not according to the law of God, but far beyond. Thousands of rams, ten thousands of rivers of oil, or one’s firstborn, the fruit of his body. So much for so much–that is the thinking of men opposed to the gospel. They will pay for their sins. They will make their own atonement. Such is a mockery of the sacrificial system instituted by God, the system to show the gospel of God’s grace, forgiveness of sins through the promised Lamb of God. These offers shoved aside that gospel for the sake of merit and bargaining. With their questions they treated God as if the Most High were like all the gods of the heathen: to be bargained with for the goods He might give. They treated Him like an equal, whose forgiveness was negotiable, and with whom they might conduct their business transaction.
No wonder these questions were so displeasing! May God graciously keep us from these evil thoughts!
On the other side of this contrast is placed blessed fellowship with God. How great is this contrast! So far from negotiation, and so far from merit, this other side is itself built on reconciliation. It is atonement accomplished. It is reconciliation made. It is the way built on trust in the mercy of God, through the gospel of grace. It is the end of salvation from transgression and the sins of the soul. Here is the good. Here is what God requires: to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.
Here is the blessed way. It is not standing over against God. It not sitting across the table, negotiating with God, ending with a stiff, formal handshake or bow, ready to end the transaction and go back home. It is a life and a walk with God. It is to do as God does: justly. It is to love mercy, as God loves mercy. It is to walk near to God in the blessed, daily conscious of His greatness and majesty and his nearness. It is that blessedness that makes you so very small, but so very blessed to have this great God so near to you. It is also a walk under the constant shadow of the cross of Jesus Christ, that glorious meeting-place of God’s justice and mercy, and the humbling of all our pride. Walking there we find the power to put off unrighteousness and to put on righteousness, and to put off cold indifference to become truly merciful.
So may our walk be today: humbly, with our God!
27 September 2013
Philippians 4:6, 7, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
These words give us wonderful tools for guarding and strengthening our joy in the Lord. Christian joy is the joy of freedom from the guilt and condemnation of sin. It is the joy having peace with God, through Jesus Christ. It is the joy of God’s friendship and fellowship, enjoyed unconditionally through faith in the gospel of the righteousness of Jesus Christ. It is an everlasting joy because it is God’s gift, given without repentance.
All that is not to say we are called to maintain this joy. All that is not to say we must rigorously defend this joy. It is exactly to this labour this Word of God calls us. This Word identifies one threat to that joy and peace: carefulness. We take this word in its most literal sense. It means to be full of cares: dogged by cares, beset with cares, weighed down with cares. Cares seem gladly to heap themselves on us, digging deeply into our souls with sharp hooks and dragging us down. The brightness of our joy quickly pales, and our strength recedes.
This Word of God shows us what to do about carefulness. It does not say simply, “Be careful for nothing.” “Don’t worry, be happy!” It tells us exactly how to be careful for nothing. Scripture gives us careful instruction in three parts.
First, take up the blessed gift of prayer. “In everything by prayer and supplication … let your requests be made known unto God.”
Do not keep your cares in your heart and soul. Bring them out before God. “Ye people, pour out your heart before him,” as Psalm 62:8 commands. Use the gifts He has given you. Use prayer, the general gift of appearing consciously before God’s presence, to speak to Him about you and everything about you. Using prayer, know you have a blessed audience with the Most High God, and that as your God for Jesus’ sake. In that prayer, use supplication, the more specific word. Bring Him your pleas, your requests, your concerns, your cares, and your anxieties. Ask Him for all things, remembering His power and wisdom to answer you always with an answer of peace. Keep in prayer and keep in supplication, bring everything out of the corners of your heart and set it all before your God.
Second, take heed to the words that show you what you must attach to those requests: “with thanksgiving.” Here is the work of your mind to turn away from your cares to what you already have from God. Thanksgiving means that you take account of the gifts of God to you, and you go to their blessed Source and declare them before Him with gratitude. Before God you count your blessings. Most of all, give thanks for the precious blood of Christ with its glorious power to take away your guilt and condemnation, and to give you everlasting peace. Under that glorious banner of salvation, also count before God the multitude of gifts that He gives you.
Powerfully does thanksgiving work to give you confidence in your supplications, that God certainly hears them, and will surely answer you with His perfect answer, giving you peace.
Thirdly, you have His undoubted promise. His own peace “shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” That peace is wonderful. It is past all understanding. It is past all understanding in the way that God Himself is past all understanding. It is past all understanding in the way that the love of God in Christ Jesus, abounding to us sinners, is past all understanding. The greater and more glorious God and His Son Jesus Christ become to us, that much greater and more glorious our peace must become. The peace is wonderful because it is through Christ Jesus, making it nearer to us. With Christ comes the peace of God. To have Christ is to have this peace. To know His death on the cross for your sins, is to have God’s peace as well. This peace is also wonderful because it so near to surround, to envelope, and to run through your hearts and minds. Powerfully it guards them from carefulness and anxiety.
Such is the powerful peace of God, the peace of His fellowship in supplication, thanksgiving, and His promise. For that peace and in that peace, be careful for nothing!
Philippians 4:6, 7, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
These words give us wonderful tools for guarding and strengthening our joy in the Lord. Christian joy is the joy of freedom from the guilt and condemnation of sin. It is the joy having peace with God, through Jesus Christ. It is the joy of God’s friendship and fellowship, enjoyed unconditionally through faith in the gospel of the righteousness of Jesus Christ. It is an everlasting joy because it is God’s gift, given without repentance.
All that is not to say we are called to maintain this joy. All that is not to say we must rigorously defend this joy. It is exactly to this labour this Word of God calls us. This Word identifies one threat to that joy and peace: carefulness. We take this word in its most literal sense. It means to be full of cares: dogged by cares, beset with cares, weighed down with cares. Cares seem gladly to heap themselves on us, digging deeply into our souls with sharp hooks and dragging us down. The brightness of our joy quickly pales, and our strength recedes.
This Word of God shows us what to do about carefulness. It does not say simply, “Be careful for nothing.” “Don’t worry, be happy!” It tells us exactly how to be careful for nothing. Scripture gives us careful instruction in three parts.
First, take up the blessed gift of prayer. “In everything by prayer and supplication … let your requests be made known unto God.”
Do not keep your cares in your heart and soul. Bring them out before God. “Ye people, pour out your heart before him,” as Psalm 62:8 commands. Use the gifts He has given you. Use prayer, the general gift of appearing consciously before God’s presence, to speak to Him about you and everything about you. Using prayer, know you have a blessed audience with the Most High God, and that as your God for Jesus’ sake. In that prayer, use supplication, the more specific word. Bring Him your pleas, your requests, your concerns, your cares, and your anxieties. Ask Him for all things, remembering His power and wisdom to answer you always with an answer of peace. Keep in prayer and keep in supplication, bring everything out of the corners of your heart and set it all before your God.
Second, take heed to the words that show you what you must attach to those requests: “with thanksgiving.” Here is the work of your mind to turn away from your cares to what you already have from God. Thanksgiving means that you take account of the gifts of God to you, and you go to their blessed Source and declare them before Him with gratitude. Before God you count your blessings. Most of all, give thanks for the precious blood of Christ with its glorious power to take away your guilt and condemnation, and to give you everlasting peace. Under that glorious banner of salvation, also count before God the multitude of gifts that He gives you.
Powerfully does thanksgiving work to give you confidence in your supplications, that God certainly hears them, and will surely answer you with His perfect answer, giving you peace.
Thirdly, you have His undoubted promise. His own peace “shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” That peace is wonderful. It is past all understanding. It is past all understanding in the way that God Himself is past all understanding. It is past all understanding in the way that the love of God in Christ Jesus, abounding to us sinners, is past all understanding. The greater and more glorious God and His Son Jesus Christ become to us, that much greater and more glorious our peace must become. The peace is wonderful because it is through Christ Jesus, making it nearer to us. With Christ comes the peace of God. To have Christ is to have this peace. To know His death on the cross for your sins, is to have God’s peace as well. This peace is also wonderful because it so near to surround, to envelope, and to run through your hearts and minds. Powerfully it guards them from carefulness and anxiety.
Such is the powerful peace of God, the peace of His fellowship in supplication, thanksgiving, and His promise. For that peace and in that peace, be careful for nothing!
26 September 2013
Isaiah 62:11,12, “Behold, the Lord hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. And they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of the Lord; and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.”
The glorious, wondrous power of these verses can only be understood by looking backward and forward from them.
To look backward is to see this city thrown down by God into utter ruin and desolation. In its ruin, Jerusalem was a cause for amazement and wonder for all who saw it, when they considered a little of its former glory and beauty. They must surely doubt how it could be the same city, all its buildings collapsed into heaps of charred ruins. It was a city forsaken, forsaken by God, forsaken by God’s people driven into exile.
Even as Isaiah prophesied of the ruin of the holy city under the judgment of God for Judah’s terrible sins, in many verses like these he also saw far beyond. The Lord would once again have mercy on His city and on His people. The glory of His city and His people He would restore to such heights, its former ruin and desolation would be wholly covered over and forgotten.
With the Lord’s prophet we look forward from these verses to see their fulfillment. We see their fulfillment first of all in the wonder of the cross of Jesus Christ. Though cast out of the city of Jerusalem, despised and rejected of men, the very instrument of Jerusalem’s rejection became the instrument of her daughter’s salvation. The gospel of the cross is the salvation of the daughter of Zion. This gospel must be the glory of the holy city of God, His reward and His work to make it great.
The special greatness and grandeur are shown at the very beginning of verse 11. The Lord will cause this word of the gospel to be “proclaimed unto the end of the world.” By that proclamation, the answer will rise from the end of the earth. Those that dwell in the end of the world will call those of Jerusalem, “The holy people, The redeemed of the Lord.” They will call Jerusalem “Sought out, A city not forsaken.”
Your blessedness is to be the fulfillment of this prophecy. Your blessedness is to be called by the gospel, and by that gospel to call this people, Holy, and the Redeemed of the Lord. Your blessedness is to call Jerusalem, Sought Out, a City Not Forsaken. By that call of the gospel you leave the end of the world. By that call you find yourself among this holy people, the redeemed of the Lord. By that call your feet stand within the gates of Jerusalem.
As you know and treasure your place among this people and in this city, praise and bless your God, whose grace alone to you, to His people, and to His city, has brought you there!
Isaiah 62:11,12, “Behold, the Lord hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. And they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of the Lord; and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.”
The glorious, wondrous power of these verses can only be understood by looking backward and forward from them.
To look backward is to see this city thrown down by God into utter ruin and desolation. In its ruin, Jerusalem was a cause for amazement and wonder for all who saw it, when they considered a little of its former glory and beauty. They must surely doubt how it could be the same city, all its buildings collapsed into heaps of charred ruins. It was a city forsaken, forsaken by God, forsaken by God’s people driven into exile.
Even as Isaiah prophesied of the ruin of the holy city under the judgment of God for Judah’s terrible sins, in many verses like these he also saw far beyond. The Lord would once again have mercy on His city and on His people. The glory of His city and His people He would restore to such heights, its former ruin and desolation would be wholly covered over and forgotten.
With the Lord’s prophet we look forward from these verses to see their fulfillment. We see their fulfillment first of all in the wonder of the cross of Jesus Christ. Though cast out of the city of Jerusalem, despised and rejected of men, the very instrument of Jerusalem’s rejection became the instrument of her daughter’s salvation. The gospel of the cross is the salvation of the daughter of Zion. This gospel must be the glory of the holy city of God, His reward and His work to make it great.
The special greatness and grandeur are shown at the very beginning of verse 11. The Lord will cause this word of the gospel to be “proclaimed unto the end of the world.” By that proclamation, the answer will rise from the end of the earth. Those that dwell in the end of the world will call those of Jerusalem, “The holy people, The redeemed of the Lord.” They will call Jerusalem “Sought out, A city not forsaken.”
Your blessedness is to be the fulfillment of this prophecy. Your blessedness is to be called by the gospel, and by that gospel to call this people, Holy, and the Redeemed of the Lord. Your blessedness is to call Jerusalem, Sought Out, a City Not Forsaken. By that call of the gospel you leave the end of the world. By that call you find yourself among this holy people, the redeemed of the Lord. By that call your feet stand within the gates of Jerusalem.
As you know and treasure your place among this people and in this city, praise and bless your God, whose grace alone to you, to His people, and to His city, has brought you there!
25 September 2013
Luke 4:24-27, “But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land; But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow. And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian.”
Were it not for a miracle, these words would surely have gotten Jesus killed. Rousing the Jews’ anger to such a murderous rage were two simple stories from the Old Testament. He told the story of God’s sending Elijah to live with a widow woman, not of Israel, but of Sidon. He then told the story of Elisha’s healing of a leper, a leper not of Israel, but of Syria. There were signs of God’s favor, not to Israel, but outside Israel. So Jesus clearly spoke, so the Jews in the synagogue that day understood, and so were they gripped by such anger.
There is for the church of Jesus Christ a grave warning. As the church enjoys the marvelous grace of God in their generations by His covenant mercies, the devil can cause an evil thought to take root and run through the hearts of God’s people. They can begin to think that they are worthy of God’s grace. They have maintained through generations the truth of God’s Word. They have for many years been established in the way of righteousness, walking and worshiping according to the Word of God. They have endured for some time, while others have fallen away. They can forget that it is only by the grace of God. They begin to think in terms of merit, not so much of what they have done, but of who they are.
News we hear will sometimes reveal the grip of that thinking. We hear of Sidonian widows and Syrian lepers. We hear of stories from places far off from us, stories that show the work of God’s grace. We can be immediately skeptical. We might even be scornful. We can go so far as to deny the possibility of God’s grace. If we so react, we must check ourselves: why did we react that way? Have we begun to think that we alone deserve the grace of God, contradicting practically what we profess? Without repentance and godly humility, we should come to the anger that would drive Christ out of His synagogue!
Rather let us rejoice as we hear of the widow of Sidon and of Naaman, the leper of Syria. Let us rejoice to hear of stories from far off and near. Not only does God’s grace still work mightily in such ways far off, but still very near. That grace of God must work with that might and power in us, and in our children after us. That grace may we ever seek: for us, and for our children, and for as many as the Lord our God shall call, near and far!
Luke 4:24-27, “But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land; But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow. And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian.”
Were it not for a miracle, these words would surely have gotten Jesus killed. Rousing the Jews’ anger to such a murderous rage were two simple stories from the Old Testament. He told the story of God’s sending Elijah to live with a widow woman, not of Israel, but of Sidon. He then told the story of Elisha’s healing of a leper, a leper not of Israel, but of Syria. There were signs of God’s favor, not to Israel, but outside Israel. So Jesus clearly spoke, so the Jews in the synagogue that day understood, and so were they gripped by such anger.
There is for the church of Jesus Christ a grave warning. As the church enjoys the marvelous grace of God in their generations by His covenant mercies, the devil can cause an evil thought to take root and run through the hearts of God’s people. They can begin to think that they are worthy of God’s grace. They have maintained through generations the truth of God’s Word. They have for many years been established in the way of righteousness, walking and worshiping according to the Word of God. They have endured for some time, while others have fallen away. They can forget that it is only by the grace of God. They begin to think in terms of merit, not so much of what they have done, but of who they are.
News we hear will sometimes reveal the grip of that thinking. We hear of Sidonian widows and Syrian lepers. We hear of stories from places far off from us, stories that show the work of God’s grace. We can be immediately skeptical. We might even be scornful. We can go so far as to deny the possibility of God’s grace. If we so react, we must check ourselves: why did we react that way? Have we begun to think that we alone deserve the grace of God, contradicting practically what we profess? Without repentance and godly humility, we should come to the anger that would drive Christ out of His synagogue!
Rather let us rejoice as we hear of the widow of Sidon and of Naaman, the leper of Syria. Let us rejoice to hear of stories from far off and near. Not only does God’s grace still work mightily in such ways far off, but still very near. That grace of God must work with that might and power in us, and in our children after us. That grace may we ever seek: for us, and for our children, and for as many as the Lord our God shall call, near and far!
24 September 2013
Galatians 5:13, 14 “For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”
Liberty to love and liberty to serve: such is the blessed freedom of the Christian!
The Christian’s freedom is worlds apart from the freedom celebrated today in the world. That freedom, as they judge it to be, is absolute freedom from any law. Their freedom is to live as you please, nothing barred. Their freedom is to indulge gratuitously in all licentious and immoral behavior. Their freedom is to tear into shreds every last semblance of decency and morality. Yesterday two prominent scientists, head of the world’s intelligentsia, addressed what all not so long ago called immorality. One declared assisted death acceptable. Another declared child molestation harmless. What freedom! What liberty! Liberty to abuse. Freedom to kill. Liberty of anarchy, liberty to inflict suffering, and liberty to destroy. The world’s liberty is horribly blind bondage to sin.
How radically different is the liberty of the Christian! His liberty is the call of the gospel of Jesus Christ. He is called to rest wholly upon the finished work of Christ, the Saviour’s righteous sacrifice on the cross of Calvary. His liberty is true, glorious freedom. No longer can the law condemn him. No longer can the law change him from being justified before God to being guilty before God. He is forever free.
His liberty is also of another kind. It is a liberty from the world’s liberty. His liberty is that he is not free to use his liberty as an occasion to the flesh. He is not free to indulge his fleshly and carnal desires. He is no longer free to indulge his flesh and to sin. From that bondage he has been set free.
The Christian’s liberty is the new, amazing, and wonderful liberty to serve. He is freed to become a servant, even the servant of men. His freedom does not make him an unwilling servant, forever chafing in bonds that outwardly restrain him! His freedom is his strength willingly to place himself at the Lord’s disposal, to do the bidding of his gracious Master. He hears the voice of his Master, “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” With his new freedom, he delights in that voice, seeks opportunities to obey it, and puts forth his every effort to love his neighbour. In this freedom he fulfills the law.
This freedom was also the freedom of the Lord of glory, who purchased this freedom with His precious blood. The King of kings and Lord of lords came not to be served, but to be a servant, and give His life a ransom for many. Even Christ pleased not Himself, but in faithful service bore the reproaches of them that reproached His God. The freedom He purchased with His precious blood is the freedom to walk as He walked.
Receiving that grace of Christ through faith, rejoice in His freedom! Walk in His liberty! In this liberty steer clear both of the slavery of merit and the bondage of anarchy. In this liberty serve one another and love your neighbour as yourself, fulfilling the law of your God and the law of your liberty.
Galatians 5:13, 14 “For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”
Liberty to love and liberty to serve: such is the blessed freedom of the Christian!
The Christian’s freedom is worlds apart from the freedom celebrated today in the world. That freedom, as they judge it to be, is absolute freedom from any law. Their freedom is to live as you please, nothing barred. Their freedom is to indulge gratuitously in all licentious and immoral behavior. Their freedom is to tear into shreds every last semblance of decency and morality. Yesterday two prominent scientists, head of the world’s intelligentsia, addressed what all not so long ago called immorality. One declared assisted death acceptable. Another declared child molestation harmless. What freedom! What liberty! Liberty to abuse. Freedom to kill. Liberty of anarchy, liberty to inflict suffering, and liberty to destroy. The world’s liberty is horribly blind bondage to sin.
How radically different is the liberty of the Christian! His liberty is the call of the gospel of Jesus Christ. He is called to rest wholly upon the finished work of Christ, the Saviour’s righteous sacrifice on the cross of Calvary. His liberty is true, glorious freedom. No longer can the law condemn him. No longer can the law change him from being justified before God to being guilty before God. He is forever free.
His liberty is also of another kind. It is a liberty from the world’s liberty. His liberty is that he is not free to use his liberty as an occasion to the flesh. He is not free to indulge his fleshly and carnal desires. He is no longer free to indulge his flesh and to sin. From that bondage he has been set free.
The Christian’s liberty is the new, amazing, and wonderful liberty to serve. He is freed to become a servant, even the servant of men. His freedom does not make him an unwilling servant, forever chafing in bonds that outwardly restrain him! His freedom is his strength willingly to place himself at the Lord’s disposal, to do the bidding of his gracious Master. He hears the voice of his Master, “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” With his new freedom, he delights in that voice, seeks opportunities to obey it, and puts forth his every effort to love his neighbour. In this freedom he fulfills the law.
This freedom was also the freedom of the Lord of glory, who purchased this freedom with His precious blood. The King of kings and Lord of lords came not to be served, but to be a servant, and give His life a ransom for many. Even Christ pleased not Himself, but in faithful service bore the reproaches of them that reproached His God. The freedom He purchased with His precious blood is the freedom to walk as He walked.
Receiving that grace of Christ through faith, rejoice in His freedom! Walk in His liberty! In this liberty steer clear both of the slavery of merit and the bondage of anarchy. In this liberty serve one another and love your neighbour as yourself, fulfilling the law of your God and the law of your liberty.
23 September 2013
Psalm 4:6, “There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.”
As there were so many when David wrote this Psalm, so are there so many today. So many are there in every age who lift up their voices as they seek and look for good. Every generation cries out, “Who will show us any good?”
These look for good. They look for good living and for good times. They look for a good job, a good house, a good wife, and good children. They work for a good bank account and make good investments, hoping for a good retirement. They seek their good, and so often they find it. Yet, they still ask, “Who will show us any good?” Their good does not satisfy.
The quest for good is often interrupted by evil. These seekers after good encounter failure and trouble. The economy becomes stagnant, banks fail and companies can no longer fund the pensions they promised. Companies lay off and good jobs vanish. Good houses fall into foreclosure. Good marriages fall into divorce and good children become neglectful. In sorrow and despair so many say, “Who will show us any good?”
Still they ask, and still they seek. They seek the advice of friends, of counselors, of lawyers, of doctors. They seek refuge in therapy, medication, exercise, games, hobbies, recreation. They seek their good indulging in drugs, alcohol, or carnal pleasures. And still they say, “Who will show us any good?”
Amazingly, there is one thing these many will not say. They will not say, “Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.” Amazingly, I say, because the blindness of sin and the hardness of heart is an amazing power. To anyone these will look, but not to Him who made them. To anyone they will seek, but not to Him that says to them, “Come to me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” His Word they avoid. Against His call they shut their ears. His command they cover over with their words: “Who will show us any good?” So firm are they in their revolt against God. So determined are they to find good their way: always by merit, never by grace.
How wonderfully simple is the prayer that stands apart from all the fruitless seeking of so many: “Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.” Here is the good. Here is the highest good. Here is the only good.
This is the good to receive and enjoy without money and without price. This is the good that comes with the simple asking. This is the good that comes without searching high and low, here and there. To ask is to receive. Not from men, not by men, not through men, but in asking the Lord. “Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.”
So the Lord hears answers. He lifts up the light of His countenance upon his people. His face shines upon them. He is gracious to them. He blesses them, and keeps them. With His countenance upon them, the Lord’s people know that all will be well. They have all good.
May the Lord’s countenance upon you be your great good today, as you walk among so many who continue on their vain and fruitless search. May the Lord also give you opportunity to testify of this true good you enjoy and treasure.
Psalm 4:6, “There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.”
As there were so many when David wrote this Psalm, so are there so many today. So many are there in every age who lift up their voices as they seek and look for good. Every generation cries out, “Who will show us any good?”
These look for good. They look for good living and for good times. They look for a good job, a good house, a good wife, and good children. They work for a good bank account and make good investments, hoping for a good retirement. They seek their good, and so often they find it. Yet, they still ask, “Who will show us any good?” Their good does not satisfy.
The quest for good is often interrupted by evil. These seekers after good encounter failure and trouble. The economy becomes stagnant, banks fail and companies can no longer fund the pensions they promised. Companies lay off and good jobs vanish. Good houses fall into foreclosure. Good marriages fall into divorce and good children become neglectful. In sorrow and despair so many say, “Who will show us any good?”
Still they ask, and still they seek. They seek the advice of friends, of counselors, of lawyers, of doctors. They seek refuge in therapy, medication, exercise, games, hobbies, recreation. They seek their good indulging in drugs, alcohol, or carnal pleasures. And still they say, “Who will show us any good?”
Amazingly, there is one thing these many will not say. They will not say, “Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.” Amazingly, I say, because the blindness of sin and the hardness of heart is an amazing power. To anyone these will look, but not to Him who made them. To anyone they will seek, but not to Him that says to them, “Come to me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” His Word they avoid. Against His call they shut their ears. His command they cover over with their words: “Who will show us any good?” So firm are they in their revolt against God. So determined are they to find good their way: always by merit, never by grace.
How wonderfully simple is the prayer that stands apart from all the fruitless seeking of so many: “Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.” Here is the good. Here is the highest good. Here is the only good.
This is the good to receive and enjoy without money and without price. This is the good that comes with the simple asking. This is the good that comes without searching high and low, here and there. To ask is to receive. Not from men, not by men, not through men, but in asking the Lord. “Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.”
So the Lord hears answers. He lifts up the light of His countenance upon his people. His face shines upon them. He is gracious to them. He blesses them, and keeps them. With His countenance upon them, the Lord’s people know that all will be well. They have all good.
May the Lord’s countenance upon you be your great good today, as you walk among so many who continue on their vain and fruitless search. May the Lord also give you opportunity to testify of this true good you enjoy and treasure.
22 September 2013, The Lord's Day
Ephesians 4:3, “Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”
What a marvelous gift God has given to the church of Jesus Christ: the unity of the Spirit!
The unity of the Spirit is the basic and essential bond that joins together the members of the church of Jesus Christ. The Spirit of God, co-equal, co-eternal God, the Third Person of the Trinity, forges the bonds of this unity. By His blessed work they are not only called one or seek to be one. They are one! For the Spirit works with all the power of God both to join God’s elect to Christ their glorious Head, and to join God’s elect to one another.
Scripture here identifies also one precious aspect of that unity. That unity makes itself manifest “in the bond of peace.” Their unity is not forced upon them from without. It is not a company forged only by some necessity, in which the members have only dislike and distrust for each other. This peace is a peace of the heart, flowing out to embrace with love those joined by the Spirit. This peace is the peace of the gospel of Jesus Christ. This peace is first the glad tidings of reconciliation with the living God through the blood of the covenant. It establishes friendship between God and His people. That same peace, operating in the members of that people, must also operate among them. By the Spirit they are friends with each another. Of that peace they partake together. Hence, their unity.
We must be powerfully impressed with the way this unity of the Spirit is given to us. It is given to us, for us to labour upon. This Word of God calls us to endeavour. We must apply ourselves with the strength and abilities that God has given us toward this endeavor. We must occupy ourselves with its tasks and labors with all diligence and care. This word demands all. Nothing may we hold back from it.
Our endeavor is to keep that unity of the Spirit. We must watch over it to maintain it and protect it. We must watch over it to ensure that it develops and grows. We must guard carefully against any possible threats.
This endeavour must bring us to the house of the Lord today. We must there support the peace of the gospel of Jesus Christ by sitting under that Word, expressing our agreement with it and our need of it. Let us be examples not only to our children, but to everyone around us! We must be there to contribute with the wealth that God has given to us, to see that the ministry of the gospel is supported.
This endeavour we carry out when we join the ranks of God’s people with joy and gladness in the house of the Lord. We join in the joyful singing of God’s praises, and in contributing to the mercies of Christ to the poor. We rejoice in our company, as brothers and sisters in the household of faith.
And then we pray for that unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. We pray that the Spirit will bless the gospel of peace to our church. We pray that the Spirit will bless our efforts this day for the unity of our church. Having sought the Spirit’s blessing, we look for His blessed results, both in ourselves, and in one another.
Ephesians 4:3, “Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”
What a marvelous gift God has given to the church of Jesus Christ: the unity of the Spirit!
The unity of the Spirit is the basic and essential bond that joins together the members of the church of Jesus Christ. The Spirit of God, co-equal, co-eternal God, the Third Person of the Trinity, forges the bonds of this unity. By His blessed work they are not only called one or seek to be one. They are one! For the Spirit works with all the power of God both to join God’s elect to Christ their glorious Head, and to join God’s elect to one another.
Scripture here identifies also one precious aspect of that unity. That unity makes itself manifest “in the bond of peace.” Their unity is not forced upon them from without. It is not a company forged only by some necessity, in which the members have only dislike and distrust for each other. This peace is a peace of the heart, flowing out to embrace with love those joined by the Spirit. This peace is the peace of the gospel of Jesus Christ. This peace is first the glad tidings of reconciliation with the living God through the blood of the covenant. It establishes friendship between God and His people. That same peace, operating in the members of that people, must also operate among them. By the Spirit they are friends with each another. Of that peace they partake together. Hence, their unity.
We must be powerfully impressed with the way this unity of the Spirit is given to us. It is given to us, for us to labour upon. This Word of God calls us to endeavour. We must apply ourselves with the strength and abilities that God has given us toward this endeavor. We must occupy ourselves with its tasks and labors with all diligence and care. This word demands all. Nothing may we hold back from it.
Our endeavor is to keep that unity of the Spirit. We must watch over it to maintain it and protect it. We must watch over it to ensure that it develops and grows. We must guard carefully against any possible threats.
This endeavour must bring us to the house of the Lord today. We must there support the peace of the gospel of Jesus Christ by sitting under that Word, expressing our agreement with it and our need of it. Let us be examples not only to our children, but to everyone around us! We must be there to contribute with the wealth that God has given to us, to see that the ministry of the gospel is supported.
This endeavour we carry out when we join the ranks of God’s people with joy and gladness in the house of the Lord. We join in the joyful singing of God’s praises, and in contributing to the mercies of Christ to the poor. We rejoice in our company, as brothers and sisters in the household of faith.
And then we pray for that unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. We pray that the Spirit will bless the gospel of peace to our church. We pray that the Spirit will bless our efforts this day for the unity of our church. Having sought the Spirit’s blessing, we look for His blessed results, both in ourselves, and in one another.
21 September 2013
Psalm 20:6, “Now know I that the Lord saveth his anointed; he will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand.”
What blessedness the Holy Spirit gave to David, that Israel’s king should write these words out of his own experience. So often the shepherd of Israel found himself in dire circumstances. Surrounded by his enemies and unable to deliver himself, the Lord heard his prayer, and delivered him. In that knowledge he could write, “Now know I that the Lord saveth his anointed.” By the faithfulness of God that knowledge strengthened his hope. So the sweet psalmist of Israel continued: “He will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand.”
But the Holy Spirit did not give these words to David for his own sake. They were written for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ, the anointed King of the church, to whom King David pointed. By the Spirit of Christ, David penned these words that apply to Christ. These words were Jesus’ confidence, when His enemies hatefully conspired against Him, and had Him nailed to Calvary’s cross, there to suffer and die. “He will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand.”
As the Spirit spoke, so it happened. The God who anointed saved His anointed. He heard from His holy heaven. With His almighty right hand He reached down into Joseph’s sepulcher. With the saving strength of His right hand God raised up His Son Jesus from death to everlasting life. With that saving strength God raised Him up to heaven, and set Him at His own right hand.
That same confidence is ours through faith in Christ. Joined to Him by faith, through the operation of the Spirit who gave these words to David, we have the sure hope of our salvation. In the midst of our enemies, knowing our weakness and frailty, our confidence is in the Lord’s salvation of His Anointed. In that confidence, we call on His name, knowing He will hear.
How will He hear? Not only with His ear, listening from His holy heaven. He will hear from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand, the same right hand that raised Jesus our Lord.
May that right hand be more and more our only confidence and hope, by the Lord’s Spirit and Word!
Psalm 20:6, “Now know I that the Lord saveth his anointed; he will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand.”
What blessedness the Holy Spirit gave to David, that Israel’s king should write these words out of his own experience. So often the shepherd of Israel found himself in dire circumstances. Surrounded by his enemies and unable to deliver himself, the Lord heard his prayer, and delivered him. In that knowledge he could write, “Now know I that the Lord saveth his anointed.” By the faithfulness of God that knowledge strengthened his hope. So the sweet psalmist of Israel continued: “He will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand.”
But the Holy Spirit did not give these words to David for his own sake. They were written for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ, the anointed King of the church, to whom King David pointed. By the Spirit of Christ, David penned these words that apply to Christ. These words were Jesus’ confidence, when His enemies hatefully conspired against Him, and had Him nailed to Calvary’s cross, there to suffer and die. “He will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand.”
As the Spirit spoke, so it happened. The God who anointed saved His anointed. He heard from His holy heaven. With His almighty right hand He reached down into Joseph’s sepulcher. With the saving strength of His right hand God raised up His Son Jesus from death to everlasting life. With that saving strength God raised Him up to heaven, and set Him at His own right hand.
That same confidence is ours through faith in Christ. Joined to Him by faith, through the operation of the Spirit who gave these words to David, we have the sure hope of our salvation. In the midst of our enemies, knowing our weakness and frailty, our confidence is in the Lord’s salvation of His Anointed. In that confidence, we call on His name, knowing He will hear.
How will He hear? Not only with His ear, listening from His holy heaven. He will hear from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand, the same right hand that raised Jesus our Lord.
May that right hand be more and more our only confidence and hope, by the Lord’s Spirit and Word!
20 September 2013
Psalm 119:165, “Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.”
Peace abundant! Peace overflowing! This peace is the blessed possession of those who love God’s law.
That peace is glorious harmony between the lover of God’s law and his God. In this love of God’s law, he lives and walks in the way that is pleasing to his God. In that way, he enjoys blessed fellowship with his God in his heart and soul. He feels no need to hide from God or retreat from God’s presence. There is no sense of alienation or estrangement in this way. For this reason he loves the law of his God. It points to him this way of peace.
That peace is also his confidence and security in this world. Though he faces great hardships in this world, he has peace in his heart. Though his way is through persecution and scorn, through manifold temptations, or through deep grief and sorrow, he remains assured that all these things work together for his salvation. For he has abundant peace with his God, as he loves the law of his God.
But this Word of God tells of the one outstanding feature of this peace, which makes it so great. “Nothing shall offend them.” Literally, the Hebrew tells us: nothing there shall be making them stumble so as to fall. They will not stumble and fall. This peace is the stability of the lover of God’s law. His stability becomes so great that he does not trip and fall. He is steadfast in his way, so that he continues always to walk uprightly before his God.
This word does not mean he will not meet with offenses. It does not mean that no snares will beset his path. It does not mean his path is even and clear. In fact, his pathway will be filled with them. The devil, the world, and even his own flesh will see that his way is littered with them. But they will not cause him to stumble and fall.
Why not? Because of his peace.
First, this peace guards him from the trouble and wavering that offenses will cause. He does not become flustered or frustrated at offenses. When he hears an ill-spoken word from a friend, he does not abandon the friendship, but continues in it. When his place in the church means enduring a clash of personalities or going through some controversy, he does not immediately withdraw from its fellowship. Though there is cause for offense, yet is he not offended. In the middle of troubles, his peace endures. He keeps his friendship. He keeps his place in the church. He keeps to his way.
Second, this peace of God’s law that he loves is precious to him. Because he values this peace so highly, he will continue in his pursuit of God’s law. When the offense before him would seduce him from the law of His God, he knows he must keep to the course he loves. He cannot regard the offense because it impedes his love.
Third, the law of God itself keeps him from stumbling. The more he loves that law, the more it enters into his heart. That law becomes a brighter and brighter light to him. With its bright light, God’s law illuminates more and more of his pathway. Every point of stumbling in his way becomes evident to him. He is able by that light to navigate over and around every one of them.
Great is this peace! Walk safely in it by your love of God’s law, the law of your liberty through the grace of Jesus Christ!
Psalm 119:165, “Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.”
Peace abundant! Peace overflowing! This peace is the blessed possession of those who love God’s law.
That peace is glorious harmony between the lover of God’s law and his God. In this love of God’s law, he lives and walks in the way that is pleasing to his God. In that way, he enjoys blessed fellowship with his God in his heart and soul. He feels no need to hide from God or retreat from God’s presence. There is no sense of alienation or estrangement in this way. For this reason he loves the law of his God. It points to him this way of peace.
That peace is also his confidence and security in this world. Though he faces great hardships in this world, he has peace in his heart. Though his way is through persecution and scorn, through manifold temptations, or through deep grief and sorrow, he remains assured that all these things work together for his salvation. For he has abundant peace with his God, as he loves the law of his God.
But this Word of God tells of the one outstanding feature of this peace, which makes it so great. “Nothing shall offend them.” Literally, the Hebrew tells us: nothing there shall be making them stumble so as to fall. They will not stumble and fall. This peace is the stability of the lover of God’s law. His stability becomes so great that he does not trip and fall. He is steadfast in his way, so that he continues always to walk uprightly before his God.
This word does not mean he will not meet with offenses. It does not mean that no snares will beset his path. It does not mean his path is even and clear. In fact, his pathway will be filled with them. The devil, the world, and even his own flesh will see that his way is littered with them. But they will not cause him to stumble and fall.
Why not? Because of his peace.
First, this peace guards him from the trouble and wavering that offenses will cause. He does not become flustered or frustrated at offenses. When he hears an ill-spoken word from a friend, he does not abandon the friendship, but continues in it. When his place in the church means enduring a clash of personalities or going through some controversy, he does not immediately withdraw from its fellowship. Though there is cause for offense, yet is he not offended. In the middle of troubles, his peace endures. He keeps his friendship. He keeps his place in the church. He keeps to his way.
Second, this peace of God’s law that he loves is precious to him. Because he values this peace so highly, he will continue in his pursuit of God’s law. When the offense before him would seduce him from the law of His God, he knows he must keep to the course he loves. He cannot regard the offense because it impedes his love.
Third, the law of God itself keeps him from stumbling. The more he loves that law, the more it enters into his heart. That law becomes a brighter and brighter light to him. With its bright light, God’s law illuminates more and more of his pathway. Every point of stumbling in his way becomes evident to him. He is able by that light to navigate over and around every one of them.
Great is this peace! Walk safely in it by your love of God’s law, the law of your liberty through the grace of Jesus Christ!
19 September 2013
I Peter 1:13, “Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
What hope is this? A hope that requires you to “gird up the loins of your mind?” This Word of God denies a hope that only waits around, a hope that is only passive, or a hope that is lazy. True, Christian hope does not allow you to walk around with your robe down around your feet. Going here and there, chatting with this or that person, is not what true hope is about. In order to exercise yourself in the Bible’s hope, you must gird up your loins. If you do not, your robe will trip you up, and ruin your hope.
Yet, no physical robe is this, but the robe of your mind. Scripture tells you to gird up the loins of your mind. You cannot take a casual approach to hope with your mind. You cannot allow your mind to be lazy, to wander here and there, to take up every oddity or vanity or pleasant thing into it. You mind is not to be left idle. Gird up the loins of your mind.
This Word of God continues to tell us exactly what it means to gird up the loins of your mind. It means to keep your mind in a working-mode, of being focused and concentrated on the task at hand. Having the loins of your mind girded up, you are able to pay attention to a proper object, without being distracting by unimportant matters. It means that you are sober in your mind.
Being sober is the opposite of being drunk. When a man is inebriated, he cannot focus and concentrate. Both his short-term and long-term memory is severely impaired. He cannot keep his attention on a subject, but soon wanders off. He is forgetful of himself, of others, and of his very circumstances. His mind is in a fog, dimmed by alcohol.
But your sobriety does not mean only that you are clear of the sin of drunkenness. Your sobriety means also that your mind is not dimmed from its spiritual sight of faith by the things of this world. The Christian can be shamefully drunken with the pleasures of his earthly life. He has status among men, enjoying their praise. He has many material goods. He may be consumed with politics, hobbies, or sports. Especially today distractions abound. When the Christian’s mind is taken with these earthly matters, he is in a state of spiritual drunkenness. His hope is severely impaired.
Those pleasures you must shake off. Gird up the loins of your mind! Be sober! Hope to the end!
Gather up your mind, all its abilities and powers, and turn them together. Point them in one direction, and to one point: forward, to the end. That end must be before your mind, the object of your concentrated attention.
Plenty there is to occupy your mind. For there is “the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” What unsearchable, boundless, and matchless grace that is to be brought unto you! It is the grace of perfect glory, the perfect glory of a resurrected body and soul together, translated to eternal life and glory. It is the grace that will cloth your mortal body with immortality. It is the grace that will make you, body and soul, to be perfectly like the glorified body of your Lord Jesus Christ, to see Him as He is. It is the grace that shall bring you into the glorious presence of your Heavenly Father, to enjoy His fellowship and favor forever and ever, as you praise and bless His name forever and ever. What grace!
That grace is wholly and completely assured. It is “to be brought unto you.” Simply is this truth declared, with no conditions attached. Its assurance is shown over and over in this chapter: verses 4,5, 12, 23, and 25. Its assurance rests wholly in the blood of Christ’s sufferings, the one who will be revealed in glory, when this grace will be brought unto you.
What things these are, to which you are called to turn with your mind! What precious things to occupy your thoughts! What room can you possibly have for the vanities of this present life?!
Let this hope be your strength for your pilgrimage today. Let it be your strength to work as a faithful steward in God’s house of the sake of this hope. Let it be your strength to remain faithful in the midst of so many pressing temptations. Let it be your strength to bear every burden the Lord has placed on your shoulders. Let it be your strength to perfect holiness in the fear of your God.
Gird up the loins of your mind!
I Peter 1:13, “Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
What hope is this? A hope that requires you to “gird up the loins of your mind?” This Word of God denies a hope that only waits around, a hope that is only passive, or a hope that is lazy. True, Christian hope does not allow you to walk around with your robe down around your feet. Going here and there, chatting with this or that person, is not what true hope is about. In order to exercise yourself in the Bible’s hope, you must gird up your loins. If you do not, your robe will trip you up, and ruin your hope.
Yet, no physical robe is this, but the robe of your mind. Scripture tells you to gird up the loins of your mind. You cannot take a casual approach to hope with your mind. You cannot allow your mind to be lazy, to wander here and there, to take up every oddity or vanity or pleasant thing into it. You mind is not to be left idle. Gird up the loins of your mind.
This Word of God continues to tell us exactly what it means to gird up the loins of your mind. It means to keep your mind in a working-mode, of being focused and concentrated on the task at hand. Having the loins of your mind girded up, you are able to pay attention to a proper object, without being distracting by unimportant matters. It means that you are sober in your mind.
Being sober is the opposite of being drunk. When a man is inebriated, he cannot focus and concentrate. Both his short-term and long-term memory is severely impaired. He cannot keep his attention on a subject, but soon wanders off. He is forgetful of himself, of others, and of his very circumstances. His mind is in a fog, dimmed by alcohol.
But your sobriety does not mean only that you are clear of the sin of drunkenness. Your sobriety means also that your mind is not dimmed from its spiritual sight of faith by the things of this world. The Christian can be shamefully drunken with the pleasures of his earthly life. He has status among men, enjoying their praise. He has many material goods. He may be consumed with politics, hobbies, or sports. Especially today distractions abound. When the Christian’s mind is taken with these earthly matters, he is in a state of spiritual drunkenness. His hope is severely impaired.
Those pleasures you must shake off. Gird up the loins of your mind! Be sober! Hope to the end!
Gather up your mind, all its abilities and powers, and turn them together. Point them in one direction, and to one point: forward, to the end. That end must be before your mind, the object of your concentrated attention.
Plenty there is to occupy your mind. For there is “the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” What unsearchable, boundless, and matchless grace that is to be brought unto you! It is the grace of perfect glory, the perfect glory of a resurrected body and soul together, translated to eternal life and glory. It is the grace that will cloth your mortal body with immortality. It is the grace that will make you, body and soul, to be perfectly like the glorified body of your Lord Jesus Christ, to see Him as He is. It is the grace that shall bring you into the glorious presence of your Heavenly Father, to enjoy His fellowship and favor forever and ever, as you praise and bless His name forever and ever. What grace!
That grace is wholly and completely assured. It is “to be brought unto you.” Simply is this truth declared, with no conditions attached. Its assurance is shown over and over in this chapter: verses 4,5, 12, 23, and 25. Its assurance rests wholly in the blood of Christ’s sufferings, the one who will be revealed in glory, when this grace will be brought unto you.
What things these are, to which you are called to turn with your mind! What precious things to occupy your thoughts! What room can you possibly have for the vanities of this present life?!
Let this hope be your strength for your pilgrimage today. Let it be your strength to work as a faithful steward in God’s house of the sake of this hope. Let it be your strength to remain faithful in the midst of so many pressing temptations. Let it be your strength to bear every burden the Lord has placed on your shoulders. Let it be your strength to perfect holiness in the fear of your God.
Gird up the loins of your mind!
17 September 2013
Revelation 14:12, “Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.”
Wonderful is the way the Word of God takes two important spiritual matters and welds them together: the patience of the saints and their keeping of the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.
Biblical patience is a distinct Christian virtue, closely allied to hope. Because of hope, the Christian is able to be patient. He is so assured of a good and right end that he is able to wait. But the Christian virtue of patience is also unique because it applies to the circumstances of his waiting. He waits while being tempted to abandon his hope. Much pressure is applied to him by his enemies. The devil, the world, and his flesh want him to quit this whole business of Christianity. “Give up! It’s not worth it!” These enemies work powerfully to lead the Christian astray, holding out something attractive and much closer, to turn him from his hope. But by patience he bears up under his burden and carries on toward the goal of his hope. His patience equips him to remain steadfast in keeping “the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.”
But very powerfully this passage brings that patience to bear on the Christian’s identity. These saints, blessed with this patience, are “they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” To be sure, these are the result of the Spirit’s working. As such, it is the joy of the saints to experience this work of the Spirit in their lives and on their lips. But these very same things mark them in this world. Because they mark the saints as the children of God, they mark them also as the enemies of the world. Their keeping of the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus make them the target of the world’s fierce anger against God, whose cause these saints gladly represent. In that anger they work to destroy the saints, especially to destroy their patience.
What is their patience? Here is the patience of the saints: the judgment of the preceding verses, Revelation 14:8-11. Read those verses and meditate upon them. Let its light shine so brilliantly, and then shine that light upon all the nations as they draw closer together to form the kingdom of the beast. As you shine that light, their anger and their fierce attacks out of that anger are swallowed up in the ferocity of God’s eternal wrath and mighty anger against them. That same supply of patience continues in the following verses with the execution of God’s mighty judgment. The spring of the whole chapter becomes a powerful fountain of patience. Drink deeply from it!
Here is your patience, the patience of the saints. Here is your patience never to despair. Here is your patience never to turn aside. Here is your patience to continue steadfastly in the keeping of God’s commandments and the faith of Jesus.
Revelation 14:12, “Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.”
Wonderful is the way the Word of God takes two important spiritual matters and welds them together: the patience of the saints and their keeping of the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.
Biblical patience is a distinct Christian virtue, closely allied to hope. Because of hope, the Christian is able to be patient. He is so assured of a good and right end that he is able to wait. But the Christian virtue of patience is also unique because it applies to the circumstances of his waiting. He waits while being tempted to abandon his hope. Much pressure is applied to him by his enemies. The devil, the world, and his flesh want him to quit this whole business of Christianity. “Give up! It’s not worth it!” These enemies work powerfully to lead the Christian astray, holding out something attractive and much closer, to turn him from his hope. But by patience he bears up under his burden and carries on toward the goal of his hope. His patience equips him to remain steadfast in keeping “the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.”
But very powerfully this passage brings that patience to bear on the Christian’s identity. These saints, blessed with this patience, are “they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” To be sure, these are the result of the Spirit’s working. As such, it is the joy of the saints to experience this work of the Spirit in their lives and on their lips. But these very same things mark them in this world. Because they mark the saints as the children of God, they mark them also as the enemies of the world. Their keeping of the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus make them the target of the world’s fierce anger against God, whose cause these saints gladly represent. In that anger they work to destroy the saints, especially to destroy their patience.
What is their patience? Here is the patience of the saints: the judgment of the preceding verses, Revelation 14:8-11. Read those verses and meditate upon them. Let its light shine so brilliantly, and then shine that light upon all the nations as they draw closer together to form the kingdom of the beast. As you shine that light, their anger and their fierce attacks out of that anger are swallowed up in the ferocity of God’s eternal wrath and mighty anger against them. That same supply of patience continues in the following verses with the execution of God’s mighty judgment. The spring of the whole chapter becomes a powerful fountain of patience. Drink deeply from it!
Here is your patience, the patience of the saints. Here is your patience never to despair. Here is your patience never to turn aside. Here is your patience to continue steadfastly in the keeping of God’s commandments and the faith of Jesus.
16 September 2013
Joel 2:26,27, “And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the Lord your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed.”
This beautiful Word of God the prophet Joel brought to Judah in days of grievous judgment. Judah had sinned against the Lord, and the Lord was sending His judgment: a grievous plague of locusts. The Lord’s army had stripped the land of all its plants and trees, and starvation and death would surely follow in its wake. With His judgment the Lord powerfully rebuked His people for their sin.
Surely many turned away from the Lord under this judgment. The wicked angrily denounced God, finding in this plague of locusts their just cause. The ungodly hypocrite found no reason to continue on in his pretended worship and service of the Lord. As far as he was concerned, the Lord did not bless those who served Him, but only punished.
But there were yet the godly in this nation. These still clung to the Lord as their help and their hope, even in this time of judgment. In the winnowing process of God’s judgment, still they stood before God, looking to Him and His Word. For them was this Word given. In judgment, the Lord remembers His own in mercy.
“My people shall never be ashamed.” Blessed refrain! Even in judgment, there was wonderful cause to continue trusting in the Lord. Their trust would never be broken. Their hope would never be unfulfilled. Their expectation would never be disappointed. Their God had so declared: “My people shall never be ashamed.”
To demonstrate this promise, the Lord by His prophet, painted a glorious picture of the people that wait on Him and cling to His Word. There they are, eating in plenty. With that plenty they are filled. Out of that fulness they lift up their hearts and voices in the praise of the Lord their God. Oh, they know His wondrous dealings with them! By these wondrous dealings they are assured that He is in the midst of His people, and that He is the Lord their God.
No, they shall never be ashamed!
This Word of God is a powerful gift to you in the midst of judgment. In this world of ever-increasing darkness, when you feel the increasing weight of God’s wrath and judgment, you have His Word. When you feel caught between the rising tide of Islam on the one side and the sheer cliff of apostasy on the other, you have His promise. When you bear in this world burdens of pain, weakness, anxiety and grief, you have your God near to you. His people shall never be ashamed.
In that Word rejoice! In that Word be strengthened to carry on in your way of hope!
Joel 2:26,27, “And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the Lord your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed.”
This beautiful Word of God the prophet Joel brought to Judah in days of grievous judgment. Judah had sinned against the Lord, and the Lord was sending His judgment: a grievous plague of locusts. The Lord’s army had stripped the land of all its plants and trees, and starvation and death would surely follow in its wake. With His judgment the Lord powerfully rebuked His people for their sin.
Surely many turned away from the Lord under this judgment. The wicked angrily denounced God, finding in this plague of locusts their just cause. The ungodly hypocrite found no reason to continue on in his pretended worship and service of the Lord. As far as he was concerned, the Lord did not bless those who served Him, but only punished.
But there were yet the godly in this nation. These still clung to the Lord as their help and their hope, even in this time of judgment. In the winnowing process of God’s judgment, still they stood before God, looking to Him and His Word. For them was this Word given. In judgment, the Lord remembers His own in mercy.
“My people shall never be ashamed.” Blessed refrain! Even in judgment, there was wonderful cause to continue trusting in the Lord. Their trust would never be broken. Their hope would never be unfulfilled. Their expectation would never be disappointed. Their God had so declared: “My people shall never be ashamed.”
To demonstrate this promise, the Lord by His prophet, painted a glorious picture of the people that wait on Him and cling to His Word. There they are, eating in plenty. With that plenty they are filled. Out of that fulness they lift up their hearts and voices in the praise of the Lord their God. Oh, they know His wondrous dealings with them! By these wondrous dealings they are assured that He is in the midst of His people, and that He is the Lord their God.
No, they shall never be ashamed!
This Word of God is a powerful gift to you in the midst of judgment. In this world of ever-increasing darkness, when you feel the increasing weight of God’s wrath and judgment, you have His Word. When you feel caught between the rising tide of Islam on the one side and the sheer cliff of apostasy on the other, you have His promise. When you bear in this world burdens of pain, weakness, anxiety and grief, you have your God near to you. His people shall never be ashamed.
In that Word rejoice! In that Word be strengthened to carry on in your way of hope!
15 September 2013, The Lord’s Day
Psalm 43:3, “O send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead me; let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy tabernacles.”
This is the day to be taken by the hand and to be led to the holy hill of the Lord, and to His tabernacles. This is the day for the church to call her sons and daughters to worship. This is the day for the Holy Spirit to work in the hearts of God’s children, working there desire for the fellowship of God’s people and most of all God’s gracious presence among them.
But this prayer desires something else: that God's light and truth themselves lead us. We are taught to pray for the light of God’s truth to come to us as a guiding beacon. We pray to see that beacon of truth shining brightly as a beam upon us from God’s dwelling place. We pray to see it as the only light in the midst of so great a darkness. We desire to know the peace and life of that light shining to us, as that light calls us to its source. We want to follow that light as it leads us and guides us, never stopping until we find ourselves going up the holy hill of God and entering His tabernacles. And then our desire is to be bathed in its pure, radiant glow.
This leading of God’s light and truth must be our experience be this day. We have heard the truth of God over and over again in the tabernacles of God, His church. That truth we know to be our only light. So we carry that light and truth in our hearts by faith. And as we come to another Sabbath Day, faith in our hearts seeks that light and truth again, longing for the living God who is present among His people through His truth. To that heart of faith, God’s light and truth urgently calls again to its fountain, opened up in the assembly of God’s people, where God’s Word is faithfully proclaimed.
May this light lead us into the assembly of the saints today! May we know that light of the pure doctrine of the gospel preached to us! May that light and truth be our delight among God’s people, to His praise, who is the health of our countenance, and our God!
Psalm 43:3, “O send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead me; let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy tabernacles.”
This is the day to be taken by the hand and to be led to the holy hill of the Lord, and to His tabernacles. This is the day for the church to call her sons and daughters to worship. This is the day for the Holy Spirit to work in the hearts of God’s children, working there desire for the fellowship of God’s people and most of all God’s gracious presence among them.
But this prayer desires something else: that God's light and truth themselves lead us. We are taught to pray for the light of God’s truth to come to us as a guiding beacon. We pray to see that beacon of truth shining brightly as a beam upon us from God’s dwelling place. We pray to see it as the only light in the midst of so great a darkness. We desire to know the peace and life of that light shining to us, as that light calls us to its source. We want to follow that light as it leads us and guides us, never stopping until we find ourselves going up the holy hill of God and entering His tabernacles. And then our desire is to be bathed in its pure, radiant glow.
This leading of God’s light and truth must be our experience be this day. We have heard the truth of God over and over again in the tabernacles of God, His church. That truth we know to be our only light. So we carry that light and truth in our hearts by faith. And as we come to another Sabbath Day, faith in our hearts seeks that light and truth again, longing for the living God who is present among His people through His truth. To that heart of faith, God’s light and truth urgently calls again to its fountain, opened up in the assembly of God’s people, where God’s Word is faithfully proclaimed.
May this light lead us into the assembly of the saints today! May we know that light of the pure doctrine of the gospel preached to us! May that light and truth be our delight among God’s people, to His praise, who is the health of our countenance, and our God!
14 September 2013
Zechariah 4:6, “Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.”
The word of God from the prophet to Zerubbabel, the governor of the returned captivity, must we hear amidst the weeping of the elderly among them. The elderly wept out of their discouragement. When the foundation of the new temple was laid, at a feast commemorating the faithfulness of God to His Word, these elderly could not drive out of their minds the glory of Solomon’s temple their young eyes had seen. The foundation of this new temple was so very small by comparison. They were discouraged. Out of that discouragement they wept.
This word God spoke to Zerubbabel for his encouragement. “ Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.” Solomon’s temple was a temple of might and of power. It was a large, grand complex of chambers and courts and a porch, all beautifully arranged, covered lavishly in brilliantly shining gold. The wealth and power of the nation went into its building. It stood as a mighty, powerful testimony of God’s glorious presence among His people.
Now things must be different. A smaller temple was the order of the day by God’s arrangement, not by Judah’s diminished resources. In harmony with that smaller temple is this word from God: “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit.” Here is the glory of this temple, that it might have in it the candlestick of gold, fed by its bowls of olive oil, symbolic of the Holy Spirit of God and His presence among the people of God. God dwells among His people: the true glory of the temple!
This verse leads to the wonder of the gospel of the Spirit’s indwelling. Let the believer be not mighty, but so very weak. Let the church be not so large or great, but so very small. What makes that weak believer? What makes that small church? “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.” When the believer believes and when the church worships her Lord in the pure preaching of the Word, there is the Spirit’s presence.
When the elderly behold, they may weep. When the enemies of the church see, they may shout for joy. But when the Lord of hosts saith, “By my Spirit,” there is His almighty, powerful, and glorious presence. There is the Lord of hosts, by His Spirit. Then the weak believer can boast and the small church can shout for joy. God is in the midst of her: she shall not be moved!
Zechariah 4:6, “Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.”
The word of God from the prophet to Zerubbabel, the governor of the returned captivity, must we hear amidst the weeping of the elderly among them. The elderly wept out of their discouragement. When the foundation of the new temple was laid, at a feast commemorating the faithfulness of God to His Word, these elderly could not drive out of their minds the glory of Solomon’s temple their young eyes had seen. The foundation of this new temple was so very small by comparison. They were discouraged. Out of that discouragement they wept.
This word God spoke to Zerubbabel for his encouragement. “ Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.” Solomon’s temple was a temple of might and of power. It was a large, grand complex of chambers and courts and a porch, all beautifully arranged, covered lavishly in brilliantly shining gold. The wealth and power of the nation went into its building. It stood as a mighty, powerful testimony of God’s glorious presence among His people.
Now things must be different. A smaller temple was the order of the day by God’s arrangement, not by Judah’s diminished resources. In harmony with that smaller temple is this word from God: “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit.” Here is the glory of this temple, that it might have in it the candlestick of gold, fed by its bowls of olive oil, symbolic of the Holy Spirit of God and His presence among the people of God. God dwells among His people: the true glory of the temple!
This verse leads to the wonder of the gospel of the Spirit’s indwelling. Let the believer be not mighty, but so very weak. Let the church be not so large or great, but so very small. What makes that weak believer? What makes that small church? “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.” When the believer believes and when the church worships her Lord in the pure preaching of the Word, there is the Spirit’s presence.
When the elderly behold, they may weep. When the enemies of the church see, they may shout for joy. But when the Lord of hosts saith, “By my Spirit,” there is His almighty, powerful, and glorious presence. There is the Lord of hosts, by His Spirit. Then the weak believer can boast and the small church can shout for joy. God is in the midst of her: she shall not be moved!
13 September 2013
Joshua 14:7, “Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-barnea to espy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was in mine heart.”
Numbers 14:9, “Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not.”
How Caleb must have rejoiced to confess the word he spoke forty-five years before! His joy was to see the fruit of that confession as he now stood in Canaan itself. He was able to see with his eye how the Lord was with His people, to give them the land as He had promised them. His joy was seeing the land as one of two yet remaining of all that generation that perished in the wilderness under God’s anger. The only other one in all Israel past the age of 65 was Joshua, to whom Caleb spoke these words.
Most of all, Caleb’s joy was to see the Lord’s faithfulness. This was the burden that he had carried in his heart. How heavy this burden of faith was, when the people of Israel heard his believing confession in Numbers 15:9. With his ears he heard the cries of the people to have him stoned for his faithful, encouraging words. With heavy heart he heard the sentence of God’s judgment on this unbelieving people: to wander in the wilderness for forty years. Though he believed, Caleb’s burden was to wander with this rebellious generation of unbelief as each of them perished without seeing the promised land.
Now that burden becomes his joy and happiness, to see God’s Word fulfilled by God’s own power. Not only did God cause that wicked, unbelieving generation to perish in the wilderness. He also saw the latter end: God’s gift of the land to His people, and that Caleb should have his own inheritance among them. God is faithful!
What cause for us to stand together with Caleb! The faith by which he spoke, and the faith which later became such a joy to him is the very same faith the Holy Spirit has planted in every believer’s heart. What blessedness is ours to walk and speak by faith, even though now it means a heavy burden and much opposition. But let us persevere, knowing our latter end will be as Caleb’s: to see with our eyes God’s faithfulness and to rejoice in the end of our faith, victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
How do we do that? Reckon with your enemies always in the light of God’s glory and truth. What was in Caleb’s heart? In his heart was the confession of his mouth, the confession we have in Numbers 15:9. To be sure, he properly estimated the strength of the enemy: those nations in the land of Canaan. He saw exactly what the other spies saw. But in his heart, by faith, he saw something else. He saw the power and glory of God, revealed the Lord’s overthrow of Egypt and Pharaoh’s army. He understood the promise of this God to give the land to the children of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, whose children they were. From that heart of faith Caleb brought word again to Moses.
That same truth is ours. So let us speak. “The Lord is with us: fear them not.” As we now speak by faith, let us know we will rejoice to see it with our eyes: the faithfulness of our God.
Joshua 14:7, “Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-barnea to espy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was in mine heart.”
Numbers 14:9, “Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not.”
How Caleb must have rejoiced to confess the word he spoke forty-five years before! His joy was to see the fruit of that confession as he now stood in Canaan itself. He was able to see with his eye how the Lord was with His people, to give them the land as He had promised them. His joy was seeing the land as one of two yet remaining of all that generation that perished in the wilderness under God’s anger. The only other one in all Israel past the age of 65 was Joshua, to whom Caleb spoke these words.
Most of all, Caleb’s joy was to see the Lord’s faithfulness. This was the burden that he had carried in his heart. How heavy this burden of faith was, when the people of Israel heard his believing confession in Numbers 15:9. With his ears he heard the cries of the people to have him stoned for his faithful, encouraging words. With heavy heart he heard the sentence of God’s judgment on this unbelieving people: to wander in the wilderness for forty years. Though he believed, Caleb’s burden was to wander with this rebellious generation of unbelief as each of them perished without seeing the promised land.
Now that burden becomes his joy and happiness, to see God’s Word fulfilled by God’s own power. Not only did God cause that wicked, unbelieving generation to perish in the wilderness. He also saw the latter end: God’s gift of the land to His people, and that Caleb should have his own inheritance among them. God is faithful!
What cause for us to stand together with Caleb! The faith by which he spoke, and the faith which later became such a joy to him is the very same faith the Holy Spirit has planted in every believer’s heart. What blessedness is ours to walk and speak by faith, even though now it means a heavy burden and much opposition. But let us persevere, knowing our latter end will be as Caleb’s: to see with our eyes God’s faithfulness and to rejoice in the end of our faith, victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
How do we do that? Reckon with your enemies always in the light of God’s glory and truth. What was in Caleb’s heart? In his heart was the confession of his mouth, the confession we have in Numbers 15:9. To be sure, he properly estimated the strength of the enemy: those nations in the land of Canaan. He saw exactly what the other spies saw. But in his heart, by faith, he saw something else. He saw the power and glory of God, revealed the Lord’s overthrow of Egypt and Pharaoh’s army. He understood the promise of this God to give the land to the children of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, whose children they were. From that heart of faith Caleb brought word again to Moses.
That same truth is ours. So let us speak. “The Lord is with us: fear them not.” As we now speak by faith, let us know we will rejoice to see it with our eyes: the faithfulness of our God.
12 September 2013
Psalm 1:4, “And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.”
What great blessedness belongs to the man whose delight is in the law of the Lord! That blessedness the Holy Spirit explains with a beautiful picture from God’s creation. He is compared to a tree that lasts forever in enduring strength.
That tree is planted by the rivers of water. Its roots have a plenteous source of water. Those roots do not need to search out for water in hidden depths of the dry earth. They do not need to struggle to pull up water from far down. Water flows in abundance around the roots that steadily drink it up for all the nourishment the tree needs.
The planting of this tree by the rivers of water explains the condition of this tree. This tree “bringeth forth his fruit in his season.” At the right time for this tree, according to its nature by God’s creation, there is an abundance of fruit to be found. Its boughs are laden with large, lovely fruit. This tree does not disappoint. It does not produce fruit that is sparse or small. The condition of this tree is also that its leaf does not wither. Whenever one might come to see the leaves of this tree, its leaves are always green, full, and living. Never shrivelled or pale, this tree demonstrates by its wonderful robe the fullness of the waters from which it drinks. Its very sight always gives joy and delight.
Scripture then turns back from the picture to the man whose delight is in the law of the Lord. His fruit and his leaf describe his deeds. “Whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.” So is the way of the righteous. His deeds prosper before the Lord his God. He is confident that the Lord’s blessing rests on his labour, to make it fruitful and prosperous before Him. His labour brings praise and glory to the Lord. His endurance of suffering and tribulation bring honour to his Lord, showing the glory of God’s hand to preserve and keep all His own. The prosperity of the godly man’s deeds endures to eternal life.
Over against this living, green, fruitful tree the Holy Spirit places the chaff. No tree can the ungodly be. They must be compared, instead, to chaff. They have no moisture, and they have no weight. They have nothing green, and nothing fruitful. Light and dead, they cannot even remain on the ground. The wind picks them up and drives them away. They are gone.
Remaining and enduring is the man whose delight is in the law of God. When the ungodly are long gone, the godly endure, continuing in their prosperity to bear fruit to the glory of their God.
May this blessedness encourage us to place our delight in the law of God, and to meditate upon it day and night. May our way to that law be always through faith in the righteous Son of God, so that we delight in that law as a law of liberty and be fruitful in gratitude. May the sanctifying Spirit be our rivers of water, by whom we are forever fruitful.
Psalm 1:4, “And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.”
What great blessedness belongs to the man whose delight is in the law of the Lord! That blessedness the Holy Spirit explains with a beautiful picture from God’s creation. He is compared to a tree that lasts forever in enduring strength.
That tree is planted by the rivers of water. Its roots have a plenteous source of water. Those roots do not need to search out for water in hidden depths of the dry earth. They do not need to struggle to pull up water from far down. Water flows in abundance around the roots that steadily drink it up for all the nourishment the tree needs.
The planting of this tree by the rivers of water explains the condition of this tree. This tree “bringeth forth his fruit in his season.” At the right time for this tree, according to its nature by God’s creation, there is an abundance of fruit to be found. Its boughs are laden with large, lovely fruit. This tree does not disappoint. It does not produce fruit that is sparse or small. The condition of this tree is also that its leaf does not wither. Whenever one might come to see the leaves of this tree, its leaves are always green, full, and living. Never shrivelled or pale, this tree demonstrates by its wonderful robe the fullness of the waters from which it drinks. Its very sight always gives joy and delight.
Scripture then turns back from the picture to the man whose delight is in the law of the Lord. His fruit and his leaf describe his deeds. “Whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.” So is the way of the righteous. His deeds prosper before the Lord his God. He is confident that the Lord’s blessing rests on his labour, to make it fruitful and prosperous before Him. His labour brings praise and glory to the Lord. His endurance of suffering and tribulation bring honour to his Lord, showing the glory of God’s hand to preserve and keep all His own. The prosperity of the godly man’s deeds endures to eternal life.
Over against this living, green, fruitful tree the Holy Spirit places the chaff. No tree can the ungodly be. They must be compared, instead, to chaff. They have no moisture, and they have no weight. They have nothing green, and nothing fruitful. Light and dead, they cannot even remain on the ground. The wind picks them up and drives them away. They are gone.
Remaining and enduring is the man whose delight is in the law of God. When the ungodly are long gone, the godly endure, continuing in their prosperity to bear fruit to the glory of their God.
May this blessedness encourage us to place our delight in the law of God, and to meditate upon it day and night. May our way to that law be always through faith in the righteous Son of God, so that we delight in that law as a law of liberty and be fruitful in gratitude. May the sanctifying Spirit be our rivers of water, by whom we are forever fruitful.
10 September 2013
Psalm 49:6-9 “They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him: (For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever;) That he should still live for ever, and not see corruption.”
Set before us in these words is a great test, a test of riches and wealth. This test reveals true riches.
For so many this test is a disaster. It reduces their riches to poverty. These are described in verse six. They trust in their wealth and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches. By earthly standards they are rich. We might think of men such as Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, and Donald Trump, men wealthy beyond compare. We might think of a vast multitude of wealthy men who are captains of industry, who possess vast reserves of resources, or who have made vast fortunes shipping men and good all over the world. How such men are filled with pride over their great fortunes. How many other idolize them, setting them up for their heroes, wanting to be like them. How many will boast of knowing someone who is prominently rich, having met them at some social function?
Are they truly, really rich? Let us see. The next verse is a test. “None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him.” They may love a brother ever so much. That brother they lose to death. With all their money they cannot pay a sufficient amount to recover him from the grave and its corruption. That beloved brother remains in his grave. There is nothing they can do.
Every day the test is applied, and every day the test proves. These are not riches. They are only vanity. They are not to be trusted in. They are not to be boasted of.
But this test we may apply to another kind of riches. This Word of God invites such a test. What are the riches of the righteousness of Christ? Are they true riches? Are they to be trusted? Are they worthy of our boasting?
Let us see. Do they redeem? Are they a true ransom to God? See their power in the One who bears them in Himself. What does His righteousness accomplish? See His glorious resurrection from the dead the third day. See Him living forever at the right hand of God. Behold Him, who saw no corruption in His grave, but came out of it according to the Scriptures.
See His riches proven in this word of God in others. This ransom Christ gave not for one brother or for two, but for a multitude of brethren. He died for His elect people, given Him eternally by the Father. Every last one of them He will raise from the dead, according to the same Word of God.
What a redemption! What riches! Truly it is said of them, that the redemption of their souls is precious and it ceaseth forever. So great are these riches, so precious, that they are infinite in value. It “ceaseth forever,” with no end in sight.
In that wealth of your Lord put your trust. In the multitude of those riches boast. You will never be put to shame, but enjoy glorious victory by them, to the glory of your Brother who ransomed you with His blood!
Psalm 49:6-9 “They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him: (For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever;) That he should still live for ever, and not see corruption.”
Set before us in these words is a great test, a test of riches and wealth. This test reveals true riches.
For so many this test is a disaster. It reduces their riches to poverty. These are described in verse six. They trust in their wealth and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches. By earthly standards they are rich. We might think of men such as Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, and Donald Trump, men wealthy beyond compare. We might think of a vast multitude of wealthy men who are captains of industry, who possess vast reserves of resources, or who have made vast fortunes shipping men and good all over the world. How such men are filled with pride over their great fortunes. How many other idolize them, setting them up for their heroes, wanting to be like them. How many will boast of knowing someone who is prominently rich, having met them at some social function?
Are they truly, really rich? Let us see. The next verse is a test. “None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him.” They may love a brother ever so much. That brother they lose to death. With all their money they cannot pay a sufficient amount to recover him from the grave and its corruption. That beloved brother remains in his grave. There is nothing they can do.
Every day the test is applied, and every day the test proves. These are not riches. They are only vanity. They are not to be trusted in. They are not to be boasted of.
But this test we may apply to another kind of riches. This Word of God invites such a test. What are the riches of the righteousness of Christ? Are they true riches? Are they to be trusted? Are they worthy of our boasting?
Let us see. Do they redeem? Are they a true ransom to God? See their power in the One who bears them in Himself. What does His righteousness accomplish? See His glorious resurrection from the dead the third day. See Him living forever at the right hand of God. Behold Him, who saw no corruption in His grave, but came out of it according to the Scriptures.
See His riches proven in this word of God in others. This ransom Christ gave not for one brother or for two, but for a multitude of brethren. He died for His elect people, given Him eternally by the Father. Every last one of them He will raise from the dead, according to the same Word of God.
What a redemption! What riches! Truly it is said of them, that the redemption of their souls is precious and it ceaseth forever. So great are these riches, so precious, that they are infinite in value. It “ceaseth forever,” with no end in sight.
In that wealth of your Lord put your trust. In the multitude of those riches boast. You will never be put to shame, but enjoy glorious victory by them, to the glory of your Brother who ransomed you with His blood!
9 September 2013
James 1:22, “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.”
A powerful warning these words give us.
The warning is powerful because it is a warning against self-deception. That warning goes to our very hearts. We are prone to self-deception, and that self-deception is the root of all hypocrisy. The hypocrite believes in his heart that he can be outwardly what he is not inwardly, without any consequence and without any condemnation. In addition, self-deception always builds its defence against the truth. This defence always tends to grow stronger and cover more ground, so that one becomes more and more self-deceived.
This warning becomes more powerful when we see what kind of self-deception this is. It is to be “hearers only.” We must hear the Word. We must hear the Word first. Faith requires that we hear the Word first, and we believe the Word first, without doing anything at all. Salvation, forgiveness, the hope of eternal life, must be received by faith only, apart from the works of the law. The Word is a Word of grace. This Word reveals the grace of God through the merit of Jesus Christ, whose merit is the full and complete ground of our salvation.
Right there we can stop. Our self-deception can take hold of our hearts. In that deception we might claim perfect obedience to the Word we hear. We have heard the Word! We have heard the Word that tells us we are saved without our works! Therefore, we will remain “hearers only.”
We must hear the Word, twice warning us. “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only.” Do not be “deceiving your own selves.”
Be ye doers of the Word! When the Word tells you, “Hear,” so listen. But the same Word also says to you, “Go!” So must you go. The Word says to you, “Do,!” So must you do. The Word says to you, “Speak!” So must you speak. You may not say, “I hear,” and then not go, not do, and not speak. See Matthew 21:28-32.
Being a doer of the Word and not a hearer only is a necessary safeguard against self-deception. As we go from hearing the Word to doing the Word we find our need of God’s grace through Christ becomes greater, not less. This need of grace grows when we hear the Word telling us to do all to the glory of God, and to do it from our hearts. We find out how great our sins are, when we fail to do what the Word tells us to do. We need the grace of the Word to tell us all these sins are forgiven. As doers of the Word we also learn how great is our weakness to obey, and our need of God’s grace in order to do the Word.
That need guards us against self-deception. That need keeps us near to the Word of truth. That need keeps us relying on it. In that nearness, relying on the Word, we are also more and more equipped to be doers of the Word, and not hearers only.
In this week, let us be hearers of the Word, and also doers, walking in truth!
James 1:22, “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.”
A powerful warning these words give us.
The warning is powerful because it is a warning against self-deception. That warning goes to our very hearts. We are prone to self-deception, and that self-deception is the root of all hypocrisy. The hypocrite believes in his heart that he can be outwardly what he is not inwardly, without any consequence and without any condemnation. In addition, self-deception always builds its defence against the truth. This defence always tends to grow stronger and cover more ground, so that one becomes more and more self-deceived.
This warning becomes more powerful when we see what kind of self-deception this is. It is to be “hearers only.” We must hear the Word. We must hear the Word first. Faith requires that we hear the Word first, and we believe the Word first, without doing anything at all. Salvation, forgiveness, the hope of eternal life, must be received by faith only, apart from the works of the law. The Word is a Word of grace. This Word reveals the grace of God through the merit of Jesus Christ, whose merit is the full and complete ground of our salvation.
Right there we can stop. Our self-deception can take hold of our hearts. In that deception we might claim perfect obedience to the Word we hear. We have heard the Word! We have heard the Word that tells us we are saved without our works! Therefore, we will remain “hearers only.”
We must hear the Word, twice warning us. “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only.” Do not be “deceiving your own selves.”
Be ye doers of the Word! When the Word tells you, “Hear,” so listen. But the same Word also says to you, “Go!” So must you go. The Word says to you, “Do,!” So must you do. The Word says to you, “Speak!” So must you speak. You may not say, “I hear,” and then not go, not do, and not speak. See Matthew 21:28-32.
Being a doer of the Word and not a hearer only is a necessary safeguard against self-deception. As we go from hearing the Word to doing the Word we find our need of God’s grace through Christ becomes greater, not less. This need of grace grows when we hear the Word telling us to do all to the glory of God, and to do it from our hearts. We find out how great our sins are, when we fail to do what the Word tells us to do. We need the grace of the Word to tell us all these sins are forgiven. As doers of the Word we also learn how great is our weakness to obey, and our need of God’s grace in order to do the Word.
That need guards us against self-deception. That need keeps us near to the Word of truth. That need keeps us relying on it. In that nearness, relying on the Word, we are also more and more equipped to be doers of the Word, and not hearers only.
In this week, let us be hearers of the Word, and also doers, walking in truth!
8 September 2013, the Lord’s Day
Hebrews 10:24, 25, “And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more as ye see the day approaching.”
“One another . . . the assembling of ourselves . . . one another.”
Let this Word of God test you: are you a considerate person?
How many ways there are to answer this question! You might question your family members or close friends. Are you ready to hear their answers? Will they feel free to answer your question with the truth? You could recall the words you have spoken and the deeds you have done in the past week. Will they answer the question you ask of them? What will they tell you?
This Word of God gives you the answer, the answer of whether you are spiritually considerate. It takes you into the fellowship and communion of the saints, and asks whether you are considerate of them, and their spiritual need.
There are “some” described in these verses who are inconsiderate. How are they inconsiderate? They forsake “the assembling of ourselves together.” They are “some” in the church. That word does distinguish them from the ungodly society around the church. But these “some” are disobedient, besides being inconsiderate. Do not be like them, the Word of God says to you. Be considerate.
Through that “assembling of ourselves together” there is proper consideration. Consideration of one another there is “to provoke unto love and good works.” Consideration of one another there is, in “exhorting one another.” In this assembly you are able to support the Word of God that you hear by the preaching. By your presence and careful attention to it, you practically declare what you hear is the Word of God, and that it does exhort you and your fellow saints. As you make that practical declaration with your close listening and devotion, with that Word you provoke one another to love and to good works.
In that assembly you also are able to practice your love for one another. You love each other, to ensure that you have the faithful Word of God preached among you, for your salvation. You together support that Word both by hearing it, and caring for the man that preaches it to you. You encourage him in his faithful work when you listen carefully and help each other to listen carefully.
Your care for “the assembling of ourselves together” also ensures that others are able to carry out this exhortation toward you. In this assembly they will have opportunity to be considerate of you. They will be able to exhort you through the Word, and they will be able to provoke you unto love and to good works.
Through this assembling of yourselves together, you help keep the church strong. Do not weaken your fellow-saints, through forsaking this assembly. Exhort one another, for strength. Provoke one another for strength. Heed the call to worship! Assemble in th
Hebrews 10:24, 25, “And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more as ye see the day approaching.”
“One another . . . the assembling of ourselves . . . one another.”
Let this Word of God test you: are you a considerate person?
How many ways there are to answer this question! You might question your family members or close friends. Are you ready to hear their answers? Will they feel free to answer your question with the truth? You could recall the words you have spoken and the deeds you have done in the past week. Will they answer the question you ask of them? What will they tell you?
This Word of God gives you the answer, the answer of whether you are spiritually considerate. It takes you into the fellowship and communion of the saints, and asks whether you are considerate of them, and their spiritual need.
There are “some” described in these verses who are inconsiderate. How are they inconsiderate? They forsake “the assembling of ourselves together.” They are “some” in the church. That word does distinguish them from the ungodly society around the church. But these “some” are disobedient, besides being inconsiderate. Do not be like them, the Word of God says to you. Be considerate.
Through that “assembling of ourselves together” there is proper consideration. Consideration of one another there is “to provoke unto love and good works.” Consideration of one another there is, in “exhorting one another.” In this assembly you are able to support the Word of God that you hear by the preaching. By your presence and careful attention to it, you practically declare what you hear is the Word of God, and that it does exhort you and your fellow saints. As you make that practical declaration with your close listening and devotion, with that Word you provoke one another to love and to good works.
In that assembly you also are able to practice your love for one another. You love each other, to ensure that you have the faithful Word of God preached among you, for your salvation. You together support that Word both by hearing it, and caring for the man that preaches it to you. You encourage him in his faithful work when you listen carefully and help each other to listen carefully.
Your care for “the assembling of ourselves together” also ensures that others are able to carry out this exhortation toward you. In this assembly they will have opportunity to be considerate of you. They will be able to exhort you through the Word, and they will be able to provoke you unto love and to good works.
Through this assembling of yourselves together, you help keep the church strong. Do not weaken your fellow-saints, through forsaking this assembly. Exhort one another, for strength. Provoke one another for strength. Heed the call to worship! Assemble in th