Offensive

Posted on May 21, 2025 by Pete

This morning, I’m chewing on five words in the fifth chapter of Paul’s letter to the Galatians. And, if I’m picking up what is being laid down, as much as we might try to respectfully and winsomely persuade others (2Cor. 5:11), or as prepared as we might be “to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope” that is in us and to do so with “gentleness and respect” (1Pet. 3:15), when it comes to the message of the cross, for some it’s just going to be offensive.

But if I, brothers, still preach circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been removed.

(Galatians 5:11 ESV)

The offense of the cross . . .

All Paul needed to do, to be inoffensive, was preach a little “Jesus PLUS.” As in, Jesus’ finished work on the cross PLUS our finished work of observing the law, therein lies salvation, therein is our “hope of righteousness” (Gal. 5:5b).

A little Him, a little me . . . some of His work along with some of my worth . . . a blend of God’s freely offered grace supplemented by some of my merit worthy of forced divine obligation . . . three parts His righteousness imputed, one part my righteousness inserted . . . and what do you have? A comfortable cross.

Or, as Paul puts it, “this persuasion” is actually “a little leaven” which “leavens the whole lump” (Gal. 5:8-9).

This isn’t just some modified good news, it’s not good news at all. It’s not just a slightly different gospel, it’s a distorted gospel (Gal. 1:6-7). It’s not a variation to be accepted, it’s an out and out derivation to be accursed (Gal. 1:9).

So, why the temptation to mess with the good news by sprinkling in a bit of our own good works? Because of the offense of the cross. And none of us likes to be offended.

For those of us with an ego, for those of us who have found a standard next to which we can stand and find ourselves looking pretty good, for those of us who want to boast a bit in what we’ve become, to sing “Nothing in my hands I bring, simply to the cross I cling” (Rock of Ages) is kind of a gut punch. I bring “nothing?” Really? Nothing? Nada? Zip? Zilch? Bupkus?

Ouch!

No, not “ouch.” But “how dare you!” I’m offended!

Good. Now you’re getting it. Now let that offense morph into acknowledgement. And acknowledgment into contrition. And contrition into confession. And confession into desperation. And let that desperation lead you again only to the cross.

Not talking to unbelievers here. But brothers, sisters, I’m thinking about us. Let us beware of thinking that there is any place for any form of man produced “circumcision” in our gospel. We still have nothing in our hands to bring — nothing that Jesus hasn’t already placed in our hands and enabled us to carry. We still have only the cross to which we cling. For “if we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us” and “if we say we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us” (1John 1:8, 10 ESV).

Hmm . . . maybe that’s sounds a bit offensive. Good. It’s what qualifies it, in a sense, to be part of the good news — the good news that still proclaims . . .

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

(1John 1:9 ESV)

Oh, to embrace the offense of the cross. To know afresh the reality of its cleansing.

Only — yes, ONLY — by His grace.

Always for His glory.

Amen?

Posted in Galatians | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

The FROM and FOR of the People of God (2016 Remix)

Posted on May 19, 2025 by Pete

It’s a short song. Less than a hundred words parsed into eight verses packaged into four stanzas. It’s a short song about a great God to be sung by a redeemed people.

The God of Jacob is the focus of Psalm 114. The God before whom the sea fled, the river reversed course, and the mountains and hills wildly ran away. Why? It’s just what the earth does in the presence of the Lord, it trembles. It dances wildly in response to heavens majesty. It vacillates between retreat and drawing near as it responds to the Glory with a sense of dread and yet great joy as perfect holiness draws near. It is the fear of awe and worship. It’s just what creation does when it sees its Creator.

But while God is the focus of the song, what captures my attention this morning is the first stanza which talks of His people. And I tremble. Because I’m reminded that God’s people have been redeemed not just FROM something but FOR Someone.


When Israel went out from Egypt,
       the house of Jacob from a people of strange language,
Judah became His sanctuary,
       Israel His dominion.

(Psalm 114:1-2 ESV)

They were led out of Egypt. They escaped the angel of death and were delivered from the land of bondage. They were showered with the plunder of their oppressors and were free to worship the God of their liberation. A pretty good day, all in all, for the house of Jacob. There were saved FROM slavery, freed FROM oppression, rescued FROM their enemies.

But while it felt like it was all about them, it really wasn’t about them at all. Not when you consider what they were rescued FOR.

Judah’s redemption was so that they would become their Redeemer’s sanctuary. Israel’s rescue was so that the people might become their Rescuer’s dominion. They were to be a place where His glory would dwell and His rule would be known on earth.

Those led out of Egypt were to be God’s holy place. They were set apart so that the God of heaven might touch down on earth in their midst. Provision made to make the unholy holy, so that He who is holy, holy, holy might be manifest among them. Not perfect people, but purchased people, fit because of God’s sanctifying work alone to be the place of His dwelling on earth. That they were saved FROM Egypt was amazing, that they were saved FOR His holy dwelling place was fall to your face, tremble in your boots, awe invoking.

Those delivered from Pharaoh were also called to be the realm of God’s rule. Want some insight as to the inner workings of heaven? Look no further than to God’s people. Among them would be God’s kingdom on earth. The precepts, the principles, the practices, and the power of heaven would be seen in them as they traded the rusting chains of Egypt for an unreserved allegiance to heaven. Though the throne in their midst would be seen by faith, their obedience to their King who sits on the throne would be visible through their faithfulness. Saved FROM the tyrannical rule of one who sought only to use them up and spit them out, they were also saved FOR Him who had come to give them life, true life, life to the full.

That’s the FROM and FOR of the people of God.

To see our salvation only in terms of what we’ve been saved FROM is to only see half a salvation. But to grasp something of what we have been saved FOR is to whirl about, flipping back and forth between holy fear and inexpressible joy, in glorious worship to our God.

God’s people have been called out so that they might be “a dwelling place of God in the Spirit” (Eph. 2:22). They have been gathered apart to demonstrate what heavenly rule looks like as “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Col. 1:13).


Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord,
       at the presence of the God of Jacob,
who turns the rock into a pool of water,
       the flint into a spring of water.

(Psalm 114:7-8 ESV)

When I pause to consider anew not only what I have been rescued FROM but also what I have been redeemed FOR, it’s enough to make me tremble.

Because of His wondrous grace . . . all for His awesome glory!

Posted in Psalms | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Put Away (2008 Remix)

Posted on May 16, 2025 by Pete

As I look back in the archives, the format of my journaling was a little different back in the early days. Obvious this morning as I read some thoughts from 2008. But regardless of how I rendered my words, the impact of THE WORD is the same. So, I’m taking something from this day in my reading plan 17 years ago, touching it up a bit and posting it. Marveling afresh that God has put away my sin.

Ok . . . so my “aha!” moment this morning seems now pretty obvious and more of a “Duh, why didn’t I really get that before?” But hey, sometimes the word of God is like that. You know you “know” it . . . but then you read it and it hits you afresh and you just sit back and look heavenward and say, “Wow!” This is what I saw this morning . . .

2Samuel 11 and 12 . . . David & Bathsheba . . . very familiar story . . . read it a number of times . . . have heard it preached on a number of times . . . pretty familiar ground. But here is what hits me . . .

In chapter 12 the prophet Nathan has confronted David with his sin — his lust . . . his adultery . . . his treachery . . . his murderous plot. Man! . . . what an ugly list. There’s no doubt as to how the the law sees it — Death!!! And David doesn’t deny it. “I have sinned against the LORD,” he says. Busted!! Exposed!! Guilty!! David, this man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22) knows that it isn’t just that his transgression is against Bathsheba and Uriah, but his sin is against God Himself. David’s crushed . . . broken . . . good time to read Psalm 51 . . .

And here’s the phrase — actually the two words — I’m chewing on in Nathan’s response to David’s confession and repentance . . .

And Nathan said to David, “The LORD also has put away your sin; you shall not die.

(2Samuel 12:13b ESV)

Put away . . .

The NIV and NASB translate it this way, “The LORD has taken away your sin. You are not going to die.” And as I read that, the light bulb goes on as I realize afresh, “This is not some arbitrary act of God. This is not a whim by which God says, ‘I like David . . . I won’t hold him accountable for this . . . even though others might.’ ” No, a holy God could only be a holy God and yet still “put away” or “take away” David’s sin because of an event yet to occur on earth that had been determined before the foundation of the earth in heaven. God could only justly put away David’s sin because of the impending atoning sacrifice of His Son on a Roman cross. Jesus, fully God, part of the Triune Godhead . . . would become fully man, a descendant of David . . . would come as the Lamb of God, to take away the sin of the world (John 1:29) and, in doing so, allowed God to put away David’s horrendous sin.

It wasn’t about showing favoritism . . . that’s not the way our God works. I read that this morning in Galatians, “God shows personal favoritism to no man” (Gal. 2:6)

It wasn’t about God overlooking sin . . . turning His head . . . ignoring it . . . that isn’t how God operates. Psalm 111 reminded me this morning that, “The works of His hands are truth and justice” (Ps. 111:7 NASB).

God didn’t look away. He put away. With justice . . . in truth . . . in absolute holiness and righteousness . . . God sent His Son who knew no sin to become sin for David . . . and for me (2Cor. 5:21).

How glorious to see the cross this morning even in this old, familiar, “pre-age-of-grace” story. To see the grace of God poured out on a sinner. To realize anew that this sinner sitting in this chair is too a recipient of such wondrous grace, is also a benefactor of the finished work of the cross of Christ!

Hallelujah! What a Savior!!

My sin is put away.

By His grace. For His glory.

Amen?

Posted in 2Samuel | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Where Did He Always Eat?

Posted on May 15, 2025 by Pete

No home cooking for that guy. No Door Dash or Uber Eats either. He never had to ask, “Where are we going?” or “Who’s making dinner tonight?”

Hovering over 2Samuel 9 and the story of Mephibosheth this morning.

He was King Saul’s grandson. Jonathan’s son. Thus, naturally speaking, he was an enemy of the king currently on the throne.

He was also unable to walk, “crippled in his feet.” Living with a guy whose name means “sold” in a place whose name means “not a pasture.” Kind of fitting, I think. A guy so infirm and incapacitated that he’s unable to fend for himself, so dependent that, effectively, he has to be owned by — sold to — someone else. And he’s living, if not in a desert, then on a patch of ground so rocky, weedy, and dried up, it’s unfit for bearing fruit. Beyond that, not a whole lot known about Mephibosheth.

But, if repetition is any indication (and it is), this one thing the Spirit of God wants us to know — He wants us to know where Mephibosheth dined every night.

And Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, son of Saul, came to David and fell on his face and paid homage. And David said, “Mephibosheth!” And he answered, “Behold, I am your servant.” And David said to him, “Do not fear, for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I will restore to you all the land of Saul your father, and you shall eat at my table always.”

(2Samuel 9:6-7 ESV)

And you shall eat at my table always . . . That’s what I’m chewing on this morning. (Pun intended.)

And in case the reader misses where this enemy by birth would dine each night, it’s repeated again (v.10b) and again (v. 11b) and again (v. 13b).

Where did he always eat?

So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, for he ate always at the king’s table. Now he was lame in both his feet.

(2Samuel 9:13 ESV)

I guess I could noodle on this and imagine what it was like for Mephibosheth to be carried in and carried out of the dining room each night. Somewhat humbling. I could try and imagine how uncomfortable he felt, perhaps, sitting there with all the king’s sons (v.11) — talk about your “one of these things is not like the other.” Somewhat awkward. However, I could also imagine how grateful he must have felt being the recipient of such kindness. Somewhat amazing! I could simply meditate on what should have been a nightly experience of awe and wonder as he considered again the privileged place he occupied because of a promise (1Sam. 20:14-17).

And then, I could take that meditation . . . and make a translation . . . because of the correlation . . . that exists with my present situation and my privileged place at the table of another King, the Greater David, Jesus.

I too have been welcomed at a King’s table because of a promise. Though I was lame in both feet and without strength (Rom. 5:6 NKJV), while I was by nature an enemy (Rom. 5:10), I know what it is to be shown kindness for the sake of Another. For I too always have a place to feed. A feast at which to dine. A table at which I forever have a place.

So, this morning, it’s not just what I’m chewing on that gives rise to wonder but where I’m doin’ the chewin’ that evokes worship. I’m at the King’s table.

Always at the King’s table.

By His grace alone. For His glory alone.

Posted in 2Samuel | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Spend and Be Spent

Posted on May 13, 2025 by Pete

To be sure, Paul knew what it was to witness not only in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria, but also to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). He knew what it was to leave the comfort of home for the sake of bringing the good news to those who needed to hear the good news. Knew what it was to give up everything in order to travel everywhere preaching the gospel. Paul knew the cost of pursuing the lost. But as I read in 2Corinthians this morning, it hits me that he was also willing to pay a great price in order to care for the found.

Here for the third time I am ready to come to you. And I will not be a burden, for I seek not what is yours but you. For children are not obligated to save up for their parents, but parents for their children. I will most gladly spend and be spent for your souls. If I love you more, am I to be loved less?

(2Corinthians 12:14-15 ESV)

I will gladly spend and be spent for your souls . . . That’s the turn of phrase I’m chewing on this morning. As Peterson puts it,

I’d be most happy to empty my pockets, even mortgage my life, for your good.

(2Corinthians 12:15a MSG)

Okay, these people have already “punched their ticket”, they’re already Spirit sealed and heaven bound. Yeah, they’re a little dysfunctional (okay, maybe a lot), but hey, they’re saved. So, move on. Don’t sweat the saved stuff. There’s only so many resources. Only so much patience. Isn’t the priority the unsaved? Evidently, with Paul, it wasn’t an either / or proposition.

For Paul, it seems, it wasn’t enough for people to just be Christians, it was kind of important to him that they behaved as Christians too. Seems he wasn’t content just to get them in the door of the church but was also willing to invest heavily in making them disciples of Christ. And so, he would most gladly spend and be spent for their souls.

He would incur expense and exhaust by expending so that those redeemed by Jesus would reflect something of Jesus. He would put out the effort — even if that meant a third visit — if it meant it would build them up (2Cor. 12:19). We would empty his pockets if it meant an end to the “quarreling, jealousy, anger, hostility, slander, gossip, conceit, and disorder” among them (2Cor. 12:20). He would mortgage his life in hopes that his care and concern for them would cause them to repent of “the impurity, sexual immorality, and sensuality that they have practiced” (2Cor. 12:21). It wasn’t enough for Paul simply to see sinners engaged to Christ, but he also desperately desired to see them presented to Christ as a pure bride (2Cor. 11:2). Paul was ready to pay the price of being a vessel for Jesus’s use to “present the church to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish” (Eph. 5:27) — both positionally and practically.

Okay, good for Paul. What about me?

Thinking that while I might not be called to pay the price in the same way as Paul did to go to the ends of the earth, I’m still called to find God’s place for me in the Great Commission. Similarly, while I might not be asked to spend myself on spiritually fathering churches as Paul was, as a member of the family of God I do have a place for investing in the family’s flourishing. I should be prepared to ante up something for the sake of building up brothers and sisters in Christ. Whether it’s the “price of admission” of just regularly attending the gathering of the saints, or it’s being a little more “in” by investing time with others in a community group or in one-on-one encouragement, or it’s being “all in” by lovingly drawing aside those tripped up in sin and restoring them in a “spirit of gentleness” (Gal. 6:1), like Paul I too am called to invest in those who are already saved.

While loving the lost might be part of the Great Commission, loving one another is part of Jesus’s Great Commandment (John 13:34, 15:12, 15;17). And both are worth investing in.

Spend and be spent. Gladly. Not only for the sake of those who are need to be saved, but also for the good of those are being saved.

By God’s grace. For God’s glory.

Posted in 2Corinthians | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Deliverance Plus

Posted on May 12, 2025 by Pete

Noted a command to obey in Psalm 107 this morning. So . . . I’m gonna obey it!

Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things;
       let them consider the steadfast love of the LORD.

(Psalm 107:43 ESV)

After 42 verses, the songwriter says, in effect, “Don’t just sing it, sit it in. Think it over. Consider diligently the implications of, as Peterson puts it, “GOD’s deep love” (MSG).

Okay, let’s do it.

Psalm 107 is a call to “the redeemed of the LORD” to “give thanks to the LORD, for His steadfast love endures forever” (v.1). And redemption, the songwriter says, is “from trouble” (v.2). And so, if you’re gonna sing the song of the redeemed you’re gonna sing of trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble.

Four scenarios of trouble are composed by the lyricist. “Some wandered in desert wastes” (v.4) and were famished. “Some sat in darkness” (v.10), near death because they rebelled and spurned the counsel of God. “Some were fools through their sinful ways” and suffered greatly, so much so they couldn’t even eat. And finally, while the song starts in the desert, it finishes in the sea where “Some went down to the sea in ships, doing business” (v.23). Just everyday people doing their everyday job amidst the everyday upheavals and chaos of everyday life and, on this day, they encountered stormy winds and lifted up waves and they were in trouble, too.

Trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble. Obey the psalm’s command and “attend to these things”, and you’re gonna know that, just as Jesus said, “In the world you will have tribulation” (John 16:33). So, what’s a guy (or a gal) gonna do?

Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and He delivered them from their distress.

(Psalm 107:6 and 13, and 19, and 28 ESV)

Four times, in every scenario, from the desert to the sea, from trouble caused by foolishness to trouble caused by sinfulness to trouble found even in faithfulness, regardless of the level or degree to which “they deserved it”, they cried to the LORD in their trouble. Okay, that’s makes sense. Dialing 911 is what you’re gonna do in an emergency. But what makes less sense perhaps, is that in every troubled scenario, God delivers them from their distress. But hey, that’s what makes the redeemed the redeemed. And that’s what makes the steadfast love of the LORD steadfast. Hence, that’s why they should give thanks.

So, what do we know from the song about being redeemed? Well, as the songwriter sings again and again, God delivers. Yeah, but there’s more!

He also leads the delivered “by a straight way” (v.7). He brings them “out of darkness and the shadow of death” and “bursts their bonds apart” (v.14). He sends out His word and heals them and rescues them “from their destruction” (v.20). And He makes “the storm be still” and brings them to “their desired haven” (v. 29-30). That’s not just deliverance, that’s deliverance plus!

Deliverance plus. That’s the experience of the redeemed. That’s my experience. My experience from when I was first delivered “from the domain of darkness and transferred to the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Col. 1:13). And it’s been my experience of every deliverance I’ve known since then — deliverance needed because of my foolishness, my sinfulness, and even when in my faithfulness the storms of life were simply overwhelming.

Yeah, we’re gonna have trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble in the world for all sorts of reasons. “But take heart,” says Jesus, “I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). And overcoming comes from deliverance plus.

Isn’t that what redemption is all about? I’m thinkin’ . . .

So, having obeyed this command-to-obey in the last verse of the song, I’m guessing I should obey the command-to-obey in the first verse of the song.

Oh give thanks to the LORD, for He is good,
       for His steadfast love endures forever!

(Psalm 107:1 ESV)

Yes, I will. Because yes, He is. For yes, it does.

And I have known that steadfast love through trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble.

Because of His abundant grace. Only for His all-deserving glory.

Posted in Psalms | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Seek, Seek, Seek

Posted on May 7, 2025 by Pete

It’s a command to obey in Psalm 105 that hooks me this morning.

Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon His name;
       make known His deeds among the peoples!
Sing to Him, sing praises to Him;
       tell of all His wondrous works!
Glory in His holy name;
       let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice!
Seek the LORD and His strength;
       seek His presence continually!

(Psalm 105:1-4 ESV)

Seek His presence continually . . .

It’s an exhortation to not just desire, but to so long for as to require the presence of the LORD. And it raises a curiosity within me. Isn’t it a bit odd that we should yearn after and go after the presence of a God who is omnipresent?

I do a bit of digging, and the command is literally to seek “His face.” While God may be already present because He is always and everywhere present, the songwriter says that His people are wired to want to know His face, and thus they should seek to know Him up close and personal. That’s something to chew on . . .

But then I turn to Spurgeon and his thoughts on the psalmist’s lyrics. And his words end up being a big part of my meal this morning.

“Seek, seek, seek, we have the word three times, and though the words differ in the Hebrew, the sense is the same. It must be a blessed thing to seek, or we should not be thus stirred up to do so. To seek his face is to desire his presence, his smile, his favor consciously enjoyed. First, we seek him, then his strength and then his face; from the personal reverence, we pass on to the imparted power, and then to the conscious favor. This seeking must never cease — the more we know the more we must seek to know. Finding him, we must “our minds inflame to seek him more and more.” He seeks spiritual worshippers, and spiritual worshippers seek him; they are therefore sure to meet face to face ere long.” – Charles H. Spurgeon, The Treasury of David

Seek His presence continually . . .

. . . sure to meet face to face . . .

Through the favor of God’s grace.

To know the fullness of God’s glory.

Posted in Psalms | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Another Subscriber?

Posted on May 6, 2025 by Pete

My morning routine is first and foremost for my benefit. It’s my quiet time. It’s my time in the Word. Time to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2Peter 3:18), but equally as important, time to commune with the Triune God. Time with the living word of the Father, conveying something of His wonderful workings through the Son, brought to light by the inner dynamic of the Spirit. As such, every time I open the Word, it’s another opportunity for an encounter of the divine kind. Word of God speak!

I’m not unaware, however, that others have benefited from this routine as well. What began years and years ago as morning thoughts e-mailed to my wife and daughters is now a blog with e-mails being sent to a list of subscribers every time I post. I’ve often wondered that others might be encouraged by stuff I’m chewing on but have chalked it up to the fact that Jesus delights to feed people even if it’s with but an offering of a few loaves and a couple fishes. So, while I don’t count or track subscribers, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t aware they exist.

And this morning, it’s another subscriber who’s been put on my radar.

I will sing to the LORD as long as I live;
       I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
May my meditation be pleasing to Him,
       for I rejoice in the LORD.

(Psalm 104:33-34 ESV)

May my meditation be pleasing to Him . . . How’s that for a prayer to pray?

Sure, the specific context may be that of what comes to mind when singing, but I don’t think it’s much of a stretch to think the songwriter’s desire is that, as the New Living Translation puts it, “all my thoughts” — including my morning thoughts — would be pleasing to Him.

But is that really real? That our meditations might in some way be pleasing to the One who is the source of all pleasure? That somehow the God of creation would find some joy in our meager musings? That the God who transcends time and space might give attention to our closeted contemplations and whisper to Himself, “Sweet” (NKJV)? Yeah, I think it’s really real.

And it’s not about how deep we think or how well we write (or whether we write at all). Not dependent by us always picking up, fully and accurately, what’s being laid down and then laying out clearly what we’re picking up. Not that it’s an expectation of delivering without fail a deliverable every morning. In fact, it’s not about producing at all. God, the psalmist seems to be saying, delights just in our pondering.

May my meditation be pleasing to Him . . .

Another subscriber? I’m thinkin’ . . .

More evidence of His amazing grace.

More reason to ascribe to Him all the glory.

Posted in Psalms | Tagged , | Leave a comment

A Question. An Answer. An Effect

Posted on May 5, 2025 by Pete

Okay, as I sit back after my readings and start in on this morning’s meal, it’s scrambled eggs. No one passage, no single thought, rises to the surface as THE thing to meditate on. Rather, it’s a mix of observations coming together from different readings. A question here, an answer there, and an effect in yet another place.

First, a question. Context? Jonathan and his father, King Saul, get into an argument over the dinner table. Subject? David. Jonathan seeks to defend him, while Saul is set on destroying him. Cue, the question . . .

Then Jonathan answered Saul his father, “Why should he be put to death? What has he done?”

(1Samuel 20:32 ESV)

Why should He be put to death? Nothing deserving of death. Nothing deserving of anything but praise and honor. A servant of the king, a warrior under his command, David was nothing but noble and without fault. Hmm . . . sounds like “the greater David”, Jesus. And the question could be asked of Him as well. Why should He be put to death? What has He done?

Then, as I read in 2Corinthians, an answer.

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you by His poverty might become rich.

(2Corinthians 8:9 ESV)

He became poor . . . How’s that for an understatement?

How poor? Philippians 2 tells us. Divested of His visible deity and all His heavenly glory in order to come to earth in the flesh, “being born in the likeness of men”. Took off, as it were, His royal garments in order to put on the clothes of a servant. So humbling Himself He became “obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Php. 2:6-8). How poor’s that? Pretty poor!

So, why should He be put to death? Why should He have been made so poor? So that you by His poverty might become rich. Hmm, again . . . tell me more about these riches.

Reading three. Behold, an effect.

Bless the LORD, O my soul,
       and forget not all His benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity,
       who heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit,
       who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
who satisfies you with good
       so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

(Psalm 103:2-5 ESV)

Talk about your benefits! Talk about being made rich. Sins forgiven. A diseased soul, infected by a deceitful heart (Jer. 17:9), made whole. The price paid in full by His self-embraced poverty to redeem me from bondage to sin and death.

But wait, there’s more! I’m crowned — yes, crowned! — with God’s own steadfast love and mercy. Filled to overflowing with His goodness.

Sounds like a “from rags to riches story” to me.

A question. An answer. An effect. Worth chewing on? I’m thinkin’ . . .

Bless the LORD, O my soul!

For His grace. For His glory.

Posted in 1Samuel, 2Corinthians, Psalms | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Singing is Serving

Posted on May 2, 2025 by Pete

I know this morning’s observation isn’t a first-time observation. So, I look back in my journal and see that 2008 appears to have been when it first struck me. And since then, it has stuck with me. I journaled on it again in 2015, and in 2022. And this morning, once more, I am struck by the thought that singing is serving.

Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth!
Serve the LORD with gladness!
Come into His presence with singing!

(Psalm 100:1-2 ESV)

Making a joyful noise to the LORD . . . Serving the LORD . . . Coming into the presence of the LORD with singing . . .

That’s not three different commands to obey. And I don’t think it’s two with one sandwiched between another repeated. But the structure of these opening lyrics seems to be a thrice beckoning to the people of God to do one grand thing. To sing. Thus, singing is serving!

And in case we missed the ask, the songwriter repeats it again.

Enter His gates with thanksgiving,
       and His courts with praise!
       Give thanks to Him; bless His name!

(Psalm 100:4 ESV)

Wanna serve God? Sing to God. Wanna work for Him? Worship Him. Wanna attend to Him? Ascribe to Him the glory due His name.

We may not all be preachers or teachers. Not all of us can lock ourselves in a room with babies, or preschoolers, or –Lord give us strength– 5th grade boys. Not everyone is able to put themselves out there to be a greeter. Not everyone can play an instrument. Not everyone is of sound enough body to help with set up and tear down. Many of us don’t know our spiritual gifting. Some of us are still too unsure of who we are in Christ to step up or step out and say, “Here am I. Use me!”

But all of us can sing. All of us can make a joyful noise. There’s not a believer who doesn’t have reason to give thanksgiving. Not a soul saved who doesn’t want to praise God for their salvation. No one who has been sealed with the Spirit’s residency that doesn’t want to bless the Lord.

So, just do it! Sing! Come into the LORD’s presence and serve!

And regardless of whether you can carry a tune or even know what it means to “sing on key”, as you make your joyful noise to the LORD hear your Master respond, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” (Matt. 25:21).

Singing is serving. Worship is what God wants. Praise is prized in the courts of the King.

Go for it!

By His grace. For His glory.

Posted in Psalms | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment