Children of the Day

Posted on July 11, 2013 by Pete

The specific subject is the second coming of Christ . . . a day that “will come like a thief in the night.” Paul says that it will come when most people are least expecting it . . . they’ll be saying, “There is peace and security” and then sudden destruction will come upon them. Jesus said that it will be like the days of Noah, when people were just doing life up until the flood hit (Matt. 24:38-39) . . . He said it would be just as it was in the days of Lot, when people went about “eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building” until the day that “fire and sulfur rained down” (Luke 17:28-30). But, says Paul, though the day will come as a thief in the night it should not surprise the believer like a thief . . . it shouldn’t overtake us . . . it shouldn’t catch us off guard. How come? Because, the apostle reminds us, we are children of the day.

Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness.  
.                                                                 (1Thessalonians 5:1-5 ESV)

And I’m thinking of the implications of belonging to the day (5:8) . . . of having been brought out of darkness into marvelous light (1Peter 2:9) . . . of having once been blind but now I see . . . of being a child of the day.

By God’s grace and the illumination of the Holy Spirit, the believer is able to see things they could never have otherwise seen . . . to know deep things that can never be known by natural man . . . to have a perspective on life which is simply hidden to those who are dead in trespasses and sin. At that moment, when, by faith, I acknowledged the need for a Savior . . . when, through no merit of my own, my sins were forgiven . . . when, due to no effort I could put forth, I was redeemed by the precious blood of Christ . . . at that moment, I was forgiven . . . I was cleansed . . . I was sealed . . . I was adopted . . . and, praise God, I was made a child of the day.

And, says Paul, it should make a difference.

So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. . . . since we belong to the day, let us be sober . . .    (1Thessalonians 5:6-8 ESV)

Keep awake and sober . . . be alert and self-controlled (NIV) . . . stay alert and clear-headed (NLT) . . . no snoozin’ at the wheel (PJC).

What a waste to be children of the day and walk around like people of darkness . . . how short we come of our potential in Christ when we take our cues from the world . . . how under utilized is the mind of Christ we possess, the ability through the Spirit to know the deep things of God (1Cor. 2:14-16), when we, instead, live after the wisdom of men.

O’ to live as children of the day. Awake to the realities of the kingdom of heaven about us . . . doing life with an engaged radar discerning the “truths” fed us by a world cloaked in darkness . . . pursuing that which is of God, letting pass that which is not.

Can’t do it on my own . . . but children of the day don’t have to. The God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone His light in our hearts, “giving us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ . . . but we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us” (2Cor. 4:6-7). His light . . . his power . . . my holy determination to be awake and clear-headed.

O’ that, as His people, we would continue to seek to live as children of the day in a world which is shrouded in the darkness of night. To do so by His all sufficient and enabling grace . . . to do so for His eternal and praiseworthy glory.

Amen?

Posted in 1Thessalonians | Leave a comment

One Thing Necessary

Posted on July 10, 2013 by Pete

I get that she was a bit choked at her sister. Though He was somewhat controversial, He was also somewhat of a celebrity . . . kind of a big deal . . . and He had chosen her offer of hospitality . . . He had come into her house . . . propriety demanded a certain response . . . the Guest commanded a certain level of attention . . . supper wasn’t going to cook itself for Him and those who had come in with Him. And there was her sister . . . on her rear . . . just sitting there at His feet. I’d get choked too. But then again, I would have also missed out on the one thing necessary.

But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”    (Luke 10:40-42 ESV)

“Run, saint, run!” . . . it’s a phrase I came across years ago . . . I think it was a Chuck Swindoll piece I read . . . but it captures how I imagine Martha flitting about that day. So much to do . . . so many to do it for . . . so little time to do it in . . . and so no help from her sister. And it was good stuff that Martha was doing. We need more hospitality . . . commendable that she would “entertain strangers” . . . no doubt appreciated by the LORD and those who accompanied Him. And I don’t think she begrudgingly opened her home. No, it was a privilege to host Jesus . . . it was an honor that He would knock at her door and desire to sup at her place. But come on, sis! Help me out a bit here! Come on, Lord . . . tell her to get with it!

But Mary, at that moment, opted out of what was good . . . that is, serving before the LORD, . . . and, instead, chose what was best . . . that is, sitting before the LORD . . . at His feet . . . taking in His words. And Jesus said that she had chosen “the good portion.” Sure, there was food to be put on the table, but Jesus was breaking the bread of life . . . the food could wait. Sure, there was a table to set . . . but Martha had failed to notice that the Son of Man had also put out some placesettings at His feet . . . and had invited those with ears to hear to feed deeply. Sure, supper should be ready at 6:00 p.m. and people were probably getting hungry . . . but one thing was necessary . . . and that thing was to sit before the Master and consume His teaching.

Oh, I can be such a Martha. But how I need to be more of a Mary . . . and remember the one thing necessary.

Sitting at His feet . . . taking in His word . . . isn’t an option, it is the one thing necessary. When listing the necessities of life, drawing near to Him with a heart that says, “Speak Lord, for Your servant listens” is the number one necessity. When putting together my hierarchy of needs . . . my greatest need is to ensure I take time to abide with Him . . . to respond to the knock at the door of my heart . . . to welcome Him in . . . to dine with Him and He with me . . . letting Him set the table and dish out the food. When determining that which is my greatest duty . . . that which is my most important business . . . Jesus feet time has to be at the top of the list.

Lots to do . . . lots of good stuff and necessary stuff to do. But I need to remember the one thing necessary . . . the only thing essential (MSG).

Dinner can wait . . . the responsibilities can wait . . . the ministry can wait . . . there’ll be lots of time to “run, saint, run!” But I need to set aside time to invite Him in . . . and then chill as He invites me to sit at His feet and listen . . . to be at His footstool and be fed . . . to feast on His word and then worship.

By His grace . . . for His glory . . .

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The Glory Came Down

Posted on July 9, 2013 by Pete

It’s epic. After years of planning, preparing and building, Solomon’s temple is complete. Over 150,000 workers have labored to take the almost immeasurable quantities of stock-piled gold, silver, bronze, and wood to build for the LORD a place for His presence to dwell. The magnificent structure built to hold the ark of the covenant is complete . . . the ark has been moved in . . . the temple furniture in place . . . the altar of sacrifice is ready to go. The people gather . . . the Levitical musicians play . . . the priestly singers sing . . . Solomon gets on his knees, lifts his hands toward heaven, and cries out to God asking that when His people pray to this place, He would hear from heaven. And then . . . then, the glory came down . . .

As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple. And the priests could not enter the house of the LORD, because the glory of the LORD filled the LORD’s house. When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the LORD on the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying, “For He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever.”
.                                                                     (2Chronicles 7:1-3 ESV)

O’ to have beheld the glory of God visibly descend upon the place. The fire from heaven consuming the offerings . . . the cloud from heaven, a visible manifestation of the presence of God, descending upon the house of the LORD . . . filling the temple . . . such that all who were there knew He was in their midst. The glory in their midst . . . but a glory that stood apart . . . for even the priests could not enter the house of the LORD for the glory that filled it.

Though they could not approach the glory . . . the could respond to the glory. Bowing their faces to the ground . . . lifting their voices to the skies . . . the people worshiped . . . God’s chosen gave thanks . . . and they declared the goodness of His being . . . and the faithfulness of His steadfast love.

O’ to have been there.

But in a sense I have been . . . in a sense I continue to be.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.    (John 1:14 ESV)

I have beheld His glory through the eyes of faith. That glory manifest in the eternal Word . . . the second person of the Triune God . . . the Son of God . . . and from His fullness . . . the fullness of grace and truth . . . the fullness of deity itself (Col. 2:9) . . . I have experienced the glory come down.

The temple of Solomon replaced with temples of flesh (2Cor. 6:16) . . . the cloud having given way to the Spirit which takes up residence in the body of the believer . . . filling us with His glory. What’s more, far from the glory being unapproachable, He now desires to sup with us . . . to share in intimate communion . . . to know . . . and to be known.

But the response of those who have known the glory come down is the same . . . face to the ground . . . hearts lifted toward heaven . . . voices raised in worshipful adoration, “For He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever!”

Praise God . . . for the glory came down!

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Hemmed In

Posted on July 8, 2013 by Pete

Feeling a bit claustrophobic this morning . . . but in a good way. Chewing on Psalm 139. Considering the reality that I am hemmed in.

O LORD, You have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, You know it altogether. You hem me in, behind and before, and lay Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it. (Psalm 139:1-6 ESV)

There it is . . . in verse five . . . “You hem me in, behind and before, and lay Your hand upon me” . . . blessed claustrophobia!

The word translated “hem in” is the word “to besiege” or “to lay siege”. The picture is that of an army that surrounds the city of its enemy on all sides . . . making no way of escape . . . pressing in . . . that eventually there would be surrender . . . if not surrender, pressing in that the walls might eventually be breached and the enemies taken captive. Not exactly the position you want to be found in when it’s your enemies who have you surrounded . . . but what if it’s your God?

David, in this song, is led by the Spirit to consider the omniscience and the omnipresence of his God . . . to meditate on the implications of his Sovereign who is all-knowing and all-present . . . to noodle on the implications of his LORD who discerns every thought, is acquainted with every way, and knows every word before it is spoken . . . and who is present when every step is taken. Bottom line . . . hemmed in.

And while, in general, there is something uncomfortable about being besieged–something that can make it hard to breathe as you consider that you are pressed in on every side– . . . when the One doing the besieging . . . the One doing the pressing . . . the One doing the hemming in . . . when that One is the God who formed you (vv. 13-15) . . . when that One is He who has ordained every one of your days and designed them for His glory (v. 16) . . . when that One is the heavenly Father who gave of His only Son to redeem you (Gal. 4:4-6) . . . and when that One is He who knows “the plans I have for you . . . plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jer. 29:11) . . . then the siege is welcome . . . the response is “bring it on!”

Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!
.                                                                         (Psalm 139:23-24 ESV)

David knew he was hemmed in . . . that God’s hand had been laid upon him . . . the hand that would lead him, that hand that would hold him (v. 10) . . . and so David welcomed the closed in quarters . . . confident to invite God to know his heart . . . to search his motives . . . to try his thoughts . . . and to expose any ways that would grieve a holy God . . . so that he might walk in the way everlasting.

Hemmed in . . . captive . . . no where to go . . . no place I’d rather be.

Amen?

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Who Am I to Offer Willingly?

Posted on July 5, 2013 by Pete

It really is David at his best. Not a perfect man . . . but a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22). And, as I sit back and reflect on 1Chronicles 29, I don’t think the heart of David shines any brighter than it does right here. He knows he’s going home soon . . . the God in whom he has delighted for a lifetime will soon be the God in whose presence he will bow. And as he wraps up it here on earth, one more thing to make sure of . . . that preparation, as much as he can prepare, has been made for his son, Solomon, to build the temple . . . a “temple not for man, but for the LORD God” (29:1 NIV). And so the aging king rallies together his subjects . . . calls on them to support his inexperienced son when he assumes the throne . . . and asks them to practically contribute to the building of the temple just as David has done (29:2-5).

“Who then will offer willingly, consecrating himself today to the LORD?”
.                                                                        (1Chronicles 29:5b ESV)

It was more than just an activity of throwing a few bucks in the offering. David saw in the giving of their material goods a visible reflection of hearts that wanted to consecrate themselves to the LORD . . . less about the amount then the attitude of setting apart oneself wholly to God . . . less concerned about the tax receipt than about total submission to their Sovereign as evidenced by their willing offering to His work.

And the people gave . . . and David blessed the LORD. He didn’t commend the people . . . he didn’t flash the total on a big reader board and say “Well done, everyone” . . . but he blessed the Giver of all good things . . . for it was He who allowed them to give of what they had received at His good hand.

Therefore David blessed the LORD in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “Blessed are You, O LORD, the God of Israel our Father, forever and ever. Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is Yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and You are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from You, and You rule over all. In Your hand are power and might, and in Your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank You, our God, and praise Your glorious name. But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from You, and of Your own have we given You.     (1Chronicles 29:10-14 ESV)

Who am I to offer willingly?

O’ majestic God . . . God who allows us to address You as Father . . . You have taken my heart of stone, made it a heart of flesh, and infused it with a passion to know You. You are rewiring my egocentric soul, creating within me a desire to have You, and You alone, reign on the throne of my life . . . creating within me a contentment to just rest at Your footstool. Any longing I have to serve You . . . is from You . . . any opportunity to be found aligned to the will of God doing the work of God is from You . . . anything I have to give . . . whether time or resources . . . is a gift from You. Who am I to offer willingly?

What privilege to give of what the LORD has given us for His work.

O’ that my heart would be behind my actions. By His grace . . . for His glory.

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Plating the Gospel

Posted on July 4, 2013 by Pete

My son-in-law knows his way around the kitchen. Was reminded of that last week as we spent a couple of days with him and my daughter on their turf. Most often, around our place, Sue cooks it up . . . puts it out . . . and we say, “Come and get it!” . . . buffet style. When my son-in-law is making dinner, after cooking it up, he “plates it” and serves it. If it weren’t for the anticipation of what the food is going to taste like, you might not disturb how it’s been arranged on the plate . . . topped with sauce, presented with a well thought out garnish . . . it looks pretty amazing . . . almost a shame to mess it up by cutting into it. The care with which my son-in-law presents his food came to mind as I was reading the manner in which Paul “plated the gospel.”

But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children. So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.    (1Thessalonians 2:7-8 ESV)

Paul came to Thessalonica ready to serve up “the gospel of God.” Meat indeed . . . life giving nourishment for the soul. Paul considered himself “entrusted with the gospel” (2:4b). He was a steward of the good news declaring Him who was “the Bread of heaven” . . . “For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world” (John 6:33). Paul says that he had “boldness in God” (2:2) . . . that he had been “approved by God” (2:4a) . . . and that he desired nothing but “to please God” (2:4c) . . . in bringing “the gospel of God” (2:2, 2:8, 2:9) to a people in desperate need of life-giving food.

Given how much they needed it . . . and the authority Paul had to dish it . . . you’d think that a “Come and get it!” approach would have sufficed. Evidently not.

While God had provided “the food,” Paul prepared “the food” and served “the food” taking the utmost care to make it as attractive as possible. Not by compromising the message of the depths of their need . . . not by wavering on there being only one way to the Father . . . but by serving up the gospel garnished in the love and compassion of Christ as displayed through the messengers of Christ. In a sense, it seems Paul was mindful of “plating the gospel.”

The good news was presented in the context of gentleness . . . like a nursing mother caring for her children. It was plated amidst a legitimate desire for their souls . . . accentuated as the sharing of the message was accompanied by the sharing of the messengers’ lives. Paul discharged not just a duty to preach the Word . . . but was driven by the care and concern for individual souls . . . “affectionately desirous” of them . . . and, as such, he willingly invested his time and himself in order that God might use Paul’s life to enhance His message.

And I think that maybe sometimes we can become so locked on the need to share the good news that we fail to invest in the people who need the good news. That we think if we just give ’em the gospel then we’re done . . . rather than having a compassion and desire for those in need of the gospel . . . rather than giving not just our words, but our lives as well, in order to draw people to the message they need to receive . . . rather than plating the gospel with a sincere care for the souls of men and women.

It’s still about the power of God to save . . . about the substance of the food being presented. But I do think Paul was mindful of how it was presented . . . of the garnish surrounding it . . . that as much as lied within him, Paul would not be a stumbling block but an attractor, to the gospel of God.

May I be mindful of plating the gospel as well. By His grace . . . for His glory.

Posted in 1Thessalonians | Leave a comment

Listen to the Music!

Posted on July 3, 2013 by Pete

Among the different topics I keep an eye open for as I’m reading, verses or passages about “worship” or “praise” are underlined with a brown colored pencil. Now, you might expect to use the brown colored pencil a fair amount in the Psalms, and might not expect to use it too much in 1Chronicles . . . but, you’d only be half right. In 1Chronicles you find praise and worship and music as the ark is brought up to Jerusalem . . . and it culminates in a wonderful psalm where a number of verses get underlined in brown. And then you get to where I am this morning and hit 1Chronicles 25 and the whole chapter is devoted to “The Musicians.”

In chapter 23, as David draws near to the end of his life he does a couple of things:
1) he makes his son Solomon king over Israel; 2) he sets in order the priests and Levites for ministry in the house of the Lord . . .

The Levites, thirty years old and upward, were numbered, and the total was 38,000 men. “Twenty-four thousand of these,” David said, “shall have charge of the work in the house of the LORD, 6,000 shall be officers and judges, 4,000 gatekeepers, and 4,000 shall offer praises to the LORD with the instruments that I have made for praise.”    (1Chronicles 23:3-5).

Get that? . . . of the 38,000 Levites eligible for serving the Lord in the temple, 4,000 were musicians . . . more than one in ten . . . and their service was to be making music . . . and their audience was to be the Lord . . . talk about your music team! So do you think music and song were an important part of worship and temple activity? I’m thinking so.

Then I get to 1Chronicles 25. And it seems that within that broader company of musicians there was a select group. This select group . . . 288 musicians (25:7) . . . 24 “worship teams” of 12 “band members” per team (25:9-31) . . . who were all about “music in the house of the Lord” (25:6). They were trained by their fathers for “the service of the house of the God” and were under the authority of the king himself. So this was important stuff . . . an integral part of the temple activity.

And here’s what grabbed me again this morning. It wasn’t just about making music . . . it wasn’t about providing a bit of entertainment or warming up the crowd . . . it wasn’t just about some preliminary activity to set the mood before the offerings. Rather, this select group was “set apart for the service” as those “who prophesied with lyres, with harps, and with cymbals” (25:1). They prophesied . . . they were to write and sing songs that declared the truths of God. And it’s not like the thought is some “one hit wonder” . . . but it’s repeated again . . . there’s a group of musical brothers mentioned, the sons of Jeduthun, who, under their father’s direction . . .

. . . prophesied with the lyre in thanksgiving and praise to the LORD.
.                                                                            (1Chronicles 25:3 ESV)

The music wasn’t intended to just stir the soul with melody but to offer thanksgiving to the LORD. The songs were meant to be more than just some background music . . . more than just clever instrumentation . . . they were to bring praise before Him who is worthy of all praise. There was to be a message in the music.

Want to know what’s behind the temple? Want to understand why the sacrifices? Want to appreciate Who it’s all about? Listen to the music!

As these skillful musicians played their stringed instruments and their harps and their cymbals, the words of the song would convey the works and wonders of the God of this place. The lyrics would tell of His great being . . . revealing something of the character of God . . . His sovereignty . . . His holiness . . . His loving kindness and mercy. The songs would tell of His works . . . His choosing of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob . . . His deliverance from Egypt . . . His protective hand in the wilderness . . . His delivery of the promised land to His promised people. Whether there was three chords used in the song . . . or whether it was arranged for a symphony . . . its purpose was to proclaim a message . . . the message of an awesome God . . . worthy of sacrifice . . . worthy of praise . . . worthy of worship.

Not going to lie to you . . . I’m a bit partial to the “worship” part of our Sunday morning services. What a great opportunity for the congregation to “preach” before the pastor does. Let’s not lose focus on the message in the music . . . may the instruments not drown out the intent . . . may the singers fade into the background as the One being sung to and sung about takes “center stage.”

Listen to the music . . . sing the song . . . for the glory of God . . . amen!

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Watching with My Eyes Closed

Posted on July 2, 2013 by Pete

A friend sent me an e-mail asking me to pray for him and his wife as they prepare to work at a youth camp in a couple of weeks. I hesitated before responding. Not because I don’t think they need prayer . . . but because I do . . . and I didn’t want to commit to something that I wasn’t sure I could fulfill. Way to easy for me to say, “I’ll pray” . . . and then don’t. Not that I’m not being sincere with my desire to lift up someone’s request before the throne, but that I can so easily forget . . . it’s one of those “the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak” things. Way too easy to add an item to the end of my list and rattle off a few words before saying, “In Jesus Name, amen” rather than actually mediating for someone . . . rather than asking the Spirit to provide the intercession that I seem so feeble at (Rom. 8:26-27) . . . rather than believing that “going into my closet” and petitioning the God who “sees in secret” will make a difference (Matt. 6:6) . . . rather than, as Paul reminds me this morning, watching with my eyes closed.

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.  
.                                                                          (Colossians 4:2 ESV)

Paul wraps up his letter to the believers at Colosse with three pointed exhortations . . . continue in prayer . . . walk in wisdom . . . be gracious in speech. It’s the first one that really grabbed me this morning. Maybe because, while I may not always be too wise, I can walk pretty good . . . and, although sometimes it lacks some “grace seasoning,” I can talk pretty good . . . but pray, that can be a struggle for me.

I know some say that, for the Christian, praying should be like breathing . . . if that’s true then sometimes I feel like I have asthma . . . I’m so often short of breath . . . struggling to maintain a regular breathing pattern. But this morning I’m reminded to “continue steadfastly” . . . to “devote” myself (NIV) . . . to “continue earnestly” (NKJV) . . . to “pray diligently” (MSG). And so, even though sometimes I think I need a spiritual ventilator (is that the Holy Spirit?), I try to keep on keepin’ on in prayer.

But beyond persevering in prayer, I’m also told to be “watchful in it.” The NKJV says I’m to be “vigilant” . . . the NASB says I’m to be “alert.”

As I pray for my friend, far from it being an auto-pilot activity, my head should be in the game. When talking with the God of heaven I should be aware that . . . well, that I’m talking with the God heaven. As I bring my petitions on behalf of others before His throne I need to be give attention to what I’m asking for and why . . . I need to be mindful that the battle isn’t with flesh and blood . . . I need to be awake to the reality of what’s at stake. As I close my eyes to pray . . . I need to be watchful in it.

Paul also reminds me that I need to guard against just “placing an order” and asking God to fill it. Instead I need to always be mindful of the privilege of boldly approaching the throne of grace to find help in time of need (Heb. 4:16) and, as such, be thankful. To be able to bow before His footstool and bring before Him needs, petitions, and intercessions is grace overflowing in and of itself . . . and I need to be full of gratitude for such access.

I replied to my friend that I would pray him as he gets ready for camp and would continue through the week he and his wife are at camp. Not that I’m a “prayer warrior” or anything . . . not that I hold any great influence in heaven . . . but that I pray to a great God . . . that I petition a Mighty Sovereign . . . that I close my eyes and bow my head before a Gracious King.

O’, that by His grace I would be vigilant . . . that through His Spirit I’d be engaged and alert . . . that for His glory I would be watching with my eyes closed.

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All The People Said, “Amen!”

Posted on July 1, 2013 by Pete

They finally got ‘er done. The first attempt at transporting the ark to a home in Jerusalem had gone very badly . . . one dead . . . many distraught . . . the king disillusioned (2Samuel 6:1-11). But David figured it out. They had been careless . . . they hadn’t ensured that the right people transported the ark in the right way . . . they had been careless with God’s ways and God’s word. But not this time (1Chronicles 15). This time they nailed it! Hundreds of consecrated Levites present to accompany the place where the glory dwells in a manner befitting the glory of God. Nothing common place about this moving plan. And surrounding the “carrying Levites,” King David assigned the singing and instrument-playing Levites. The entry of the ark into Jerusalem was to be a joyous occasion . . . there would be dancing and celebrating as the horns blared, the cymbals clanged, the lyres were strummed, and the Levites sang. And all the people would say, “Amen!”

1Chronicles 16 is the “hidden psalm.” Every time I stumble upon it in my reading plan I’m pleasantly surprised . . . and, as I recall from past encounters, wonderfully blessed. This is David at his best . . . David the undisputed king of all Israel . . . a man after God’s own heart . . . a worshipper in truth and spirit. So, after ensuring the ark is settled on God’s holy mount . . . after offering to God the offerings befitting His holy Name . . . after blessing the people who had been present for the ark’s return . . . David the worshipper then appoints “some of the Levites as ministers before the ark of the LORD, to invoke, to thank, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel” (1Chron. 16:1-4).

And then he writes them a song to sing (16:8-36a) . . . my “hidden psalm” . . . a song of thanksgiving. It’s a call to the people of God to glory in His name . . . for those who hearts seek Him, to rejoice. “Seek His presence continually” the lyrics exhort . . . remember His promises . . . recall His faithful protection. Sing to the LORD . . . tell of His salvation every day . . . declare His marvelous works among the people . . . for “great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised!” Ascribe to LORD glory and strength . . . give Him the glory due His Name . . . worship the LORD in the splendor of His holiness.

And the song goes on . . . and the spirit rises . . . and the soul soars . . .

Then all the people said, “Amen!” and praised the LORD.
.                                                                (1Chronicles 16:36b ESV)

Amen . . . what an overused yet under-utilized word. We use it like punctuation to end a prayer. We’ll attach such ascent to almost anything. But this morning, as I accompanied the ark into Jerusalem with the rest of God’s people . . . as I took in the cacophony of praise and worship . . . as I digested the words of the song David wrote for the occasion . . . I was ready to participate . . . ready to join in . . . ready to add my voice to the sounds of praise . . . then all the people said, “Amen!”

Me too!

God is good . . . amen! His works are wondrous . . . truly! His promises are sure . . . verily! He is to be worshipped in splendor and holiness . . . so be it. There is no God like our God . . . that’s the truth!

A simple, two-syllable word . . . but a word, I imagine, which brings my God pleasure when it is spoken thoughtfully . . . when it is uttered heartily . . . when it is offered in the context of extolling the greatness of our God . . . when it is sounded forth as part of the giving of thanks and praise.

O’ that all God’s people would say, “Amen!” . . . by His all enabling grace . . . for His all surpassing glory!

Amen?

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Debt Free!

Posted on June 26, 2013 by Pete

It’s the sort of stuff you wouldn’t want to have posted on your Facebook page. It’s the list that you’d just as soon had never been written . . . but you know it has. It’s fuel for the fire the “accuser of the brethren” wants to fan into flame. It’s the stuff you’d rather not think about . . . the stuff you’d just as soon forget. It’s the ways of the flesh . . . the deeds of shame . . . the acts of rebellion. It demands a reckoning . . . it requires a price to be paid . . . it results in a debt we owe. And this morning, I am moved as I am reminded that the debt has been paid in full . . . that I am debt free.

And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This He set aside, nailing it to the cross.    (Colossians 2:13-14 ESV)

I accumulated debt for 19 years. Though I “believed” there was probably a God, in my arrogance I reasoned that if I left Him alone, He’d leave me alone . . . and that we’d “work it out” when the time came. By the world’s standard, I was considered a “good kid.” But by the holy standard of the One who created me for for His glory, my “goodness” was like “a polluted garment” (Isa. 64:6) . . . my self-righteousness was worthless . . . and my arrogant bargaining with God was like “an open grave” (Rom. 3:13).

I didn’t know I was accumulating debt . . . dead men walking aren’t able to reason such things . . . but I was.

But then, by His grace alone, God made me alive together in His Son. Through the active agency of His Holy Spirit, God began the process of raising me from the dead . . . first catching my attention with a reminder of my mortality . . . then opening my eyes to see a God with whom I was in no position to barter and debate . . . gently softening my heart to the reality of my transgressions against the God of the universe . . . patiently imparting an understanding of the magnitude of my debt . . . and then revealing the reality of that debt having been paid in full by His Son.

He canceled the record of debt that stood against me . . . He set it aside . . . He nailed it to the cross.

When He who knew no sin was made sin for us (2Cor. 5:21) that list of stuff I’d just as soon never existed was nailed to the cross with Him. He bore the reproach . . . He suffered the consequences . . . He paid the price in full . . . so that “in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (2Cor. 5:21). The debt has been canceled.

And now, in a sense, I’m on the “pre-paid plan.” Not that I presume upon the blood of Christ or the grace of God . . . not that I purpose to continue to transgress the God who so wondrously saved me, knowing that He “has it covered.” But the reality is that I still do stuff . . . think stuff . . . respond to stuff . . . in a way that I wouldn’t want written “on my wall” . . . stuff I regret . . . stuff the accuser will still try and use. But that stuff too was nailed to the cross . . . and I know that if I confess my sin He is faithful and just to forgive me my sin and cleanse me from all unrighteousness (1John 1:9) . . . the cleansing blood of Christ having been applied to all my sin — past, present, and future . . . the price paid in full such that I am no longer accumulating debt.

O’ what a wondrous salvation . . . what a wonderful Savior!

Debt free . . . by His grace alone . . . for His glory alone!

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