Learning Through Trials

Posted on June 2, 2011 by Pete

I had lunch with a buddy yesterday . . . a buddy who’s going through the ringer . . . he’s just been getting hammered . . . and has been for quite some time. My on-going prayer for him has been that he wouldn’t lose heart . . . that he’d keep on keepin’ on . . . that though heaven seems silent at times, he’d know that God is faithful . . . and that he would, in turn, be faithful . . . that “Though He slay me, I will hope in Him” (Job 13:15 ESV).

I had arrived at lunch prepared to offer counsel. He had sent me an e-mail a week or so earlier with a number of soul searching questions . . . and I arrived at lunch with a few answers. And here’s the thing . . . he had already found the answers. And guess where. The Word of God. Through everything he’s been through He has not stopped seeking for answers to his questions in the place where God has determined to provide answers — the Bible. And guess how. God, through the illuminating ministry of the Spirit, had revealed something of His perspective on the situation to my buddy. It’s called being “transformed by the renewal of your mind” (Rom. 12:2). And sometimes it happens in the crucible of trials and adversity. The psalmist knew it . . .

“It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn Your statutes. The law of Your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver pieces.”
(Psalm 119:71-72 ESV)

This buddy of mine isn’t my first “close encounter” with this dynamic between trials and the Word. I have seen the same thing in others’ lives. The going gets tough, and they keep going to the Word of God. And in some cases, that’s the only lifeline they have . . . it’s the only thing that sustains them . . . and invariably they come out of the trial wiser to the mind of God and more in love than ever with the Word of God. To some degree, a much lesser degree, I can look back on my “times of afflictions” and see too that dynamic at play. There’s something about getting beat up that softens the soil of the heart . . . making it “good soil.” And if we’ll seed it with the Word of God, it will eventually result in “bearing fruit with patience” (Luke 8:15).

The psalmist too could look back (praise God for perspective) and say that it was “good” . . . that it was valuable . . . that he had in fact prospered . . . because of the affliction. Not necessarily because he won in the end . . . not necessarily because God had restored ten-fold that which had been lost . . . but because he had learned . . . he had been taught . . . he had been trained . . . in the ways of God . . . and concerning the Person of God. He learned things in the grinder that he could not have learned anywhere else. He had gained firsthand experience how “living and powerful” the Word can really be (Heb. 4:12) . . . how, given the right condition of heart, His Word not only reveals the mind of God but the condition of our soul. Rather than the psalmist becoming bitter, he had become better.

And not only was the psalmist refined like gold or silver in fire, but his love for, and valuing of, the Word also became purer. The Word of God had increased in value to the trial-worn warrior . . . he esteemed it better than gold or silver. Invaluable . . . priceless . . . such is the estimation of those who have intimately interacted with God’s revealed mind during times of intense struggle.

I left lunch pretty encouraged. Trial’s not over for my buddy . . . but he’s going to the right place for answers. He’s asking . . . and seeking . . . and knocking. And God is faithful and, in His time, will answer . . . and will be found . . . and will open the door (Matt. 7:7). And my buddy will be better. Farther along he will look back and may even say it was “good” because of what he learned in the fire. For now, God gets the glory . . . another reminder that He is faithful . . . that His grace is sufficient . . . and that His Word is a light that guides through the darkness.

Posted in Psalms | 1 Comment

The Favor of God

Posted on June 1, 2011 by Pete

Pretty consistently, when Sue I pray for our evening meal together, I find us giving thanks for God’s favor upon our lives and the lives of our girls. If I were to really “count your many blessings” during these prayer times our food would grow cold. But as I come across a phrase in Psalm 119 this morning I’m thinking that I may be “selling short” the favor of God if I think just in terms of His blessings in our lives.

“The LORD is my portion; I promise to keep Your words. I entreat Your favor with all my heart; be gracious to me according to Your promise.” (Psalm 119:57-58 ESV)

It’s that sentiment in verse 58, “I entreat Your favor with all my heart” that has me thinking this morning. And as I look at the original language I don’t think the idea of “favor” is as much “receiving blessings” or “having prayers answered” as it is fully entering into what I already possess.

The Lord is my portion. He is sufficient to be my all in all . . . He can fill the cup . . . He can overflow the heart . . . He can become the full measure of the vision . . . nothing else is needed to know “the abundant life.” But what I need . . . what the psalmist begged for with all his heart and inmost being . . . was to encounter God’s favor . . . literally, to know His face. The NIV probably is the clearest of the translations, “I have sought Your face with all my heart.”

The psalmist’s prayer is taking the step beyond recognizing Him as “my portion” and desiring to know His presence.

Seeking the face of God . . . passionately hungering for His presence . . . knowing “Christ in the midst” . . . isn’t that the greatest favor I could be shown? When I putting together my prayer list, shouldn’t that be at the top?

James said, “You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions . . .” (James 4:2-3). And I’m trying to think of the last time I pleaded for His face . . . that I asked for nothing other than His presence. It’s so easy to walk with God and never really know He’s there (our problem, not His). So easy to assume the default position . . . as in “He’s promised to never leave me, therefore He must be around somewhere” . . . rather than ask Him to allow me to know His presence . . . to enliven my spirit that it might interact with His Holy Spirit within me . . . that I would, from time to time, know afresh His grace and encounter anew His glory.

It seems to me this simple passionate prayer of the psalmist is a great antidote for complacency . . . some smelling salts for waking me from the stupor of just going through the motions . . . a great little “trick” for “keeping it real.” Oh, that my heart’s desire might be set more on knowing His face.

To know the face of God . . . to know the light of His countenance . . . now that truly would be knowing the favor God.

Amen?

Posted in Psalms | 1 Comment

Grey-Haired Danger

Posted on May 31, 2011 by Pete

I came across a bit of a frightening statement this morning. One which seemed directed to those of us who have been on the pilgrim path for a few years now . . . to us who, by the grace of God, have been pretty consistent in pursuing the faith and seeking the kingdom. As the hair starts to grey and the miles behind us are becoming more than miles in front of us, I can understand a tendency to coast . . . to stop pedaling so hard, thinking that we deserve an easier ride because of our past diligence. But then I read of another “grey head” who perhaps was lulled into thinking the same thing and how his “coasting” ended up in a dead stop, and it gives me cause to pause and reflect. It’s a warning of grey-haired danger.

“For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. . . So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and did not wholly follow the LORD, as David his father had done . . . And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice.” (1Kings 11:4, 6, 9 ESV)

It’s that phrase, “when Solomon was old” that arrested me. Solomon crashed and burned not at the beginning of the race but at the end. In fact, he started well . . . really well . . . as he asked nothing more from God than wisdom. Midway through the race he’s absolutely flying . . . world renown . . . bringing prosperity to Israel . . . and building a magnificent dwelling place for the glory of God. But when he was old . . . when he’d “been there, done that” . . . when, perhaps, he was getting a bit bored with it all . . . or maybe was getting a bit tired . . . or started figuring that after so many years of running hard it was time to coast . . . that, after so many years of putting out, he deserved to cater to himself . . . whatever it was, when he was old (aka grey-haired) he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord . . . he did not wholly follow the Lord . . . and, the Lord was angry with him. Ugh!

After a lifetime of running well, . . . when he was old . . . it was then that his heart “turned away.” That phrase, “turned away,” is kind of interesting. “To turn” is actually the least common translation of the original word — literally it means “to stretch out . . . to spread out” and then “to turn, incline, influence.” That’s what Solomon had, a stretched out heart. Spread too thin. The attractions and the distractions were many . . . the affections were multi-focused . . . and at the end of the day, his heart was turned away from the One he had once sought to serve and to please. A lifetime of accumulating experiences and stuff . . . a lifetime focused on making life easier . . . a lifetime of setting and achieving goals . . . had left him vulnerable to stretching his heart too thin and being led down a path he shouldn’t have gone.

What a warning! It’s a warning for those who have run well, to not grow slack, but to press forward for the goal before us. It’s a warning that, even for those who have decades of faithful service to the Lord behind them, we’re not home yet . . . the old man still simmers . . . the enemy will step up his attack . . . and the lies of the world, and the distractions of that which we’ve accumulated can all come together to knock us off course.

We can sit back and let others in the church serve, after all, it’s their turn. We can skim the Word rather than continue to seek to plumb its depths because we’ve read it and studied it so many times. We can claim more of our “free time” for ourselves because that’s what we are told we deserve when we “retire.” We assume the Spirit’s presence, becoming complacent concerning our relationship with the Lord . . . slowly drifting from an intimate fellowship and desire for the Lord towards a “I told you I loved you on the day I was saved and if anything changes I’ll let you know” approach. And it can all lead to a divided heart . . . inappropriate actions and behaviors . . . and an angry God. Ouch! And I wanna say, by the grace of God, “No way!”

“Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way . . .” (Philippians 3:13-15a ESV)

Posted in 1Kings | Leave a comment

Over the Top!

Posted on May 30, 2011 by Pete

I confess that I just skimmed over it the first time I read it. Unbelievable. A reminder of how easy it is for familiarity to lead to density . . . to the ability to encounter jaw-dropping truths with barely a first thought, much less a second thought. But as I went back and re-read it . . . and read it in a few different versions . . . and looked up a couple of words in the original . . . and skimmed over what a couple of commentators had to say about it . . . the awe-o-meter started to register . . . the needle started moving from left to right . . . as the denseness gave way to a measure of Spirit sourced clarity . . . as amazement started to set in . . . as wonder started to form . . .

” . . . that you may be filled with the fullness of God . . . (Ephesians 3:19b ESV)

It’s the last petition in Paul’s second prayer for the Ephesians. And it’s big . . . way big. Think about it . . . Paul asks the Father to strengthen the believers’ “inner being” with power through His Spirit . . . that He would do so according to the riches of His glory . . . that He would do so, so that, among other outcomes, believers would be filled with the fullness of God (3:14-19). What does it mean to be filled with the fullness of God? And whatever it means . . . how big is that? Even not getting what it fully means, I get that it is “over the top!”

And maybe that’s all I need to take in at this point. Instead of scratching my head and trying to figure out what exactly it means to be filled with the fullness of God, maybe I just need to know that, whatever it is, it will be His fullness. I’m guessing it’s not measurable . . . not something you can put on a scale and say, “Yup, your full!” I’m thinking it’s probably multi-dimensional in nature . . . a combination of attributes, wisdom, heaven-infused power, and other stuff. But, regardless, isn’t there enough to chew on just with the thought of God, in His grace, and by His power, granting such a petition that sinners-saved-by-grace would be jam-packed with the all that God sets forth to let dwell within them? I’m thinkin’ . . .

And you can ask the question, “Really? Filled with the fullness of God? Sounds impossible to me.” Yeah . . . it does . . . but Paul covers that . . .

“Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20-21 ESV)

Ask it? And God’s able to do more than what we ask . . . way more! Think it? Not thinking big enough, God can do more abundantly than anything our brains can come up with. And it’s all according to the power at work within us . . . yes, within us . . . even to filling us with His fullness! (Awe-o-meter just hit 10!)

And, His fullness in me isn’t so much about me as it is about His glory. What He does in me, whatever filling with the fullness practically looks like, it is ultimately about the appreciation and praise and worship it produces within me. It’s about the “credit” God gets from those who witness His work in and through me. To God be the glory!

And so, rather than noodling on what it exactly means to be filled with the fullness of God this morning, I’m content to know that it’s His desire for me. And it causes me to renew my desire to have His will done in my life . . . and determine afresh to walk in a manner which, by His grace, allows His work to be accomplished in me so that His power might rest on me.

It’s kind of over the top . . . may it be so . . . for His glory . . . amen?

Posted in Ephesians | 1 Comment

Really?

Posted on May 27, 2011 by Pete

Reading 1Kings 8 . . . It must have been a magnificent event to have been part of. After seven years . . . millions of hours of blood and sweat labor . . . no cost spared in the materials . . . the house for God that David desired to build, the temple that David’s son did build, is ready for occupancy. The sacrifices begin — so many sheep and oxen be sliced and diced and flamed, that they could not be counted or numbered (8:5). The ark is transported to its new home . . . the glory of God is invited to “move in” to one of the finest structures every conceived and built of man to that time. And the glory moves in (8:11). Solomon then stands before the altar of sacrifice, lifts his hands toward heaven, and prays like he’s never prayed before. And amidst that prayer he asks a question . . . not a question of disbelief, but a question of awe and wonder . . . “Really?”

“But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain You; how much less this house that I have built!” (1Kings 8:27 ESV)

Yes, the temple was “over the top.” The best materials . . . the best craftsmanship . . . no expense spared . . . but could God really dwell there? . . . would God really dwell there? Yeah, it was big . . . but would the God who overflowed heaven really fit into such a place? Sure, it was likely the most holy place on all the earth . . . but it was still like a garbage dump compared to the glories of heaven . . . would God really dare to touch down on this fallen ball of creation? Really?

Uh . . . yeah . . . really! And so much more . . . a little room at the back of a big temple was but an indicator of God’s determination to dwell on earth . . . to be among those He created.

“Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? . . . For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple . . . In [Christ] you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.”
(1 Cor. 3:16-17, Eph. 2:22)

Really?

Yeah . . . really!

While the materials (aka us) may not be the best, God has spared no cost in redeeming them as He builds for Himself a dwelling place on this earth. Bought by the precious blood of Christ, we are living stones being shaped and placed into a structure in which He desires to abide . . . through which He desires to manifest His glory. We are His workmanship and by His grace and through His Spirit He desires to move in and make His home in us. And it just kind of blows me away this morning . . . “will God indeed dwell on the earth?”

Sometimes I need to be more like Solomon. I need to stop. And I need to spread out my hands toward heaven . . . I need to look up, look way up . . . and consumed with fresh awe and wonder exclaim, “Really?”

“May the LORD our God be with us, as He was with our fathers. May He not leave us nor forsake us, that He may incline our hearts to Himself, to walk in all His ways, and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments, which He commanded our fathers. (1Kings 8:57-58 NKJV)

For His glory . . . . REALLY!

Posted in 1Kings | Leave a comment

Fitting An Ocean In A Cup

Posted on May 26, 2011 by Pete

Every so often I get an urge . . . a bee in my bonnet . . . the need to address a situation . . . something “goes off” in me that says it’s time to rearrange the furniture in a room. Most often it’s driven by a perception that the room is looking overcrowded . . . that there’s too much stuff and it looks untidy . . . and that, somehow, by rearranging the stuff I’ll make more room. Now my wife has a way too simplistic approach to an overcrowded or untidy area . . . take stuff out. Nah . . . too logical . . . too easy . . . for me, it’s about rearranging stuff! Now, I know in my head that it really all comes down to capacity . . . that any given space can only hold so much . . . that you can’t put a gallon of water into a two quart container . . . that you need more space if you want to keep more stuff. And, it seems from reading Psalm 119 this morning, that the psalmist knows that too.

“I will run in the way of your commandments when You enlarge my heart!” (Psalm 119:32 ESV)

The psalmist continues his impassioned plea to God for the knowledge and understanding of His ways . . . “give me life according to Your word” (v25) . . . “teach me Your statutes!” (v26) . . . “make me understand Your precepts” (v27) . . . “graciously teach me your law!” (v29). But how does mortal man take in the mind of God? How can ways that are higher than our ways and thoughts that are higher than our thoughts possibly fit into our brains. There’s only so much capacity in these mortal minds. Rearrange all you want, without additional capacity it just ain’t gonna happen. It’s like trying to fit an ocean in a cup.

And so, the psalmist’s acknowledgement . . .

I will run when You enlarge my heart . . . I will soar when you provide capacity for understanding Your ways. When You free my heart from that which clutters it . . . when You make broad and roomy pastures in which Your word may abide . . . when You prepare the soil such that it is ready to receive the planted seed and bear much fruit . . . then will I be able to take it in . . . then will Your word be able to take me in . . . and then will I walk in the way You desire me to walk.

This isn’t just a book sitting on my desk in front of me . . . it is the mind of God provided for the mind of man . . . the things of heaven revealed to those on earth. And, the ability to contain this vast storehouse of heavenly treasure is less about my intellect and more so about my heart. The needed capacity for containment isn’t just between the ears, but in the very depths of my being and will. And apart from the work of the Spirit of God to enlarge my heart, I can try and cram as much as I want in there . . . rearrange it however I want . . . and it won’t make much difference . . . my life will still be untidy and encumbered. But oh, when God, through His Spirit, graciously provides the capacity . . . when He enlarges my heart . . . then watch me tank up and take off!

What a blessing to be able to be taught of God concerning His ways . . . what privilege to be illuminated through His Spirit concerning matters of divine revelation . . . oh, that I might desire and cry out for the capacity to take it in.

It’s like trying to fit an ocean in a cup . . . but with God all things are possible. Amen?

Enlarge my heart, Lord!

Posted in Psalms | 2 Comments

On Being a Magnifier

Posted on May 25, 2011 by Pete

One of those mornings where a few words in a pretty well known biblical story just grab me. Five words really . . . each of which I can define easily . . . but when combined, stretch my ability to articulate what they really mean . . . though I think I know what they look like in action, I’m hard pressed to fully understand how they really work. Five words that ignite something in me . . . five words that I want to know experientially . . . five words that create a sense of awe when I think of the privilege of participating in the experience . . . five words spoken by another, but claimed as my own this morning . . .

“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has looked on the humble estate of His servant.” (Luke 1:46-47 ESV)

Two women, each “great with child”, come together for a very special time together. One is an older lady . . . for all intents and purposes she has no business being pregnant for she is “advanced in years” (1:7) . . . but she is because God has heard her prayer and removed her barrenness (1:13). The other is a much, much younger lady . . . who also has no business carrying a child as she is still a virgin (1:34) . . . but the Holy Spirit has come upon her, and the power of the Most High has overshadowed her and she has conceived the Son of God (1:35). And, as the older, filled with the Spirit, confirms the prophetic word spoken to the younger (1:41-45), the younger breaks forth in praise (1:46-55) . . . “My soul magnifies the Lord.”

“My soul magnifies the Lord” . . . those are the five words that have me thinking this morning. What does it really mean for my soul to magnify the Lord? How does it work? What does it look like? What does God think when He sees Himself being magnified by my soul?

Literally the word “magnify” means to “enlarge” . . . to “make great.” Makes sense. When I use a magnifying glass or telescope, I’m making something appear larger so that it can be seen more easily and clearly . . . I’m bringing it into better view. So how does the soul “enlarge” God? Not that God needs to be enlarged . . . not that I need to or can make Him any greater . . . but how does my soul bring that greatness in to clearer view . . . how does it shine the light and increase the focus on the magnificence of our great God? Short answer: through praise.

With a profound sense of what God is doing in her life (“He has looked on the humble estate of His servant”), the younger lady, Mary, praises God from the wellspring of all she is . . . from the seat of her emotion, intellect, and well . . . from her soul. That pump is primed by a deep, deep joy within her spirit . . . and the water that flows is the joyful declaration of who this great God is. She lifts her voice and declares that God is mighty . . . His name is holy . . . His mercy is for those who fear Him . . . He shows His strength . . . He scatters the proud . . . He brings down the mighty and exalts those of humble estate . . . He fills the hungry . . . He helps His servants . . . He remembers His mercy . . . He follows through on His promises (1:49-55). And in this, she magnifies the Lord.

And it strikes me that I too can participate in this privileged experience of being a magnifying agency for the glory of God. I know of His greatness from what has been revealed from His word, from the illumination graciously provided by His Spirit. I also know of His greatness from the favor shown to this “humble servant” and the work I have seen in my own life’s sphere. And I’ve known what it is to be in His presence and feel that pump being primed as the joy builds and my spirit rejoices . . . what it is to want to praise and worship Him from my most inner being, from all that I am, from my soul. In this too, then, I can magnify the Lord. Oh what a blessed experience to be able to participate in . . . what a holy privilege to be a magnifier for the glory of God! Amen?

“Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together!” (Psalm 34:3 ESV)

Posted in Luke | Leave a comment

Holy Hoarding

Posted on May 24, 2011 by Pete

On Saturday, I had a bit of a watershed experience . . . I threw away some magazines. Ok . . . so that doesn’t sound like too big a deal . . . but what you gotta understand is that I had been storing these magazines for years . . . not just a couple of years . . . probably ten years or more. Why you ask? Good question . . . it’s not like I had ever looked at them in that ten year period . . . it’s just that I stored them. They were good magazines . . . they deserved to be kept . . . even if they were never used. After all, isn’t that what boxes and closets (and garages) are for? . . . to keep stuff in? Ok, maybe not. But as I read a stanza of Psalm 119 this morning I was reminded that there is something that should be stored . . . something that really is a treasure worth being collected and kept . . . that there is a “holy hoarding” worth pursuing.

“I have stored up Your word in my heart, that I might not sin against You.” (Psalm 119:11 ESV)

Psalm 119 has got to be one of my favorite psalms. 176 verses . . . parsed into 22 stanzas of 8 verses each . . . each stanza beginning sequentially with a different letter of the Hebrew alphabet . . . each stanza primarily occupied with one grand theme . . . the Word of God. My reading plan has one stanza a day for 22 days . . . for the better part of a month I will enter into the psalmist love for the revealed mind of the Lord through His commandments, statutes, precepts, testimonies . . . through His word. And this morning, I’m told to hoard that revelation . . . to store up His word in my heart.

While the ESV translates it “store up”, the NIV and NKJV says “I have hidden Your word” and, the NASB says the psalmist “treasured” the word in his heart. All are accurate translations . . . all emphasize some aspect of what the original word conveys. It is the idea of hiding something of value . . . of esteeming something of such worth as to carefully keep and protect it in a secret place. It is the idea of keeping something, of storing up and storing away, of collecting and accumulating . . . I don’t think it’s going to far to call it “holy hoarding.”

The treasure? The word of God. The God-breathed revelation of heaven itself for earthbound men. The ways of eternity conveyed to those bound in time. The truth concerning the kingdom of God preserved through the ages for those with “ears to hear.” The storehouse? My heart . . . the inner sanctum of who and what I am . . . the seat of my intellect and of my emotion . . . that which acts as my GPS in navigating life. The process? Treasure the word of God . . . excavate it . . . collect it . . . store it up . . . catalog it . . . hide it deep within and protect it . . . hoard it!

and, the purpose? That I might not transgress against the One whom I love and desire to serve . . . that I might live a life worthy of my calling (Eph. 4:1) . . . that I might be holy even as He is holy (1Peter 1:15-16). Unlike those magazines of mine which were tossed away this weekend, this holy hoarding is not for the purposes of filling shelf space in my heart . . . or packing an inner closet with facts and data simply to gather dust. But I am to hoard that I might have access to and then apply, through the Spirit’s enabling, the mind transforming, Christ conforming word of God as I navigate this pilgrim path He has set me on. I am to retrieve it . . . recall it . . . use it . . . apply it . . . put it into practice.

“How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to Your word.” (Psalm 119:9 ESV)

I want to be a collector? I want to have a secret stash of treasure? I want to fill up closets and garages? Oh, let me do it with the word of God, filling the storeroom of my heart. Let me hoard His word . . . let me hoard for holiness . . . let me hoard for Him who is worthy . . . amen?

Posted in Psalms | 1 Comment

How Shall I Know This?

Posted on May 23, 2011 by Pete

It strikes me as kind of a funny question . . . both funny as in “strange” . . . and funny as in “ha ha.” But it also hits me as being pretty instructive . . . a reminder that “faith” tends NOT to be our “default position” . . . that we a far more tuned to walk by sight than walk by faith, rather than the other way around. So, what’s the question that’s caught my attention this morning? It’s the question asked by Zechariah in Luke 1, “How shall I know this?” (1:10)

So here’s the context. Zechariah is a member of the Levitical priesthood called to service before the Lord in His temple. He is, in fact, an aging priest . . . moreover, he is an aging priest married to an aging bride, Elizabeth . . . they are both “advanced in years” . . . and, they are childless. And while they have been praying for years that God would “take away the reproach” (1:25) of being unable to have children, the time for bearing children, for all practical intents and purposes, has passed. And life goes on. Until one day . . .

It was a day when his division was “on duty” (1:8) at the temple . . . a day when, as they always did, lots where drawn to see who would enter the temple to burn incense (1:9) . . . a day when the lot fell to Zechariah . . . a day when Zechariah believed (or, at least, should have believed) that God had chosen him to enter the holy place. So this was turning out to be a special day . . . but “he ain’t seen nothing yet.” While everyone else is outside praying, and as Zechariah approaches the altar of incense, an angel appears to him, the angel Gabriel . . . the same Gabriel who appeared to Daniel (Dan. 8:16, 9:21) . . . Gabriel who stands in the presence of God . . . Gabriel who takes messages from God’s and delivers them to men.

And I’m thinking that Zechariah knows this guy is an angel. After all no one else had entered the temple . . . and I’m thinking that Gabriel has glow on, or something, that indicates he’s not “from around these parts.” Pretty amazing encounter of the heavenly kind. And Gabriel says to Zechariah that God has heard his prayer and that his wife Elizabeth will bear a son . . . a very special son . . . with a very specific and special calling (1:13-17).

Ok, so here’s Zechariah . . . with a once in a lifetime calling to enter the temple . . . standing right outside the most holy of holies . . . next to the place where the glory of God rests . . . talking to an angel . . . being told that he will have a son . . . and what does he say? “How shall I know this?” And my first reaction is, “Dude! Give your head a shake! Do you not know where you are? Can you not get who you’re talking to? God has sent an angel to have a one-on-one discussion . . . to visually and audibly convey a message from heaven itself . . . your gonna have a kid . . . and you want some proof?”

It makes me chuckle . . . and then it makes me think . . . and it makes me realize that this faith thing isn’t as easy to do as it is to talk about.

I know we are to “walk by faith and not by sight” (2Cor. 5:7) . . . and that “without faith it is impossible to please God” (Heb. 11:6) . . . but, if Zechariah teaches me anything this morning, it’s about how I am naturally wired for “walking by sight.” I can have the Word of God before me . . . I can have the promises of God running around inside my head . . . I can look at all the evidences of God’s mighty hand around me and upon me in the past . . . but when it comes to the next “step of faith” I can also find myself asking, “How can I know this?”

Oh, to be quick to believe and slow to ask for more proof. To know the voice of God through the Spirit within me and not ask, “How shall I know?” To know His continuing work of grace, His all sufficient grace, in imparting but a “mustard seed of faith”. “I do believe . . . Lord, help my unbelief” . . . for your glory . . . amen.

Posted in Luke | Leave a comment

Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due

Posted on May 19, 2011 by Pete

It reads like the credits at the end of a movie . . . a list of names scrolling through the last half of 2Samuel 23. It starts out, “These are the names of the mighty men whom David had . . . ” (2Sam. 23:8 ESV). Behind every great king, there are mighty men. God raises up a man, and he raises up an army to support him. God places the call on a woman, and he invites a cast of attendants to sustain and strengthen her. And, it seems consistent with the character of David that, as his life draws to an end, to give credit where credit is due.

Many of these guys (maybe all of them . . . I probably should do a bit more study to find out . . . ) had been with David since the early days . . . since the days of the cave of Adullam. David was told to flee by Jonathan as it was certain that Jonathan’s dad, King Saul, was intent on taking David out (1Sam. 20). David ended up feigning insanity before Philistine rulers in order to save his skin (1Sam. 21:12-15) and managed to escape to the cave of Adullam. And there, in that desperate situation . . . in that dark, damp camp . . . with no resources . . . and no idea what God was doing . . . David’s mighty men started to come together and assemble. But what a rag-tag bunch of dudes they were . . .

David departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. And when his brothers and all his father’s house heard it, they went down there to him. And everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul, gathered to him. And he became captain over them. And there were with him about four hundred men. (1Samuel 22:1-2 ESV)

Check out, how Peterson puts it in The Message . . .

So David got away and escaped to the Cave of Adullam. When his brothers and others associated with his family heard where he was, they came down and joined him. Not only that, but all who were down on their luck came around — losers and vagrants and misfits of all sorts. David became their leader. There were about four hundred in all. (1Samuel 22:1-2 MSG)

David became their leader . . . he was captain over them . . . whoo-hoo! Such an army! Not apparent that there was a lot of “might” in these mighty men. But read the “credits” in 2Samuel 23 and see what God can do with a rag tag bunch of misfits.

There’s “JB” who, with only a spear in his hand, took out 800 enemy soldiers during a single battle (23:8). And “the El-ster” who was with David when they went up against the Philistines and much of the Israelite army bailed on them . . . but he stood with David and fought “until his hand was weary, and his hand clung to the sword” and the Lord brought about a great victory that day (23:10). And “Sham the man” who stood his ground to guard a strategic food source for David’s men. Even when most other men fled out of fear of the advancing enemy, he “defended it and struck down the Philistines, and the Lord worked a great victory” (23:12).

And the list goes on . . . the stories are told . . . the names are listed . . . and the victories are recorded . . . and it is evident that David’s mighty men were, in fact, truly mighty. But it also becomes evident that their power came from beyond themselves . . . that the source of their victories was from another. And so, as the credits roll, I realize afresh that misfit men can be made mighty by the grace and power of God . . . and that, when all is said and done, He, and He alone, gets the credit where the credit is due.

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” (2Cor. 4:7 ESV)

Posted in 1Samuel, 2Samuel | 1 Comment