Tag: joy

Study of Psalm 122 (Part One)

A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. A psalm of David.
I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.” And now here we are, standing inside your gates, O Jerusalem (122:1-2 NLT).

Psalms 120-132 are called Songs of Ascent. The law covenant required all males in the covenant nation to assemble in Jerusalem three times a year. All your males are to appear three times a year before the Lord your God in the place he chooses: at the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Weeks, and the Festival of Shelters. No one is to appear before the Lord empty-handed (Deuteronomy 16:16 CSB; cf. Exodus 23:14-17). As is clear from the Old Testament in several texts, the place God chose was Jerusalem. King David brought the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem, and there Solomon built the temple of the Lord. We learn from the heading to this psalm that David was its human author.

After many years of spiritual chaos during the reign of Saul, the Holy Spirit equipped David the prophet and king to restore the worship of the Lord in Israel. (There was not much worship according to the law covenant going on in Saul’s time. The Ark had been separated from the tabernacle for generations. Saul had killed many of the Lord’s priests, and the priests who were faithful to the Lord had been on the run with David for many years.) The second half of First Chronicles records various acts of David to bring about this restoration and indeed renovation of old covenant worship. (For example, he assigned the Levites to new duties, since they would no longer have to carry the tabernacle from place to place.) His greatest contribution to worship was the many songs that he composed for worship. At least two of his psalms are part of the Songs of Ascent. David wrote this one for people to sing as they entered Jerusalem on the three required times of assembly. So picture yourselves among the throng of worshipers. You have made a long journey, probably on foot, from your home to the holy (set apart to God) city. You join in this song with the others and are very happy because your trip has reached its destination.

David puts himself among the crowds that enter Jerusalem. This is what godly leaders ought to do. It has always amazed me how many leaders in churches do many other things during the service besides worship. Why didn’t they do some of those things a half hour earlier? Not so David. He entered Jerusalem fully engaged in worship. He was joyful because of the great privilege of standing inside the gates of Jerusalem. As an old covenant believer, he was glad that he was at the place of worship.

Read those words again: I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.” Notice how he models the joy of being part of a God-worshiping community where all encourage their neighbors to worship with them. During the law covenant, the place to be was at the temple in Jerusalem. In the new covenant, we seek no physical place, but we assemble as a spiritual temple (2 Corinthians 6:16; Ephesians 2:21; 1 Peter 2:2:4-5). One of the best things about the current Covid-19 crisis has been to get the church out of a physical building. Now I realize the many advantages of being able to meet together in person rather than digitally. However, people had so joined building with church that they lost what a church truly is. In the first place, I hear that when you come together as a church, there are divisions among you, and to some extent I believe it (1 Corinthians 11:18 NIV, my emphasis). A church comes together as people meet to share their new lives in Christ. In this century, we are able to do this the first time virtually; we can interact seeing faces and hearing voices without being in a physical building. May we learn this lesson! We can share new life in Christ apart from a building.

Can you sense the exhilaration all the pilgrims experienced as they sang together, “And now here we are, standing inside your gates, O Jerusalem”? They had reached the place that the living God had chosen for his old covenant people to meet. Observe how the first person singular at the start of the song has morphed into the first personal plural in these words. Here we are! The people have assembled to worship! We sing far too many songs in the singular instead of the plural. For example, we sing, “On Christ the solid rock I stand,” when we could just as easily sing, “On Christ the solid rock we stand!”

What is the new covenant reality compared to the old covenant shadow? It is easy to see in the letter to the Hebrews. But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel (Hebrews 12:22-24 NIV). They gathered to worship in an earthly city. We gather in the Spirit to worship in the heavenly city. Many thousands of angels worship with us. We come as the church of the firstborn, the Lord Jesus Christ. We come directly to God and to the Mediator of the new covenant that is built on his sprinkled blood that always cries out, “Forgive them, forgive them, don’t let those ransomed sinners die!” That is a beautiful reality!

We spiritually stand in Christ inside the gates of the heavenly Jerusalem. Look around with the eyes of faith. Enjoy our eternal city. We look forward when our faith will become our full experience.

Grace and peace,
David

Study of Psalm 14 (Part Four)

Will evildoers never understand? They consume my people as they consume bread; they do not call on the Lord. Then they will be filled with dread, for God is with those who are righteous. You sinners frustrate the plans of the oppressed, but the Lord is his refuge (14:4-6 CSB).

In this psalm we see that God’s people may have problems now from the ungodly, but these problems cannot be compared with those that the ungodly face. How is this so? The Lord is opposed to evildoers. Usually they do not think about their condition before the Lord. (Remember that they suppress the knowledge of God.) But there comes a time when the living God steps into their lives and upsets their world. David tells of us this time and its effect on the unrighteous. Then they will be filled with dread… People cannot escape their accountability to God, and when it finally comes upon them, dread overcomes them, since they have no hope. Weep for the hopeless sinner.

What causes their dread? For God is with those who are righteous. Those whom they had oppressed and persecuted are finally recognized to be the favored ones of the Almighty; in fact, God takes his place among them. What is the sinner’s fear is the saint’s comfort. Why can we have confident assurance when all seems to be against us? By faith we know that the Lord of Glory has decided to live with his people. He is not far away; he is present in our company, whether we perceive his presence or not. Let us then lay hold of this truth by faith and so live in hope!

Those who do evil are a source of frustration for the saints, here called the oppressed. There are many things that we would like to see different in the world around us, but evildoers act to oppose and to ruin. What can the saints do? Rest in the Lord. He alone is the refuge of the saints.

Oh, that Israel’s deliverance would come from Zion! When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people, let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad (Psalm 14:7 CSB).

David concludes this psalm with a prayer that expresses the deepest longing of the elect of God. How we who have been saved by grace look for the fullness of what has been freely given to us by God! The source of change is the Lord himself. When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people…. God himself will set things right for those he loves. What we have in our position, he will make sure that we possess in our condition.

The psalm closes on a high note. King David calls the saints to rejoice and be glad. There is hope in the future for the called. Let us set our sights on that day!

Grace and peace,
David

Christ Was Buried

1 Corinthians 15:3-5

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve (NIV).

First Corinthians Fifteen is a grand presentation of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ from the dead and of certain hope of resurrection, because we are in Him, the Risen One. Followers of Jesus in our time need to feed their souls on the Risen Lord over all during this time of the corona pandemic. The media daily and incessantly feeds us with reports of death and despair. I do not downplay the seriousness of our situation, but we need to hear all of reality, not just the dark side of sin and death where the world delights to live in. We need to remember the ancient Christian greeting on Resurrection Sunday: “Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!”

Yet we must remember that the path to total victory led through the dark valley of the Lord Christ’s death on the cross. On that cross he died for our sins. He died because we had rejected the true and living God as our God, because we had refused to love him most of all, and because we had rebelled against him by doing what he had forbidden and by not doing what he told us to do. Yes, we were and are sinners, and the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23a CSB). For this reason Christ died for our sins, in order to rescue us from the righteous consequence and judgment for sin. Praise God that he provided the way of rescue from judgment through Jesus Messiah.

After he died, some good men, Joseph and Nicodemus, buried Jesus’ body according to the Jewish burial customs of that day. Christ had died, so they buried him. Notice that our text says he was buried. It is said this way, not because Christ’s soul-spirit was in the grave, because that day Jesus himself was in paradise. Jesus had said to one of those crucified with him “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43 ESV). Instead, it is written that he was buried because he was and is truly human, and every human has a functional unity between the inner person (the soul-spirit) and the outer person (the body). What can be said of one part can be applied to the whole. So then, he was buried, because his body was buried.

One day, unless the Lord Jesus returns first, we will die and our bodies, our earthly remains, will be buried or otherwise disposed of. But when we bury a Christian’s body, we bury his or her body in the certain hope of the resurrection! The grave is not the end for the believer in Jesus. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body (1 Corinthians 15:42b-44a NIV). So, when Christ raises us from the dead by a powerful shout of his voice, we will come forth from the grave in his image (1 Corinthians 15:49).

Yes, Christ was buried, but death and the tomb could not hold him. He came out from the grave in great power and glory. “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!” (Luke 24:5b-6a NIV) Tomorrow on Resurrection Sunday (what some call Easter Sunday), you probably will not be able to gather with others to celebrate Christ’s resurrection from death and the grave, but you can still joyfully sing: “Up from the grave He arose, with a mighty triumph o’er his foes; he arose a victor from the dark domain, and he lives forever with his saints to reign! He arose! He arose! Hallelujah! Christ arose!” (Robert Lowry)

Grace and peace in Jesus Christ the Risen Lord,
David

Who, Then, Is This? (Part Nine)

Luke 9:28-36

While he was saying this, a cloud appeared and overshadowed them. They became afraid as they entered the cloud. Then a voice came from the cloud, saying: “This is my Son, the Chosen One; listen to him!” After the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. They kept silent, and at that time told no one what they had seen (9:34-36 CSB).

The Father affirmed his Son’s work. The Father spoke of the dawning of a new age, the age of Messiah as the new and better covenant. The cross functions as a “new exodus”. A new day in redemptive history was about to dawn. The liberation from sin and its consequences was drawing near.

There were a number of things Moses and Elijah were not talking about. “For here, fresh from heaven, and shining with the glory of it, when permitted to talk with Him, they speak not of His miracles, nor of His teaching, nor of the honor which He put upon their Scriptures, nor upon the unreasonable opposition to Him and His patient endurance of it: They speak not of the glory which they were themselves enshrined in, and the glory which He was so soon to reach. Their subject is the exodus, the redeeming work, that he was about to do!” (D. Brown, pp. 261-262) Do we share their excitement and joy?

Christ’s redeeming work is the central truth of the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 2:2; Revelation 5:12). As Moses led God’s people of old out of bondage in Egypt, so one far better than Moses, the Lord Jesus Christ, has freed all his people from bondage to sin, Satan and death by his victory on the cross and from the empty grave. There is a better exodus!

The cross leads in turn to the consummation of God’s plan. Christ had spoken of his glory being revealed when he comes as Judge. The three disciples are given the privilege of seeing something of which he was speaking. See him flashing with the shining brilliance of glory! Wonder at this sight. Worship the Lord. My friends, we need by faith to enter into the glory of this revelation. Gaze upon the brilliant Son; listen to the Father’s majestic voice. Our God speaks to us continually through his word.

The Father affirmed his Son’s authority. The command to listen to Jesus was an indication of his authority as God’s Anointed One, as the Prophet (Deuteronomy 18:15; Acts 3:22-23). The second stanza of Isaac Watts’ great hymn, “Join All the Glorious Names”, joyfully says:

Great Prophet of my God
My tongue would bless Thy name
By Thee the joyful news
Of our salvation came;
The joyful news of sins forgiven,
Of hell subdued and peace with heaven.

Jesus is the final Word of God’s revelation (John 1; Hebrews 1). He is the sum and substance of the Holy Scriptures, and he completed them as his word took final written form through the New Testament apostles and prophets. Together with the Old Testament, we have one completed message from God. Listen to what the apostle Peter wrote after reflecting on the Transfiguration. We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts (2 Peter 1:19 NIV). The Great Prophet of God has made sure that his word is completely reliable through the almighty action of God the Holy Spirit. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you (John 16:13-14 NIV).

This is of immense practical importance, especially given the context. “Are we doing that? Is His word law to us? Do we like it when he speaks sharp as well as smooth things…?” (D. Brown, p. 262) Does his word win over everything in our lives that collides with it? Are we listening to the Lord Jesus? Have we confessed, “Lord Jesus, you are superior to all that have come before you or after you. You are the way, the truth and the life. You are the only way to God the Father. Lord Jesus, my only trust is in you, my only hope is you” (cf. 1 Timothy 1:1).

Grace and peace,
David

A Door of Hope (Part Two)

Hosea 2:14-23

I will take you to be my wife forever. I will take you to be my wife in righteousness, justice, love, and compassion. I will take you to be my wife in faithfulness, and you will know the Lord (2:19-20 CSB).

The hope (confident expectation) that God gives his people includes a new and better relationship (2:16-20) with him. This is expressed by the word husband (2:16-17)

In her early days, Israel had called the Lord baal, which simply meant “owner”, “master”, “possessor” or “husband”. But in Canaan, Baal was the chief god of the evil Canaanites, and Israel had forsaken the Lord to worship Baal. The true God no longer wanted such confusion to exist.

Therefore, the Lord chooses another word for husband, ish. This word is used in the first account of marriage in Genesis 2:23-24. The Lord wants his people to relate to him, not in a context of slavery and fear, but in a context of love, peace and joy. What characterizes your worship? Do you want to be in God’s presence? Do you approach him with gladness? This is only an illustrative question. You might confess that God loves you, because the Bible tells you. But do you think that God likes you? What I hint at is that the love of God has been trite, commonplace, to Christians. We’ve lost the wonder of being in an intimate relationship with the true and living and unlimited God. It’s like someone says, “God loves you,” and we nod our heads and think, “Yeah, I’ve heard that before.” We’re not profoundly moved by the love of God. But we think, “Would God want to hang out with me?”

It is expressed in assurances of peace and safety (2:18). Study the blessings and cursings of the law covenant (Deuteronomy 28) to grasp the importance. God acts to bring about two kinds of peace in his creation.

  • For nature to be at peace with humanity (Isaiah 11:6-9).
  • For people to be at peace with each other (Micah 4:3).

It is expressed in a new covenant (2:19-20). Compare Jeremiah 31:31-34. The Lord gives a beautiful wedding gift to his bride.

  • Righteousness – We are right with God because of the gift of Christ’s righteousness.
  • Justice – It is satisfied at the cross of Christ. See Romans 3:25-26.
  • Love – God’s covenant, unfailing lovingkindness
  • Compassion – The Lord is deeply concerned about us. This was another reversal (cf. 1:6)!
  • Faithfulness – God will never forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).

Are you delighting in your Lord? A bride who delights in her husband will love him for every gift of his love and will glorify him for his gifts to her. How do you speak of your Lord?

Grace and peace, David

Seeking God Successfully (Part Five)

Psalm 27:8

You have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, Lord, do I seek” (ESV).

So then, we should through faith obey God’s command to seek his face. God’s pattern for our behavior is always to follow his will, trusting him to supply what is need to walk in the way he directs us to walk in.

Now, it’s your turn. Answer the following questions after reading both passages to learn more about seeking the Lord through faith according to his word. What promise did the Lord give to Joshua prior to the conquest of the Promised Land (Joshua 1:1-9)? How is this promise like the one given to the church (Matthew 28:18-20)?

“So though David said, ‘I will seek thy face,’ yet there was a spiritual virtue that enabled him. God must find us before we can seek him. He must not only give the command to seek his face, but together with the command, there goes a work of the Spirit to the children of God, that enableth them to seek him” (Sibbes, Works, Vol. 6, p. 119).

Consider Christ’s commands to the paralyzed man (Mark 2:11-12) and to Lazarus (John 11:43-44). Christ commanded both what they were unable to perform, but with the commands came to them with the ability to obey. We might wonder how weak creatures could seek the face of the Almighty, Eternal God, who is beyond our comprehension. But with the call to draw near to God comes the power of the Holy Spirit to approach the Father through the Son.

What kind of obedience through faith should we give to the command to seek God’s face?

  • We should give an immediate obedience . To seek fellowship with our Father is not something that we should put off. Don’t be like the child who calls, “I’m coming dad,” while he or she continues to play with the toys.
  • We should give a cheerful obedience. For example, Each person should do as he has decided in his heart—not reluctantly or out of compulsion, since God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7 CSB). God is always to be approached joyfully. Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! (Psalm 100:2 ESV). This was the kind of attitude that Isaiah had when he heard God’s call (Isaiah 6:8). It was the kind of response that the apostles manifested after they experienced the pain they would suffer from obedience (Acts 5:41-42). “God would have things in the church done by such people” (Sibbes, p. 120).
  • We should obey sincerely; that is, we should be seeking God himself and not merely benefits from him. God sees through all hypocrisy. Though he wants to supply our needs and commands us to pray accordingly, the Lord first wants us to fellowship with him. Let us not mix these things up in our attitudes. It is far too easy for all our communication with the Lord to degenerate into sessions in which we only ask for stuff! Would you like to talk with a child who had that kind of attitude?
  • We should seek God perpetually. Resolve on seeking him now; determine to keep on seeking him daily. Our lives are made up of far too many false starts. We fizzle out like a sparkler that a child plays with. Think of something that you really like to do. How do you persevere in doing that action? You seize every opportunity! Seek God in that manner.
  • Our obedience must conform to the command. We only conform when we seek God’s face, regardless of our circumstances. Above all else God wants us to be devoted to seeking him, though we may not see how we will find him.

So then, we seek God successfully when we seek him in Jesus Christ through faith, and as James wrote, this faith produces actions consistent with who God is. “There is no good received by religion if we be not earnest for it. Religion is not a matter to be dallied in” (Sibbes, Works, Vol. 6, p. 304).

Grace and peace, David

The Struggles of the Believer (Part Six)

1 John 5:13

I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life (CSB).

Our current study is about the struggles that a real follower of the Lord Jesus can face. First, we established this fact and discussed the struggle with fear. In our previous two posts, we began to answer the question, “What should you do if you are not sure that you are saved?” Time only permitted us to give two answers. The first was to examine yourself to see if you are really a follower of Christ. We saw that the God requires a true repentance toward him and a true belief in the Lord Jesus Christ. The second was to realize that true believers might struggle about their assurance. So we presented three proofs that true believers do struggle about assurance, and then four selected causes that contribute to this struggle. The fourth cause was “cracks” in the pillars or bases of assurance. What they are, and what we must tend to is the subject of this and the next posts.

Learn the Biblical teaching about assurance. There are three bases or pillars on which your assurance (not your salvation!) rests. Suppose you asked me to prove that I am married to Sharon Ann Frampton. I could find a copy of the signed marriage license, or I could produce her to testify that I am married to her, or I could just smile and say, “I said vows of marital love to her and I heard her say vows of marital love to me.” That is what these three pillars or supports of assurance are like.

First is the support of the promises of God. Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him (1 John 5:1 ESV). God’s promises call us to rest on his truthfulness (Titus 1:2) and his faithfulness (Lamentations 3:23). Being convinced by the Spirit, we trust in the Lord. Jesus said, “Everyone the Father gives me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will never cast out” (John 6:37 CSB; cf. John 3:16; 5:24). John is saying in 1 John 5:1 that we can know that we have been born of God because we believe that Jesus is the Christ.

  • In the inner person of every believer God the Holy Spirit has planted a deep conviction about God and his truth. There is something that happens inside the heart that provides a certain amount of certainty that there is a God and that his word is final authority. I think that this is what the Reformers meant when they talked about the assurance of true faith.
  • Though I doubt that any true believer can lose that certainty, it is obvious that most or perhaps all believers struggle with doubts and questions at some time, not so much about God’s promises, but about whether or not they trust the Lord. Since we are not perfect in understanding and our minds sometimes drift, sin can take advantage of our limitations and weaknesses to produce doubts about God and his word. At that point, we must ask for the Spirit’s help, pick up his sword (the word of God), and put those doubts to death.

Many new believers struggle when someone asks them, “How do you know that the Bible is God’s Word?” And when they cannot convince the skeptic, they begin to question their own faith. The apostle is advising us, “Take a look at the marriage license! Go back to whom you believe in—Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Exercise a fresh faith in him.”

As we grow in faith and understanding, we come to know a number of truths that contribute to our assurance. Let’s think of a few.

  • God’s power preserves his people. And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns (Philippians 1:6 NLT; cf. 1 Peter 1:5; Jude 1:24).
  • Christ’s blood has purchased our eternal salvation. The Lord Jesus entered the most holy place once for all time, not by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption (Hebrews 9:12 CSB).
  • We are in the risen and ascended Christ. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:4-7 ESV).
  • We are sealed by the Spirit to the day of redemption. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption (Ephesians 4:30 NIV).

In this way, the truths that we nickname “the doctrines of grace” contribute to a full assurance. As we spiritually comprehend all that we have by the free grace of the gospel, we rejoice! Joy in the Lord leads us through struggles into peace and confident expectation.

Grace and peace, David

Psalm 63 (Part Seven)

I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you (63:4-5 NIV).

Having presented the reason for his experience of praise in an unlikely place, David next described how that praise is expressed. Four ideas come to our attention.

  • God is the object of his praise. His relationship with the living God that included an experience of the Lord’s glory would certainly cause David to praise his God and none other. True praise is not merely participation in religious ritual. Anyone can do that, even the most wicked of humans. Praise to the Lord is the overflow of one’s heart in love, joy and gratitude.
  • David’s praise was expressed verbally in the form of music. He used the talents and skill that God had given him to paint musically a picture of God’s wonderfulness. While those blessed with musical gifts should use them for the glory of God, those lacking them should not neglect this important part of worship. God is the maker of art and beauty, and so we should use artistic means to make known his splendor. To fail to sing praises robs God of the glory that we ought to bring him. Sing to the best of the ability that he has given to you. Our Father knows that some of us were not blessed with musical talent. He still desires to hear our voices.
  • The praise of the Lord should be a constant, lifelong activity. How can we do otherwise when we are in a personal relationship with God, have experienced his glory, and know that his unfailing love is better than life?
  • We should notice the involvement of the physical body in worship. Here David wrote about the lifting up of his hands. There are times to worship and bow down. (Please don’t try to avoid lifting your hands by piously saying you worship quietly. I rarely see anyone on their knees, much less falling prostrate before the true and awesome God.) In the Bible we see people shouting, dancing, clapping, and clanging cymbals! There are times for exuberant praise. When was the last time anyone could say that clearly you joyfully and enthusiastically praised the Lord in public worship?

The third vital experience of the believer is the experience of satisfaction in the Lord. This is something that has been neglected by the typical believer in evangelical circles. Consider the popular Christian books. We have a host of books on “Christian fiction”, prophetic matters, and how to solve your personal problems and prosper. We have a growing number of special interest study Bibles. Dare I mention books about the Christian and politics? I think it is fair to say that most of these books say little about the living God and finding satisfaction in him. To feel good about the form of worship and liking the songs sung to us by “worship leaders” is very far from the experience of delighting in the Lord. We can become so concerned about how we feel about the music, the message, and the other stuff of a typical service that we do not think about worshiping God together as his people. While we will benefit from praise and worship when we do both in faith and love, our benefits are not the goal. We worship and praise in an overflow of our hearts to God. We responsively declare with the outer persons of our bodies and the inner persons of our hearts the greatness and surpassing worthiness of God. More on how this relates to our satisfaction in God next time!

Grace and peace, David

The Dawn of a New Era

Luke 1:11-18

He will be filled with the Holy Spirit while still in his mother’s womb. He will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God (Luke 1:15b-16 CSB).

Excitement undoubtedly filled the hearts of Zechariah and Elizabeth, because this was to be a special day. Zechariah the priest had been chosen by lot to offer incense before the Lord in the temple. He boldly entered to do what the law covenant required, and at that moment his life, and the lives of all people began to change, for the Lord was about to make a joyful announcement. But Zechariah knew nothing about God’s message until he entered the temple. The Lord often surprises people when he steps into their lives by his grace. Can you remember when God came to you with a powerful, joyful message? What did he experience when God spoke to him that day?

  • Zechariah was startled and afraid when he saw the angel next to the altar of incense (1:12). We all can understand his fear. Who hasn’t felt alarmed when someone suddenly pops out of hiding? Plus, this was a messenger from the heavenly realm. We’re not accustomed to receiving spiritual visitors. Zechariah is not to be blamed for his reaction.
  • Zechariah heard that his prayer had been answered (1:13). His prayer was to have a son. To have children was very important for God’s people under the law covenant. Since Zechariah was a priest, it was not a matter of passing an inheritance in the Promised Land unto his son, but it was a sign of God’s blessing (Deuteronomy 28:1-4; Psalm 127:3-5). The angel told him that Elizabeth, who had been barren, would be blessed and bear a son, whom they were to name John.
  • Zechariah received information about caring for his son (1:14-15). The birth of John would signal the start of the new covenant age. Not only the happy couple find delight in their son, but many people will rejoice because of his birth. The kingdom of God is a matter of joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17 NIV) and the fruit of the Spirit is joy (Galatians 5:22). The time of the promise of the Spirit was about to arrive, and the Spirit comes to produce life (Ezekiel 37:1-14; John 3:3-8; Titus 3:5). At the end of the old covenant age, John was to be consecrated to God like a Nazarite (Numbers 6:1-4). The Holy Spirit would fill John from his mother’s womb to do the work that God had called John to do.
  • Zechariah learned the mission of his son (1:16-18). John would be the promised forerunner of the Lord Messiah (Malachi 3:5; 4:5-6; Isaiah 40:3-5). The I AM, Yahweh, was about to come to his people and to enter the temple. John’s task would be to call the people out to the wilderness of a new Exodus, that the Lord himself would accomplish (cf. Luke 9:31). He was to seek a turning or repentance in the hearts of the people. This would involve a restoration of relationships among the people and to wisdom, as in the book of Proverbs. When the Lord himself stepped on the scene, there would be people ready to follow him (cf. John 1:35-51).

So then, Zechariah received exciting news! A new era in the story of God’s glory in Jesus Christ was about to begin. He ought to have worshiped joyfully. We who have heard the good news should be filled with joy, because the Anointed Savior and Lord has come. But are we? Or do other concerns fill our hearts? Are we ready for the return of our Lord? Read Luke 12:35-40.

Grace and peace, David

Changing Moods (Part One)

Psalm 30:6-7, 11-12

When I was secure, I said, “I will never be shaken.” Lord, when you showed your favor, you made me stand like a strong mountain; when you hid your face, I was terrified… You turned my lament into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, so that I can sing to you and not be silent. Lord my God, I will praise you forever (CSB).

In previous posts on Psalm thirty, we considered the relationship between God and his people. Since we are in a covenant relationship with God, he lifts us up when we call to him in prayer, and we joyfully respond by lifting him up in our praise. But as any believer in the Lord knows, we do not always feel the joy that belongs to us through our union with the joyful Lord: You will make known to me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; in Your right hand there are pleasures forever (Psalm 16:11 NASV). So, what happens to us? Why can we feel happy with a glorious, inexpressible joy (1 Peter 1:8 NLT) one day, and the next feel discouraged, downcast and sorrowful? Part of this experience flows from the changing ways we interact with our God, and the changing moods that come from that interaction. Let us look at this together.

Understand clearly that it is spiritually normal for the people of God to have varying moods. We can see this in David’s experience; we all struggle through this in our own experience. Depending on your personality, you may have a greater difficulty with this than other believers.

God’s people will feel a sense of security at times. To feel secure for the proper reasons is the correct emotional state for a believer. The Bible never presents insecurity as an ideal (cf. Romans 8:38-39; Acts 18:19-20; Philippians 4:4-7, 19; 2 Timothy 1:12).

However, we need to distinguish between spiritual and fleshly security. Spiritual security rests in the Lord (Psalm 28:6-9). Fleshly security rests in oneself or one’s blessings or performance (Dt 8:10-18; Ho 13:4-6).

Think of Mr. Carnal Security in John Bunyan’s The Holy War. (By the way, if you haven’t read this book, I encourage you to do so. He misled the godly inhabitants of the town of Mansoul with deceptive promises of fleshly ease. What would make you feel good about yourself? Your answer will be a signpost pointing to what you really think makes you feel secure. Let’s think about a related question. What would make you feel good about the local church you attend? Be honest!

At other times, God’s people may feel a sense of spiritual depression. Though the Bible does not present spiritual depression as an ideal, it does teach that believers can and do enter into a depressed condition (Psalm 42:1-5; Galatians 4:15). God desires that his children live in joy and peace (Romans 15:13). Yet his children can get themselves into such difficulties that they lose their sense of felt peace and joy. Otherwise, why would the Scriptures encourage us to lay hold of these by faith? In this place, David tells us the he was dismayed. The Hebrew word is a strong way to express being troubled. The normal course of David’s life had become unsettled! So it is when any believer falls into this state. In the Pilgrim’s Progress Christian lost his assurance on Hill Difficulty.

At yet other times, God’s people may feel a sense of joy. The Lord granted David help through this experience, so that David would rejoice again. When David had a sense of joy, he would be able to praise the Lord. God wants his people to be joyful. He wants us to experience joy in him (Philippians 3:1; 4:4). Seek the Lord and find his joy in him.

Grace and peace, David