Recognize God’s Forgiveness

On By BrianIn Habit of Prayer

In Psalm 32:1-2a, David recognizes his forgiveness:

Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,
whose sin is covered.
Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity.

These same words are quoted by Paul in Romans 4 in the context of our great salvation through Jesus Christ.  Because Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead, we can be forgiven of our sins through faith in Jesus Christ.  Do you recognize God’s forgiveness as you approach God in prayer?

Psalm 24:3-4 tells us who can approach God:

Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?
And who shall stand in his holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not lift up his soul to what is false
and does not swear deceitfully.

And yet none of us on our own can claim clean hands or a pure heart.  Only in Christ are we clean and pure, and so only in Christ can we approach God.  So again, do you recognize God’s forgiveness when you approach God in prayer?  It is only in Christ that you can come.  It is only in the context of salvation can we truly pray. 

As you come before his throne, consider Christ who makes it possible for you to approach God.  Recognize God’s forgiveness in Jesus Christ.

Confession

On By BrianIn Habit of Prayer

Psalm 51 is a great psalm of confession:

Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin!
Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with a willing spirit.
(Portions from verses 1-12)

This psalm teaches us to confess our sins to God.  We are to cry out to God about our sins, to seek mercy and forgiveness.  Is confession a regular part of your prayer life? 

Our church encourages people to examine their lives and confess their sins before we celebrate the Lord’s Supper.  But this is clearly not enough.  Who remembers most of the sins they committed several days ago?  And so we ought to daily examine our lives and confess our sins to God.  The more attuned we become to our daily sins, the more grateful we will be for God’s forgiveness and salvation through Jesus Christ.  Along with a daily examination, we should strive to recognize sin in the moment of its occurrence, and immediately confess it to God and repent of it, as well as apologizing to whomever we committed the sin.  Deal with it immediately.  This will help to deter future occurences. 

We need to confess our sins to the Lord, crying out for his mercy.  Is confession a regular part of your prayer life?  This is an area where I need to grow.  How about you?

Recognizing God’s Presence

On By BrianIn Habit of Prayer

Psalm 139 is a great prayer that reminds us that God is intimately involved in our lives.  Part of that involvement is his constant presence.  As David prays, he recognizes God’s presence with him:

Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where shall I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me. (v7-10)

Do we recognize God’s presence with us when we pray?  Do we consider that he is right there with us?

The address to our prayers should remind us of who we are talking to and that he is right there listening to us.  When we start our prayers with “Dear Lord” or “Our Father” or something similar, these addresses ought to draw all of our attention to our very present God.  And yet I fear we too often zip right through it; we forget who we are talking to.  We just start talking without thinking about what we are doing.  At least I know I do. 

How different our prayers might be if at the beginning of each prayer we simply stopped to consider who we are talking to, if we recognized that we are talking to a great God who is right there listening to us.  We are not talking to the air.  We are not talking to ourselves.  We are not talking to a distant god who may or may not hear us.  We are talking to a very present God who hears every word.  As we recognize his presence, we can really talk to God as we should.

Prayer Quotes To Ponder

On By BrianIn Prayer Quotes

If we think we can do life on our own,
we will not take prayer seriously.
– Paul Miller

 Prayer is bringing your helplessness to Jesus.
– Paul Miller

 Learned desperation is at the heart of a praying life.
– Paul Miller

 It is atheism to pray and not to wait in hope.
– Richard Sibbes

 True prayer measures no need too great or too small. 
It neither assumes human probability nor flinches
 in the face of human impossibility.
– James W. Beeke and Joel R. Beeke

 Jesus’ example teaches us that prayer is about relationship.  When he prays, he is not performing a duty; he is getting close to his Father.  Any relationship, if it is going to grow, needs private space, time together without an agenda, where you can get to know each other….  Efficiency, multitasking, and busyness all kill intimacy.
– Paul Miller

 A sign of true love and friendship is when two people treasure time to be alone to talk together.  So it is with the Lord and true believers.  They love to hear each other’s voice.  This involves a double grace – not only that a sinner loves to hear Christ’s voice, but also that Christ loves to hear a sinner’s voice.
– James W. Beeke and Joel R. Beeke

 When a man draws near to God in prayer, he forgets prayer…prayer goes for nothing, but Christ is all.
-I.Ambrose

 True prayer is fellowshipping with God. 
It is a foretaste of heaven’s eternal conversation.
– James W. Beeke and Joel R. Beeke

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:

Mark Altrogge gives us several reasons why we must rejoice always.

Thinking about sin and morality, Stephen Altrogge warns us of the danger of turning a good thing into a moral and necessary thing.  And Kevin DeYoung reminds us that every sin is not the same in God’s eyes.  And Joe Thorn considers what it means to die to sin.

In the midst of rising prices and a struggling economy, here are ten principles from Proverbs on money and possessions.

And as you prepare for church tomorrow, be careful to worship God, not our feelings.

Have a great Lord’s Day with your local church praising God, studying his Word, seeking him in prayer, and encouraging one another.

Next week we will begin a four week focus on prayer.

My Shepherd

On By BrianIn Uncategorized

Psalm 23 is one of the best known, most beloved passages in the Scriptures – perhaps because it gives us great assurance in troubled times.  As I look around this world, I see a people living in troubled times.  I see the concerns, cares, struggles, and pain that so many are facing, so many are carrying.  I see financial concerns, health struggles, loved ones who are ill or dying or who have passed away, family struggles, struggles with sin, and the list could go on.  I see a hurting people in need of some assurance.  When we look at Psalm 23 we find that assurance as we remember that we have a great Shepherd.

The Lord is my Shepherd (v1a).  What a wonderful thing that God – the Creator of the universe, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords – would care about little people like us, would choose to be our Shepherd.  And yet David makes it more personal than that.  He is not just our Shepherd, but he is my Shepherd.  I have personal relationship with God.  He cares about me.  He is my Shepherd.

Can you say that?  Can you say that he is your Shepherd?  Can you say that you are his sheep?  Jesus uses the same imagery in John 10:27-28.

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.  I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.

Does God know you as his sheep?  Has he given you eternal life?  Eternal life in the Gospel of John is a relationship with God today that extends into eternity (John 17:3).  Have you received this eternal life, this relationship with God?  Jesus also says in John 10:

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. (v11)

I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. (v14-15)

For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. (v17)

Jesus knows his sheep. He died for them and rose from dead.  And to be his sheep, we must simply believe in him.  Jesus said in verse 26:

But you do not believe because you are not part of my flock. 

If we do not believe, we are not his sheep.  But the opposite is also true.  If we believe in Jesus, we are his sheep.  If we believe that Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead to give us eternal life, he will be our Shepherd. Have you received him as your Shepherd?  Have you become his sheep?  Without a shepherd you are a lost sheep, wandering in wilderness, chased by wolves, with no support, no help, and no hope.  But if you have Lord as your Shepherd – Psalm 23 gives you glorious truths that you can hold onto in troubled times:

He Provides For You

He makes me lie down in green pastures.  He leads me beside still waters (v2).  Sheep need green pastures in which to graze.  They need still waters to drink.  They need to lie down to rest.  And God provides food and drink and rest for you.  He provides for your needs.  He will take care of you in this uncertain economy.  Gas prices are rising, grocery bills are increasing, and health insurance and doctor bills are climbing.  Many people are without a job or losing their home.  In the midst of all of this, you can fret and fear, worry and whine.  Or you can look to your Shepherd –  he will provide for you. 

Spurgeon understands this verse as the Shepherd providing  spiritually for you.  He gives you the green pastures of his Word on which to feed.  God gives you living water, which is the Spirit at work in you (John 7:37-39).  Whether physical or spiritual, God provides for you.

He Restores You

He restores my soul (v3a).  Are you in need of restoration today?  The world offers many restoratives, but in the end they will leave you empty.  Only your great Shepherd can restore your soul, can restore you deep down where it hurts, where it aches, where you need it.  Are you cast down?  He will pick you up.  Are you weak?  He will give you strength.  Are you hurting and wounded?  He will bind up your hurts and heal your wounds.  Are you sinful?  He will pardon you and sanctify you.  Are you tired and weary?  He will revive you.  Are you wandering?  He will leave the 99 and come for you and bring you back (Luke 15).  Do you need restoration in your life?  Look to your Shepherd – he restores your soul.

He Leads You In Righteousness

He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake (v3b).  Through the Word and the Spirit, he leads you in righteousness.  He helps you to grow, to change, to be the person he created and saved you to be.  His grace teaches you to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age (Titus 2:12).  He leads you, but are you listening to his leading?  Are you in his Word?  Are you following?  Are you obeying?  Or have you been straying from the right paths, wandering away from your Shepherd?  He leads you, but you must follow.

He provides for you, restores you, and leads you in righteousness, and so you can say with David: The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want. This is the first of three statements about himself.  He shall not want.  He shall have no lack.  In God, he has everything he needs.  And why not, for God is the source of all good things (James 1:17).

And so you can be content in Him.  Many things of this world may be denied you, but in him you have what you need.  He will provide.  He will restore.  He will lead.  And so you can say with David in Psalm 16:5-6,

The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;
you hold my lot.
The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

You have what you need in him; you need not look elsewhere.  Other gods, idols of this world, tell you that they can provide, restore, and lead, but they can’t compare to your Shepherd.  They can’t compare to your God.  Your God is a big God.  Your God is a strong God.  Your God is a powerful God.  Your God loves you.  He is your Shepherd.  And you can be content in him.

He Is With You

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me (v4).  Back in verse three, the words could be translated – he leads me in right paths.  Our translations tend to suggest the moral sense (paths of righteousness), but it could also be taken as God guiding your life in his perfect right way, and sometimes that way leads though the valley of shadow of death. 

You walk through this valley when a loved one dies.  And in midst of your loss, your Shepherd promises that he is with you.  You will walk one day through this valley as you face your own death, but you won’t face it alone because your Shepherd is with you.  Spurgeon notes that it is the shadow of death.  If you know Christ, death has lost its sting – it is now merely a shadow of what it once was.  Spurgeon further notes that shadow implies light.  It is the shadow of death because on other side of death is great light – the Light of the world with whom you will dwell forever.

The sense here can also be broader than shadow of death.  It could be translated as the valley of deep darkness.  Certainly this would include times of loss and your own death.  But your valley today might be something very different.  It might be your health, an illness, pain.  Your valley might be weariness or depression or loneliness.  Your valley might be a family issue or a financial concern.  Some other trial may be taking you through the valley of deep darkness. 

Whatever the valley, your shepherd reminds you that he is with you.  He will not leave you.  If you stumble, he will carry you.  He will also comfort you.  He will calm you.  He will give you a peace that passes understanding in midst of valley. 

Finally, Spurgeon notes that you walk not in the valley, but through the valley.  The valley won’t last; one day it will be past.  Until that day, remember that your shepherd is with you and will comfort you.

He is with you in the valley.  That brings us to David’s second statement about himself: I will fear no evil (v4).  If God is on your side who can be against you?  And so you can trust in Him.   As David declares in Psalm 56:3-4,

When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
In God, whose word I praise,
in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.
What can flesh do to me?

And again David says in Psalm 16:8,

I have set the Lord always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.

In the midst of the valley of deep darkness whatever it is for you, you need not fear.  You need not be shaken.  He is with you, and you can trust him.  

He Blesses You

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies(v5a).  You may be surrounded by enemies, trials, or struggles, but he still provides a meal for you.  In the midst of the struggle, he still provides. He still showers blessings upon you.  Have you not found that to be true in your life?  No matter how deep the valley, there are little rays of light.

You anoint my head with oil (v5b).  Oil was often used to bind up wounds, so this may speak of the blessing of healing.  How many times have you been sick or injured, and God has healed you?  Spurgeon suggests it refers to the anointing of the Holy Spirit – and certainly the Spirit’s work in your life is a great blessing.

My cup overflows (v5c).  Your cup overflows.  It runs over.  In other words, God gives you blessing upon blessing upon blessing upon blessing upon blessing upon blessing upon blessing…. 

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life(v6a).  His goodness follows you; that is, it pursues you – it is right there with you.  God showers so many good things upon you.  And then there is his mercy.  You fail again and again, and he shows mercy again and again.  The word mercy could also be translated as unfailing covenant love.  His love won’t let you go.  His love continues.  It is unfailing.  He will keep blessing you until that day when you will dwell in his house forever.

That brings us to David’s third statement about himself: I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever (v6b).  You will dwell in his house.  He blesses you in this life, and he will continue in life to come.  And so you can hope in Him.  Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, you have the hope that when Jesus your Shepherd returns, you will be raised with him to dwell with him forever.  Revelation 7:15-17 says:

Therefore they are before the throne of God,
and serve him day and night in his temple;
and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.
They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore;
the sun shall not strike them,
nor any scorching heat.
For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd,
and he will guide them to springs of living water,
and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.

This is your hope – that you will dwell with him forever.

Conclusion

Do you know the shepherd?  Are you his sheep?  If not he invites you to turn from your sin and believe in him.  Through Christ’s death and resurrection, your sins will be forgiven, and you will know God as your Shepherd now and forevermore. 

And if you know God as your great Shepherd, remember:

He provides for you, restores you, and leads you in righteous, so you can say with David: I shall not want; I will be content in Him.

He is with you in the deepest valley, so you can say with David, I will fear no evil; I will trust in Him.

He blesses you now and forevermore, so you can say with David, I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever; I will set my hope in Him.

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ help you to keep your gaze on your great Shepherd.

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

The last few weeks have been busy, and I haven’t had much chance to blog.  Hopefully next week will be better.  In the meantime, here are some good posts to ponder for the weekend on two important Christian virtues.

Humility

Joshua Harris gives us a good quote from J. I. Packer suggesting that humility is essentially a true sense of reality.  Russell Moore talks about how the devil encourages us to rethink reality by exalting ourselves.  And Kevin DeYoung reminds us that if we think we are humble, we probably are not.

Contentment

Stephen Altrogge has a new book out on contentment.  I haven’t read the book yet, but the excerpts I’ve read are helpful.  He invites us to consider the lies that keep us from contentment.  Pondering the cross and our adoption will also teach us contentment.  Meanwhile John Temple has a book on resisting consumersim, and Tim Challies shares from it several practical suggestions to fight against the constant urge for more.

Have a great Lord’s Day celebrating our risen Savior with your local church!

Obama’s bin Laden Speech

On By BrianIn Uncategorized1 Comment

The Christian blogosphere is alive with commentary on the killing of bin Laden this past Sunday.  How should Christians view this event?  I want to suggest a few thoughts connected to President Obama’s announcement.

First, Obama sets the killing in the context of war, a war we have been fighting since 9/11.  Bin Laden was our enemy, and he has been defeated.  As David celebrated victory over his enemies through the Psalms, so we may celebrate victory over our enemy.

Second, Obama speaks of the killing as an act of justice, and so it is.  Genesis reminds us that the penalty for taking a human life is death (Genesis 9:6).  Bin Laden deserved death.  What’s more, God has given the government the authority and responsibility to pursue justice, including the taking of a life (Romans 13:1-4).  This was an act of justice.  For more on this point, see here.

Third, unlike the celebrations on the streets, Obama does not gloat or celebrate excessively.  Undoubtedly there are political reasons for this.  But beyond that, while we may celebrate this victory over our enemy and the carrying out of justice, the celebration is marred by the reality that a man made in God’s image has been killed.  Yes, the image of God in him was horribly warped.  Yes, he was an evil man deserving of death.  But let’s remember he was still a man.  Let’s remember that we are called to love our enemies even as Jesus did on the cross.  Let’s remember that he is, apart from Christ, in hell.  Our celebration of victory and justice has a twinge of bitterness too.  For more on this, see here.

Fourth, Obama thanks our military and intelligence professionals, many who have given their lives in the last ten years.  And we have every reason to be grateful to them for all they have done for our safety.  And yet, we ought to go a step further and also thank God for this victory.  Apart from God’s blessing, all of their worthwhile work for which we are grateful would yet prove fruitless.

Fifth, Obama calls us back to the sense of unity we had after 9/11.  Whether he will follow through with this call remains to be seen.  But it is a worthwhile call.  The political animosity in our country is anything but Christian, and anything but helpful in accomplishing anything worthwhile.  If both the president and Congress would drop the political posturing and come together to address the weighty issues before them, our country would be better off, and just maybe the people would begin to have a higher view of our leaders.   And ironically the same lack of respect that led bin Laden to kill hundreds is at work in the way people of opposite parties treat each other in Washington.  Yes, the outworkings of that lack of respect in bin Laden and Washington occur at very different levels and they are not morally equivalent, but the root issue is the same.  Basic respect and civility, even kindness, in Washington would be a welcome change.

Finally, Obama states, “Yet today’s achievement is a testament to the greatness of our country. And the determination of the American people. The cause of securing our country is not complete but tonight we are once again reminded that Americans can do whatever we set our mind to.”  I understand that our president is seeking to give us hope in the midst of many problems at home.  The problem here is that he finds that hope in the wrong place.  As he failed to thank God for this victory, he fails to look to God for help in the many problems our country faces.  Instead he makes our country into a god, an idol.  America is great.  America can do whatever we set our mind to.  America brought about this victory, and we can accomplish anything we want to do.  But apart from God we can do nothing.  “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God” (Psalm 20:7).  Let us not be too impressed with ourselves, for our country like every other is as nothing before God, indeed less than nothing and emptiness (Isaiah 40:17).  Instead of bowing down to our country, let’s join David in saying:

If it had not been the Lord who was on our side –
let Israel now say –
if it had not been the Lord who was on our side
when people rose up against us,
then they would have swallowed us up alive,
when their anger was kindled against us;
then the flood would have swept us away,
the torrent would have gone over us;
then over us would have gone the raging waters.
Blessed be the Lord,
who has not given us as prey to their teeth!
We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowlers;
the snare is broken, and we have escaped!
Our help is in the name of the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.

– Psalm 124

Fill Your Head With Scripture

On By BrianIn Habit of Scripture1 Comment

Many of the last sayings of Jesus on the cross come straight from Scripture, which leads James Montgomery Boice to write:

This means that Jesus was filling his mind and strengthening his spirit not by trying to keep a stiff upper lip or look for a silver lining, as we might say, but by an act of deliberately remembering and consciously clinging to the great prophecies and promises of God.  If Jesus did that, don’t you think you should do it too?  And not only when you come to die.

You need to fill your head with Scripture and think of your life in terms of the promises of Scripture now.  If you do not do it now, how will you ever find strength to do it when you come to die?  You must live by Scripture, committing your spirit into the hands of God day by day if you are to yield your spirit into God’s loving hands trustingly at the last.

For further thoughts on filling your head with Scripture, I encourage you to look at this article about memorizing Scripture.  John Wilson interacts with Joshua Choonmin Kang’s book, Scripture By Heart.  It is a book on my reading list, and Wilson shares one challenge from the book – spend 15 minutes a day memorizing Scripture.  How might our thoughts and indeed our entire lives change if we did this?  Perhaps we could live and die like Jesus….

Christ the Lord Is Risen Today

On By BrianIn Holidays, Hymns

Tomorrow for Resurrection Sunday many will sing Charles Wesley’s great hymn, Christ the Lord Is Risen Today (my sympathies if you don’t!).  Wesley wrote the hymn in 1739 for the first service of the Foundry Meeting House in London – the first chapel for Methodists who followed the Wesleys.  The hymn was originally written without the alleluias, which were added later by an unknown editor.  Most hymnals only have four stanzas, but below you will find ten, though only the first seven were written by Wesley.  The last three come from the 14th Century and were translated from Latin.  These last three stanzas are found in many hymnals under the name, Jesus Christ is Risen Today.  Both hymns share the same tune – Lyra Davidica. 

Christ, the Lord, is risen today, Alleluia!
Sons of men and angels say, Alleluia!
Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia!
Sing, ye heavens, and earth, reply, Alleluia!

Love’s redeeming work is done, Alleluia!
Fought the fight, the battle won, Alleluia!
Lo! the Sun’s eclipse is over, Alleluia!
Lo! He sets in blood no more, Alleluia!

Vain the stone, the watch, the seal, Alleluia!
Christ hath burst the gates of hell, Alleluia!
Death in vain forbids His rise, Alleluia!
Christ hath opened paradise, Alleluia!

Lives again our glorious King, Alleluia!
Where, O death, is now thy sting? Alleluia!
Once He died our souls to save, Alleluia!
Where thy victory, O grave? Alleluia!

Soar we now where Christ hath led, Alleluia!
Following our exalted Head, Alleluia!
Made like Him, like Him we rise, Alleluia!
Ours the cross, the grave, the skies, Alleluia!

Hail, the Lord of earth and Heaven, Alleluia!
Praise to Thee by both be given, Alleluia!
Thee we greet triumphant now, Alleluia!
Hail, the resurrection, thou, Alleluia!

King of glory, Soul of bliss, Alleluia!
Everlasting life is this, Alleluia!
Thee to know, Thy power to prove, Alleluia!
Thus to sing and thus to love, Alleluia!

Hymns of praise then let us sing, Alleluia!
Unto Christ, our heavenly King, Alleluia!
Who endured the cross and grave, Alleluia!
Sinners to redeem and save. Alleluia!

But the pains that He endured, Alleluia!
Our salvation have procured, Alleluia!
Now above the sky He’s King, Alleluia!
Where the angels ever sing. Alleluia!

Jesus Christ is risen today, Alleluia!
Our triumphant holy day, Alleluia!
Who did once upon the cross, Alleluia!
Suffer to redeem our loss. Alleluia!