Faith

Purity and Holiness (part 1)

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“How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to Your Word.

I seek You with all my heart; do not let me stray from Your commands.

I have hidden Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against You.

Praise be to You, O Lord; teach me Your decrees.

With my lips I recount all the laws that come from Your mouth.

I rejoice in following Your statutes as one rejoices in great riches.

I meditate on Your precepts and consider Your ways.

I delight in Your decrees; I will not neglect Your Word.”

Psalm 119:9-16 (Beth)

 

Verse 9 is the main question for the rest of this octave. The psalmist shows how our faith is to be daily active and very practical. Christians are called to reflect the beauty of God’s commands, His holiness, and His character. This is what it means to become like Christ. 

The psalmist lists a number of actions to take as believers discipline themselves under the delight of doing God’s will. Most of the actions are things we do positively in pursuing a life according to God’s Word. But there are negative activities we must avoid as well, as a resolve to not displease the Lord: 

 

I seek You with all my heart; (verse 10a)

This is a positive action. Do I seek God each day with all my heart? Is He my treasure and delight? (Deuteronomy 6:5)

do not let me stray from Your commands. (verse 10b)

A plea to not let the psalmist stray from the truth. Our hearts are prone to wander, looking for love, identity, or satisfaction in someone or something other than our Heavenly Father (Isaiah 55:6-7).

I have hidden Your Word in my heart (verse 11a)

Hiding God’s Word in our hearts is a result of treasuring Scripture. When we love His Book we learn more about God- who is He? who am I? The Bible tells me I am a sinner saved by the blood of Jesus. He is patiently and tenderly transforming His saints by His grace, through the help of the Holy Spirit. 

that I might not sin against You. (verse 11b)

A desire not to sin blossoms from a regenerate heart as he gazes intently on God’s law. He sees how he has fallen short, failed God, but is also aware of the great cost to win us back into fellowship with Him. The deep deep love of the Father sent His Son Jesus to pay the price meant for us. Christ inherited our just judgement, we inherited merciful righteousness. Pray we will not grieve the Spirit over careless words, thoughts and actions! 

Praise be to You, O Lord; teach me Your decrees. (verse 12)

The Holy Spirit is our Teacher. The psalmist did not have this permanent blessing as we do today. Praise You Father for this wonderful gift! Anything we learn from His Word is because God has graciously revealed it to us. The Lord gives us eyes to see, ears to hear, a soft heart to respond and obey. As He teaches, our love for Him will grow. Bless You Father. 

Grace upon grace,

April 

 

 

Unfailing Love

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“I will obey Your decrees; do not utterly forsake me.” -Psalm 119:8

As the psalmist sees the beauty and goodness in seeking God’s ways, he asks the Lord to not abandon him. He is needy for God’s help, recognizing he cannot love or obey in his own strength. What a tender picture of this man of stature (possibly even a king if David penned this psalm), to reveal his childlike dependence on God. What else do we have to bring to the Lord but our sin and our need? God has promised in His Word to never forsake His own (Deuteronomy 31:6; 8; Hebrews 13:5). Not only will our Father never forsake us but He fights for His children as well. The believer is not to fear. “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31). God equips His saints to battle personal sin, Satan and the secular world. He is faithful to guide His little lambs to walk in obedience. His love will not fail us. With God on our side we shall do valiantly.

Grace upon grace,

April

Grow deeper: Romans 8:31-39

A kaleidoscope

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This past summer I enjoyed a 12 week Women’s Bible class in Psalm 119. We generally worked through two octaves per week, breaking them down as much as possible, verse by verse. I consider this a rich way to meditate on Scripture. Nothing is lost or skimmed over when focusing on a particular verse, pondering why the Lord (through the psalmist) penned these words. Along with studying together, our teacher provided a supplemental commentary written by Charles Spurgeon. His reflection on Psalm 119 is so dense it was made into a book titled The Golden Alphabet: An Exposition on Psalm 119. Spurgeon’s meditation on Psalm 119 led him to the analogy of a kaleidoscope. While a number of the verses seem redundant, he argues that the reader is not properly viewing the entire psalm as it should be. He writes:

“This psalm is a wonderful composition. Its expressions are many as the waves, but its testimony is one as the sea. It deals all along with one subject only; but although it consists of a considerable number of verses, some of which are very similar to others, yet throughout its one hundred and seventy-six stanzas the self-same thought is not repeated: there is always a shade of difference, even when the color of the thought appears to be the same. Some have said that in it there is an absence of variety; but that is merely the observation of those who have not studied it. I have weighed each word, and looked at each syllable with lengthened meditation; and I bear witness that this sacred song has no tautology in it, but is charmingly varied from beginning to end. Its variety is that of a kaleidoscope: from a few objects innumerable permutations and combinations are produced. In the kaleidoscope you look once, and there is a strangely beautiful form: you shift the glass a little, and another shape, equally delicate and beautiful, is before your eyes. So it is here.”

Our class was encouraged to journal through each octave, so the bulk of this study was left up to us to personally reflect through Psalm 119 as the Holy Spirit illuminated His treasure trove. This is the explanation I can give you for my posts on Psalm 119 the last few weeks. I hope to share the entire psalm with you as a means of encouragement. To write these reflections out again for this blog has been a comfort to me all over again. We are always in need of remembering the truth we know. So I write these posts for my personal encouragement as much as it is an offering of love to you. My hope is you are blessed in reading snippets of what the Lord is teaching me. Which leads me to ask, what is God teaching you? I think it is wonderful to share with fellow believers how the Spirit is at work in our hearts. We don’t seem to talk this way very often. Maybe the Bible has become stale to you or you aren’t sensing the Lord’s presence near. Cling on to the encouragement trusted believers have found in God’s Word and let that sustain you until you drink deeply again from your own well. God will not let you stay thirsty. He is faithful to show Himself to those who seek Him. God is faithful to help the weary believer persevere because of His promise to never leave or forsake His own.

Grace upon grace,

April

Grow deeper: Deuteronomy 31:6-8; Isaiah 40:29-31; Isaiah 55:6

God’s Mercy

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“Then I would not be put to shame when I consider all Your commands.” -Psalm 119:6

One of the benefits of God’s Law is to reveal to us our inability to keep it perfectly. It is here we see our need for a Savior rather than give up and despair. When a heart considers the holiness of God’s standard, we realize we can never measure up as sin seeks to master us. The soul who sees this feels shame. Yet it serves as an act of mercy from God, to not let us stay covered in guilt but run to the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of every repentant heart! Parables, prophecies and warnings all serve as mercies for the soul that comes alive, acknowledging the damnation of autonomy, self-righteousness and pride. It is God’s mercy to show us through His commands “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23) so that we might not perish in our sins, but come to Him for everlasting life.

Grace upon grace,

April

Sanctifying Obedience

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“Oh, that my ways were steadfast in obeying Your decrees!” -Psalm 119:5

Verses 5 and 6 in Psalm 119 are an interjected prayer of lament because the psalmist knows too well his sinful nature. He cannot perfectly keep the law. To be steadfast in obeying the Lord means to be immovable, unshakable, and constant. Yet we are fickle, finite creatures overcome with fear, worry, and the cares of this world. I once heard the Christian life compared to a life-long practice of who we will be in Heaven someday. This is our training ground. So what are you practicing today? Is it contentment, self-control, taking captive prideful thoughts, harnessing a gossiping tongue? If you and I run into another breathing soul today it is likely we will have practice in our sanctification. Am I learning to bear with others in love? To be quick to forgive, slow to anger? There are many times I have not practiced well which is why I need the Lord’s help every day.

We echo the psalmist’s lament in our own strength, yet have hope in Jesus our Mediator, High Priest and Friend. He will continue to intercede for us when we fail. Our Lord guides the tenderhearted, strengthening His lambs according to His Word.

Grace upon grace,

April

Grow in Grace

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“You have laid down precepts that are to be fully obeyed.” -Psalm 119:4

The psalmist in Psalm 119 rightly understands pursuing God means living out the commands He has given. It isn’t enough to mentally assent to the words of Scripture. We must be people activated in the power of the Holy Spirit, putting hands and feet to what our mouths profess. We also acknowledge that no one fulfills the ways of God perfectly except Jesus His Son. Our failure to carry out God’s standard shows us our need for Christ. Only then can we persevere in faith, pursuing holiness because of what Jesus has done for God’s children. A regenerate heart will want to follow their Shepherd, knowing we will stumble but equally aware of our King’s grace toward redeemed sinners. He keeps pouring out more mercy, more love, more fellowship with Himself. We serve a just and gentle Savior. God is faithful to help us obey when we abide in Him. He is faithful to pick us up when we fall into the miry pit as well.

God demands submission to His authority but not as a harsh taskmaster. He expects us to follow Him out of love and trust. What do you know about God? What is His character like? His faithfulness in past events? The same God who rescued His people from slavery in Egypt through Moses, the same Father who allowed His only Son Jesus to die for sinners, is the same Lord over all today. He does not change (Hebrews 13:8). We can trust a God like this. He is willing and capable to deliver His people from bondage, to grow us in grace, guiding His children in obedience to His will.

Grace upon grace,

April

Grow deeper: Isaiah 40:25-31

Declared Innocent

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“They do nothing wrong; they walk in His ways.” -Psalm 119:3

Those who are hidden in Christ are no longer condemned (Romans 8:1). In God’s eyes we are innocent because Jesus exchanged His robe of righteousness for our sinful garments on the cross. It is only when we step out of His will, operating in the flesh that we sin. When pursuing holiness which is Christlikeness, we are safe, surrounded by the hedges of God’s commands. But the curse has infected every heart, therefore a life long earthly battle of two natures is at work in every child of God. Our part is to stay faithful and diligent in our fight against sin, knowing how real spiritual warfare is (Ephesians 6:12-13). Those who do no wrong are abiding in the Spirit, for we cannot be righteous apart from Christ.

What blessing, what relief we find when our minds rightly see our sin, confess it, repent and turn back into restored fellowship with God! One day, soon and very soon, our fellowship with the Lord will be eternally unbroken, never again tainted with sin.

Grace upon grace,

April

Grow deeper: Romans 7:14-8:17

Bearing Fruit

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“Blessed are they who keep His statutes and seek Him with all their heart.” -Psalm 119:2

This verse is similar to the previous. We who keep God’s statutes (His commands) are blessed. But how do we keep them? Like the psalmist says in verse 1, those who walk in God’s ways are blessed. Our lives bear fruit of the commitment we have to the Lord. Whatever or whomever we love will be apparent in our actions, speech and thoughts. You and I cannot be sinless, perfectly keeping God’s law, which is why Jesus came. Yet our character is consistent with whom? As a child of God or a beast of Satan? Not that we are saved by our good works, but the visible signs point to the transformation of our inner man hidden to all but God. In a sermon I heard yesterday the preacher said the work of Christ in us precedes the work we do for Him, never the other way around.

So bear fruit because of the salvific work Christ has done for you. If we truly love Him, we will obey His commands (John 14:15). God is faithful to help His children walk in obedience in the power of His Spirit, who dwells in the heart of every redeemed sinner. Where does one start to learn what God’s statutes are? By seeking the Lord through His Holy Word. God is faithful to reveal Himself to those who search with all sincerity and desire.

Grace upon grace,

April

Grow deeper: Matthew 7:15-29; Ephesians 2:8-10; Philippians 2:12-13

Deeper Love

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“Adversity is not intended to diminish our hope in God. Adversity is intended to heighten our hope in Him. We are brought to remember that God is all we have, and that He is enough.”                                                                                       -Devotional Psalter (Psalm 71)

This year has been like watching a train wreck in slow motion. Powerless to stop it, we just have to witness the carnage. I can’t imagine going through this without Christ as my anchor. For those who don’t know how the Story ends these must be terribly upsetting times. But in the drama of 2020, God is still here actively at work. This is the truth believers can lean hard into. Even as external circumstances spin out of control or feelings betray us here is what you and I can stand firm in:

Faith is not a feeling. It is holding fast to what is true even when feelings don’t align. Even when it’s not popular (and the Gospel isn’t) or you feel alone in your Biblical convictions. This doesn’t make Truth void.

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After God used Elijah in the showdown against 450 false prophets of Baal and 400 false prophets of Asherah, Elijah fled to the desert. He said he’d had enough and wanted to die. He was burned out physically and spiritually. He felt alone in worshipping the One True God. Then the Lord ministers to Elijah providing sleep, food and then His Presence. As if this weren’t enough, what our Father says next must have bolstered Elijah’s spirits even more as God tells him that 7,000 people have not bowed the knee to Baal. The Lord had preserved a remnant. Elijah was not alone like he thought.

Satan would love nothing more than for you and I to believe his lies and become discouraged, thinking we are alone in our allegiance to God. He’s not very creative, but the same routine can still be effective. God’s Word says, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” -1 Peter 5:8-9

One of my favorite quotes is from Corrie Ten Boom, who experienced life in a concentration camp during World War II. Her family attempted to hide Jews in their home from the Nazis. They were eventually caught and arrested. She still found a reason to hope in God while enduring cruel treatment remembering, “There is no pit so deep, that God’s love is not deeper still.” Corrie had an understanding of God’s Sovereignty even as wickedness seemed victorious. Like her, we are not alone in our belief that God Almighty is on His Throne. His will, His timing, His justice are perfect. And He loves His sons and daughters.

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Anything we endure in this life is for our sanctification. It is for God’s glory and our eternal good. The Scriptures confirm His love is steadfast, sacrificial, unconditional and perfect toward His children. Our Father demonstrated His great love for us by giving up His own innocent Son. Jesus willingly paid my guilt, taking the consequences I deserved on Himself.

The most beautiful action in human history climaxed on the cross that day. Remember the depth of His love for you when you feel forsaken. God’s Word will be your comfort when you feel unloved, unseen, or friendless. His love abounds. Stay faithful. Stand firm in God’s Word. Jesus is the pearl of great price, a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Grace upon grace,

April

Grow deeper: 1 Kings 18-19; 2 Timothy 

Unclean

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Matthew 15:1-28; Ephesians 4:29-32

 

Jesus’ definition of “unclean” and the Pharisees idea of uncleanliness were different. As always, the Lord goes much deeper than outward reform- He aims for the heart. Jesus says our heart response in life, our thoughts, come out in the way we speak.

Even if we speak appropriately in public and have all the right answers, the Lord knows the inner man. He knows are thought life. Sooner or later what is suppressed will burst out in angry speech, low grumbling, or something else with devastating consequences. The longer we go unchecked in our attitude, we lose sensitivity to the Holy Spirit leading us. The heart calcifies under such conditions.

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Our hearts and speech are so intertwined that James writes special caution concerning the power of the tongue (James 3). It can be a means of great poison or great healing but it begins with the diagnosis of our hearts. Jesus unveils the hypocrisy of the Pharisees by mercifully teaching them, His disciples, and also us, the real meaning of “unclean”. We are all unclean, in need of the Savior to wash us through. God gives us time now to repent and come to Him. Are you washed with the blood of Christ or left unclean?

 

Grace upon grace,

April