Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Year 5, Day 182: Psalm 40

Theological Commentary: Click Here


Discipleship Focus: Evangelist

  • Evangelist: One who looks for opportunities to proclaim the truth and is excited by it. The evangelist specializes in interacting with the world and reminding Christians that there are non-Christians in the world.  An evangelist is not timid about the faith and is often found have discussions with other people about the faith.
As I read through Psalm 40, I was hit by an old and familiar and favorite concept.  However, I was not aware that this concept was in Psalm 40!  I knew of its existence in passages like Hosea 6:6, Psalm 51:16-17, and Joel 2:13.  But I was not familiar with its presence in Psalm 40.  I’m talking about Psalm 40:6-8.  Burnt offering and sacrifice are not truly what God is after.  What God desires is a heart that is inclined towards Him.

In other words, God is not just looking to make us behave a certain way.  God is not just looking for certain outcomes in our life.  He’s not expecting us to do certain things and that’s okay.  God wants our hearts rent.  He wants our hearts, not just our outward action.

So, how exactly does this tie into the topic of the evangelist?  Look at one of the natural themes that David gives to us as a conclusion to what God desires.  If our heart is rent and our ear is inclined towards God, we will tell other people about what He has done in our life!  See Psalm 40:6, Psalm 40:9-10, and Psalm 40:16.  The natural fruit of a heart that is inclined to God are moments of evangelism towards His people!

God is at work in all of our lives.  If we are God’s people, then we should recognize His hand at work.  If we are God’s people, we should want to declare what God is doing within us and through us.  If we are God’s people, then evangelism should be a part of what we do in our life.  We should be attributing God’s glory and presence in our lives so that the people around us can see His hand at work.

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