Year 2, Day 252: John 4

If You Can’t Stand the Heat…

John 4 is another incredibly powerful chapter.  In the last chapter we essentially hear Jesus smashing to pieces the Jewish concept of salvation.  Jesus says that one does not enter the kingdom by any means other than through the power of God which comes in the sealing of the Holy Spirit.  In other words, salvation doesn’t come through our works.  It doesn’t come through whether or not we perfectly keep the Law.  It doesn’t come according to our lineage or heritage.

Now, Jesus flees the Pharisees.  Jesus has become a little too powerful for their liking.  So Jesus heads to Samaritan land.  What’s worse is that when Jesus arrives in this Samaritan controlled land, he wants to participate with the Samaritans!  From a Jewish perspective, you couldn’t get any more wrong than what Jesus is doing here.

Jesus Continues to Break the Mold

But this is not the end of the story.  Jesus approaches a woman.  Jesus approaches a Samaritan woman.  Jesus approaches a Samaritan woman who clearly has some issues with sexual sin in addition to needing some correction on her concept of marriage. 

Jesus approaches her, associates Himself with her, and asks her for a drink.  In other words, Jesus in going to take in water that has been touch by a Samaritan woman and likely use a pitcher that has been previously used by the Samaritan woman.  From the perspective of the 1st century Judaic interpretation of the Law, you can’t get more wrong than Jesus at this moment.

What is Jesus’ agenda?  His agenda is no different in this non-Jewish land than the agenda was when He was in land dominated by Jews.  He begins to teach this woman about God, the Holy Spirit, and eternal life.  He begins the process of making a disciple.  Honestly, pause for a moment and let this soak in.  Jesus has just taken a non-Jew and begun the process of turning her into one of His disciples.  As Gentiles, we might not think a thing of it.  But if we were first century Jews, what Jesus is doing here is completely off the radar screen.  If you don’t believe me, just look at how Jesus’ disciples react to the whole situation in verse 27.

Jesus and the Woman

Look at what Jesus does with this woman.  Jesus confronts the woman with her past.  She’s had five husbands, and the guy that she’s with now isn’t her husband.  But here’s the really cool part.  First, Jesus doesn’t let this be a barrier to Him.  Clearly it’s objectionable, or else He wouldn’t have made a point of asserting what He knows about her claim in saying “I have no husband.”  The really neat thing about this interaction is that the woman doesn’t balk at the truth.  She doesn’t get defensive.  She doesn’t try to rationalize her behavior.  She doesn’t do anything other than accept the truth.  In fact, she accepts it so much that she considers Jesus to be a prophet.  She receives Jesus’ words without feeling the need to justify her sin.  No wonder Jesus came all this way to find this woman!  She responds to Jesus perfectly: accept admonition, sit at the feet of the master, learn from the master, and then go tell others.

Jesus and His Disciples

That is precisely what this woman does.  Jesus’ disciples arrive, and the woman leaves to go tell other people about Jesus.  But before I go too far into the woman’s response, let’s talk a bit about how the disciples respond.  They are dumbfounded.  First of all, Jesus isn’t hungry when He should be hungry.  Then He says something about having food that they don’t know anything about.

Ouch.

I’m not going to lie here.  Jesus is essentially telling His disciples that the spiritual interaction between Him and this Samaritan woman sustained Him like no earthly food could.  But what’s worse is that He chastises them by saying that they know nothing about it.  In other words, the disciples don’t get what Jesus is up to here.  The disciples aren’t ready.  They’re following Jesus and learning what they can, but they aren’t there yet.  They haven’t got a clue about what Jesus is up to yet.  When you think about it, Jesus is looking to them and saying, “I’m doing God’s work here; and you all haven’t got a clue.”

However, Jesus does not give up on them, either.  He didn’t give up on the Samaritan woman because of her sin and her heritage; He’s not about to give up on His disciples.  So He now teaches them.  In so many words, Jesus tells the disciples that many people have labored long and hard to prepare this world for His coming.  They worked long and hard and without too much harvest.  Now the disciples are being prepared to go out and reap the harvest for which they really did not do much work.  How cool is that?  Not only do the disciples not “get” what Jesus is about, they are totally being invited to participate in spite of their lack of spiritual understanding!  God is indeed merciful, gracious, and forgiving!  In spite of their spiritual immaturity, there is a place for them!  The same is true for us as well.  We don’t need to understand the fullness of God’s plan to be able to have a part in it!

The Woman’s Return

Then the woman comes back.  Even better – she comes with a crowd that is curious about Jesus.  Do you notice what John writes about this crowd?  They believe.  Unlike the crowd of Jews with which we ended John 2, here we have a crowd of Gentiles that seem to legitimately believe.  They believe not because of the woman’s testimony only but because they have come, they have heard, and they recognize the truth.  Unlike the crowd in John 2, Jesus stays with this crowd and trains them in the basics.

Before moving on, let’s make sure that we don’t miss something quite important here.  What we have just read is Jesus’ first commissioning of a missionary-evangelist.  Perhaps not in so many words … but realistically, isn’t this Samaritan woman the first missionary-evangelist about whom we hear in John’s account of Jesus’ ministry?  Here is a person that hears about Jesus, takes the message back to her own culture (which is foreign with respect to the Jews), and then talks about Jesus to her culture.  God uses this woman to bring a whole town into the possibility of having a genuinely meaningful relationship with Him.

There are two points of which we should not lose sight.  First, Jesus’ first genuinely called missionary-evangelist was a woman.  Nobody can deny this fact.  Jesus clearly uses this woman to bring God’s Word to her contemporaries.  Second, she was also non-Jewish.  Jesus cares neither about her gender nor her lineage.  What Jesus cares about is that her heart is willing to embrace His truth.  What are the qualifications for ministry about which Jesus seems to care?  Not gender.  Not heritage.  Jesus cares about spiritual openness to truth and a willingness to share it with others.  We should learn from Jesus on this point.

The Official’s Son

I’m well beyond my normal space, so I’ll make my comments on the official’s son brief.  Notice that the official comes to Jesus.  The official is proactive about his need and his relationship with God.  Second, notice that the official trusts Jesus’ word.  He doesn’t demand Jesus to come with him.  He doesn’t doubt.  Jesus speaks; the official believes it to be true.  Third, the official believes even more deeply upon experiencing God.  When we find the presence of God, it should draw us into a greater relationship with God.

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Year 2, Day 251: John 3

This chapter is one of my favorite chapters in the Bible.  I love the Jesus that we see in this chapter.  Jesus is certainly compassionate, but He is also direct and challenging.  Jesus is not simply handing out grace in this chapter, he is pushing Nicodemus to broaden his horizons and expand his faith.  That’s what I love about the Jesus that we see in this chapter.

Background on Nicodemus

Nicodemus is a Pharisee.  But he is not just that.  Nicodemus is a “ruler of the Jews.”  Nicodemus is one of the Sanhedrin.  He is one of the most significant 72 Jews on the planet during the time of Jesus’ ministry.  Yet this doesn’t mean that his mind cannot be challenged.  In spite of being such a high status in Judaism, Nicodemus comes to Jesus to learn from Him.  What incredible humbleness we find here in Nicodemus.

There are some that say Nicodemus comes to Jesus at night so as to have a private and casual meeting without worrying about interruption from the crowds.  I think there is some truth to that.  There are also some who say that Nicodemus came at night because being such an important man he would have certainly been busy during the day.  There might be some truth in that, too.  However, I am very much a believer in the fact that Nicodemus came at night because he had a little bit of fear inside of him.  I believe that Nicodemus comes to Jesus at night because he is timid about what his fellow Pharisees and the Sanhedrin might think about him having a personal interaction with the Son of God.

Here’s why I think this is true: it’s completely human nature.  Human beings tend to begin to experiment the most boldly when nobody is watching.  We like to try things in the safety of our own private nature.  It simply makes sense that this human Nicodemus would want to begin his faith walk quietly and by making as few waves as possible.  I don’t think we have to paint Nicodemus out to be a coward because he comes at night, but I do think that it is fair to paint him as a typical cautious human being wanting to have the genuine freedom to explore without worrying about who is looking.

Jesus Brings Challenge

Then we get to the conversation.  Jesus tells Nicodemus something quite bold: a person cannot see God unless they are born again.  {For the record, it is equally correct to translate this as “born from above” instead of “born again.”  This word means both things and we should respect that Jesus likely used this word to imply both meanings.}  Literally, this is what Jesus says word-for-word in the Greek: “Truly, truly I say to you.  Except someone should be born again (from above) he is not powerful enough to see the kingdom of God.”  The verb that our English translations give us as “cannot” or even “it is not possible” is actually a verb that means “to have power.”  The Greek verb is literally “dynamai.”  It is the word that gives us our English words dynamite and dynamic.  Both of those words in English convey something powerful.  I think that it is prudent that we recognize that this is true in the Greek.

Therefore, what we really have here is Jesus making a claim about power.  A person who is not born from above does not have the power within them to see the kingdom of God.  Period.  There is no wiggle room here.  If you are not born from above, you cannot see the kingdom of God. 

You are probably now saying to yourself something like this: “Okay, if this is true then it is really important that I have a solid understanding on how one is born again (from above).”  That is absolutely true.  We must be solid on this.  Now we are ready to remember the question that I ended the John 2 blog post pondering, because it is the same question.  What must happen so that Jesus “believes in us” as He believed in His disciples?  What must happen for us to be born again?  This is precisely the same question that Nicodemus asks!

Jesus is plain in His answer.  Unless a person is born of water and the Spirit they do not have the power to enter the kingdom of God.  Again, we have the verb dynamai in verse 5.  There is the answer.  Only when one has the Spirit of God do they have the power to enter the kingdom of God.  If we want access to the power of salvation, we must be born of the Holy Spirit.  We must have received the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit must dwell within us.

The Difference Between Confession and Following

There is a difference between the person who “confesses Christ” and the person who “becomes Christ’s disciple.”  Anyone can say that they believe that Christ lived.  Anyone can even say that they believe the Romans crucified Him because the Jewish leaders demanded it.  It takes nothing but a sense of historical appreciation to make those claims.  There is no personal commitment to believing that those events happened. 

However, it takes the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit to act upon those historical claims.  It takes the real presence of the Holy Spirit to turn us, and change us, and give us the power to actually live as a disciple of Christ.  Without the power of the Holy Spirit we may say that we believe in Christ and we might even say that we desire to follow Christ; but as Jesus says here, without the Holy Spirit we do not have the power inside ourselves to do so.  Without the Holy Spirit, our promises are empty.  We talk a great talk while walking an absolutely pathetic walk.  This is why at the end of John 2 Jesus did not put trust in the people around Him.  They talked a great talk but were unwilling to walk any kind of meaningful walk.

Preferring the Darkness

This is ultimately the point to which Jesus gets as His conversation with Nicodemus comes to a close.  Although light has come into the world, people love the darkness instead.  Those in darkness see the light; after all, who that is genuinely in darkness cannot recognize when light enters the picture?  But those in darkness prefer to stay in the darkness.  They do not have the power to leave the darkness behind.  They are contained within the darkness and their works are evil and contrary to God.

You see, this is ultimately a chapter on power – specifically the power of the Holy Spirit.  Yes, it is a passage where God’s grace and love clearly comes through as often quoted in John 3:16.  But it is also a passage when Jesus challenges Nicodemus boldly.  Jesus is quite clear.  Unless one genuinely has the Holy Spirit within them, one does not have the power to leave the darkness behind.  It is not we who show our greatness to God.  It is not we who demonstrate why He should save us.  It is we who need to humble ourselves, genuinely receive His Spirit, and only then can we reject the darkness.

John’s Testimony

In fact, as we move into the passage regarding John the Baptizer we can hear this same message through John’s words.  In John 3:33 we hear that whoever “receives His testimony sets his seal.”  The literal expression “sets his seal” figuratively means “to make known” or “to validate with proof.” 

What’s interesting is that this is exactly the same expression that Paul uses in Ephesians 1:13 when Paul says, “When you heard the word of truth, the Gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with the Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance…”  Paul’s teaching is consistent with John the Baptizer’s teaching, which is consistent with Jesus’ teaching.  The presence of the Holy Spirit is the guarantee that God’s power has come within us.  The coming of the Holy Spirit is the power that we need to embrace in order to see and enter the kingdom of God and leave the darkness behind.  {For more references on the “sealing” of God see John 6:27 and Ephesians 4:30}

What must we do to know the guarantee of our salvation?  What must happen for Jesus to “believe in us” and put His trust in us?  What must we have in order to know the power to leave darkness behind?  We must be born from above.  We must be spiritual beings.  We must be seized of the Holy Spirit so that we can have the strength to work with God in casting aside the self-monger that lives deep within.

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Year 2, Day 250: John 2

Jesus Is Always the Answer

John 2 starts out with a really neat story: the wedding at Cana.  How neat is it to know that by the time Jesus leaves to do His ministry and collect disciples that Mary has already learned that there is a quality about her Son upon which she can rely?  When the wedding runs out of wine, Jesus is her answer.  We know from the other Gospels that Mary does struggle with Jesus’ identity – but for the record, so does everybody.  It is nice to know that while she might struggle with the rest of the world at understanding who Jesus is; she also knows that whatever He is, He is the answer.

In this story, there is a disservice done to us by our typical English translations in Jesus’ response to his mother.  Most translations say, “Woman, what does this have to do with me?”  We hear the word “woman” and assume that Jesus is being cold and distant.  But we need to flip to two other places in the Gospel of John to understand this word.  In John 20:15 Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene and addresses her with this same word, “woman.”  This is not a sharp address at all in John 20:15.  Additionally, in John 19:26 as Jesus is hanging on the cross He looks to His mother and using the same word He says, “Woman, behold your son.”  This is also not a cold or sharp response.

The truth is that this word is just a word of identification.  It is a word that identifies the intended recipient as a female of a sufficient age to be married.  In fact, the Greek language doesn’t even have a separate word for “wife.”  The Greek uses this same word to mean “wife.”  {If you’re curious, the same is true for husband.  The word “husband” in Greek is actually the same word as “man.”}  So this word that we hear in English as a cold and insensitive word is actually a word that can stretch the breadth of meaning from identifying gender to identifying a spouse.  It is a multi-functional word of respect, not a cold and distant retort.

God’s Abundance

Then Jesus has the jars filled with water.  They are filled to the top.  Yes, as some say Jesus may be trying to prove that there was nothing but water in the jars.  But more likely I think that this is a symbol of the fullness and completeness of God’s work.  When God works, He works abundantly.  God doesn’t do anything halfway.

What is the response to God’s action here?  The people are amazed!  The person who is in charge of the wine is amazed!  The people who know what they are talking about are astounded by God’s action.

Jesus is willing to display God’s greatness to those who are willing to see it.  But to those who want to use and abuse God’s work Jesus gives discipline.  We now move from a miracle of Jesus to the complete opposite of the spectrum.

The Temple Context

The temple was supposed to be a place to come in and experience the presence of God.  It was supposed to be a holy place.  As God has freely given to His people throughout their entire history with Him, it was supposed to be that way now. 

Yet, merchants saw the temple as a place to make money.  They knew that they could guilt people into buying animals for sacrifices.  They knew they could charge a tax for exchanging money from the Roman currency to the more ritually pure Jewish temple currency.  People who were coming to find God were put into a vulnerable place and taken advantage of by those who should have been revering God’s space.  These merchants and temple authorities did not desire to look for God.  They desired to look for their own benefit. 

Jesus’ response to the self-monger is always the same: it needs to be driven out of the temple.  If we are the temple of God, why should we expect anything except for Jesus to desire to drive the self-monger out of us, too?

An Easily Missed Paragraph

As we approach the end of this chapter, we have a small paragraph that is tucked away neatly between two powerful passages: the cleansing of the temple and Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus.  Truth be told, I don’t ever remember studying these verses in the Gospel of John.  But they are incredibly powerful.  I should remember these, but I don’t.  I will in the future – they are that powerful.

John 2:23-25 say that many believed in His name.  Why did they believe?  They believed because they saw the miracles that He was doing.  The believe because Jesus is acting in power.  Seems reasonable, right?

So let me cause you to ponder today.  What does the Bible say is Jesus’ response to their belief?  It’s one thing to hear that many saw Jesus and believed.  But it needs to be tempered with Jesus’ reaction to them.

He would not entrust Himself to them as He would entrust Himself to His disciples.  Jesus didn’t trust them!  In a sense, we can say that while they “believed” in Jesus, Jesus didn’t “believe” in them.

They were responding to the miracles.  They were thinking that Jesus was a pretty neat guy.  They were seeing Him as a wonderful performer.  But were they actually becoming disciples?  Were they devoting their life to Jesus Christ? 

The unfortunate answer is no, they were not.  They “believed in Jesus,” but Jesus never knew them.  This passage is further evidence that one can believe in Jesus in word but not believe in Him in heart.  One can believe in Jesus without actually becoming His disciple. 

As we see here, just because I attest to “believe in Jesus” doesn’t mean that I actually do believe in Him enough to become His disciple.  Just because I say that “I believe in Jesus” doesn’t necessarily mean that Jesus believes in me.  If you are struggling with this point – as you should – go back and read the words of the Bible again.  Don’t trust me, trust God’s Word.

This tiny little paragraph will completely and totally set up the conversation with Nicodemus that will dominate the conversation about the next chapter.  Upon reading these closing verses of John 2, we should be asking ourselves … what needs to happen for Jesus to “believe in me” as He did with His disciples? 

That is one of the most important questions that a disciple can ask.  I cannot stress the importance of that question.  We’ll tackle that question tomorrow.

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Year 2, Day 249: John 1

Beginnings

The Gospel of John is such a unique Gospel to read.  When you compare it to the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke) it seems completely different.  So many of the traditional “Gospel Stories” simply aren’t present in the Gospel of John.  All that being said, there are so many things in the Gospel of John that are beyond cool.  I’m going to have to contain myself because I know I won’t be able to hit on everything.

Jesus Is The Word

I have always loved the beginning of the Gospel of John.  Jesus is the Word of God.  Literally, Jesus is the utterances of God.  {I’m not meaning to fall into a modalistic heresy here, so please don’t read too deeply.}  God spoke the world into creation … and that speaking is … well … Jesus.  All things were brought into existence through Jesus.  Without Him nothing was made.  I don’t even know if I can actually wrap my head around these statements.

All things were brought into existence through Jesus.  He was there.  He was present.  His hand was in everything.  He was a part of creation.  The one who would be sent to redeem creation was there when creation was being formed.  Imagine the emotion involved in God knowing that this very thing which is being brought into existence by His hand will also have to be redeemed by His hand through the Son.  That’s mind-blowing tonight.  Like I said, I’m not sure if I can even wrap my head around that.

The Light Shines

Then we get the statement: the light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.  Wow.  Talk about a bold statement.  There are days when I feel like the world is totally overcoming the proclamation of the Gospel.  There are days when I feel like the world is getting better and better at closing their ears.  Perhaps there is some truth to those thoughts.  But the reality is that even if the world is becoming better and better and closing off their ears – it still has not overcome Christ!  Amen!

Authority Given

Then we have this great line in verse 12.  To as many as received him – to believe in His name – He gave authority to become the children of God.  We have authority to become children of God.  We – sinners all of us – have the authority to become children of God.  That is simply amazing.  We who are born of the flesh and born into a life dominated by our sinful self-mongerism can actually become children of God – born of God!  We deserve none of it, yet receive it all!

John’s Witness

Then we meet John the Baptizer.  He is the voice crying out in the wilderness (literally: en te eremo!).  What is it that John says?  John baptizes with water.  But one is coming that we do not know. One is coming that we are not even worthy to serve at His feet.  One is coming with power and authority that is so utterly incomprehensible to us.  But how is it that John identifies with Jesus?  “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” 

We think of power and we immediately think of control.  We think of power and we immediately think of what we would do with our power.  God in Jesus receives power and uses that power to die for our sake.  Behold … the Lamb of God.  Behold … the man who receives what we all desire and in turn is able to do something with it that none of us would ever think to do.  Behold … He is the Son of God because He is able to demonstrate God’s love in unfathomable ways.

To contemplate what Christ did and what He received blows my mind.

Discipleship

But He didn’t just die for us.  He made us disciples!  He prepares us to receive the keys of the kingdom.  He wants to make us fishers for people!  And how does He do it?  Three simple words is all He needs to say: Come and see.  Come and see!  Yes!  Oh, how God has revealed Himself in my life simply because I looked with interest when He said “Come and see!”  Oh, the stories I would love to hear about how God has revealed Himself to you because you were willing to look when He said “Come and see” to you as well.  These are three simple words; these are three simple words that do not disappoint.

Jesus didn’t just die for us.  He could have, and that would have been enough.  He could have, and that would have been more than we deserve.  But no.  Jesus looks to us and invites us to follow.  Jesus looks to us and says, “Not only will I die for you, but I want you to learn how to be in a relationship with God.  Not only that, but I want you to learn how you can help other people get into a better relationship with God, too.”  That’s incredible!  We are not only recipients of grace but graciously invited to participate in His plan!

You see, this is why I love the Gospel of John.  It’s so easy to be absolutely blown away by the story that John weaves.  For the record, it is easy to be blown away by Matthew’s story, Mark’s story, and Luke’s story.  But the way we get blown away by John’s story is in a completely different way.

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Year 2, Day 248: Psalms 120-121

Psalms 120-134 are psalms typically known as the Psalms of Ascent.  This is why each of them has a particular title about ascending.  However, we are not entirely sure to what people are ascending.  Some people believe these are psalms that would be said as pilgrims made their way to Jerusalem.  Since Jerusalem is on the top of a substantial hill, people naturally ascend to Jerusalem.  Other people believe that these psalms represent the 15 stairs that led into the temple and the Levites would sing each of these psalms as they went into the temple to do their work.  Each of these Psalms of Ascent focuses on a different theme.  This implies that they may have composed a greater ritual – a ritual such as entering the temple where achieving focus would be the desired outcome.

Psalm 120

Psalm 120 is intended to focus us upon God – specifically His ability to deliver us.  This has been a theme throughout much of the psalms, although here we have a narrowing of the focus on God’s deliverance as deliverance from those with lying lips and a deceitful tongue.  This psalm is to remind us of the damage that our words can have.

This is a pretty important topic, likely why this Psalm of Ascent is put first.  How many places in scripture do we hear about the damage that the tongue can do?  Perhaps the most famous teaching on the tongue is James 3:1-12.  But we shouldn’t also forget Peter’s admonition in 1 Peter 3:10 to keep our tongue from evil and to keep our lips from speaking deceit.  Paul’s quotations of Psalm 5:9 and Psalm 140:3 in Romans 3:13-14 is also highly memorable.  But perhaps the greatest of all teachings is the words of Jesus as given to us in Mark 7:15.  It is not what goes into a person that defiles them but rather what comes out that defiles them.

I think it is safe to say that the New Testament is in unison with this psalm.  Our tongues are significant tools; we should pay attention to how we use them.  We should pay attention to the damage that can be done by them.  We as human beings have a tendency to use our tongues for evil far too often.  That evil usually stems from lies and deceit.  After all, when has evil ever come from God’s truth?

However, this psalm is not just about our human tongue and God’s deliverance from it.  This song is also about peace.  It should be no surprise that in a psalm where the tongue is talked about the psalmist also speaks about peace.  What divides us more than anything else if it is not the tongue?  What keeps us from God and His ways more than anything else if it is not the tongue?  Are we – as the psalmist claims to be – for peace?  When we speak – or in the case of technology, type – are we aiming for peace with our words?

Psalm 121

Psalm 121 is a psalm that glorifies in God’s promises.  It is the Lord who is our keeper.  It is the Lord who is our protector.  It is the Lord who watches over us.  It is the Lord who never slumbers.

Stop for a second, though.  Go back and reread the prior paragraph.  As you do, ask yourself if your thoughts and your actions genuinely demonstrate this to be true.  Are you like me and occasionally wonder when God will bring about deliverance?  Are you like me and become impatient while waiting for God to declare His protection?  Are you like me and occasionally try to bring about God’s will far before He is ready to have it come?

I hope that deep down inside we do genuinely believe the words of my opening paragraph on this psalm.  My questions in the paragraph above were not meant to bring about a crisis of faith as much as they were meant to bring about a realization of just how often we don’t practice what we genuinely believe.  That’s pretty sad; but I know with me it is true.  I know my help comes from God.  I know every good and perfect thing comes from God.  I know that His ways are better than my ways.  Yet …

Yet I don’t always do a great job living it out. 

Today I need to spend more time focusing on how I truly display my belief that God will watch over my going in and my coming out.  Today I need to spend more time talking about God’s deliverance and less time figuring out how I am going to get what I think I want right now.

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Year 2, Day 247: Psalm 119

Psalm 119

Psalm 119 is a very unique psalm.  Yes, I know that it is long.  That does make it unique, but not why I say it is unique.  Psalm 119 is a psalm that is written along a very significant pattern.  The lines in each stanza of the psalm begin with the same letter in the Hebrew text.  Since each stanza has 8 verses in this psalm, every 8 verses begin with the same letter.  This is why each stanza is separated by a Hebrew word.  {In Hebrew, there are 22 consonants; thus there are 22 stanzas to this psalm.}  For example, in the Hebrew text the first 8 verses all begin with an alef (or aleph).  Verses 9-16 all begin with a bet (or beth).  Verses 17-24 all begin with gimel.  This pattern continues throughout the psalm.

The neat thing about this psalm is that we can see Hebrew people using mnemonic devices.  This was clearly a psalm with a built in device to help a person remember the words.  Thus, we can see that the memorization of scripture was taken seriously – at least by some of the people in the land.

In the Bible Reader’s Commentary, Richard O. Lawrence gives a really great analysis of repeated terms in Psalm 119.  Rather than take his research and put it in my own words, I’ll simple copy it and give him all the credit that is due to him:

There are a number of terms that are repeated in the psalm. These are all synonyms referring back to the Word of God. They are:

• Torah (Law), 25 times. Usually the word here indicates the whole body of Scripture’s teaching as found in Moses’ writings.
• Miswah (Commands), 21 times. This refers to clear, definite directives issued by God.
• Huqqim (decrees), 21 times. The Heb. means “things inscribed” and thus established in law.
• Mispot (judgments), 19 times. The Heb. means a binding judicial decision that establishes a precedent.
• Piqqudim (precepts), 21 times. This word, found only in poetry, is a synonym for edict or precept.
• ˓edah (statute), 23 times. This is a sober and serious expression of God’s standards for human behavior.
• Dabar (word), 20 times. This means a revelation, but also is used specifically of the Ten Commandments God gave Israel through Moses.
• ˓Imrah (saying), 19 times. Another poetic word, often used instead of dabar.
• Derek (way), 11 times. A metaphor for the way of life believers are to live.

If we take a moment and analyze these words, we can see something really neat, which is what Richard O. Lawrence says in the opening paragraph of the quote.  Much of this psalm is to remind us about the significance of God’s Word as we read through it.  This makes a ton of sense if we remember that this psalm contains a mnemonic device.  It is intended to be memorized.  If it is intended to be memorized, by default it is intended to be studied and recited.  What better thing to memorize than the significance of the Word of God?  After all, as Richard O. Lawrence demonstrates above, there are 180 synonyms to the Word of God used in this psalm alone!  That’s an average of more than one per verse.  That’s pretty cool.

I’m not going to try and comment in depth on the whole psalm today.  That would take far too long.  While it would be a worthwhile effort, it would also be a long read.  Instead – just to keep it interesting – I’m going to summarize each stanza in a single sentence:

1. Aleph – The people who take time to learn God’ commands will not only be blessed, but in doing so they will learn to give God praise with an upright heart.
2. Beth – We are to meditate on God’s decrees day and night as a testimony to how much we delight in God’s Word.
3. Gimel – Our time on this earth is short and not permanent since we are sojourners here; therefore, we should delight in God’s Word since it is our ever-present counsel.
4. Daleth – It is God who enlarges our heart, who puts us away from false ways, and who makes us understand His ways; we should be grateful to Him and rejoice in His Word!
5. He – We need to long for God’s commandments, thus we need to begin by asking Him to help us turn from our human ways brought about by our human understanding.
6. Waw – When we meditate on God’s Word we will delight in it; when we delight in God’s Word we should speak of it before others.
7. Zayin – The wicked, who do not obey the Law, can cause us to be indignant; we must be careful to stay attuned to the Law.
8. Heth – The Lord is all we need and we should be considered a blessing in the lives of all those who obey God’s Word.
9. Teth – We all have times in our life when we go astray and are disobedient; we should give thanks to God’s Word for being there to help us see God’s deliverance and His promise to save.
10. Yodh – It is God who made us and fashioned us, we should therefore delight in His Word so that people who turn to us can know His Word through us.
11. Kaph – At times it feels like the world, which does not follow God’s Word, will be victorious over us; we must persevere and know that God will judge over all of us according to His Word.
12. Lamedh – God’s Word is eternal, extending even beyond the boundaries of creation.
13. Mem – There is no better teacher than God’s Word; there is nobody wiser than the one who is wise in God’s Word.
14. Nun – Though the world may seek to ensnare us, God’s Word is a light for our life so that we might avoid being ensnared.
15. Samekh – The Word of the Lord is our only hope; even though we fear judgment there is hope in God’s Word.
16. Ayin – If we long for salvation, then there should be nothing more valuable to us than God’s Word.
17. Pe – God’s Word is wiser than anything else, yet even the simple can understand His ways.
18. Tsadhe – We may be small, but if we are living in the promises of God’s Word we shall not be forgotten.
19. Qoph – Our hope is in the Word of God; even when we are consumed by worry enough to be unable to sleep we can find joy in the Word of God.
20. Resh – God’s Word is true and righteous, and salvation comes to those who listen to it.
21. Shin – We should love the Word of God because nothing in this world can cause those who are in God’s Law to stumble.  (This one is sometimes called Sin and sometimes referred to as Sin and Shin.  Sin, the Hebrew consonant, does not have anything to do with our English word “sin.”)
22. Taw – we should call out to God so that we might have a better understanding of God’s Word; we should also take joy in knowing that God can deliver us according to His Word.

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Year 2, Day 246: Psalm 118

Psalm 118

Psalm 118 is a festive psalm, meaning that it was a psalm that was often sung during religious processions and other similar ceremonies.  It is a really rousing psalm, which is no doubt why it was used in this context.  I can easily see this psalm being sung in the midst of a congregation genuinely intent on praising God and then watching as the people slowly swell into a “spiritual frenzy.”  {Not in a fanatic way, but in a way that makes people really hungry to learn from God and His Word.}

If we look at the main theme of this psalm, we can see that the point of this psalm is to remind us that the Lord saves.  The Lord saves because His love is steadfast.  His love is steadfast because He never ends.  We can have confidence that the Lord will be with us as much today as He was with us in the past.  He will be with us as much tomorrow as He was today.

If the Lord is with us, we need not fear what tomorrow will bring.  We don’t need to worry about the unknown enemies resting just out of view – waiting for the opportunity to launch an assault.  We don’t need to worry about the enemies that we can see who make no desire to hide the fact that they are coming to encircle us.  If the Lord is with us and we are doing His will, His steadfast love will endure forever and He will save us from our enemies.

In fact, I love the section of this psalm that talks about the psalmist being encircled.  Did you notice the repeated phrase of Psalm 118:8-10?  Although the nations surrounded the psalmist, it is the psalmist who cut off the nations through the help of the Lord.  What an inspiring repeated idea.  In Rock music, we would call these verses a Vamp Chorus.  Again and again we hear the witness of the psalmist who says that although the world came against him, it is he who prevailed because of the name – and therefore, presence – of God.  What an incredible testimony.

Of course, this brings to mind the many times that people have sought my own destruction.  How many times have people planned to squish me?  How many people have sought to squash my spirit?  How many times have I come upon people who would like nothing more than to destroy that faith that lives within me?  Time and time again people have tried to walk over me, step over me, or use me as a step to their own greatness.  Truthfully, some of those people did use me as step and they did attain their own desire.  But through the grace of God they have not succeeded in quenching my spirit!  They have not succeeded in stopping this love of God that He continues to fuel within me.  Though the world encircles me, I will cut them off!  I will not lose this faith that lives deep within my soul where God has planted it.

How about you?  Can you think of times where people have sought to crush you?  Can you think of times when people have sought to walk all over you?  Can you think of times when people have sought to put you in your place?  Can you think of times when people desired to quench the fire of faith that lives within you?  Has not God brought you out as well?  Although the world encircles you, is it not you who have cut them off?  Is not your faith still strong within you?

The Lord has made us shine.  The Lord has spared us from turmoil.  The Lord has brought us to where we are today.  The Lord will bring us into eternity with Him.  The world may come against us, but it will not prevail.

I am reminded of the song A Mighty Fortress is Our God written by Martin Luther.  Although it is a bit of an old translation of the hymn, here is the third verse: “And though this world with devils filled should threaten to undo us, we will not fear for God hath willed His truth to triumph through us.  The prince of darkness grim, we tremble not for him; his rage we can endure, for lo his doom is sure.  One little word shall fell him.”

Indeed.  Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.  He is my God – Our God!  I will give thanks to Him.  We will extol His name.  His steadfast love endures forever!

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Year 2, Day 245: Psalms 116-117

Psalm 116

At first, Psalm 116 sounds like a fairly self-serving psalm.  After all, in the ESV it literally reads, “I love the Lord because He has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy.”  This sure sounds like a “since God did for me, I’ll believe in Him” approach.  At first glance, this psalm appears to start of rather self-centered.

However, when we step back from the psalm and see the bigger picture we can see that this really isn’t the point of the words.  When we look at the psalm in context of verses 5-7 we can see that the psalmist is completely aware of grace and mercy.  The psalmist knows that he did not deserve the Lord’s influence in His life.  Rather, the psalmist is grateful for the Lord’s action.  This puts the earlier verses in complete perspective.  The psalmist does love the Lord because of His work – because of His gracious, merciful, and completely undeserved work.

This point brings me to verse 12 of the psalm.  “What shall I render to the Lord for all His benefits to me?”  This is an incredible question to ask because it can be taken in so many fruitful ways.  I think it is also an incredible question to ask because it is a question that any genuinely repentant person can ask of God.  What can we actually give to God?  What can I give to God that He cannot procure for Himself?

The impact of this verse is deeper than a simple reflection on the fact that we cannot bring anything to the table that God cannot get for Himself.  There is a serious side to this question as well.  Even though I cannot bring anything on my own to give to God, that does not mean that I should not bring to God.  God does desire things – things like worship, sacrifice, relationship – even if He does need to help us bring them to Him. 

Think about that for a second.  God desires our worship, even if He has to help us do it.  He desires our sacrifice, even if He is the one that gives us the courage to sacrifice.  He desires a relationship with us, even if He is the one who has to come and initiate such a relationship.  For anyone who is a parent, this makes absolute sense.  Does it matter that your child uses your money to get you (or even make you) a Christmas present?  Does the fact that a child used your food lessen the experience of breakfast in bed?  Of course not.  It is the same with God.  Even though we can bring nothing on our own, God still desires us to bring something to Him even if He has to help us bring anything at all.

That’s a pretty cool God if you ask me.  One might think that an almighty God would get frustrated with always having to help us.  But that is one of the differences between us and God.  We might get frustrated.  We might lose patience.  But not God.  God desires a relationship with us so much that He is willing to come and help time and time again.

Why would we not desire to be the servant of this God?  I don’t know about you, but these reflections on this psalm only serves to draw me into a greater desire to be in a relationship with God.  This psalm – and the thoughts buried within – leads me to genuinely desire to be called His servant.  I don’t need to be self-centered.  I don’t need the self-monger lingering around.  What I need is to recognize God’s action in my life and then to be genuinely in awe of His grace and mercy.  That’s what I need more than anything else.

Psalm 117

Turning to Psalm 117, I have got to believe that this is the absolute shortest chapter in the Bible.  There is not much to this psalm.  It’s a simple psalm of praise.

I’m not going to do any disserve to this psalm.  The psalm is simple enough to stand on its own.  It is clearly a psalm encouraging us to praise God.  So let’s do that.  Go, glorify our Father.  Listen to the Son.  Teach the nations to do the same.  His steadfast love for us will never end.

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Year 2, Day 244: Psalm 115

Psalm 115

Psalm 115 is a mixed psalm.  It is a psalm glorifying God; but it is also a psalm of teaching.  It is a psalm written about concern over the spirituality of the Hebrew people and an admonition to turn to God.  In it there is even a reminder to be spiritual while we are still alive.  So this is a “mixed bag” psalm.

Let’s begin where I think we should always begin.  It is to God that we give praise and glory.  I love the way that the psalmist puts in the reminder “not to us, oh Lord.”  It is nice to know that modernity is not the only era of humanity that suffers from self-centeredness.  Not that this is a surprise, of course.  Human beings are just self-centered creatures.  We always are, and without the Lord’s help we always will be.

Thus, we are reminded to praise the Lord.  We are reminded to give glory to the Lord.  God does bless us with His steadfast love – in spite of our insatiable desire to focus on ourselves.  God is capable of doing what He pleases.  We’ve heard about that in the last few psalms.  We’ve been reminded about God’s work through the exodus.  We’ve been reminded about God’s work among David and his life.  We’ve been reminded about Abraham.  God desired those things to happen and they did!  He is a God that is worthy of praise and glory.

However, giving praise to God is not the sole focus of this psalm.  We have seen this from the first line.  The psalmist is concerned about his people.  The psalmist can see his people turning more and more away from God and more and more onto their own desires.  After talking about giving praise and glory to God, the psalmist now turns to focus our attention on our response to God’s work.

Let me stop here for a moment and give a bit of back story.  Remember from our study of Joshua and Judges that the Hebrew people were never really able to drive out the Canaanites from the Promised Land.  In fact, we even know that the Hebrew people took the native Canaanites and married among them.  As they did, the Canaanite gods infiltrated the Hebrew culture for hundreds of years – at least until the Hebrew people went back under oppression under the Assyrians and the Babylonians {although probably longer than that}.  This is the basis for the words that the psalmist says about foreign gods.

These idols have eyes, but do not see.  They have ears, but do not hear.  They have mouths, but do not speak.  In other words, when we make a god out of something we give it power over our life.  But the truth is that we are giving power to something that really doesn’t even have the ability to manage that power.  Many of us chase a large bank account.  What can our bank account do for us?  Nothing.  Many of us chase popularity.  What can popularity really do for us?  Nothing.  Many of us chase self-satisfaction.  How long does self-satisfaction really please us?  Not long until we are off to something else.  We make things into gods; those things are really powerless to do anything for us.  God is the only one who can actually do something with the power that we give back to Him over our lives.

What’s worse is that we have a powerful statement of truth in verse 8.  Those who make false gods become like them.  In other words, those who put their trust in false gods become deaf, blind, and mute in this world.  This is an incredibly powerful thought.  Think about this.  If my goal is to create a large bank account, am I going to actually do anything with that resource or am I going to horde it?  If I pursue becoming popular, do you think I’m going to actually react out and help someone else?  Doing so might just jeopardize my popularity or help make someone else more popular than me!  Do you see what I am getting at?  When we make something else into a god, it becomes all about hording that god and keeping it for as long as possible.  When we make things into gods, it fuels our self-monger.  What good is a self-monger to the world?  When all we think about is ourselves, how good are we at seeing the world genuinely, listening to hear the needs of the world, and speaking words of genuine truth into the world?  The psalmist is right.  When we make gods out of our own pursuits we become deaf, blind, and mute to a world that desperately needs us to see, hear, and speak the truth of God.

I’m running out of space, so I want to talk a little about the last thoughts in this psalm.  The psalmist is clear to point out that the dead do not give praise to God.  In other words, if we are going to praise God and give Him glory, we need to do it now while we are alive.  You’ve heard the cliché: “No time like the present?”  That’s pretty much what the psalmist is saying here.

Remember that this warning is given in the midst of the psalmist watching his people turn to idols that they have made.  The psalmist is watching his people be more self-monger than anything else.  So he gives a warning.  The longer they live in their self-monger nature the less time they will have to give praise and glory to God.  In fact, the longer they live in their self-monger nature the less likely it is that they will be able to give praise and glory to God at all.

These words are going to haunt me today.  I’m glad I found them buried in this psalm.  “The dead do not praise the Lord.  Nor do any who go down into silence.  We will bless the Lord from this time forevermore!”

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Year 2, Day 243: Psalms 113-114

Psalms 113

Obviously, Psalm 113 is a psalm of praise.  The whole psalm is focused on reminding us to give praise to God.  What is neat about this psalm is that the author seems more intent on reminding us to praise God than he seems interested in telling us why to praise God.

Don’t get me wrong.  The psalmist does indeed give us a few reasons as to why we should give praise to God.  After all, God raises up the poor.  He lifts up the needy.  He brings children in the life of the barren.  These are all reasons that the psalmist gives to justify why we should give praise to God.

But these are not the thrust of the psalm.  They don’t even appear until two-thirds of the psalm is over.  The thrust of the psalm is a call for the faithful to turn to God and give Him praise.  As I read through the psalm, I am reminded of the Great Thanksgiving that is said or chanted in liturgical worship services right before Holy Communion.  In the Lutheran Church we often sing, “The Lord be with you.  And also with you.  Lift up your hearts.  We lift them to the Lord.  Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.  It is right to give Him thanks and praise.”  (Cantor in normal print, congregational response in italics)

In Christian circles, we usually give thanks to God before we celebrate communion.  That is a very appropriate place to turn and give praise to God because our salvation comes to us only by His grace.  This is why immediately before communion we spend a little time focused on praising God and giving Him the praise He deserves for saving us.

It’s nice to see this same dynamic within the psalms.  It’s nice to see that the psalms once a while take time simply to praise God.  There is a time and place for teaching.  There is a time and place evangelism.  There is a time and place for discipleship.  But there is also a time and a place for praising God with no distractions.

And why shouldn’t we?  As the psalmist says – and this is probably my favorite line from the whole psalm – who is like our God?  Who has done for us what our God has done for us?  For me that is the verse that really focuses my mind on giving praise to Him.  Who is like our God?  Why should we not praise His name?

Psalm 114

Psalm 114 is a humble confession of God’s power.  It is a reminder back to the ancient past of the Hebrew people through which we see God’s power.  Like many of the psalms, in this psalm we hear many references to the wandering Hebrew people in the time of the exodus.

I love the references to the sea and the river looking to God and fleeing.  Traditionally, the sea especially is symbolic of the danger and evil in the world.  This is probably because so few people could swim and water was therefore quite dangerous.  What is being said in this psalm is that the dark and dangerous places in this world look upon God and flee.

In almost the complete opposite light, we hear about the mountains and hills skipping like lambs.  The act of skipping is traditionally a symbol of joy and happiness.  The Promised Land looked forward with anticipation as God was bringing His people into the land.  The Promised Land longed for a people who would live according to God’s ways and with God’s agenda.

I think it is neat to see references to the power of God.  I also think that it is neat to hear the anthropomorphosis of the earth and its reaction to God.  There is much we can learn through the symbols within this psalm about God, human nature, and the world’s reaction to God.

Completely apart from the psalm, I am always amazed by how many references there are in the Old Testament to the time of the exodus.  Don’t get me wrong.  I understand that God did many great and wondrous things in the wilderness.  There is reason to remember those.

However, that was one of the darkest generations of Hebrew people.  The whole nation – save Moses, Joshua, and Caleb – were rebellious and died in the wilderness.  Even Moses, although allowed to gaze upon it, was unable to cross into the Promised Land.  The Hebrew people of the exodus were not a particularly faithful people.  Yet they are remembered unlike any other generation.  I’ve been thinking about this lately and I really think that this is intentional within scripture.  I think part of the reason we have so many references to the exodus in the Old Testament is because it shows God’s incredible work in spite of a rebellious and grumbling people.  Each reference to the exodus in the Old Testament is a reminder to us that God is at work in this world regardless of our circumstances.

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Year 2, Day 242: Psalm 112

Psalm 112

Psalm 112 is an incredible psalm.  There are so many talking and teaching points here that I’m sure I’m going to miss something or simply run out of space.  So, let’s start in the beginning.

Blessed is the one who fears the Lord and who rejoices in His commandments.  Think about that for a second.  How many of us like obeying the rules?  How many of us genuinely stop at every stop sign?  No, rolling stops don’t count!  How many of us really obey the “no tasting the grapes before buying them” rule at the grocery store?  How many of us genuinely obey the “maximum 20 pounds of weight for this shelf” rule?  As a group, we tend to be rebels.  We tend to like to push the envelope a little.  We like to follow our own understanding of what the rules should be rather than actually following the rules.  {For the record, sometimes it works out and sometimes we get burned…}

But what does this psalm say?  Blessed is the one who fears the Lord and rejoices in His commandments.  Blessed is the one who has enough awe for God to actually live the life that He would have us live.  To summarize, blessed is the one who obeys God’s ways!

What happens to people who follow God’s ways?  They will be mighty in the land.  They will be upright.  Again, think about that.  This morning I heard a great expression that I’d love to pass on.  Here is the expression: “He’s one of those people that I can genuinely say that my life is better because I know them.”  That’s an awesome expression and a great compliment to the person about whom it was said.  But do you know who that expression represents?  The subjects of expressions like that one are the people who are upright in this world.  The people who are upright are those who fear the Lord and who rejoice in His commandments.

What else happens to those who fear the Lord?  Wealth and riches are in the house of those who fear the Lord.  Now … I know what you are thinking.  There are plenty of poor Christians throughout this world.  As Tevye says at the beginning of the song If I Were a Rich Man from the musical Fiddler on the Roof, “Oh dear lord.  You made many, many poor people.  I realize of course, it’s no shame to be poor.  But it’s no great honor, either.”  There are many poor Christians in the world.  It’s undeniable.

On the other hand, I don’t think the psalmist is talking about sheer materialism in this line.  Have you ever experienced the faithful and their approach to “stuff?”  Sure, everyone can likely make the comment, “If I had more, this is how I would spend it.”  But really?  I’ve many faithful people who manage just well with what God has given them.  They not only manage, but they are grateful for it.  They may not be “rich” in the eyes of the world, but they are “rich” in their mindset because they recognize it all as God’s blessing.  All who fear the Lord and love to obey His ways are indeed rich in Him.

What else happens to those who fear the Lord?  Those who fear the Lord are not afraid.  We’re not afraid of bad news.  We’re not afraid about what the future holds.  We’re not afraid of tomorrow.  We’re not afraid of the enemy.  We’re not afraid of those who would come against us.  We are not afraid because we know it is all held by God in His hands.  We’re not afraid because we know the promises of God and we know that He is faithful to those promises.

Indeed, it is good to fear the Lord and be obedient to His ways.  It is good to love His commandments because we trust that they are for our blessing.  God is good, all the time.

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Year 2, Day 241: Psalm 110-111

Psalm 110

Psalm 110 is a psalm of the Messiah.  The reference to the Lord sitting at the right hand of the Lord makes this point clear. 

Additionally, we have the reference in this psalm to the order of Melchizedek.  For cross referencing in the New Testament, see Hebrews 5-7, which makes reference to this concept on numerous occasions.  There is a reason that this concept is significant – especially with what we know of Jesus’ lineage.

It was long believed that the Messiah would be both priest and king.  However, there is a bit of genealogical issue with this idea.  The priests came from the tribe of Levi.  David’s offspring would be king, but they were from the tribe of Judah.  The problem is how to have someone come from the tribe of both Judah and Levi.

This problem is solved when we turn in our Bibles back to Genesis 14:18.  In this passage we hear about Melchizedek, who was both king of Salem but also a priest of God.  {Note that historically this story in Genesis occurs well before the priestly order of the Levites was established during the Exodus out of Egypt.}  What this means, then, is that the king of Salem is also a priest of God.

However, we also know that Salem is the prior name of Jerusalem.  {See the name Salem within Jerusalem?}  This means that the kings of Jerusalem who are of the line of David can be both priest and king – although their priestly nature is not at all from Levi but through the means of Melchizedek.  This means that Jesus, who is of the lineage of David, can be both priest and king.  He does indeed fulfill the prophecy of the Messiah.

And what of this Messiah?  Why is this concept so important?  He is at the right of God.  In the Day of Judgment He will execute judgment upon the nations.  He will watch as the ways of the world are smashed before him.  The Messiah – and therefore the people who are aligned with the Messiah – will be brought in peace with God in the end.  We will drink from the brook that runs by God’s dwelling and lift up our head with the Messiah.

In a life filled with hardship, this is an important psalm to remember about the future.  If our hope is in the Messiah, we will one day be at peace with God.  If peace with God is the promise, then what is a little hardship to be endured in the short term?

Psalm 111

This leads us quite naturally into Psalm 111.  Psalm 111 is a psalm of praise.  God is great because His works are so significant that they are remembered.  Think about that for a second.  How many people do you know whose works are remembered like God’s works are remembered?  Sure, we might know about a few ancient Pharaohs.  We might even know about a few Roman Emperors.  We might know about a few ancient historians and philosophers.  But do we know anything about anyone like we know about God and His works?

Furthermore, what works we do know of human beings are works that come and go.  They don’t last.  Quite naturally, the works of people start and stop within our lifespan.  But not so with God.  We know of God’s work millennia ago – how He came to Abraham, led His people out of Egypt, gave the Law to the world, brought His Son to this world to reconcile us to Him, etc.  We know of God’s work yesterday and the days before because it is in our own lives.  And we know of God’s work in all the time in between – work such as with Luther, Bonheoffer, Augustine, etc.  God is remembered throughout all time; God is great!  There is no end to His ability to work wondrous deeds!

This brings us to the end of the psalm.  The beginning of wisdom is fear (awe) of the Lord.  It might seem easy to ignore the works of the Lord in this life because we can’t exactly see His hand without seeing through the eyes of faith.  But what is life when it ignores God?  Is life worth living apart from the greatness of God?

No.  The reason that the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord is because it is only when we fear the Lord that we really start living.  It is only when we turn to God and see the big picture of life that life becomes worth living at all.  Without God, all we do is satisfy our own desires.  With God, we find something bigger than ourselves for which to live.

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