Don't Topple Off The Edge

Psalm 19:7-14

How close to the edge of a deep cliff or drop-off do you like to get?  Are you a daring one who likes to get right up to the edge, believing that you have steady balance and footing, and nothing will happen?  Or are you a more hesitant person who stays way back?  I have a terrible fear of heights, so I never get near the edge of anything, even when the height isn’t so much.  We occasionally hear of someone who fell off the edge of a cliff, and we might wonder why they didn’t take proper precautions, as one slip can mean serious injury or even death.  Our psalm for this week warns us about getting too close to something else that is even more dangerous than a deep cliff.

Psalm 19, written by King David, can be divided into two parts.  The first part briefly describes God’s revelation in nature, specifically with the heavens and particularly the sun.  The second part is God’s revelation to us through His Word, His Law.  Even though most of the Bible had not been written yet, basically only the first five Books of Moses, David loved God’s Word, as he expresses here.  He knows that God’s Word, what he had and what was yet to come, is perfect, sure, pure, true, and righteous (vs. 7-9).

As king, David could have anything that he wanted.  He had plenty of gold and riches, and the choicest of food, and yet what did he want and think was more desirable than that?  David proclaimed that God’s Word was more desirable than gold, and sweeter than honey (vs. 10).  Honey is sweeter than cane sugar, and can give one energy.  Honey is sometimes added to skin lotions because it is a natural humectant.  It is also a probiotic, and has other healthful properties, being used for when one has a cold or sore throat.  Because it also has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, honey is used in treating wounds and burns.  With all of these benefits, honey was very valuable, especially in the days of the past.  Yet David valued the Word of God even more, as we should, too.

One reason David valued God’s Word was that as long as he read and studied it, God’s Word kept him from sin (vs. 11-13).  When we follow and obey the Bible, it will keep us from harm.  It is like a guide-line that one can follow to know the way to go.  Living in the Midwest part of the United States there are many farms, and one can visit some old, historic farms that show us the farming practices of the past.  Many parts of the Midwest are prone to strong and blinding blizzards in the winter.  Even during these dangerous storms farmers in the past needed to get to the barns to take care of the livestock.  In the old historic farms one can sometimes see ropes or cords strung between the house and the barns which were used as guidelines to help the farmer go safely from his house to the barn in a blinding snowstorm.  As long as he held onto the cord with one hand he knew he would be safe and not wander off course into danger.  We, too, can use the lines of God’s Word to guide and guard us through life.

David also prayed that God would keep him back from getting too close to sin (vs. 13).  Like those daring souls who try to get right up to the edge, sometimes we try to see how close we can get to sin and wrong actions before we fall headlong into behavior that will leave our life shipwrecked.  Curiosity can draw us toward the darkness of sin.. We think we can flirt with temptation, get very close to the edge, and safely walk away. But that is impossible.  We know an action is wrong, and yet we toy with it, and then we are drawn into deeper and darker perversions.  We need to pray to the Lord to help us before we get that far, just as David did.

Each of us has hidden faults, those we deliberately try to hide from others and even from God, and also those that we are unaware of.  We need to repent of our sins, the sins we know, and the sins of which we are unaware (vs. 12-13).  When we do, God will declare us innocent for the sake of His Son, Jesus.

In closing his psalm, King David prayed that his prayers, and all the words of his mouth would be acceptable to the Lord (vs. 14).  We need to make sure that the words that come out of our mouth are pleasing to God (Ephesians 4:29; Ephesians 5:4).  Not only do we need to be careful not to curse, we need to watch that we don’t always speak doom and gloom.

Let’s be sure to follow David’s example here, valuing God’s Word above all else.  Let’s cling to it like that guideline in the storm, and allow it to keep us back, way back from the edges of sin, before we topple in to our destruction.

Those Complainers And Whiners!

Numbers 11:4-23, 31-34

We all know at least one, possibly more of them - the chronic complainer, the whiner, someone who always has to find fault with just about everything.  Perhaps you work with someone like that.  Maybe you have one in your family, your mother, an elderly uncle, a sibling.  We can even find them in our churches.  Being around constant complainers is very irritating, tiring, and can even get stressful.  Unfortunately it is also contagious.  The more we are around a group of whiners, the more likely we are to start joining in.  Our Scripture today tells of an incident when the Israelites started to complain to God about His provisions.  Let’s look into this episode of whining and complaining.

As our Scripture opens, we read about a mixed multitude of people who started to complain that they wanted a more varied diet, one with more meat in it, along with other foods they had back when they were in Egypt (vs. 4-6).  First, we might wonder who this “mixed multitude” is.  When Moses led the people of Israel out of slavery in Egypt, some others left with them.  Some would have been from intermarriage between the Hebrews and Egyptians, along with people from other nations that came with them during the exodus.  They started complaining about the manna, and wanted other food, including meat, and pretty soon many of the Israelites started to join in with the complaining.  It is important to be careful with whom we associate with, as listening to complaining will often rub off onto us, and before we know it, we are joining in.  We also need to watch our own complaining, as we can soon drag others into that sinful behavior with us.

Manna was a gift to the people from God.  It was a gift of food that the people didn’t have to work for to get, a free gift from God.  All they had to do was to go out every morning and gather it.  It was there every day for them, except on the Sabbath.  The day before the Sabbath God provided them with enough manna to last them through the Sabbath, each and every week.  The people didn’t have to plant and care for it in order to get manna.  They didn’t have to hunt it down, either.  They could eat it plain, or they could make it into recipes.  It was always there for them, no work involved, so why the complaints?!

The people’s complaining was very wearing and stressful on Moses.  He came to the Lord in prayer, turning to Him with the burden of the people.  He wanted out from the position of leading the people.  They were too much for him, with all their complaints and whining, so much so that he was beginning to wish he were dead (vs. 10-15).  The next time we begin with the moaning and groaning about our life, let’s consider what that is doing to those who have to listen to us!

God heard Moses’ prayer, and He certainly had heard the people’s murmuring, and He promised to give them meat, so much meat that it would make them sick! (vs. 18-20).  When Moses questioned just how much meat that would take, God challenged him by saying that He was certainly up to the task!  (vs. 21-23).  The Lord proceeded to bring a miracle, by sending millions of quail into the area, enough to feed the multitudes (vs. 31-34).  However He also punished those who complained, as many of them died.

Complaining poisons the heart with ingratitude, and can be a contagion.  God has to judge it.  By listening too long to complaints one can start to agree with them.  Even Moses was beginning to be dragged in.  However, rather than moaning to others and hoping for their agreement, as the people did, Moses took his complaints to God.  We need to take our needs to the Lord, knowing that He loves us enough to help us, and even puts up with us when we sin.

If our faith is worth anything, it will stand a test.  Poor faith can only trust God when things are going well.  However, when our suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and then character produces hope, the Lord will be honored (Romans 5:3-4).  Our present afflictions will lead to future joy.

When you hear complaining coming from others, or when you feel it welling up inside of you, the best way to combat it is to count God’s many blessings in your life.  Proclaiming God’s faithfulness silences discontentment!

God's View Of Greatness

Mark 9:30-37

When we think of successful people, people who have accomplished their specific goals, we don’t usually think of or include those who died as a result of trying to achieve their goals.  We also think of those who are on top, those who are top achievers, the “go-getters”, those who seek to be number one.  We don’t typically think of the fellow with the lowest position as being too successful.  This is the world’s view, but how about Jesus’ view?  Our Scripture today from the Gospel of Mark gives us a different picture of success, one from God’s view rather than the world’s.

As we open our Scripture passage today Jesus had just come down from the mountain top where He had been transfigured, and then He had cast the demon out of a man’s son.  He and His disciples now headed out of that village, and along the way Jesus spoke again about His approaching betrayal and death (vs. 30-32).  This is something that He had spoken with them about before, including the time that Peter had tried to dissuade Him from this path.  Yet this time, like the others, Jesus’ words did not seem to be comprehended by the disciples.  They not only did not understand, they seemed to not remember these words, as they all seemed taken by surprise when Jesus was arrested and crucified, and did not seem to remember anything about His promise of rising again from the dead.

Mark records that Jesus spoke about His betrayal into the hands of His enemies, His execution, and then His resurrection on the third day.  As the twelve heard this, we read that they were afraid to ask Him exactly what He meant.  Why would they be afraid?  Did they feel that they should understand everything by now?  Were they afraid that if they spoke further about Jesus being crucified, that it might mean that it definitely would happen?  Sometimes some people feel that if they don’t talk about something, it just doesn’t exist.  For example some people won’t talk about, or even acknowledge a negative medical report, that if they just ignore it, it will go away.  So maybe if they don’t talk about Jesus’ crucifixion, it won’t happen.  In addition, sometimes we don’t ask questions if we really don’t want to know the answers that will be given.

As Jesus and His disciples continued to walk, they came back to Capernaum, the village where He frequently visited and taught.  Once there, Jesus asked the disciples what they had been talking, and even arguing about (vs. 33).  Again, they kept quiet and didn’t answer, as they were probably embarrassed and ashamed of what they had argued among each other about.  The twelve, having been together for a couple of years, had gotten into an argument as to which of them was the greatest among the others (vs. 34).  Was it Peter, the first one to openly acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of God?  Was it either James or John, who along with Peter, were part of the inner group of three, closest to Jesus?  Was it Simon, who was nicknamed the zealous one, or Matthew, possibly the one who had the greatest change in his life, turning away from a life of corruption?

Jesus proceeded to settle that argument by saying the greatest one is actually the one who has genuine humility and acts as a servant to the others, not the one wanting to be served (vs. 35).   One sign of humility and having an attitude that isn’t so wrapped in pride is welcoming children, and treating them with love, interest, and concern.  Jesus took a little child and put him in their midst, saying that if they receive a child in His Name, they receive Him (vs. 36-37).

What Jesus taught about greatness is the exact opposite of what the world thinks.  He taught that to be great we need to become a servant to others.  Jesus, the Lord of all, gave us an example to follow when He washed the disciples feet (John 13:1-17).  Can you picture the heads of multi-billion dollar corporations getting on their knees and washing the feet of the janitors and cafeteria ladies?!  Humility is essential for leaders and all followers of Jesus Christ.

We also look at leaders having successfully achieved their goals, yet as we look at Jesus, we see Him being taken by His enemies and executed on the cross.  The world would not call that successful, they would call that losing.  However, what happened on the third day??  Jesus rose triumphantly from the dead!!  Jesus has power over death.  He has conquered death, and He could fulfill His own resurrection prophecies.  Contrary to what the world would say, that is success!  Jesus gave, in this Scripture, the picture of a successful man or woman in God’s Kingdom.

A Friend Of God

James 3:16 - 4:6

Would you like to be a friend of God?  I think that most people, if they believe in God, would like to consider Him their friend.  And I think that this would definitely hold true for those who have accepted His Son, Jesus, as their Savior. Yes, I believe that we all would like to be considered a friend of God’s.  In our Scripture today, as we continue in the Book of James, He speaks of being either a friend or an enemy of God.  He speaks of having wisdom that comes from God, which a friend of God would have, and also of wars and fighting.  Let’s look into this lesson from James.

As our Scripture opens, James speaks of several evil traits that are common among people, including sometimes found in believers.  These are envy and self-seeking or selfish ambition (vs. 16).  These bring about nothing but confusion, disorder, and all sorts of evil.  What causes envy in the hearts of so many people?  It comes when we are filled with greed, selfishness, and pride.  When we see someone else get something, we become discontent with what we have or don’t have, and we develop a covetous desire for what they have, along with a growing bitterness.  Jealousy or envy dishonors God, and one can hardly be a true friend of God if we allow these traits to remain in us.

However, a person who is filled with wisdom that comes from above, from God, will be pure, peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, show mercy, and other fruits of the Spirit (vs. 17-18).  Are you full of peace or full of anger?  Do you show gentleness to others, and show mercy?  Are you willing to yield to others?  Those willing to yield do not cling stubbornly to one’s own opinions, but are open to reason.  When we yield to Him, the Lord will give wisdom and these fruits without partiality.  God does not show favoritism.

James continues on speaking about wars and fighting among people (vs. 1-3).  This would include both actual wars between countries, and “warring” and fighting among individuals or groups.  As we read here, fighting and warring, both individually and in any size group, often comes from our desires for pleasure, wanting what others have, thinking it will bring us happiness, enjoyment or fulfillment.

Sometimes the reason we don’t have what we want is because we don’t ask God (vs. 2).  However, our motives need to be in tune with what God knows is best for us (I John 5:14).  Expectant prayer demonstrates confidence in God’s goodness.  All too often we forget to ask the Lord for specific things we need.  We need to pray in line with God’s commands.  God will not answer prayers for sinful or selfish motives (vs. 3).

Now we come to where our Scripture asks whose friend are we?  Are we a friend of the world or are we a friend of God?  Whose friend do we want to be? (vs. 4).  Usually when the Bible speaks of the “world” it is speaking of the world system, which follows the prince of this world, Satan (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11).  There is nothing wrong with loving and wanting to take care of nature, but it is wrong when we devote ourselves to the philosophies and thinking of the culture of this world.  Being a friend of this world is not compatible with being a friend of God.  Being a friend of this world is thinking, doing, and speaking as the world does, and to value the same things that the world does.  What God wants and what the world expects are diametrically opposed.

Sometimes people find it hard to submit to Jesus because we like to be in charge (vs. 6).  We hold back in fear because we may not like what God chooses for us, or we fear He may ask us to give up something or do something we don’t want to do.  We should have the same attitude as God’s Son, Jesus, who gave Himself to die at Calvary (Philippians 2:5-11).

The Bible speaks of one person, calling him specifically a “friend of God”, and that is the Patriarch Abraham.  We read in II Chronicles 20:7, in Isaiah 41:8; and earlier in James 2:23, where he was called a friend of God.  We all want friends, and what better friend could we have than God!  The world is fickle, and at any moment it will cast you out.  Satan doesn’t care about anyone.  He will use you, chew you up and then spit you out.  God, on the other hand, loves you and wants you to choose Him, and be His friend.

Wrongful Betrayal

Psalm 54

If you are hiding from someone, the last thing you want is for someone to find your hiding place, and especially not to reveal it to the one you’re hiding from.  It’s not such a big deal if it is just a game of hide and seek, though you still don’t want to be found.  However, if you’re hiding to save your life, you certainly don’t want your hiding place revealed to your enemy.  There are a number of cases throughout history of someone who was hiding for their life, and then the wrong person discovered their place and told the enemy, often with disastrous results for the person  Anne Frank would be one famous example.  Our psalm for this week is an example from the Bible of a group of people revealing the hiding place of someone to their sworn enemy.  Let’s take a look.

Psalm 54 was one of many psalms written by King David.  This psalm, like a few others, has a descriptive heading, explaining the background of the psalm.  After David’s great victory over the Philistine army champion Goliath, the young man came to the royal court of King Saul where he served as a personal musician to the king and also fought in the army, gaining more victories over the Philistines.  Rather than being glad over this, these victories stirred the emotionally unstable and insecure king into a rage, and he frequently made attempts to harm or kill David.  The young man had to spend many years on the run for his life.  It was during one of those times that David went to the small village of Ziph in the territory of Judah, and hid from Saul in that area.  However, despite their both being from the tribe of Judah, the residents of Ziph treacherously told King Saul where David was hiding out (I Samuel 23:14-29).

Imagine how David felt when he heard that the residents of the area turned their back against him and told the king where he was hiding!  These were his people, members of the tribe of Judah.  Tribal loyalty meant a lot back then, yet they betrayed him!  David wasn’t a weak man, and he had a number of well trained men who followed with him, so if he wanted to, he was well-equipped to take his revenge on the townsfolk.  What would David do?

If any of us have ever been wrongfully betrayed by another we can imagine how David felt, and known the desire to seek revenge on these enemies.  Instead of gathering his warriors around him, and going back to Ziph and razing it to the ground, David instead turned to the Lord in prayer.  He was hurt.  He was angry.  After all, he nearly lost his life due to their treachery!  However, that is not what David did.  Instead, he went to the Lord in prayer, knowing that vengeance belongs to Him (Deuteronomy 32:35; Romans 12:19).   He prayed to the Lord that He will help him, and that He will repay his enemies for the evil they have done to him (vs. 4-5).

The word “helper” in Hebrew (vs 4) is “ezer”, which gives the idea of rescuing, one who rescues or helps when someone is doomed.  This helper supplies what one lacks when the enemy attacks.  David knew God was his “ezer”.   He knew that the Lord would uphold him in his time of need, that He would sustain and support him like the beams support a building so that it does not fall or collapse.

Because David had a relationship with God, he felt comfortable to be bold and specific in his requests to Him.  Though there is nothing wrong with a general prayer of “Help!”, David knew he could be specific with God.  He knew that as His child, he could ask God to rightly judge them and take care of them according to His righteousness.  David prayed that the evil planned against him would come back on their own head.  David concentrated on doing right rather than in plotting his own revenge.  He surrendered that right to God.  This is something that we should learn, as well, when someone does something unjustly against us.  Rather than coming up with some equally harmful plot, we should leave the vengeance to God as David did.

Jesus also experienced something similar to what David did when He was betrayed by Judas Iscariot, someone who was one of the twelve disciples.  And then strangers arose against Him (vs. 3).  Ruthless men sought to take His life.  They thought that they were serving God, but really they had not set the Lord before them.  If they had they would never have killed the Son of God, their own Messiah.

When we feel the treachery of an enemy, or even from someone we thought we could trust, instead of plotting our own revenge, instead, let’s go to the Lord in prayer, and then leave the matter in His hand.  Let’s trust in the Lord to be our helper, and to uphold us with His love.

Today's Wisdom From Proverbs

Proverbs 22

Some Christians follow a practice of reading one chapter from the Book of Proverbs each day.  Since most months have 31 days, and there are 31 chapters in Proverbs, that provides a chapter for each day of the month.  Today being the 22nd day of the month, let us take a quick look into some verses from the 22nd chapter of Proverbs.

The Book of Proverbs is part of the wisdom literature in the Bible, which includes Psalms, Job, Song of Solomon, and Ecclesiastes.  A large portion of the book are sayings collected from King Solomon, though there are others whose sayings were also included.  The book speaks of how important it is to obtain God’s wisdom and the fear of the Lord.  It also gives instruction in godly values, moral behavior, human life, and right conduct.

Solomon opens this chapter with instructing us in the importance of having a good name (vs. 1).  Solomon was an enormously wealthy king, so rich that he could have anything he ever wanted.  However, when weighed in a balance, the king knew that having a good name was much more valuable. He would rather have a name that he could be proud of than all the riches he had.  How many wealthy people do we know who have all the money they could want, yet their behavior, the way they treat others, is atrocious?  God says it is better to have that good name, one that is held in high regard among others, than to have riches.

When we are doing God’s work and living God’s way, we can count on receiving everything we truly need to keep going (vs. 1-4).   Honor and a good name are more desirable than great riches.  Humble people rely on God’s direction, and thus avoid many dangerous pitfalls in life.

In verse 6 we have a verse that has caused some good and godly parents some puzzlement when their children go off down the wrong path.  They wonder where they went wrong and why God seems to be punishing them.  We need to remember that Proverbs purpose is as a book of wisdom sayings, not a book of promises.  If Proverbs were a book of promises then all godly people would be wealthy, and we would all live long and healthy lives (Proverbs 10:22, 27).  The Bible teaches that we’re responsible to God for how we teach and bring up our children, but we are not responsible for our children’s adult choices (Ezekiel 18:20).   Christian parents need to be the best parent they can be, and take neither credit nor blame for their children’s choices.  Instead, thank God when they choose holiness, and pray when they don’t.

Many parents today want to let their children make their own decisions.  That is definitely not a wise thing to do.  Children will grab at the first flashy thing with ribbons that they see, but then find out too late that it has a hook in it!   Temptations to do the wrong thing come packaged with glitter all over it, and children do not have the wisdom to make the right choice.  Parents need to be laying a Biblical foundation in their life, so that when they are older they will make wise decisions.

In our chapter we see several verses that speak to us about how we should treat the poor - verses 9, 16, 22-23.  The Word of God records that we are supposed to show kindness to the poor who are in need and who dwell among us.  Anyone who gives to the poor will never go unrewarded.  It is a sacrifice that God is well-pleased with at all times.

Like most of the chapters of Proverbs, chapter 22 is filled with many words of godly wisdom.  Let us quickly look at one more line of wisdom that God wishes us to apply to our life in verses 24-25.  Solomon frequently spoke about the dangers of getting angry, and letting our anger flare up.  We may think that we have reasons to justify our anger, but God says it is foolish.  It only stirs up strife, and will lead us to sin.  Keeping company with, and making good friends with someone who is an angry person, who frequently and violently loses his temper, is not wise or advisable.  We tend to become like those we keep frequent company with, and becoming one prone to anger is not the type of person God wants us to be.  God warns us to not even associate with an angry person.

These are just some tidbits of wisdom that we reap from the Book of Proverbs on this 22nd day of the month.  Each day of the month the Lord gives us a handful of wisdom from Proverbs to guide us through the day.

Help Our Unbelief

Mark 9:14-29

Have you ever faced a devastating problem, and you have looked everywhere and to everyone you thought might help, and no one could help you?  The problem is critical, and you are quickly losing all hope that anything will change and get better.  Where or who can you go to for help?  This is a situation that faced a desperate father in our Gospel reading for today.

As our Scripture opens, Jesus had just spent some time with His three closest disciples on top of a mountain, where He was transfigured (Mark 9:2-8).  As Jesus returned back down the mountain, He noticed a commotion going on with the other disciples, the scribes, and other village folk.  Not liking to see His disciples involved in a squabble, He asked what was going on (vs. 14-16).  Then a man approached Jesus, and told Him how his son had a demon since he was a young child, and how he brought the son to His disciples to cast that demon out, but they had been unable to (vs. 17-18).

Jesus then rebuked the crowd for their lack of faith, and requested that the father bring his son to Him.  As the boy was brought, he started to convulse and foam at the mouth, and the father begged Jesus to do something, “if He could” (vs. 19-22).  Jesus spoke directly to the father then, saying that if he could believe, everything was possible.  The father then gained a spark of faith, just a spark, and told Jesus he did believe, but still had some unbelief.  Jesus then cast that demon out, and restored the delivered boy to his father (vs. 23-27).

Why were the disciples unable to cast this demon out when they had done so before, and had seen Jesus cast demons out numerous times?  The boy had been tormented for many years, and there were many unbelieving people present.  Prayer with great faith was needed in this case (vs. 28-29).  Prayer is needed to accomplish work done in and through His power.  Facing the evil one in both seen and unseen realms requires prayer accompanied by great faith.  Jesus has the power for us to successfully overcome all evil.  As the great 19th century evangelist D. L. Moody said, “He who kneels the most, stands the best.”

When the father came to Jesus, he said to Him “if You can do anything” (vs. 22).  The word “if” is in the wrong place!  It is not if Jesus can heal the boy,  it is if the father can believe (vs. 23).  As the Savior spoke to him, the father’s trust was strengthened, and he prayed for an increase in faith.  Jesus spoke the Word of healing and deliverance.  All things are possible to one who believes.  Sometimes when our circumstances feel overwhelming, our prayer can simply be “I do believe, help me overcome my unbelief.”

The saying “seeing is believing” should not be the saying for Christians.  In the spiritual realm that is very seldom true.  If we could see, why would we need to have faith?  We need to walk by faith, not by sight (II Corinthians 5:7).  Do we trust in God’s unseen sovereignty and His personal care for us?  In order to grow stronger spiritually, we must take our eyes off of our circumstances and look to the Lord. By trusting in His character, and believing in His promises, we can overcome anxiety and develop greater faith.

Faith is a trust convinced that God ultimately knows what is best, and that He will do what is right.  Faith is a reliance upon God to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves.

Jesus is greater than any obstacle that we face.  He put the stars in place.  He gave the oceans their boundaries, and set the earth spinning.  Jesus said “Let there be light” and it was, and it has never gone out.  He has healed the blind and lepers.  The devil can’t come up with a problem in our life that God can’t solve.  It is not a question of what God can do, but only of what we believe He can do.  Only we limit what God does through us.