Whining at our pity party - William Law

Selection from A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life, by William Law, written about 1728.



A dull, uneasy, and complaining spirit, which is sometimes the spirit of those who seem mindful of religion, is, of all temperaments, the most contrary to religion, for it disowns that God whom it pretends to adore.

A person disowns God when he does adore Him as a Being of infinite goodness. If a man does not believe from his heart that all who believe that Jesus is the Christ are born of God and in His Kingdom, where nothing happens by chance, but everything is guided and directed by the care and providence of a Being that is all love and goodness to all His children, then he cannot be said truly to believe in God.

...he that believes that everything happens to him for the best, cannot possibly complain for the lack of something that is better.

If, therefore, you live in murmurings and complaints, accusing all the accidents of life, it is not because you are a weak, infirm creature, but it is because you lack the first principle of Christianity -- a true belief in God.

For as thankfulness is an express acknowledgment of the goodness of God towards you, so discontentment and complaints are as plain accusations of God's lack of goodness toward you.

Quoteworthy...Amnesia, by Chesterton

We have all read in romances, the story of the man who has forgotten his name. This man walks about the streets and can see and appreciate everything; only he cannot remember who he is. Well, every man is that man in the story. Every man has forgotten who he is.
         -- G. K. Chesterton, from Orthodoxy





Comments from Kevin Belmonte....

Chesterton had been given the grace to remember who he was--a beloved child of the Creator--someone precious and unique--an integral part (as indeed we all are) of the great cosmic story that God has been writing across time. Thus each of our lives is imbued with profound meaning and significance. We are not solitary travelers left to our own devices--at the mercy of mere impersonal chance. God has written us into His story.

How A Father Loves

 

                                                               How a Father Loves 

The Lord your God is in your midst; the Mighty One will save;

He will rejoice over you with gladness,

He will quiet you with His love,

He will rejoice over you with singing.

Zephaniah 3:17    

I love this image! God, our loving Father, holding us, soothing us, calming us as we fret, whispering a lullabye, rejoicing in His love for us...."O how He Loves You and Me'!   

Short Thought of Comfort for Every Day

After His resurrection, when Christ appeared to Peter, He asked him, "Peter, do you love Me?" Peter said, "Yes, You know I love You!"

What I notice today is what Jesus didn't say. He didn't say, "Peter, will you deny again?" "Peter, will you fail Me again?"

What Jesus didn't say brings me great comfort.

Glimpses of Prevenient Grace

Yesterday I did the "Madame Guyon practice" and just picked up my Bible and started reading slowly. The Bible opened to Psalm 40.

I waited patiently for the LORD;
He turned to me and heard my cry.
He lifted me out of the slimy pit
Out of the mud and mire;
He set my feet on a rock
And gave me a firm place to stand.
He put a new song in my mouth,
A hymn of praise to our God.
Psalm 40:1-3

How many times have I read that passage? Who could count?

But this is the first time (Thank you, Madame Guyon) that I really noticed the wording of the second line: He turned to me and heard my cry.

God turned toward the Psalmist, and THEN He heard his cry. The Psalmist was waiting patiently.....so he must not have started his cry until the LORD turned toward him..

I flipped back to Exodus, chapter 3. God says to Moses, "I have indeed seen the misery of My people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering." So the LORD saw and then heard their cries.

Then there is the record of Adam and Eve. After their sin, they hid. God came to them. They didn't run to Him. He came to them first. He sought them out so He could show them His grace.

"We love Him because He first loved us." (I John 4:19)

Prevenient Grace

People used to talk about Prevenient Grace. I don't hear much about it these days.


Prevenient Grace is divine grace which precedes human decision. It exists prior to and without reference to anything humans may have done.

So God's grace existed for them before they needed it, or before they realized they needed it.

Looking back to Psalm 40: God gave the poet a new song, a song of praise.

Did David ask for the song?

C S Lewis - Why does a mole dig?

I reject at once the idea which lingers in the mind of some modern people that cultural activities are in their own right spiritual and meritorious - as though scholars and poets were intrinsically more pleasing to God than scavengers and bootblacks...

Let us tear it forever from our minds.

The work of a Beethoven and the work of a charwoman become spiritual on precisely the same condition -  that of being offered to God, of being humbly done 'as to the Lord'.

This does not, of course, mean that it is for anyone a mere toss-up whether he should sweep rooms or compose symphonies.

A mole must dig to the glory of God and a cock must crow.

We are members of one body, but differentiated members, each with his own vocation.

                  - C S Lewis, The Weight of Glory


     Just as each of us has one body and many
     members, and these members do not all have the
     same function, so in Christ we who are many
     form one body, and each member belongs to all
     others.

     We have different gifts, according to the grace
     given us.

     If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in
        proportion to his faith;
     if it is serving, let him serve;
     if it is teaching, let him teach;
     if it is encouraging, let him encourage;
     if it is contributing to the needs of others, let
        him give generously;
     if it is leadership, let him govern diligently.

                            - Romans 12:4-8


Father, no matter what I do today - whether it is weeding in the garden, washing dishes, telling people about your Rescue Plan, taking food to the hungry, let me do it for YOU - in your name - for your glory -

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

 - Colossians 3:17

Whatever you do, work at it will all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men...

- Colossians 3:23

The Meaning of History- James M Boice

Thoughts on redemption....



"But all are not to be redeemed. That is hard saying, yet it is the teaching of the Word of God.

... to make the Christian view of history complete  there must be added to the other doctrines already considered--creation, providence, revelation and redemption--the doctrine of God's final judgment at the end of history.

Christians express belief in this doctrine in the Apostles' Creed: "From thence [that is, heaven]
He [Christ] shall come to judge the quick and the dead."

In saying that Christ is to judge the dead as well as the living (the quick) the Creed is saying that in the ultimate analysis the meaning of history is not found only at the end of history -- as if everything had been building up to one final peak of accomplishment    which shall then be judged fit or not fit for glory.

The meaning of history is rather found in any given moment in the choice or choices made by any given individual no matter who that person is, where he nor she has come from, nor how important he or she may seem to be...

The important moment in history is always now."

  --From Foundations of the Christian Faith by
James Montgomery Boice.

Who was there? The 120 - Acts 1:1-15

Acts 1:1-15

" In my former book [The Gospel of Luke], Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day He was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles He had chosen. After His suffering, He showed Himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that He was alive. He appeared to them over a period of 40 days and spoke about the Kingdom of God.  On one occasion He gave them this command: Do not leave Jerusalem but wait for the gift My Father promised, which  you have heard me speak about...."

"Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath's day walk from the city. When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying.....they joined constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary, the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers...a group numbering about 120."

I've always wondered about the group of 120: who were they?

We know the 11 apostles were there. They are listed by name. And we know Mary the mother of Jesus was there, and His brothers. We are told that.

And we assume Matthias and Joseph Barsabbas were there, because Peter, anxious to fill the vacant spot (the 12th disciple) left by Judas, who had betrayed Christ and killed himself, suggested one of them take Judas' place.

So that's 17 or 18 gathered there obediently awaiting the promised gift of the Holy Spirit to strengthen, comfort and guide them.

What about the other 100 or so "believers"?

It's exciting to think about.

Likely Martha, Mary, and Lazarus were there. Maybe Peter's mother-in-law, who had been healed by Christ.

What about the no-longer-blind Bartimaeus, who met Jesus on the road to Jericho?

What about the chief tax-collector Zacchaeus, who wanted to see Jesus but was too short to see over the crowd and climbed up into the sycamore tree?
Jesus spotted him right away and said "Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today."  He got a better look at the Savior than he could have imagined.

What about the widow of Nain, and her son, who Jesus raised from the dead?

What about the Roman centurion in Capernaum, who asked Jesus to heal his servant?

And what about Simon, the man from North Africa, who was recruited to help Jesus carry His cross?

And what about the rich young ruler, who turned away sadly when Jesus told him he needed to give away his wealth? Maybe he reconsidered his position and his priorities and came back?

Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue, and his daughter?
And the woman who only touched the hem of His robe for healing.

The woman at Jacob's well? The little boy with the lunch of loaves and fishes He gave Jesus to feed the great crowd?

Nicodemus? He visited Jesus one night and was told he needed to be "born again." Then we see him caution the Jewish leaders not to pre-judge Jesus at His trial, and then we learn of him helping prepare His body for burial. I would like to think he was one of the 120.

What about the Emmaus disciples, Cleopas and his companion (Mary?) They had returned to Jerusalem earlier, according to Luke 24, and probably stayed once they knew that Jesus had been raised from the dead, joining the other disciples who were waiting.

There are so many more - lepers, blind, lame, demon-possessed. Some just hungry and thirsty.

John reminds us, "Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written" (John 21:25).


We don't know who all were in the group of 120 "believers."

But we know they were obedient and expectant, waiting for the promised gift the Father was sending the empower and comfort them.

They probably all shared their own experiences with Christ, marveling with each other as their stories unfolded. 

"I was so shocked," Zacchaeus might have said, "When Jesus looked up at me and said to get down fast and hurry to MY home because He was going to visit ME...in MY home!"

And we know as they waited in Jerusalem, they were (1) obedient, (2) joined together in fellowship, and (3) constantly in prayer.

Certainly good practices to follow for all of us today!










 

Making Pleasure Displeasing - C S Lewis

When I was growing up, C. S. Lewis' Screwtape Letters was a big hit. Later he wrote so many more books that Screwtape's (Screwtape was a senior demon) letters to his trainee (Wormwood, a junior demon)) have been almost forgotten, at least neglected.

Narnia, Mere Christianity, Weight of Glory and Til We Have Faces are on most people's bookshelves. I don't see Screwtape much any more.

These "Letters" were among Lewis' earliest writings. He was still a relatively new Christian.

He describes Screwtape  as a demon who holds an administrative post in the bureaucracy ("Lowerarchy") of Hell. He is mentor to Wormwood, the new, inexperienced apprentice tempter.

Screwtape gives Wormwood detailed advice on various methods of undermining faith and promoting sin.

Here's Screwtape's letter to Wormwood about Pleasure:

Screwtape -- Hell's View of Pleasure

Never forget that when we are dealing with any pleasure in its healthy and satisfying form, we are, in a sense, on the Enemy's ground.

I know that we have won many a soul through pleasure. All the same, it is His invention, not ours. He made the pleasures: all of our research so far has not enabled us to produce one.

All we can do is to encourage the humans to take the pleasures which our Enemy has produced, at times, or in ways, or in degrees, which He has forbidden.

Hence we always try to work away from the natural condition of any pleasure to that in which it is least natural, least redolent of its Maker, and least pleasurable.

 An ever-increasing craving for an ever-diminishing pleasure is the formula. It is more certain; and it is better style. To get the man's soul and give him nothing in return--that is what really gladdens our Father's heart.
             
                                                             ***********************


Lewis includes a lot of doctrine and observations of human nature in these illuminating letters.

The world that Screwtape and Wormwood live in is a messed-up (or bent as Lewis would say) morally reversed world, in which greed and self-indulgence are seen as the greatest good. Neither demon is able to understand, or acknowledge, true virtue when he sees it.

Sounds like the same world we live in today!

Using the Wrong Gas - Thoughts from C S Lewis

 

                                   

                                        Using the Wrong Gas - Thoughts from C S Lewis

"God made us: invented us as a man invents a machine.

A car is made to run on petrol, and will not run properly on anything else.

God designed the human machine to run on Himself. He Himself is the fuel  our spirits were designed to burn.

There is no other.

That is the key to  history.

Terrific energy is expended - civilizations are built up - excellent institutions are devised; but each time something goes wrong.

Some fatal flaw always brings the selfish and cruel people to the top and it all slides back into misery and run.

In fact, the engine conks. It seems to start up all right and runs a few yards and the it breaks down.

They are trying to run on the wrong juice.

That is what Satan has done to us humans."

                                                                                     -- From Mere Christianity

And God saw that it was all good.....from James Boice

An important note in our creation account in Genesis is: And God saw that it was good (Genesis 1:25).

This was God's moral evaluation, His pronouncement over what He had made.

He considered it good.



From James Boice's Foundation of the Christian Faith...

This pronouncement is not made in reference to some object because we in a pragmatic way can point to it and say, "This thing is useful to me."

God's pronouncement upon the goodness of the rest of creation came before we were even made.

And that means that a tree, to give an example, is not good only because we can cut it down and make a house out of it or because we can burn it in order to get heat.

It is good because God made it and pronounced it good.

It is good, because like everything else in creation, it conforms to God's nature.

Francis Schaeffer calls these words -- and God saw that it was good -- the divine benediction.


"This is not a relative judgment, but a judgment of the holy God who has a character and whose character is the law of the universe.

"His conclusion: every step and every sphere of creation, and the whole thing put together--man himself and his total environment, the heavens and the earth--conforms to Myself."


God's evaluation in Genesis 1 is confirmed by God's covenant with the human race and the earth given at the time of Noah--after the fall.


Then God says, "Behold, I establish my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, as many as come out of the ark...I set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth" (Genesis 9:9-10, 13).


God's covenant: Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth. (Genesis 9:11)



Here God's concern is expressed, not just for Noah and those human beings who were with him in the ark, but for the birds and cattle and even the earth itself. His whole creation is "good."

And so in Romans 8 we again see the value of all God has made.

He intends to redeem the whole earth afflicted by the Fall.

"The creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the glorious liberty of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning in travail together until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies"
(Romans 8:21-23).

Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!

Why did He choose them?

Reading in Mark, chapter 3, verses 13-15:

Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to Him those He wanted, and they came to Him. He appointed twelve--designating them apostles--that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach and to have authority to cast out demons....

I have read this passage many times -- but here is something that now penetrates my thick skull....that they might be with Him....


He selected those twelve because He wanted them to be with Him -- like friends.... 


When someone on Survivor wins a reward challenge, sometimes they can take someone to share the special reward with them. How do they choose? Alliances? Future strategy? A payback? A whim? Sometimes it turns out to be a really bad choice.


But Christ carefully chose those twelve. They are the ones He wanted to be close to.  Even Judas?


I would have probably chosen a few disciples with wealthy family connections  - to help us out when things were tight....or maybe someone well-liked and influential, to assure us that our message would fall on receptive ears - someone popular or a celebrity would certainly be an asset to our group.


Maybe someone who had political alliances, to use their influence should we need someone to intercede for us, should the need come.........but I can't imagine I would have chosen those twelve. Did Christ see something others did not see?


Maybe Christ chose them because He knew what they would become, not what they were at that moment.He could see further than we can.


The scripture says....that they might be with Him....It was more than strategy or political correctness.  He was looking for...could He mean that...friends?


I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends...you did not choose Me, but I chose you. John 15:15-16


I did not choose Him...He chose me.....for the same reason?

In Uniform - Thoughts from Oswald Chambers

Thoughts from Oswald Chambers

O Lord, I would crave more and more to put on love like a garment, that in my contact with men that is what they will most lastingly recognize.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

While He was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on His head. Mark 14:3

The characteristic of love is that it is spontaneous; it bursts up in extraordinary ways; it is never premeditated. The reason Jesus called Mary's act "a good work" was because it was wrought out of spontaneous love to Himself. It was neither useful nor her duty; it was an extravagant act for which no one else saw any occasion.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Love is not blind; love sees a great deal more than the actual; it sees the ideal in the actual, consequently the actual is transfigured by the ideal. That is a different thing from "halo-slinging," which means you have your own idea about other people and expect them to live up to it, and then when they don't, you blame them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We have to dedicate ourselves to love, which means identifying ourselves with God's interests in other people, and God is interested in some funny people, viz., in you and me!

Where did it come from?

What Paul told his friends in Galatia --

"I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel I preached is not of human origin.  I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ."  Galatians 1:11-12.

A good thing to remember, and it is our story, too.

We received the message..... not because someone talked us into it, or argued with us til our futile objections were exposed, or exhausted our patience, but because of the work of God through the Holy Spirit, who broke down our reservations and  revealed the truth to our hungry hearts. 

And for that we will praise God forever!

And we'll remember when we talk to others about how Jesus has saved us, the same pattern is at work -- it is not our clever arguments, our persuasive explanation, or our skillful well-thought-out observations that leads to their acceptance of the message -- it is because the Holy Spirit has been at work revealing the truth of the gospel to their hungry hearts!

We are just conduits -- lowly servants delivering a message.

Or as someone has said, 'just one hungry beggar telling another one where to find bread'!

Praise God forever!

The First Gleam of Heaven - C S Lewis

                                        The First Gleam of Heaven - C S Lewis

Good advice from C S Lewis:

"To trust Him means, of course, trying  to do all that He says. There would be no sense in saying you trusted a person if you wouldn't take his advice.

Thus if you have really handed yourself over to Him, it must follow that you are trying to obey Him.

But trying in a new way, a  less worried way.

Not doing those things in order to be saved, but because God has begun to  save you already. Not hoping to get to Heaven as a reward for your actions,  but inevitably wanting to act in a certain way because a first gleam of heaven is already inside you."

                                        ---From Mere Christianity 

{At sunrise, we see the gleam first, and then the sun. There is never a sun without the gleam announcing its appearance!}

Generosity - Thoughts From Charles Morris

                                          Generosity - Thoughts from Charles

"He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but he who is kind to the needy honors God" (Proverbs 14:31)

I love these thoughts from Charles Morris:

When we share our resources with others, it helps the other person.

But the Bible teaches there is something more going on, something vertical as well as horizontal.

How we treat others actually communicates glory to God.

God created all human beings, and therefore, when  we mistreat others we insult God.

We say to Him, 'Your creatures are not worth my effort.'

But when we show generosity we are telling Him through those acts that we value the things He has made.

They are worth our respect and investment.

Our generosity flows from a heart captivated by the generosity of our loving Savior.

He is generous to us, the needy, by providing a Savior to rebellious people, like we are, who can offer nothing in return but a heart filled with gratitude to Him.

                      As He has been to us, may we be to others...

.

What Does Holiness Do? Oswald Chambers

                                             

                                                     What Does Holiness Do?     

Words to ponder from Oswald Chambers -

"God is not some eternal-blessing machine for people to use, and He did not come to save us out of pity - He came to save us because He created us to be holy.

Atonement through the Cross of Christ means that God can put me back into perfect oneness with Himself through the death of Jesus Christ, without a race of anything coming between us any longer.

Never tolerate, because of sympathy for yourself or others, any practice that is not in keeping with a holy God.

Holiness means absolute purity of your walk before Christ, the words coming out of your mouth and every thought in your mind -- placing every detail of your life under the scrutiny of God Himself.

Holiness is not simply what God gives me, but what God has given me that is being exhibited in my life."

             

What Einstein Considered

 

                                                    What Einstein Considered

Einstein once observed that there are two different ways of thinking about our world. One way is to consider nothing as a miracle. And the other way is to consider everything as a miracle!

He chose the second option.

And so do I.

In Genesis we are told that when God created our world and all its amazing creatures, He pronounced everything "good." -- not OK or adequate or acceptable or interesting, but GOOD! Their creation bought Him pleasure.

Psalm 104 says,  "How many are your works, LORD! In wisdom You made them all; the earth is full of Your creatures."

Witnessing His creation causes us to bow in worship and adoration! There are 5,000 known species of sponges on the ocean floor. Over 300,000 species of beetles! Multitudes of different flowers, trees, and birds.

Some are enchantingly beautiful and others are enchantingly odd. They reveal the unsearchable wealth of God's creativity, His love of beauty and color and variety even His sense of humor!

And "in wisdom He made them all."  Its an invitation to us to stop and observe, marvel and explore and worship every day!

Lord, Your word tells us that Your creatures display Your existence and greatness. Open my eyes and ears today as I walk about in Your World -- help me see more about You. "In reason's ear they all rejoice, and utter forth in glorious voice, Forever singing as they shine, 'The hand that made us is divine!'"

Scraps

Remnants and Scraps....

Remnants was a word my mother often used. To her, a remnant was a scrap or piece of cloth left over after the rest of the cloth had been used. Any small pieces left over after she made a dress or a shirt was to her, a remnant. It might be very small, if so she would save it to use in making a quilt. There were stacks of these small pieces, almost like yellow sticky memoes, all around her sewing area.

She was astonished, later in life, when she heard women talked about buying remnants from a fabric store to use in their quilts -- that was "cheating" to her. It wasn't really a quilt unless you used the left over scraps from something you had made yourself. How could any serious quilter use "new" scraps!

After she finished her quilts she could point to a colorful design and say, "That's the skirt I made for you when you were in junior high!" Or, "That was left over from the dress I made for Easter that year -- you remember, I wore that beautiful blue hat with it!" (My mother was a great one for wearing hats! The hat she was referring to was a blue "pillbox" hat - the kind we used to call
"Jackie Kennedy" hats.)

She showed me how flexible she was when, in 1986, she presented me with a quilt honoring the 150th birthday of Texas. It was all red, white and blue, with large stars and solid stripes to separate the sections. It was her own design.

We were both so proud of it -- and she admitted, without embarrassment, that she had had to buy the "remnants," or "scraps" from the fabric store to make it for me!

Well, it is not very often that we see fabric stores any more.....and few women wear hats....
Though Art's sister, Phyllis, who is visiting with us now with her husband Bob, and I went shopping this week and we both bought beautifully designed small white hats --with veils -- sort of "mini" hats that we can wear to church. So we are trying to revive the custom in some small way. And I hear that Patsy Parkey wore a large wonderful hat on Easter, but I didn't see it. Ruby wears hats, and sometimes Patrice.

Back to scraps....I have been thinking about remnants lately.

When Elijah moaned to God:

"I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have broken
down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only
one left, and now they are trying to kill me too."

God answered:

Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel--all whose knees have not bowed down to
Baal...

A remnant. And we are also a remnant.

From the time of Noah, the Bible tells us that the human race has been very sinful, but there has also been a righteous minority that God preserves.

Maybe it was a small group, as in Noah's time, when it was only 8 people. Maybe seven thousand. Many larger today in numbers. But God has not ever allowed His testimony to be completed purged.

The nation of Israel was never, as a whole, faithful to God. Only small families and groups remained true to Him. Isaiah mentions a "righteous remnant' dozens of times. Zephaniah predicted a time when "the remnant of Israel will not do unrighteousness, and speak no lies nor shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth" (Zephaniah 3:13).

The early Christians saw themselves as a remnant. And the early pilgrims coming to the new world often called themselves a remnant. In fact, the pilgrims on the Mayflower referred to themselves as Noah's family and the Mayflower as the ark.

Early founding fathers, Samuel Adams and others, referred to the righteous remnant God had taken from the old corrupt countries of Europe, rescued them, and brought them into a new world to begin a purer and holier society. Starting from scratch, as Noah did.

But when they used "remnant" it was not in reference to "scraps" and "left overs" -- it was
holy righteous people -- a people of value -- a people treasured by God. Not scraps, but jewels.

Today any small surviving group of people can be called a remnant. I guess that means us, too!
(And I guess women wearing hats are sort of a remnant, too! ...
Although wearing a hat does not make us a 'righteous remnant.')

Psalm 29 - Part 6 - One more thing

The LORD gives strength to His people;

The LORD blesses His people with peace.

Psalm 29:11

Where are God's people during the storm?

   -- In the temple praising Him

Where are the angels?

   -- In heaven praising Him

Where is God?

   -- Enthroned as always, King of the Universe,

       Sovereign over all, in heaven

The flood of Noah's day was a flood of judgment.

God's people were rescued and safe in the Ark.

Is this psalm reminding us that there is a final storm

of judgment coming?

Is it warning us to get ready, using the thunderstorm as a powerful image?

The only ones who will be ready for judgment are God's people...the ones to whom He gives strength to withstand the storms and on whom He gives His peace...

The ones who have been rescued and found safety

in the hands of Christ.

We see a future judgment in Revelation, Chapter 19.

The scene is described by John:

     Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters, and peals of thunder, shouting:

    

          Hallelujah!

          For our Lord God Almighty reigns

          Let us rejoice and be glad

          And give Him glory!

     I saw heaven standing open and there before

     me was a white horse, whose rider is called

     Faithful and True. With justice he judges

     and makes war....

     He treads the wine press of the fury of the

     wrath of God Almighty.

     On his robe and on his thigh he has the name

     written:

                     King of Kings and Lord of Lords

The only ones who will be ready for judgment are God's people  - the ones to whom He has given His peace.

     Rejoice, the Lord is near...And the peace of God

     which transcends all understanding, will guard

     your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

                -- Philippians 4:5, 7

Another thought from Dr. Boice:

     Do you remember the words of the angels to the shepherds at the mid-night announcement of the birth of Jesus in Luke 2:14?

        Glory to God in the highest, and on earth

        peace to men on whom His favor rests....

     This in the very pattern of Psalm 29, as Franz Delitzsch noted more than a hundred years ago.

It begins with the angels giving praise to God in heaven: Gloria in excelsis.

And it ends with the blessing et in terra pax, that is, "Peace" to those on whom his favor rests.

And God blesses His people with peace

    

Psalm 29 - (Part 5) Verses 10-11

The LORD sits enthroned over the flood;

The LORD is enthroned as King forever.

The LORD gives strength to His people;

The LORD blesses His people with peace.

Psalm 29:10-11

In the first stanza of this psalm (verses 1-2) David appeals to the angels in heaven to join in a chorus of praise to God.

It is somewhat unusual to see a psalm requesting the "mighty ones" (angels) to praise the LORD, since that is what they do all the time anyway.

Perhaps David was realizing his (our) own inadequacy and was challenging everything in God's creation to join together to exalt the majesty of the LORD God Almighty!

Or maybe something else is motivating David...

I think of him having a heart so full of joyful praise that he can't contain it.

Like that song we love to sing:

     And when the love spills over

       and music fills the night

       And when you can't contain your joy inside

       Then dance for Jesus! dance for Jesus!

       Dance for Jesus and live!

David's heart spilled over with joy and praise and he shouts to all around him -- let's all praise God!

Asking the angels to join him was a spontaneous act responding to the goodness and majesty of God!

In the second stanza (verses 3-9) we see a horrific storm approaching and trace its path as it makes its relentless way from the sea to the desert, so powerful it destroys great forests and seems to make the mountains tremble.

This storm is full of sound and fury and signifies the power of God over nature.

And where are the people?

Safely in the temple praising God!

So the angels are in heaven glorifying God and the human creatures are in God's temple praising Him....

Reminding us that God's creatures will respond to Him in praise, no matter where they are!

And where is God?

The Third Stanza

Verses 10-11

This brings us to the third and final stanza - verses 10-11.

The storm has passed, but God remains as the enthroned King of the universe.

The earth and its people were shaken, but the LORD was in control, as always.

And this is how the psalm ends.

What remains after the storm is God Himself, reigning sovereign, as He always has and always will.

The psalm does not say the people were frightened - they were in the temple worshipping.

Maybe they were exhilarated by the display.

And they felt the strength and peace of God.

There is an interesting note about verse 10:

     God sits enthroned over the flood...

 the LORD is enthroned as King forever...

A storm of this magnitude would produce heavy rain

and there would be flooding.

But it would be localized floods, from Mount Hermon to the desert, from the highlands to the lowlands....in the Holy Land...

The Hebrew word in Psalm 29:10 for flood is only used one other place in Scripture, and that is in Genesis 6-9 when we read the account of the great flood of Noah.

All Jews would know that portion of Scripture well.

In English we would translate the word deluge, or The Flood here in verse 10.

According to James Montgomery Boice, there is  another fact to consider: the Hebrew word sits is actually sat (past tense).

So we should properly read the verse:

     God sat enthroned over The Flood of Noah, continues to be enthroned, and will be enthroned forever.

So God was in control then, He is in control now, and He will be in control in the future.

He is in control of all storms - from the storm of Noah to the storms in our lives.

He saved His people then; He saves us now; and He will save us in the future!

Praise God from whom all blessings flow

Praise Him ye creatures here below

Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts

Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost!

AMEN! and AMEN!

Psalm 29 - (Part 4) Verses 3-9

(3) The voice of the LORD is over the waters;

The God of glory thunders,

The LORD thunders over the mighty waters.

(4) The voice of the LORD is powerful;

The voice of the LORD is majestic.

(5) The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars;

The LORD breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon.

(6) He makes Lebanon skip like a calf

Sirion like a young wild ox

(7) The voice of the LORD strikes

with flashes of lightning.

(8) The voice of the LORD shakes the desert;

The LORD shakes the Desert of Kadesh

(9) The voice of the LORD twists the oaks

and makes the forest bare,

And in his temple all cry "Glory!"

In the first stanza of Psalm 29 (verses 1-2) David appeals to the heavenly angels (the 'mighty ones') to proclaim God's glory!

He is yearning for all God's creatures - Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts -- to join us as we praise our LORD!

Worship the LORD in the splendor of His holiness (verse 2) -- which would be right where the angels are eternally -- in God's actual presence -- witnessing first hand His Holiness!

We, too, should always praise God right where we are!

Second Stanza - Verses 3-9

The second stanza (verses 3-9) describes a great storm.

When we read the words we can't help but be reminded of great storms we have experienced -- the thunder and lightning and whirling winds. Hurricanes and tornadoes.

It is not hard to imagine early Christians and later believers huddled in their dwellings, whether it be humble cottages or great walled castles, reading this hymn aloud to their children to calm their fears during the fury of a storm.

Our Puritan forefathers continued this tradition.

It appears the storm David is describing gathers its power out over the Mediterranean Sea - "over the mighty waters" could refer to that; but we don't know for certain.

Where the storm begins to gather its strength is not the main point of the section -- the emphasis is on the Voice of the LORD.

Though David is describing the majesty of God as revealed in the storm, he is chiefly concerned with the power of God's voice, not in the thunder itself.


The thunder is a poetic image for the infinite power of God's voice.

God's Voice

We first think of the power of God's voice in creation -- He spoke and as a result of His Voice, the earth and the universe and all they contain were created (Genesis 1).

And God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light....'let there be an expanse between the waters'...and it was so...'let the land produce vegetation' and it was so.....

And we read about that voice again in Revelation 21:3:

  And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,

Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will live with them and be their God.

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.



The specific phrase the voice of the LORD occurs seven times in this stanza of Psalm 29: once in verse 3, twice in verse 4, and then again in verses 5, 7, 8 and 9.

The Path of the Storm

In verses 5-8 the storm moves inland and strikes Lebanon and moves downward, twisting and uprooting the great cedars and oaks, with flashing lightning, stripping the forests bare throughout the area and then shaking the desert.

(Sirion is an Old Testament name for Mount Hermon,
the highest peak in Syria.)

The storm is so fierce it even seems to make the mountains tremble.

Notice in verse 7 the flashing of the lightning, quite accurately, is linked to the thunder of God's voice.

The southern desert of Kadesh is where the Hebrews spent much of their wilderness journey, led by Moses,  after escaping from Egypt.

So the storm has moved from the Sea, over to the lands north of Israel, and then through Israel, and down to the wilderness.

And where are the people?

Verse 9 tells us that they are in the temple praising God!

Is David still talking about "the mighty ones" -- the angels he calls on (Verse 1) to join him in praising God?

Maybe. But since he doesn't refer to them by a special title as he did in verse 1, likely he means God's people here on earth.

This is a beautiful picture - in the midst of the storm  the angels are in heaven praising God and God's people on earth are gathered in His temple down here praising Him!

Another striking picture is to imagine God's people, for three thousand years, finding comfort in the majesty and power of the God revealed in these verses!

Praise God from whom all blessing flow!

Praise Him all creatures here below!

Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts!

Praise Father, Son and holy Ghost!