Choose Wisely

“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:” (Joh 1:12 AV)

That word ‘…power…’ is an interesting word.  What exactly does it mean?  Does it mean the legal ability to?  Does it mean the ability to?  What does it mean?  Now, if you are a Calvinist, the Greek definition of this word is not going to help defend your position.  The Greek definition means, “power of choice, liberty of doing as one pleases.” (Thayer’s Greek Dictionary)   It means “the power of authority and of right; the power of rule or government”.  In short, this power is the ability to choose to trust that which we have come to believe.  Note in particular the first definition.  It includes the concept of liberty.  In other words, there is freedom of choice.  Yes, the ability to choose does come from God.  But the liberty to choose is a free choice.  Not one compelled by the overpowering sovereignty of God.  But I digress.  What the Spirit wants us to consider this morning is the grace which God bestowed that gives us the ability to accept Christ and the station to which He appoints us.  That being, the sons of God.

None of us have the choice into which family we are born.  It happens without any input from our end.  There are mixed feelings as we grow through the experience. When we are very young, what do we know?  Everything is great.  But everything is unfair.  Then we go into our teenage years when we are embarrassed about everything about our families.  There was this commercial that ran on TV.  It showed a family of four.  A teenage daughter and a younger brother.  It was a commercial advertising vacations and how a vacation at this particular place would put a smile on the most anti-social and antagonistic teenage daughter.  She rolled her eyes at everything concerning the family.   However, overall, most are grateful for the families with which they have been blessed.  We are thankful for our siblings and the memories we created.  We are grateful that even though time and distance has caused a chasm to exist, in the harshest of times, we still have one another.  We are still glad to see one another around the holidays.  We still shed tears together at the passing of a loved one.  We may not have a choice, but the result is something for which most are truly thankful.

When it comes to the family of God, it is our choice.  According to the definition of the word above, God gives us the liberty to choose Jesus Christ as our substitute.  He seeks those who understand they wickedness and the consequences of that sin.  He seeks those who will respond to His call to salvation.  He proved by His word that Jesus is the all-sufficient sacrifice for our sin.  Then we have a choice to make.  Do we want to be adopted into the family of God or don’t we?  Do we want to be called among the sons of God or don’t we?  The privilege to be called by the name of God is one that has no comparison.  To be called a son of God is something I hope we never get used to.  To be included as a joint-heir with Christ is something that should boggle the mind.  The grace of God that makes all this possible is beyond comprehension.  Families mean something.  Growing up in the family of which I was blessed meant something.  My last name meant something.  The community knew my father and for that, being in his family meant something.  Being in the family of God is infinitely more meaningful.  I stand in wonder at the grace of God that would allow me the choice of adoption into the family of God.

No Explanation Needed

“A servant will not be corrected by words: for though he understand he will not answer.” (Pr 29:19 AV)

The understanding here is simple.  Servants are trained to obey without reservation or question.  The ‘correcting’ here is not a harsh correction.  This a servant can respond to.  The correction which is spoken of here is a correction based on reasoning.  It is not that he cannot understand the principles involved.  He can.  He is trained to respond by immediate obedience.  There are several ways in which we can apply this.  We can apply it as a representation of our relationship with the LORD.  We should obey without the need for an explanation.  This would go with any authority figure to which we are in submission.  A teacher, an employer, a parent, and even the government.  It should be our general attitude of compliance without the need for an explanation.  Yes, that is a bit oversimplified.  I understand that.  I am not implying we should submit to every ordinance of man regardless of the unbiblical nature of it.  However, if there is no biblical reason to which we can object against the ordinance, then we should comply regardless of whether we can understand the reasoning behind it.  However, this proverb is written from a king this his son.  It is written with the authority figure as the intended subject.  Solomon is sharing with Rehoboam the understanding that if he tries to explain his demands to a servant, he is wasting his time because the servant will not engage in reasoning and debate.  He is not wired that way. 

The LORD gave me the opportunity to serve Him in the southeastern part of the United States.  This opportunity I am eternally grateful for.  The LORD gave me close relationships there which I treasure to this day.  I learned to play a bit of gospel bluegrass along the way.  I learned what really good cooking tasted like.  I learned or at least tried to learn, the art of tactful communication.  I learned the priceless lesson of valuing one’s neighbors and the skill of hospitality.  I learned a great number of invaluable lessons in my nine years there.  There is one uniquely southern thing that stood out at me.  That is, the respect the younger generation has for the elder generation.  One of those practices was the use of ‘sir’ and ‘ma’am’ while responding to authority.  Sassing back was severely dealt with.  It was a joy to see young children comply with the wishes of authority with a simple ‘yes, sir’ or ‘yes, ma’am’.  However, as a pastor, this made it difficult to minister to young people because they were taught to never verbally or with their actions, disagree with authority.  It was difficult to reason with them as prove to them the ways of God were better ways.  Doctrine was something one could discuss.  Practical application or behavior was something entirely different.  I had to make an adjustment while ministering to children.

This is a particularly hard skill for this writer to practice.  As a pastor/teacher, you want those who follow to understand the principles behind the rules or expectations so as to gain the heart as well as the will.  As a husband, I want the heart of my children and wife.  Not just their compliance.  This means I tend to explain myself so obedience is something to which we mutually agree.  Part of this temptation is wanting affirmation.  We do not want those who follow to resent us for requiring compliance to our wishes.  This is a fatal flaw if we allow this desire to dictate our leadership.  Besides, people will gravitate towards strong leadership even if they disagree with it more so than weak leadership that seems to desire to gain approval before action is taken.  The point is this: to be a leader, I and others must be comfortable with the reality that some of our relationships cannot be much deeper than instruction and compliance.  Or at the very least, there are times when our relationship cannot be any deeper than instruction and compliance.  As much as we want to reason with, and gain the heart of, those who are told to follow because they are told to follow, the leader may not have the opportunity to gain the heart.  This makes leadership an awfully lonely position sometimes.  One that only a leader can truly understand.

Sorrowful Sowing Sees Sustenance

“They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” (Ps 126:5-6 AV)

According to my reading schedule, the organizer places this psalm at the time of Israel’s return from the scattered provinces of the Medes and Persians to the land of Canaan.  Specifically, the return of the workers under Ezra and Nehemiah.  This Psalm is an encouragement and challenge to those in captivity to continue to carry on as much as they can in adverse circumstances because the circumstances will eventually change.  This psalm could have been composed at the onset of Judah’s seventy-year captivity.  The writer is unknown.  It is referred to as a psalm of degrees.  Simply put, a psalm of degrees is sung while either ascending or descending the steps that lead into and out of the temple.  Like the mercury in a thermometer goes up and down by degrees, the penitent worshippers would sing this psalm as he either ascended or descended the steps of the temple.  The point is obvious.  In order to bring fruit, one must sow seed.  Circumstances do not dictate the need to sow.  If there is to be fruit in good times, then in times of adversity, the seed must be sown.  The going forth is the going forth into captivity.  The sheaves are the sheaves produced in captivity which sustains them into victory. 

What one sees on those hunting shows is not a true reflection of the experience.  There is a lot of toil and work that goes into a successful hunt.  There is some suffering along the way.  I cannot begin to tell you how many times I have gone into the deer woods only to come out again empty-handed and nearly frozen.  Some of my harshest experiences were in late muzzleloader season or late archery season.  There were the trips to Necedah, WI that I hope never to have to endure ever again.  Not fun at all.  There were a few in my novice years that were not exactly pleasurable.  Those where the times I could not afford sufficient equipment let alone the best.  So, I would often return to the house with blue toes and fingers with no venison to speak of.  The thing is, going into the experience, one must be as prepared as he can be.  The equipment must be in good working order.  The weapon of choice must be sighted in.  There are countless hours of scouting, building or setting a stand, clearing some lines of sight, and scent baiting.  Where local or state laws permit, there is baiting.  Either with grain or salt blocks, or both.  One might call all this preparation, precious seed.  All these things are investments in what we hope to be a successful hunt.  They are the works of faith that are placed which helps us endure freezing mornings and wet afternoons.  Endless hours of watching fields or trails.  Watching the sunset knowing you haven’t fired one round and then seeing a coyote run off across your field.  Some of the greatest hunts have been in some of the harshest of conditions.  Snow, rain, and cold come to mind.  One that sticks out in my mind was the last day of the season around 2016.  It was the third week of January.  It was an archery season.  The temperature at noon was nine degrees with a steady wind out of the north.  Bone-chilling.  It was that evening when I saw two of the biggest bucks I have ever seen walking together.  That was a sheave.

Sheaves in times of joy are impossible unless the precious seed is carried into times of adversity.  Last night, the LORD had me pull and audible.  We preached out of Esther chapter nine.  The memorial of Purim.  This holiday was mandated by Mordecai to be celebrated yearly on the fourteenth and fifteenth of the month Adar.  This they did year in and year out.  It was a celebration of the great victory God wrought by the hand of Esther and Mordechai for their people.  The thing is, there would be five hundred or so more years of hardship for Israel until Messiah comes.  No excuses.  They were to celebrate this national holiday marked by celebration and giving of gifts lest they forget in the midst of hard times how good God had been.  It was an anchor for the discouraged soul.  The verse above is along the same lines.  No matter how bad things get, the seed still has to be sown.  If not, there will be no food to eat.  No matter how bad things get, they won’t always stay that way.  Those who do not give up will have sheaves when things turn for the better.  The bottom line is, no matter what life may bring, we need to sow seed.  This seed is a declaration of hope for the future.  This is the hope every child of God has.

Failures Are Not Forever

“And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the LORD your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law.” (Ne 8:9 AV)

A portion of Israel had returned to Jerusalem for the rebuilding of the temple and walls around the city.  When Nehemiah completed the project of the walls, Ezra declared a time of worship wherein the people would gather at the temple.  They made booths or huts to dwell in while gathered for this special time.  The people called for the reading and explanation of the law.  This they did for the first forth part of the day.  This went on for several days.  As the priests read and explained the law, it occurred to the people just how much the nation had failed God.  They heard the account of the history of their nation and how many times God forgave them and reconciled them.  They heard the requirements of the law and were convicted in their hearts of their utter backslidings of the past.  This brought tears and sorrow to the hearts of the people.  They were so convicted in their hearts they had lost sight of the great restoration which they were now experiencing.  They felt so guilty over what they had done or failed to do, they forget the reality of the present.  That reality was that God forgave them, restored them, and used them to do a great work in spite of adverse circumstances.  This is why Ezra commands the people not to mourn or sorrow.

This past Friday, as I was watching Spencer and Co on Newsmax TV, they interviewed a billionaire author who interviewed other billionaires for his book.  He found some similarities among these men and women who have made an untold fortune.  Then something else happened.  I was studying for the weekend and looking for some quotes to insert.  I forget what it was, exactly, that I was looking for, but some of the quotes which came back were on ‘opportunity’.  One in particular stood out to me.  I didn’t use it because it didn’t go with what I was writing, but the crux of the quote was the difference between two types of people as they respond to adversity.  The first is the person that lets adversity define them.  The second is to see adversity or failure as opportunity.  Which brings me back to the above-mentioned author.  One of the secrets of success which these billionaires shared was failing.  Yet, failing!  They shared the common factor of trying things and failing miserably.  Even embarrassingly so.  But they refused to allow failure to stop them or define them.  They learned from it and used it as the means to success.  I share all this to say state this simple truth.  There is a time to mourn and sorrow over sin and failure.  Then, there is a time to put it in the past and celebrate God’s goodness and grace.

The people were right in feeling guilt over their past failures.  But this guilt should have been resolved the moment confession and sacrifice were made.  They had a choice to make.  Either they exist in a constant state of lamentation over what might have been.  Or, they could be eternally grateful for the fact they were free to return to Jerusalem and restore worship to the one true God.  No, it would never again be like it was under David.  At least not until Messiah comes.  But it is a far cry from slavery in Shushan or Babylon.  They would not have to endlessly pay tribute to a pagan government.  But at least they had the temple back.  They might have to serve a conscript in the armies of a pagan king.  But at least they had their own lands and cattle back.  They may have to endure co-habiting with Gentiles in their own land.  But at least they could form their own local governments and observe their own laws.  Yes, there was much to feel sorrow over.  Yes, they had failed miserably.  But where they failed, the grace of God did much more abound.  We cannot live in guilt and shame forever.  There has to be a time when mourning and sorrow cease.  There has to be a time when the goodness and grace of God take over.  There has to be a time when we celebrate the mercy of God!  Otherwise, our testimony of God is that He does not forgive nor restore.  And that would be a lie.

Pray for Strength

“For they all made us afraid, saying, Their hands shall be weakened from the work, that it be not done. Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands.” (Ne 6:9 AV)

Nehemiah is one of my favorite books.  In Bible college, we studied Nehemiah for the purpose of gleaning leadership principles.  This study was a great study.  Nehemiah was a food taster for a pagan king back in Shushan.  He got wind of the condition of the walls of Jerusalem and the consequent persecution of the Jews who had returned to rebuild and use the temple.  It discouraged him enough to ask leave of the king to return and rebuild the walls of the city of God.  His request was at the peril of his life.  If the king did not appreciate the cause for Nehemiah’s sad countenance, he would have been permanently terminated!  But, the LORD was good and softened the heart of the king.  Nehemiah returned to Jerusalem and governed the city, repairing and rebuilding the city walls.  This did not come without great challenge and discouragement.  The heathen that had taken up the land since Judah was carried away to Babylon was his greatest enemy.  They did everything to discourage the work.  From false accusations sent back to the king to the children of Judah and Israel falling back into sin, to threats on his life.  He faced it all.  Through it all, he kept his focus and finished the work just shy of three months.  The above prayer may have been the prayer that gave him the ability to see his work to the end.  He asks the LORD to strengthen his hand to the work and not allow outside influences to discourage him.

Never in my almost forty years of salvation have I witnessed such discouraging times.  And it will only get worse.  COVID-19 has, in effect, caused everything to grind to a stand-still.  This includes the great commission.  It shouldn’t!  There is no reason we cannot reach others with the gospel electronically.  There is no reason we cannot share the gospel with our immediate neighbors.  We can still get out and shop.  There are people we meet every day.  The only difference is we are required to wear a face covering.  That is the only difference.  Conversations can still be had.  Tracts can still be shared.  There is no reason why the church should be in slumber waiting for things to get back to the way they were.  They may never return.  We see insurrectionists attempting to cause such chaos it drives fear into the hearts of good people.  Anger, hate, and rebellion reign unabated in our largest cities.  I am waiting for the day it comes closer to home.  Attendance in our services is down by almost fifty percent because people are afraid of what they cannot control.  Unemployment is improving, but whole business sectors have permanently shut down.  As far as the church goes, we are waiting for the other shoe to drop.  We saw the government close us down over a virus.  Now, if the administration changes, we will have an adversary as the head of our nation and it is a matter of time before they come more directly for the church.  It will happen over the politicization of moral issues.  Abortion is not a political issue.  It is a moral issue.  Gay marriage is not a political issue.  It is a moral issue.  Laws are coming to make it illegal for a not-for-profit that will make it virtually impossible to preach anything substantive from the word of God.  Unless we preach what the government will permit, we will be arrested for hate crimes.  We will lose control over the standards for membership.  We will be fined for not complying with the demands of an anti-Christian government.  These times are coming.

But, there is still work to do.  We can, and will be, discouraged.  That is normal.  That is expected.  What we cannot do is to retreat in our shell and wish for the day.  We cannot hunker down and merely survive.  The wall had to be built.  It was the means by which the LORD provided protection from that source of all the discouragement Nehemiah faced.  The church is that provision which is the protection from the source which causes all our discouragement.  Notice something rather interesting in the passage above.  Notice the motive of those who are causing the people of God to fear.  They don’t want to destroy them.  They simply want them to be discouraged in the work.  If they can spread enough fear, then the work will cease.  This is exactly what we see today.  Fear and anxiety reign.  It is the emotion of the day.  The answer is faith and dependence upon God.  Nehemiah is asking for one thing.  He is not asking, at least in this prayer, for the LORD to take away the source of discouragement.  He will do that at other times.  What he is asking for in the here and now is for strength.  Strength to keep his focus and to finish what the LORD has called him to do.  This is what we need to do right now!  We need to pray the LORD to strengthen our hands for the work lest the work crumbles under neglect.

Compliment For Compliance

“Restore, I pray you, to them, even this day, their lands, their vineyards, their oliveyards, and their houses, also the hundredth part of the money, and of the corn, the wine, and the oil, that ye exact of them. Then said they, We will restore them, and will require nothing of them; so will we do as thou sayest. Then I called the priests, and took an oath of them, that they should do according to this promise. …And the people did according to this promise.” (Ne 5:11-13 AV)

For a better understanding of this passage, we can bring to memory the condition of the people of God at the time.  A remnant had returned several decades earlier to rebuild the temple after Babylon had destroyed it.  Sixty-six years after the rebuilding of the temple, Nehemiah returns to rebuild the walls around Jerusalem.  In those sixty-six years, the returning remnant got into some bad habits.  One of them was to give out loans with interest to their fellow Jews.  This was strictly forbidden in the Mosaic law.  The poor of the land found themselves hopelessly in debt and unable to live because of the burdensome terms of the loans which they took out.  The wealthy took their lands and vineyards as collateral, removing the ability for the poor to earn income in order to pay back the loan.  When Nehemiah found out, he required the wealthy return the collateral so the poor could pay back the loans interest-free.  On the face of it, we would think this to be the right thing to do and no recognition should be made for the obedience of the wealthy.  However, one must remember they made terms of a loan with the understanding of making a profit.  By returning to biblical standards, adding to this inflation, the wealthy would actually lose money.  We might say, “So what!  They shouldn’t have made the loan, to begin with.”  True enough.  But they still reverted to a biblical standard even though it cost them.

What parent hasn’t had to settle a dispute over two siblings when a shared toy is at stake?  This squabble is as common as encroachment of personal space.  Imagine two siblings playing nicely.  There are more toys to choose from than Sundays in the year.  They are playing nicely until one of the siblings notices the other having a great time with a certain toy.  It is fascinating to watch the wheels of envy turning in that little head.  He watches.  He becomes envious.  Then he plots.  The younger they are, the far less subtle they are in gaining what they want.  They plot and plan.  Waiting for the time when attention is slightly drawn away, that little envious monster grabs the toy and proclaims his sibling was done with it and not he gets to play with it.  A brawl ensues.  The older they get, they learn to use negotiating tactics like pretending the lame toy he is stuck with far more fun than the toy his sibling has.  A few glances and a trade is made.  However, the victim discovers how lame of a toy he traded for and a brawl ensues.  Then there is the argument of who had it first.  This starts out with a timeline going back a few minutes.  Then days.  Then weeks, months, and years.  When the argument gets to the point of who was born first, then a brawl ensues.  At this point, the grown-up, in the wisdom of Solomon, requires the aggressor to return the toy.  This grown-up can do one of two things.  He can either require the exchange and that would be the end of it, or he could thank the aggressor for complying with the ethical choice.  The later is what we want to notice here.

Nehemiah was frustrated from time to time with the people whom he led.  They were not behaving as the Bible instructed them to.  Nehemiah was frustrated because the people had quickly forgotten how the LORD dealt with their past disobedience and was concerned the LORD may undo all the grace that was presently enjoyed.  In other words, they should have not better.  This is not the first time Nehemiah would come down on his people.  There are coming three other situations wherein the people of God flagrantly disobeyed the word of God and put in jeopardy the work of God.  Each time, Nehemiah required they comply with the word of God.  But herein is the lesson.  Even if the people knew better, it is right to recognize obedience.  Even if they were stubbornly disobedient, it is a good thing to appreciate compliance.  Even if someone deliberately ignored the law and did wrong, if they made it right, a thank you might be in order.  There is no harm in recognizing obedience whether it was immediate, or after the fact.  Regardless, if a person complies with the law, there are times when he should be recognized for it.

Good Times In Spite Of Bad

“As the days wherein the Jews rested from their enemies, and the month which was turned unto them from sorrow to joy, and from mourning into a good day: that they should make them days of feasting and joy, and of sending portions one to another, and gifts to the poor.” (Es 9:22 AV)

The period of Esther is between the rebuilding of the temple and the rebuild of the walls of Jerusalem.  This was during the reign of the Medes and Persians.  Fun fact:  Esther is the only book in the entire word of God that never mentions God.  This period found the Jews still in captivity in the provinces of the Medes and Persians.  They were still under the control of a pagan king at it would be thirty years later that Artaxerxes allowed Nehemiah to return and rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.  The account of Esther is the account of God’s sovereign protection over Israel in very adverse conditions.  The celebration mentioned above was an annual holiday to commemorate the victory of the Jews over their heathen enemies who had the intent of exterminating the Jews.  Haman, a counselor to the king, manipulated the king to proclaim a decree that all the Jews be exterminated.  Upon learning of Haman’s deception and the lineage of his queen being Jewish, Ahasuerus passed another decree allowing the Jews to defend themselves.  This turned into a great victory for them.  Even though they would remain in captivity and under pagan control for four more centuries, this holiday was to be strictly observed.  A memorial that God is able to deliver!

My siblings and I grew up in a lower middle-income family.  There were times we were on food stamps.  There was a time when my father was out of work and had eight to eleven kids to feed.  We often survived on the charity of family and friends.  Our clothing wasn’t the best.  What we had was mostly hand-me-downs.  Tattered and repairs clothing was the norm.  Our sneakers (tennis shoes for those in certain parts of the country) had more duct tape on them then canvas.  Our bicycles were repurposed from a yard sale, a junkyard, a police auction, or someone’s trash.  We were not poor by any stretch of the Imagination.  But we were not comfortable either.  However, the traditions Mom had around the holiday times are the fondest of all my childhood memories.  Simple things come to mind.  The assembly-line Saturday helping my mom fill the ship sized freezer with Christmas cookies.  Stringing popcorn and cranberries.  The smells were amazing.  Eggs to order on Christmas morning.  Gathering around the manger on Christmas morning to appreciate what we were celebrating.  Going to church before one present was opened.  Watching the cartoon Christmas specials.  especially Charlie Brown’s Christmas that recited scripture.  Trudging through the forest in search of the ugliest white pine Christmas tree a family of eleven could find.  Watching my Mom eat the cranberry stuff right out of the can.  She was the only one who would touch it.  Her homemade stuffing (not dressing like other cultures.  Which is completely gross!) was out of this world.  Baking those cherry pies from cherries we picked was another memory.  Then there was Christmas eve.  My father taught music.  He taught us all to play an instrument.  We would gather in the ‘playroom’ and pull up a chair with a music stand.  We would go through the tradition of playing carols.  All these memories came at some of the most challenging times we shared as a family.  During those times, my mom had back surgery.  My father’s back went out.  A son was almost lost as an infant.  There was the rebellion in the hearts of their teenage children.  My father was out of work.  My mother worked a full-time job and still took care of the family.

The point is this.  We live in challenging times.  To say the least!  With riots, the virus, and turmoil being threatened at every turn, we are not living in ‘good times’.  We do not know what the future holds.  With overreaching governors affecting how the church fellowships and ministers, I am noticing the joy which saints should express is diminishing.  In times like these, it is important to hold on to practices and memories of God’s faithfulness.  We still need to put on church celebrations.  We still need to hold meetings together even though we might have to adjust to certain regulations.  If we lose our traditions, we lose our life.  This we cannot do.  So, we must find a way in which we can still celebrate the goodness and grace of God.  We cannot allow the persecution of the pagans to turn our joy into sadness.  Mordecai was extremely wise here.  He commanded the holiday of God’s mercy and victory be celebrated regardless of present circumstances.  If you and I are going through hardships, birthday celebrations must still go on.  If we are empty-nesters like my wife and I and the kids are too far away to visit, the Christmas tree still must go up.  If we are going through a hard time, happier times must still be recognized.  Lest we fall into hopelessness and apathy, life must go on no matter how difficult the circumstances.  It must.

An All Day Struggle

“Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the LORD all the day long.” (Pr 23:17 AV)

Bear with me as I muse within the writing of this devotion.  What struck my mind was the underlined phrase above.  The phrase is not merely a throw-off phrase to mean, in a general sense, to be in the fear of the LORD.  Although that would be a really good idea.  The phrase means the literal day time as opposed to night time.  In other words, to avoid envy, we should walk in the fear of the LORD every moment of our waking lives.  If this is the case, then there are several suggestions.  First, envy would be such a powerful sin that it would constantly be before our eyes every waking moment of our lives.  Second, envy is such a powerful pitfall that once we fell into it, it would take an entire day of fearing the LORD to escape that pit of envy.  To be envious means to be zealously jealous.  Webster’s 1828 dictionary defines envy as, “To feel uneasiness, mortification or discontent, at the sight of superior excellence, reputation or happiness enjoyed by another; to repine at another's prosperity; to fret or grieve one's self at the real or supposed superiority of another, and to hate him on that account”.  Envy is usually based on accurate observation of the success of another.  But not always.

I had (actually still have) a sibling who with him, we defined sibling rivalry.  As we grew up together, he made it a point to get involved in or try everything that I tried.  The problem with this sibling rivalry was he was generally better at anything I tired.  Even his personality was more outgoing than mine, so he became more popular.  First, there was Boy Scouts.  I campaigned and earn the position of patrol leader.  He ran the next time and beat me.  Several times.  ARG.  Then there was the guitar.  Sure enough, he is far better at playing it than I.  There was baseball, paper routes, and part-time jobs.  There was popularity, grades, and even when we accepted Christ, there were ministry opportunities.  This went on for many years.  I had a hard time because there was no reason to blame him for exceeding my efforts in the same areas.  He generally was more gifted them me in most areas of life.  For years I struggled with envy.  Why was the LORD blessing him and not me?  Why, given the amount of time and assurance of purpose, do I feel like I am always coming up short.  Funny thing is, with envy, we seem to be focused only on a person’s successes compared with our failures and fail to see other areas in which the LORD has blessed us.

The fear of the LORD is the cure for envy for a very good reason.  When we fear the LORD, we will trust His plan for our lives is the best plan possible.  Our life is not arbitrary.  It is not one thing or another as long as the dice come out right.  The LORD created us for a purpose and has gifted us with ten, five, or one talent depending on what His plan might be.  Being content with the level of talents is the key to being content with that which the LORD has accomplished in one’s life.  Fearing the LORD also means we are grateful for all that the LORD has provided.  Including abilities and talents.  If we envy what others can do, we are ungrateful for that which the LORD has given us.  An unknown author writes, “Many Christians are like that person who, one day, looked extremely sad.  One who knew him well said, "Either some great evil has happened to him, or some great good to another.””  Envy, as it appears above, might be one of those temptations which hound us day in a day out.  As we compare our lives or possessions to those around us, we are dissatisfied with our station in life.  As we see what appears to be injustice, we are not reminded we are also shown grace and do not always suffer for our wrongs.  Proverbs 14:30 says, “A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones.”  It most certainly is.  Fearing the LORD all our waking moments is the best cure to avoid envy altogether.

Turning a Deaf Ear

“Therefore it is come to pass, that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the LORD of hosts:” (Zec 7:13 AV)

Why does this surprise us?  What makes us think the LORD is obligated to listen every time we have an issue or need?  Why do we think the LORD’s forgiveness or benevolence has no limits?  What makes us think we can live the way we wish yet God is obligated to listen to us and grant our wishes?  What makes us think He is obligated to meet our needs separate and apart from how we live?  This is the condition of Judah and Israel at the time of this prophet.  Zechariah prophesied in the time of the return to Jerusalem.  This particular prophecy came in the early reign of Darius, king of the Medes and Persians.  This places the context of the sermon during a time when Israel had returned and was rebuilding the temple.  In particular, this prophecy came at a time when the building of the temple was temporarily halted and the people went back to their own properties to invest in what they had regained.  They are being reminded that as they had abandoned the work of God for their own interests, yet are crying out to the LORD for needs of their own, the LORD is not entertaining their needs.  Because they had turned a deaf ear to the word of God, God, in turn has turned a deaf ear to them.

Yet another example from my two years of teaching High School Bible.  There were times a teacher would ease up on class assignments.  Homework would be relaxed.  Tests would be rescheduled.  If there were special days like Home Coming or a Revival, assignments would be put off or the class could get ahead of their work so they could have time off from the workload.  However, there were times when class behavior did not earn the grace that was expected.  I had to pull this a couple of times.  One was over the holiday break.  Those two weeks off for Christmas and the New Year.  The last thing students want to do is classwork.  However, my class was more than out of control.  I warned them if they continued to behave like they were, there would be consequences.  This went on for weeks on end.  So, I devised a plan that numerically recorded bad behavior.  When the time came, those who had good behavior marks had no class assignment over the holidays.  Based on the graduated system put in place, assignments went out for the holidays.  Needless to say, many were not too happy with their teacher.  The parents were not pleased as well.  All the complaints went on deaf ears.  I didn’t want to hear it because they didn’t want to hear my correction.  Too bad!

Our God is a merciful God.  He demands perfection, but not by our own efforts.  He has granted the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that we may live according to His word.  He is longsuffering.  When we fail He is quick to forgive us.  God is love.  John tells us this truth.  God is so loving that He sent His only Son to endure the wrath of His Father rightly deserved upon us.  He suffered and died that we might have eternal life.  He is kind and caring.  He meets our needs and anticipates our hurts.  When we suffer, He is tender-hearted.  His mercy and grace go way beyond our ability to comprehend them.  Yet, we seem to forget all this mercy and grace has with it an expectation.  One which we miserably fail at.  His mercy and grace are not strictly tied to our obedience and faith.  Otherwise, it wouldn’t be grace and mercy.  However, this does not imply the LORD is obligated to exercise mercy and grace no matter what we do.  He is well within His holiness to withhold mercy and grace based on our behavior.  We forget this quite a lot.  We expect the LORD to be infinitely longsuffering.  When we do, we become presumptuous towards God’s love.  He doesn’t have to listen.  He doesn’t have to care.  And, based on how we treat Him and His word, sometimes He doesn’t.

Blanket On A Dunghill

“If one bear holy flesh in the skirt of his garment, and with his skirt do touch bread, or pottage, or wine, or oil, or any meat, shall it be holy? And the priests answered and said, No. Then said Haggai, If one that is unclean by a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean? And the priests answered and said, It shall be unclean.” (Hag 2:12-13 AV)

We know the above principle is true.  But there is part of our thinking that cannot compute the above formula.  The above example is a practice of the priests to take to their home holy flesh to meet the needs of his family.  The skirt of his garment would have been cleansed by religious rites and thus the garment also is holy.  So, the flesh and the skirt would have been considered holy.  However, if the priest were to touch a dead body and then put on his holy garments, the garments would not make the priest holy.  They were to bathe before dressing in their holy garments.  The principle here is simple.  The holy cannot make the unholy holy by mere proximity.  That which is unholy must be cleansed or taken away.  However, that which is unholy can make that which is holy unholy by mere proximity.  We know this as a practical principle.  However, when it comes to a spiritual principle, there is a disconnect.

To place it in another context, imagine a ‘clean room’.  We have seen this depicted on film of a medical nature.  There was a program my wife and I watched.  A medical program.  The patient had a severe immunity deficiency.  She could not be around any kind of contaminant.  She was placed in a negative pressure isolation room.  There were barriers placed between her and access provided to the care team.  The doctors and nurses had to scrub down, disrobe, and clothe themselves are sanitized garments that were discarded after each use.  There could be absolutely no outside foreign substance allowed.  The simplest little microbe could be the end of this patient’s life.  The doctor treating her discovered a new treatment for her condition.  By the end of the program, the last shot was of this patient opening her own cocoon and standing on the balcony of her room overlooking the world she could never before interact with.  The point is this.  Nothing could go into her perfectly sanitized room unless it was sanitized first.  Otherwise, it had the potential of contaminating her perfect environment.  Placing an object in her sanitized world did not sanitize it.  It has to be cleansed first.  That is the understanding of the above verse.

The problem with religion is we have the misunderstanding that we add more white to make the black, white.  It doesn’t work that way.  No matter how much white we might use, there still remains a tint of black.  The black has to be removed.  One might argue the doctrine of imputation or the washing of the water by the word disproves this principle.  Quite the contrary.  In both cases, for the wicked to be made righteous, wickedness has to be removed.  Practically, the priests and people treated sin in the manner spoken of in our passage.  They didn’t repent of their sin.  Rather, they offered sacrifices as the means to cover it without taking it away assuming covering it made it go away.  Not true.  The filthiness of sin remains.  This is the vast majority of religion today.  Including contemporary Christianity.  There is no repentance from sin.  Adding emotionalism and mysticism to worship seems to be the solution to guilt.  But sin remains.   We can try as we may to cover our unholiness with holiness, but if the unholiness is not removed, all we have done is throw a blanket over a dung pile.  It is still there and now we have ruined the blanket.

Joy Is Upward, Not Outward

“We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion. How shall we sing the LORD’S song in a strange land?” (Ps 137:2-4 AV)

We do not know who wrote this psalm, but we are certain of its historical placement.  This psalm was written for the children of Israel taken and held captive in the land of Babylon.  The captives that required a song of mirth are the Babylonians.  The Chaldeans could not even understand how a captive wouldn’t have any joy.  The reason for their sadness was the memory of Jerusalem in general and the temple in particular.  Both had been destroyed.  The question this psalm poses is:  how can the children of Israel express any joy while they remember their heritage and definition going up in smoke?  How can they have any joy when the most important of all that defines them has been destroyed.  To understand the application for us today, let us consider another verse.  “And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.” (Joh 16:22 AV)  And still another.  “And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.” (1Jo 1:4 AV)  It would seem that joy is something we can have without interruption, yet the children of God had none.  It might be what they chose to have as their focus of joy.

We live in uncertain times.  It is interesting how this present generation does not see how troublesome times these are.  My wife and I are getting to the age when the music we grew up on is now the golden oldies offered on late-night television.  She and I will watch a bit of TV before slumbering off to la la land.  We are watching the shows which we had seen four decades ago.  Those were simpler times.  Things like the Andy Griffeth Show or Davey and Goliath.  Life was much simpler back then and it seemed our culture was, for the most part, a happy culture.  We had problems.  Sure.  Every country does.  But not like we do today.  The sixties ushered in the influence of discontent and hatred.  Violence was, for the first time, accepted as a means of legitimate expression of opinion.  Fast-forward to today, and things are a whole lot worse.  Even holidays of joy are changed.  There seems to be no joy left.  Everything we used to hold dear as an expression of goodwill and happy times has been changed to one big expression of anger and hate.  How is the child of God supposed to have joy in such circumstances as these?  When the future looks bleak and there seems to be no end in sight of the discord, disease, and distrust, how can our nation or the people of God every live in peace again?  That which we treasured has been destroyed.  Or, at the very least, is in the process of being destroyed.  Like Israel, we sit at the banks of the river with our eyes cast at what used to be, knowing it will never be that way again, and struggle to find any source of joy.

The key is where we cast our eyes.  The children of Israel cast their eyes back towards Jerusalem.  They looked beyond the horizon with the eyes of imagination and remembered the glory that once was the kingdom of Israel.  They regretted all they had done to cause the present circumstances.  They neglected the law.  They went after other gods.  They allowed sodomy to reign in their land.  They shed innocent blood.  They did all those things which God hates and now sit in captivity to the nations they once intreated.  No joy because their eyes were in the wrong place.  Their hope was in this world.  Their object of joy was a temporal one.  Their eyes should not have been outward, but upward.  We live in a sin-sick world.  Until the LORD returns, nothing will change that.  It is getting worse every day.  But our hope is not in this life.  Our home is in heaven.  All these things on which we cast our eyes will be burned up.  The present world system will be destroyed.  The LORD will recreate it all in holiness and true righteousness.  Our source of joy is eternal.  It is not temporary.  And no man can take that from us.  So, as things go more and more down the tubes, remember, our joy is not here.  It is up there!

Joy Over The Basics

“And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the LORD; because he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid.” (Ezr 3:11 AV)

There is something about laying a foundation that is more than mere satisfaction.  There are blueprints for the rest of the structure.  That which is laid on top of the foundation may change due to costs, taste, or other considerations.  But the foundation remains the same.  The foundation is the absolute statement that something will be built on top of what is laid.  There is nothing sadder to see then a building that stopped at a foundation.  To give an understanding here, the nation of Israel, as a whole, we in captivity for well over two hundred years.  The northern ten tribes went first into Assyria.  Then Judah followed into Babylon.  It was seventy-years later that Cyrus, king of the Medes and Persians, decreed all cultural groups to return to their native land to resurrect houses of worship.  Israel is specifically named in the book of Ezra.  When they arrived, they found the temple in utter ruins.  Seventy years earlier, the Chaldeans had invaded Jerusalem.  They had completely destroyed the temple, pillaged it, and deconstructed it down to the individual stones.  Now, the children of Israel return to rebuild the temple.  Under the direction of Ezra, the foundation of the temple is laid.  In doing so, a statement of reconciliation to God is made and a sense of permanence is established.  Knowing the building would soon follow was the hope of restoration.

But let us consider a foundation.  Why is it so important and when one is established, why is there great relief or joy?  I wasn’t, nor ever have been, part of a building project.  So, the closest I can come to is an art project.  We were tasked to sculpt a work from wire.  We could use hanger wire, then picture wire over the top.  I constructed a horse and rider jumping a hedge.  I used a small piece of two-by-four and pasted green scrub brush material as the hedge.  I used heavy duty coat hangers as the skeleton of the work.  I had a difficult problem with the center of gravity.  This work constantly toppled over.  I was not allowed to increase the base.  It has to be free from supporting structure that would take away from the authenticity of the piece.  So, I labored for almost two weeks before I came up with the correct angels.  Once that problem was solved, I could work on using picture-hanging wire to fill out the sculpture.  Once the skeleton was constructed and the center of gravity issue solved, it was a matter of enjoying the rest of the project, using my imagination and skill, to produce this piece of art.  I had more joy in solving the issues relating to the foundation of the project then I did the remainder of it.  Even though more time was spent filling out the foundation, the satisfaction I had at solving an engineering problem and the knowledge that the foundation meant a foregone conclusion of a work of art was far more fulfilling than spray painting the final work.  The satisfaction and joy at the construction of the foundation were more than the finished work itself.  Knowing that once the foundation was laid, the rest was sure to follow is the joy of laying the foundation in the first place.

David asks a very good question.  “If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?” (Ps 11:3 AV)  Foundations are essential.  Foundations in Christian life are non-negotiable.  I fear we have slacked off concerning the laying of foundations.  Most discipleship programs work on the spiritually practical like praying and worship.  Very few go any deeper than that.  We are studying theology proper in our Wednesday evening prayer meeting.  This may seem like a deep subject, but it doesn’t need to be.  As long as the student does not attempt to go beyond what the word of God reveals.  The reason this is important is our view of who, what, and how God is, shapes all our choices.  Not understanding God, or that which can be understood leads to great error.  Even in our practical lives.  Laying a foundation is more than mere mortar and brick.  It is the construction of those materials and how they relate to one another.  Many a believer is in misery because there was never a concerted effort in laying a foundation upon which he can build.  When there is no suitable foundation, all sorts of error is sure to follow.  There should be joy in learning the Christian basics.  There should be satisfaction from learning of God’s attributes.  The people should shout for joy as they listen to the basics of the Christian faith for they are the source of all hope to follow.