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Psalm 144:3-4 (ESV)

3 O Lord, what is man that you regard him,

or the son of man that you think of him?

4 Man is like a breath;

his days are like a passing shadow.

     The question asked in the psalm above is one that is not often enough asked by people of today. What is man? What makes us special? Why would God ever pay attention to us?

     The next line of the psalm does not tell us why God would pay attention to us, but it does give us something to think about to help us to rightly put ourselves in place when we consider our Lord. In verse 4, the psalmist refers to the shortness of human lives. We come and go. Our lives pass in what appears to be only a moment. Whether you live for 10 years or 100 years, what is that when compared to the thousands of years of human history? Even more, what is that when compared to eternity?

     It would do us good, even today, to consider the brevity of human life. We often live as though we will stay here and do what we are presently doing forever. But that is a false way to live. God did not create us to live forever in a sin-darkened, fallen world. God has something much greater for us than this. And our lives will pass. They will pass quickly, before we know it.

     How should these thoughts make us respond today? We should look at the brevity of our lives and we should be amazed that God would pay attention to us (just like the psalmist in verse 3). We should see that, compared to God, we are insignificant. We are as nothing when compared to his might, his holiness, and his eternality. We are creatures, he is Creator. We are finite, he is infinite.

     May these thoughts challenge us to worship our Lord. He is great. His greatness reminds us of our weakness. We need him. We exist for him. May we honor him with the lives that he gives us to live on this earth.

Psalm 130:3-4

3 If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities,

O Lord, who could stand?

4 But with you there is forgiveness,

that you may be feared.

     Years ago, one could share the gospel with Americans simply by letting them know that God is willing to forgive their sins. People in days gone by knew that there is a God and that they did not live up to his standards. But times have changed. People have changed. And the thought that we are in need of grace is something we need to help others see.

     In the verses above, we see something beautiful and true. Verse 3 declares that, should God keep track of our sins, none of us could stand before him. We are all sinners. Not one of us, no matter how good or how bad, could set ourselves up in the presence of God and survive.

     God is holy. His holiness cannot tolerate the stain of sin. He will not ultimately let any sin go unpunished Nor will he allow the sinful to live in his presence.

     We need to feel the weight of the truth just mentioned. We need to recognize that we cannot stand before God. We are deserving of his judgment. If we do not grasp this point, we will not understand and rejoice in genuine grace.

     Verse 4 says that in God there is forgiveness that he might be feared. God is gracious. He offers forgiveness. Without it, we would be dead forever. With forgiveness, we can stand before the Lord, not because we deserve to, but simply because God is good and kind and gracious. And this truth is to make us fear and worship the Lord.

1 Chronicles 13:9-12)

9 And when they came to the threshing floor of Chidon, Uzzah put out his hand to take hold of the ark, for the oxen stumbled. 10 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he put out his hand to the ark, and he died there before God. 11 And David was angry because the Lord had broken out against Uzzah. And that place is called Perez-uzza to this day. 12 And David was afraid of God that day, and he said, “How can I bring the ark of God home to me?”

            The scene where Uzzah reaches out, touches the holy ark of God, and dies for his transgression is one of those passages that is hard for us to wrap our minds around. The truth is, God’s holiness is deadly. Sadly, we forget that fact. We who live under the New Covenant fail to grasp the danger of a God who is absolutely righteous, pure, and perfect in every way. He is not like us. His standards are not ours. His ways are beyond ours. His justice is beyond ours. And, should we find ourselves opposing his holiness, we are in very deep trouble.

            Notice how David reacted when God’s holy justice was displayed. David was angry. He got mad that God did what God did. Why? Because David found his friend in conflict with God’s holiness, and he did not like the results. David thought God ought to rule the world the way that David thought he would rule the world were he in God’s position. And David found himself to be wrong.

            What do we do with this passage? I suggest two things that go hand-in-hand. First, I recommend that we learn to grasp the holiness of God. God’s holiness is great and frightening. God’s holiness is deadly to the impure. And, make no mistake, we are all impure. We need protection given to us by God if we are to possibly ever stand in his holy presence. This story reminds us of just how great is our need. This need causes us to again give thanks for the work of Jesus who paid the price for our sins and who makes us able to stand in the presence of the Lord.

            Second, I would suggest that we check ourselves whenever our instincts are to think that we would do things in a different way than God. When we do not like the way that God rules the universe, we need to remember that he is the all-knowing, all-wise, all-good One and not us. We are flawed—all of us. We cannot possibly imagine how things should go. We lack the knowledge, goodness, perspective, justice, etc; in a word, we lack the holiness of God. So, when we see that God and we think differently, we should know, by faith, that his ways are better than ours, his thoughts higher than ours, and his perfection well beyond our flaws. It is our need to set our minds on God and his ways and to conform our thinking to his.

1 Chronicles 10:13-14

13 So Saul died for his breach of faith. He broke faith with the Lord in that he did not keep the command of the Lord, and also consulted a medium, seeking guidance. 14 He did not seek guidance from the Lord. Therefore the Lord put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.

            The epitaph here recorded regarding Saul, Israel’s first king, is a very sad one, and one full of meaning for us. Saul died. He died for his disobedience to the Lord. Then, we see that he specifically died for consulting a medium rather than seeking guidance from the Lord.

            Of course, we could easily learn from Saul’s demise that we ought not disobey God or consult mediums. We could even draw applications about the modern interest in spiritualism, horoscopes, astrology, and the like. But I think there is something better for Christians to be thinking about here that goes beyond the surface.

            Where do you look for guidance when you desire to do the will of God? Do you seek a mystical, spiritual experience? Do you turn to self-help books? Do you look to others who appear successful in your particular profession? Do you read the latest book by a church growth guru or mega-church pastor? Or, does your guidance come from somewhere else?

            God put Saul to death for his disobedience to God’s commands and for his seeking guidance from a wrong source. These failures are two sides of the same coin. If we wish to seek the guidance of God, we must, absolutely must, seek the will of God in the word of God. We must become a people of the Bible who allow the Lord to speak to it through its pages.

            This day, Christians, how about seeking the guidance of God in the words of Scripture. Today would be a great day to once again commit ourselves to seeking God in his word. This is not a secret language or mystical calling. It is simply a call to pray, study God’s word rightly, and apply what it says. It is not complicated. It should not be terribly confusing. We follow God best when we are immersed in his word, studying, memorizing, applying, and growing.

            Lord, would you make me a person of your word this day? I desire to follow you. I desire to know your will. Please keep me from ever seeking guidance from a wrong source. Make me someone who knows your word so well that all that I consider doing is clearly discernible from biblical principle. Help me to know your word and love your word in order to help me better to know and love you.

1 Kings 13:20-22

20 And as they sat at the table, the word of the Lord came to the prophet who had brought him back. 21 And he cried to the man of God who came from Judah, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Because you have disobeyed the word of the Lord and have not kept the command that the Lord your God commanded you, 22 but have come back and have eaten bread and drunk water in the place of which he said to you, “Eat no bread and drink no water,” your body shall not come to the tomb of your fathers.’ ”

                1 Kings 13 tells a fascinating story. A prophet of God came from Judah to denounce the idolatry of the newly formed northern kingdom. This prophet spoke the word of God and demonstrated the power of God.

                Yet, when the prophet headed home, he encountered another spiritual person. The prophet from the south met a prophet from the north. The man from the north lied to the prophet from the south, convinced him to ignore a clear command given to him by God, and eventually cost the southern prophet his life.

                As I read this story today, I find myself thinking about it in a way that I do not think would have ever occurred to me in times past. What is evident to me is that the clear word of God is something we must obey. Regardless of how many people claim to also have a new word or new way from God, we need to be careful not to be fooled. God’s word is steady. It does not change. God’s ways are always right. His commands are always perfect. They do not change with culture.

                Today, we live in the midst of one of the most dramatic and rapid culture shifts in history. We are watching people, even believers, looking at the word of God and redefining its clear meaning. On certain popular moral issues, Christians are debating whether or not the clear command of God is still applicable. And this leads me to wonder just how much of 1 Kings 13 is in play.

                How clearly did God speak about what is right and wrong? Honestly, God spoke very clearly in his word. Now people would argue that we should back off that word and exchange the clear command of God for a more socially acceptable stance. But God has not changed. And I wonder if we ought not recognize that to move from God’s clear command would be to bring about the death of the church as clearly and decidedly as the prophet of the south who met a lion on his way home.

                Now, I know that God’s church will not die. Nor will she fail. Yet, I also know that, many individual churches and denominations have turned so far from the word of God that there is no longer spiritual life to be found in their ministries. We are called by God to be loving. We are called to be kind. And we are called to be faithful to his commands, living in a way that the world may find strange or even that the world will hate. Yet, as we do so, we will find that God honors his word and he will be pleased with his people who humbly and lovingly keep his commands for his glory.

Psalm 119:28

My soul melts away for sorrow;

strengthen me according to your word!

                As my family prepares for a major transition, there is much that frightens us and much that gives us sorrow. We hate leaving behind dear friends, even though we know that God has a wonderful group of friends to meet us in Las Vegas. And so, reading this verse today was a reminder that my hope and encouragement from God must be found in his word.

                Some days when I read the word of God, I find principles that only point me toward comfort. Thanks to God this day, I find his encouragement in the very passages that he had set out for me on my daily reading list.

                Of course, the above Scripture encouraged my heart. Seeing David declare his sorrow and his comfort in the word of the Lord is helpful. But God gave more.

                In Luke 1:37-38a, I read the following this afternoon: “37 ‘For nothing will be impossible with God.’ 38 And Mary said, ‘Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.’” Of course, this passage is Mary’s conversation with the angel regarding the coming of Christ. Yet, as I read it, the angel’s reminder that nothing is impossible with God was a salve to my heart. Mary’s submission, asking that God’s will be done in her life was a reminder to me that I also am the Lord’s servant, available for him to do with as he pleases.

                Then, in Ephesians 2:7, I read, “so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” This passage is speaking of God’s eternal plan for believers. Yet, in that passage, I am reminded that God’s plans for me include kindness. How sweet it is to think that God has kindness in store for his children.

                Today, as my heart has been heavy with fears for the future, God has reminded me that his word holds the comfort that my heart needs. He can do all things. He will use his servants for his glory. He has kindness in store for his children.

                Those comforts have helped. No, my house has not sold yet. No, I do not have a place for our family to live in Las Vegas yet. No, it is still no easier to say goodbye to dear friends. But, God is good. He is comforting me. He is showing his glory. And for all this, I give him thanks.