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Too Light a Thing

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Over the past several weeks in our church, we have been working through the Letter of Paul to the Ephesians. This book is lovely in so many ways. In Ephesians, we see gospel all over the place. We see the individual side of salvation by grace alone through faith alone. We also see the way that God reconciles peoples to himself, as the gospel unites Jews and gentiles into one people.

The creation of a new nation in Christ is something that Paul refers to as a mystery. What he means by this is that the truth of God’s ultimate plan was present in the Old Testament, but it was not something that people understood until God brought it to pass and explained it through his Spirit. As Paul tells us, “When you read this, you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit” (Eph. 3:4-5).

It was interesting to me, working through my daily reading, to run across a place where the mystery is hidden in the Old Testament. Take a look at this from Isaiah and see the mystery of God’s eternal plan.

Isaiah 49:5-6

5 And now the Lord says,
he who formed me from the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back to him;
and that Israel might be gathered to him—
for I am honored in the eyes of the Lord,
and my God has become my strength—
6 he says:
“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant
to raise up the tribes of Jacob
and to bring back the preserved of Israel;
I will make you as a light for the nations,
that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”

How is this the mystery? How is the plan present but concealed here? Isaiah knew that God had created him and tasked him with communicating his word and truth to the nation of Israel. Isaiah was to watch as Judah continued to refuse to be faithful to the Lord and marched toward Babylonian captivity. But Isaiah also had a job to preach to the people the coming restoration of Israel. God would not keep Judah captive in Babylon forever. God would not leave the nation without hope. And we know that, after 70 years of captivity, God returned the people of Judah to their land.

When thinking of the mystery of God hidden in the Old Testament, peek again at verse 6: “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” God says that it is too light, too small or little a thing for him to use Isaiah to preach only to the descendants of Israel. Yes, the restoration of Judah to the land will be glorious. Yes, the restoration of Jerusalem is a wonderful thing. Yes, it is glorious that God is continuing to preserve his promise to Abraham. But there is something greater. Isaiah will not merely preach to and about Israel, he will be a light to the nations. God wants Isaiah to preach things that will communicate salvation to the ends of the earth.

This is a great example of the mystery present in the Old Testament. Imagine that you were a Jew living a few hundred years after it was spoken. You would know that God had kept his promise to restore Judah to the land. You would know that Isaiah was a part of preaching the true plan of God for Israel. And you would see that last line. You would see that God says this is something about being a light to the nations. You would know that this was a true thing God would do. But you might not know how God would bring salvation to the nations. You would know Israel was involved. You would know that this is global and not local. And yet, the plan, the how, the nuts and bolts of what God is up to would have escaped you.

Paul tells us in Ephesians that he now gets to preach this mystery. The salvation for the nations that comes out of Israel is Jesus. The mystery hinted at by Isaiah but unclear to the Old Testament saints is that there is one salvation to preach to all nations. That salvation does not involve becoming a part of physical Israel. That salvation does not include getting under Old Testament temple worship. The mystery now revealed is that there is salvation by grace through faith in Jesus alone. The mystery is that the same salvation is available in exactly the same way for the Jew and for the gentile. And the mystery is that, in Christ, the Jew and the gentile become part of one new nation, one new family, one new spiritual temple of the Lord.

To Isaiah and the folks of the Old Testament, the idea of God preserving Israel and returning the Jews to the land would have been huge. In the mysterious plan of God, preaching only that is too light a thing. There is something greater, the ultimate plan of God. God was sending Christ through Israel to make for himself one new people, one nation of the redeemed, from every people on the planet. Anything less than seeing the people of God as a new people, a new nation, a new family is too small a picture of the plan of God.

Who Taught Him?

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If you are paying much attention in Christian conversation these days, you will know that people are asking some interesting questions. Today, people are starting to call into question the goodness of God for his standards in a variety of areas. Some question God’s standards for gender and sexuality. Some question his standards for marriage. Some question God’s standards for social justice. Some just question God’s goodness in the Old Testament law.

In many of these instances, the questions about the goodness of God boil down to a simple thought. We believe that we understand justice, goodness, and righteousness better than God. We wonder how God can be perfectly right and put forward standards that we, in our modern and enlightened minds, find quite uncomfortable. The alternative, of course, is to say that Scripture is flawed and can only give us the best understanding of flawed men from centuries earlier.

You might say, Christian, that you do not face these temptations. You do not want to compromise the word of God. You would never consider yourself better at justice or righteousness than God. But, consider how easy it is for you to feel ashamed of God’s standards when they do not match the common, cultural expectation.

Let’s see just one simple point from Isaiah 40 that might help us as we look at the goodness and perfection of God in comparison to cultural expectation. I believe that keeping this in mind will give us a far better starting point for thinking through the things of God.

Isaiah 40:12-14

12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand
and marked off the heavens with a span,
enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure
and weighed the mountains in scales
and the hills in a balance?
13 Who has measured the Spirit of the Lord,
or what man shows him his counsel?
14 Whom did he consult,
and who made him understand?
Who taught him the path of justice,
and taught him knowledge,
and showed him the way of understanding?

In this little section, Isaiah asks some questions. And those questions have an obvious answer. Who can scoop up the entire ocean and hold it in the palm of his hand? Obviously, no person can do this other than the God who made the world. Who can measure the universe by stretching out his hand? Obviously, again, the answer is that nobody but God can do this.

Next, Isaiah takes his questions to questions of wisdom and counsel. The prophet showed us with his first question that no human being even comes close to being able to compare with the Lord. And he wants us to keep those thoughts in mind as we consider the goodness and the justice of the Lord. Think again about these questions that end verse 14, “Who taught him the path of justice, and taught him knowledge, and showed him the way of understanding?” What is the answer? Nobody taught God these things. Why? Nobody could. Justice and knowledge and righteousness are not things apart from God. God himself determines what is just, what is right, and what is perfect.

Draw the comparison so as not to miss the point. Can you pick up an entire ocean in one hand? No, that is ridiculous. Can you teach God anything about justice or about how things ought to go? No, that is ridiculous, just as ridiculous as thinking you could pick up an ocean. Do you get this? You and I have as much ability to question the ways of God about marriage, sexuality, gender, the church, worship, the law, or any of his ways as we have to pick up the ocean. We cannot come close. The concept is ridiculous.

When you see that you cannot question or teach the Lord, it should humble you. When you remember that God defines justice, it should make you turn to him to learn it rather than attempting to justify his ways to a lost world. When you recall the greatness of God here, you should turn to the word, listen to God speak for himself, and surrender to the perfect ways of the Holy One.

The sweet thing here is that God has revealed himself and his ways in his holy word. The more we study his word, the more he will allow us to understand the reasons why he has commanded the things he has commanded. WE are, of course, to obey God regardless of whether we understand his rationale for his standards. But it is glorious to know that, as we learn the word of God, we can begin to understand him, learn his ways, and find the beauty in all he has told us.

What Jesus Reveals

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It’s the Christmas season, or close to it. It certainly is the time of year when you start hearing songs that match the season. In most cases, of course, they are winter and Santa songs that folks enjoy so much. But, if you are listening, you will still find glorious pieces of music that actually focus on Jesus. And, if you are really in a good spot at the right time, you’ll start hearing pieces from “The Messiah.”

I cannot open Isaiah 40 without having a song come rushing to my mind. Does it do the same for you?

Isaiah 40:3-5

3 A voice cries:
“In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord;
make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4 Every valley shall be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill be made low;
the uneven ground shall become level,
and the rough places a plain.
5 And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,
and all flesh shall see it together,
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

While this passage gives me musical memories, it is also a passage that rings out in the ears of the New Testament reader. After all, this passage is on the lips of John the Baptist quite early in the gospels.

Matthew 3:3 – For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord;
make his paths straight.’ ”

It makes sense that this text would be on John’s lips, as he was sent by God to prepare the way for the coming of Jesus. John came to call Israel to repent, to be ready, to set things in order for the arrival of their promised King. And, while many came to John in repentance, many were unwilling to change anything in their actual lives or in their society.

What caught my attention as I read through Isaiah 40 was not the call for one to prepare the way of the Lord. Instead, it was what we see in verse 5. Remember that, in many cases in the New Testament, a prophecy cited may be a place marker to tell hearers that they need to find the answer to their question in and around that prophecy. So, though Matthew only gives us Isaiah 40:3, the whole section here applies to John and the Messiah to come.

What would happen when the way was prepared? That is what gets my attention. Once John calls the people to be ready, what would come? Isaiah tells us that the glory of the Lord will be revealed. What a wonderful statement this is. John would prepare the way. The people would be called to repent. And then, at just the right time, we do not simply see that Messiah will come. WE also see that, in the coming of the Messiah, the glory of the Lord will be revealed.

What is God’s glory? The glory of God, in the Old Testament, was often discussed in the context of the brilliant light of glory that filled the tabernacle or temple. The word glory has connections to the value, the weight, the importance of the Lord. So just consider how important it is that, with the arrival of Jesus on the scene, the glory of the Lord is revealed.

What has my attention may make better sense with a contrast. If I were to walk into a room, I do not think you are likely to declare, “The glory of the Lord has been revealed!” While God is glorified in his people, created in his image, rescued by his Son; I do not think anybody is likely to mistake my person for the glory of the Lord. But, when Jesus strides onto the scene, John the Baptist and Matthew in telling the story point us to this prophecy of Isaiah. John came to prepare the way. Jesus, when he steps onto the stage, reveals the glory of the Lord.

So, what I’m getting at is that Jesus, in revealing the glory of the Lord, is something absolutely wonderful. Jesus is the Lord. Only the arriving Lord can truly and fully reveal the glory of the Lord. And this is what our Savior did. Jesus revealed to us the power, the love, the grace, the justice, the will, the ways, the glory of the Lord. Jesus showed us God, because he is God in the flesh.

Christians, worship Jesus. Jesus is not just a good man who connects us to God. Jesus is the God to whom we come for life. Jesus is our picture of the glory of the Lord.

God Restores

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Real people who live real lives have experienced real pain. There are pains that we face that feel to us as though we can never be whole again. The loss of a loved one, the experience of abuse, the humiliation of a failure, all these can leave a person feeling irreparably broken and hopeless.

In the days of the prophet Joel, the people of Judah may well have felt broken beyond repair. The southern kingdom had sinned against the Lord and experienced his judgment. They faced crop failure, locust plague, and enemy armies. Their land was desolate. Their hope seemed dashed.

But God called the nation to return to him. He invited confession and repentance. And God promised restoration. This is beautiful; don’t miss it.

Joel 2:25-27

25 I will restore to you the years
that the swarming locust has eaten,
the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter,
my great army, which I sent among you.
26 “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied,
and praise the name of the Lord your God,
who has dealt wondrously with you.
And my people shall never again be put to shame.
27 You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel,
and that I am the Lord your God and there is none else.
And my people shall never again be put to shame.

God promised to restore the years that the locusts had eaten. Sense the beauty there. The people were damaged. They were damaged from their own sin against the Lord. They were damaged by the cruel actions of others who hurt them. But God says that he will restore.

Can he? Of course God can. The Lord can heal a land. The Lord can grow crops where crops had failed. The Lord can bring a harvest that goes beyond the loss of the years. And the Lord can help the people worship him again.

The Lord also promises the people a future. Notice that twice in verses 26-27, God says that they will not experience this shame any longer. God not only can fix the land, he can bear away the shame from the people.

This is lovely in the context of Old Testament Judah. It is infinitely more lovely in the work of Jesus Christ. We, like Judah, have sinned against God. We, like Judah, have been sinned against by evil people and a hostile world. We have been hurt. We have experienced shame. We have lost days, months, even years.

But God can restore. He can take from us our guilt and shame. This is part of what Jesus came to do. Jesus bore the shame of the cross in order to cover our shame in his perfection. Jesus took the wrath of God for sin so that we could have our sins covered by his righteousness. Jesus rose from the grave to show us that there is life after shame, life after guilt, life after death in his perfect grace.

Perhaps you have hurt. Perhaps you have guilt and shame. Perhaps you have done wrong. Perhaps you have wronged others. Run to Jesus. He is your only hope. He covers the guilt of those who come to him. He bears away the shame of those who come to him. He understands your pain more than you could ever imagine. He can heal. He can bring new growth. Jesus can restore the years the locusts have eaten.

Hardship and Worship

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In the book of Joel, the people of Judah are suffering. The prophet blends into his telling of the nation’s hardships a few different images. There has been a locust plague that has laid waste to the land. There has been drought and food shortage. And, there is also the horror of the army from the north who are threatening the survival of the nation.

As I was reading through this text, something struck me. It has to do with one of the first problems that the Lord lists as a result of the destruction faced in the land.

Joel 1:9 and 13

9 The grain offering and the drink offering are cut off
from the house of the Lord.
The priests mourn,
the ministers of the Lord.
13 Put on sackcloth and lament, O priests;
wail, O ministers of the altar.
Go in, pass the night in sackcloth,
O ministers of my God!
Because grain offering and drink offering
are withheld from the house of your God.

The land is desolate. The people are suffering. On the one hand, Joel calls on the drunkards of Judah to weep at their loss of wine. But on the other, what stands out to me, is that Joel calls on the priests to mourn over the lack of offerings available to give to the worship of God.

Then, in chapter 2, God calls the nation to repentance. In that call, God suggests that, if they repent, he will restore them. And in that restoration, we again see that restoring their ability to worship him is at the center. The healing of the land will lead to the people’s ability of again offering to the Lord their produce.

Joel 2:12-14

12 “Yet even now,” declares the Lord,
“return to me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;
13 and rend your hearts and not your garments.”
Return to the Lord your God,
for he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;
and he relents over disaster.
14 Who knows whether he will not turn and relent,
and leave a blessing behind him,
a grain offering and a drink offering
for the Lord your God?

I wonder, when we hurt, do we consider more than our own physical loss? Do we see that the worship of our God is still of utmost priority? Would we, were we to lose all our physical resources and financial stability mourn, not merely what we personally lack, but what we cannot give to the glory of God?

I do not have a great deal of clear, particular, concrete application here. But I think it is worth noticing that the Lord, in his explanation of what is wrong in Judah, points out that the judgment that they have brought upon themselves has robbed them of the ability to worship the Lord as he should be worshipped. The hardship that the people face is not simply personal or even national. The hardship they face impacts their response to God.

Here, I think, we can give thanks to God for the gospel. Christ has fulfilled all righteousness for us. No grain offering is necessary for us to please the Lord. Our ability to worship is not impacted by our material wealth.

At the same time, we should have hearts that are so God-focused that, when we lack in life, we think about how even this is connected to our spiritual lives. We should not become so self-minded that we forget that all that we have and all that we are belongs to the Lord our God.

God Avenges

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What are some names God uses for himself? What are some labels he gives himself? We all know names like Father, Lord, King, Provider, Etc. We like those names. We do little studies of them and even put them on pieces of artwork. But in 1 Thessalonians 4, there is a title for the Lord that we must not miss: Avenger.

In 1 Thessalonians 4, the apostle Paul speaks to the church about the issue of sanctification. Paul wants the church to grow in concert with the will of the Lord. And in the teaching, Paul addresses a needful area of sanctification, that of sexual immorality.

1 Thessalonians 4:3-8 – 3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, 5 not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; 6 that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. 7 For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. 8 Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.

Here Paul is quite clear that our response to sexual sin is a significant sign of sanctification. Thus, when people wonder why the church seems so obsessed with the issue of sexual immorality, or at least it used to be a few decades ago, we can understand that this is an important issue to the Lord. God inspired holy writ to call us to sexual sanctification and purity.

Paul wants his followers to grasp that following the Lord’s commands regarding our sexuality is important. The Lord is clear that sexual transgressions violate and do harm to others. These include acts of violence and threat as well as acts of lust and passion.

In the middle of this discussion, one supremely unwelcome in our culture, Paul declares that the Lord is “an avenger in all these things.” This is the label we must not lose for God. God is not merely annoyed by our sexual misuse or abuse of one another. God does not merely cluck his tongue and shake his finger in admonition. No, the Scripture tells us that God will avenge wrongs done to others in sexual sin.

How do we feel about this title for God? It will depend a bit who you are and what you have been through. To the one who has been wronged sexually, there must be some level of comfort. God does not look at the wrong done to you and idly accept it. Instead, the Lord will do justice. Whether justice is ever done in this life, the Lord, in eternity, will do proper justice and reap proper vengeance. God is not uncaring. God will not allow one of his creatures to do such harm to another without a proper and just response.

Victims of the sexual sin of others—abuse, manipulation, coercion, etc.—therefore, can know that the Lord is aware and active. God is not about to allow the crimes committed against them to be ignored in eternity. Whether it be a person who hurts another or a person who produces the filth that brings about devastating temptation, God will see to it that sin is addressed.

There are many who are victims of sexual sin. If you have been abused, know that the sin committed against you is not your fault and will not go unnoticed by the Lord. What another person did to you in an act of evil is not a stain against you before the Lord. You are not made unclean because of an act you could not control.

At the same time, when we are honest, we know that there are also many of us who are guilty of sexual sin. Many among us have done things we now deeply regret. Many among us have exposed our eyes to things we should never have seen. Many among us have surrendered to the violations of the standards of God that are so prevalent in our world. Many, most, perhaps all of us are guilty. We are victims and we are sinners too. Being a victim does not make us sinners. But, being sinners makes us sin.

Thus, for us, the idea of God as the avenger in all these things is frightening. We cannot stand against the Lord in this role. We are worthy of his judgment. Where do we find hope?

OF course the answer is the cross. There the Son of God put himself in the role of victim, harmed by others and brutally humiliated. At the same time, the Son of God, in becoming the victim, also took upon himself the avenging justice of God for our sin. Jesus, in his sacrificial death, bore the judgment of God for sins that you and I have committed, the sins for which we bear so much shame and guilt.

Christian, learn from this. God takes sexual sin seriously. This is no small thing. What you watch matters. What you do with others matters. What you do with your body matters. How you allow yourself to think matters. Verse 8 tells us that to disregard this is to disregard the Lord himself. So, let us strive together to battle against sexual sin. If you are struggling, talk to a pastor or to a trusted, mature believer. We will understand. We will do all we can to help.

If you are a victim, find hope in the fact that God cares. The Lord will be an avenger in all these things. God will not let what was done to you simply slip past as if it does not matter. It does matter. God will not be silent. All human sin will be punished.

And know, dear friends, that God does not look down upon you for what was done to you. The Lord has never made it his practice to punish the innocent while letting the guilty go. God will, in the end, do perfect justice. The evils of another do not make you dirty before God. The Lord can work with you, in Christ, to restore you.

And what if you are the guilty? Run to Jesus. There is no excuse for sinning before the Lord. There is no excuse for sinning against another. And many of us have been guilty in one form or another. Perhaps you have hurt someone. Perhaps you have simply behaved against the standards of God. No matter what your sin, you must run to Jesus, confess your sin, and cry out to him for mercy. Apart from the sacrifice of Jesus, you have no hope. God is an avenger in all these things, and he will not overlook sin. All sin will be punished. Either you will face God’s wrath yourself, or you will get under the grace of Jesus and know that your sin was punished in Christ.

Not the Word of Men

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There are a few questions that a person must answer in order to be in any way pleasing to God. Miss the answers to these questions, and you will be far from the truth. A person needs to know where we come from. A person needs to understand who Jesus is. A person needs to understand what we must do to be saved.

One more extremely significant question is this: What is the Bible? This is one of the most important questions any person can ask and answer. Get this one right, and you will have a proper foundation set for knowing the ways of God. Miss it, and you will be like a rudderless ship, floundering about without direction.

In his first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul, almost in passing, reminds the church there what the Bible is. Paul is here talking about his preaching to these people, and probably including the Old Testament Scriptures as well, but the point carries over to what we now have in the Bible.

1 Thessalonians 2:13 – And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.

There are two things to note here. Paul calls his message to the Thessalonians the word of God. And then he goes on to emphasize that it is not the word of men. This is vital. Understand, dear friends, the Bible is the word of God and not the word of men.

Start from the end. What if the Bible is merely the word of men? It might have some wisdom. It might be a somewhat helpful thing. But, if the Bible is merely a collection of the opinions and best guesses of fallible men, it is merely a tool to be used or discarded as we see fit.

But what if the Bible is, as Paul says, the word of God and not of men? Then everything changes. If the Bible is the word of God, it is authoritative. God is our Lord. What he says we must obey. What he wills we must strive to do or be.

If the Bible is the word of God, it is trustworthy. God is perfect. God does not err. It would be insanity to believe that the perfect and holy God of the universe would somehow give to us an errant, flawed, unreliable word and then claim it as his own.

If the Bible is the word of God, then what the Bible says, God says. If we want to know God, we will learn to know him through the word. If we want to be right with God, we do so by the method prescribed in the word. If we want to set our standards in line with those of God, we find those standards in his word.

The Bible is the word of God, not the word of men. Yes, men were used to write it down, but they were carried along by the Holy Spirit of God as he inspired them to pen for us, not the words of men, but the perfect word of God. Let this thought give you the answer to the question about what the Bible is. Know the Bible is the word of God. And let that Bible lead you to faith in and obedience to Jesus.

A Prayer for Mercy

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In Daniel 9, the prophet prays a prayer of confession. He acknowledges that the people of Judah have sinned against the Lord, ignoring the words of the prophets and violating the law of God. Daniel knows that the people are suffering the just judgment of God for their actions. But, Daniel, like any of us would do I would hope, is beseeching God for mercy.

Take a look at the section of the prayer that asks for God’s mercy, as there is something significant we need to see in it.

Daniel 9:16-19 – 16 “O Lord, according to all your righteous acts, let your anger and your wrath turn away from your city Jerusalem, your holy hill, because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and your people have become a byword among all who are around us. 17 Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary, which is desolate. 18 O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. 19 O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by your name.”

Take note in this section of how God-focused the prayer is. In verse 17, Daniel prays that God will make his face shine again upon his sanctuary for his own sake. In verse 18, the prophet points out that the city is called by God’s name and that God is merciful. In verse 19, Daniel asks God not to delay for God’s own sake and reminds him that the people he would be rescuing are called by his name.

Daniel asks God to have mercy for the protection of and the glory of God’s own name. This prayer is not about Israel’s comfort. Nor is this prayer about some sort of political advantage. The simple fact is that Daniel, after confession of a great many sins of the nation, asks for the Lord to have mercy based on God’s exaltation of God’s own name. The name of God is most important. The reputation of God as faithful to his word and merciful to his people is most important. And Daniel understands this as he prays.

We will face our own circumstances where we need to ask God for mercy. It might be in our churches. It might be in our families. But there will be times when we cry out to God for forgiveness, for healing, for mercies of all sorts. It would be wise for us to learn from Daniel’s prayer. God is good, even when we do not understand his ways. God is perfect while we are not. But God has put his Spirit in his people. God’s church is the people of God built together into a holy temple for his dwelling. God’s name is on his people of all nations who are united in Christ. Thus, when we pray, we need to be seeking that God’s name be honored by his actions. We need to focus our prayers on the defense of and glorification of the name of the Lord.

Consider, as you prepare to pray, how you can shape your heart so that you focus more on the name of God than on your own comfort? How can you ask god better for that which will honor him and display his faithfulness? How can you ask God for blessing based on his honor more than simply on your ease?

Friends, do not be confused here. I am not suggesting that if you somehow figure out a new way to word your prayers that you will be able to manipulate and control the Lord. Such a notion is pagan and evil. What I am saying is that, as we pray, our prayer should be more focused on the glory of the Lord. God’s name is and will be hallowed. His kingdom has come and will come. His will is going to be done on earth as it is in heaven. As you consider that for which you pray, remember that God’s name is of the utmost importance, it always has been. Then pray a sincere prayer that asks the Lord to do that which will, in eternity, most magnify his name through you, your family, your church, your nation. Ask God to act for his own sake and allow you to be a part of experiencing that glory.

The Complaint You Want

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In Daniel 6, Daniel has been a faithful follower of God in a hostile foreign land for quite some time. Taken to Babylon likely in his teen years, Daniel is now an old man and well-respected by Darius the Mede.

Human nature, we all know, is often an ugly thing. The other government officials were jealous of Daniel and the favor that Daniel had with the king. Thus, as we see so often in politics, the jealous officials set out to discredit Daniel.

Daniel 6:4-5 – 4 Then the high officials and the satraps sought to find a ground for complaint against Daniel with regard to the kingdom, but they could find no ground for complaint or any fault, because he was faithful, and no error or fault was found in him. 5 Then these men said, “We shall not find any ground for complaint against this Daniel unless we find it in connection with the law of his God.”

The politicians looked and looked, but could find nothing with which to discredit Daniel. They knew Daniel to be faithful in all things. But then they decided how to get to him. They could go after Daniel’s faithfulness to the law of God.

You likely know the rest of the story. The officials pass a law that nobody can pray to anybody except King Darius. They then catch Daniel continuing to pray to the Lord as always, Daniel is put into the lions’ den, and God works a miraculous rescue.

The application point that I want us to make today is simple. If worldly people were looking to dig up dirt on you, Christian, where would they go? Would they go to your public character? Would they look to how you treat others around you? Would it be your social media feed that does you in? Would it be your Internet history? Would they find a point of accusation in how you handle your money, how you talk about your friends, or how you entertain yourself?

Would it not be a glorious thing if we could be like Daniel? Let’s strive to see to it that, if our neighbors want to discredit us, they must find their grounds for attacking us in the word of God. May we be a people who are so faithful to the word of God that people would know that we can be caught, regularly, in obedience to the text. May our flaws not be in genuine failings of character. May our guilt lie in the fact that we, no matter what, obey the word of God without pause or apology.

A Prayer for Salvation

pastortravislv

What does it look like to pray that God save you? There is, of course, no “sinner’s prayer” as a prayer of salvation in Scripture. There is no prayer like the prayer at the end of the gospel tracts. That is, of course, good, as the point of coming to God in faith is not empty repetition of magic words to get yourself into heaven.

With that said, it is also nice to have something of an example of what it looks like when a sinner in need cries out to the Lord.

Let me preface. This Psalm is not a prayer for spiritual salvation. It is, in fact, a prayer for a physical salvation. But, if you study the Scriptures well, you will find that the physical salvation of Israel from Egypt or David from enemies is a picture for us of the coming and eternal spiritual salvation we find in Christ. There is a parallel that we can see. And with that in mind, I want us to see how David opens this prayer.

Psalm 143:1-2

1 Hear my prayer, O LORD;
give ear to my pleas for mercy!
In your faithfulness answer me, in your righteousness!
2 Enter not into judgment with your servant,
for no one living is righteous before you.

David cries out to God. Please hear me. Please have mercy. Be righteous as you always are. Please do not enter into judgment over me. I, like all people, cannot stand up to your perfection. Lord, have mercy.

That is a beautiful prayer. When a person comes to God admitting right away that we have no ground upon which to stand, that is good. When we realize that we can only fall upon the mercy of God, that is right. And, thanks be to God, the Lord is both perfectly righteous and wonderfully merciful.

Is the gospel here? Of course it is. God is just and merciful. The justice of God is perfectly satisfied as Jesus, God in flesh, took upon himself the right wrath of God for my sin. The mercy of God is perfectly evident in God rescuing me, a sinner, from the wrath I deserve.

And, let us not leave this prayer without a moment to focus on the state of all people. David says, “for no one living is righteous before you.” No living human being can be righteous on his or her own. If you are outside of Christ and think you are OK with God, you are thinking unbiblically. We are not righteous before the holy one. We are less than his perfection. We need to be forgiven. WE need to be saved.

Let David’s prayer be yours even today. If you are a Christian, let this prayer remind you of your state before salvation and your continuing need for God’s grace. If you are not a believer, know that you need the righteousness of God and his mercy to forgive you, as none of us can stand under the judgment of God and live.