The Naomi Project 3--Love and Friendship

11/10/2014 0 Comments

Think not that I came to send peace on the earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law: and a man's foes [shall be] they of his own household, Matt 10:34-36.

    What Jesus says in the above passage clearly shows the expected atmosphere of the home.  It was not considered normal for a daughter-in-law and mother-in-law to have strife between themselves.  Even in a day of extended family in one compound, and often one house, the relationships were expected to be good ones.  For that to happen in such close quarters, beyond the mere acceptance we discussed last week, there had to be love.
    And such it was with Naomi and her daughters-in-law.  Notice in Ruth 1:4-6, even after their husbands died, these young women stayed with Naomi.  This was now a house of mourning and a house of poverty as well.  We do not understand the plight of the widow in that culture and time.  They had no widows’ pensions, no life insurance policies, no food stamps, and getting a job was pretty well limited to selling oneself as a bondservant.  Yet Naomi had cultivated such a wonderful relationship with these girls that they didn’t leave her, even though they both had families they could have gone home to (1:8).  These girls knew they were loved and that counted far more than food on the table.  Can you imagine what such a relationship must have been like?  
    When Naomi heard the famine had left Israel and she decided to go back home, even then both of them were determined to go back with her.  Not just to go on a trip, but to leave the culture they grew up in, to go where strangers were not particularly appreciated, where they would depend upon those very people to leave enough in the fields for them to survive on.
    And because of her genuine concern for them, Naomi did her best to send them back to their families.  I have heard people criticize her for this, as if she were sending them to Hell herself.  Once again our misunderstanding of culture has made us harsh and judgmental.  Their very survival could depend upon where they settled.  At home they would once again be under their father’s care and he would probably waste little time making a marriage transaction.  Marriage was more about survival than love in those days.  The love usually followed after years of handling the trials of life together.
    And why couldn’t they have continued to worship God, even in Moab?  Pockets of believers still dotted the landscape that far back.  Job for one.  I have heard a pretty good case made for him being an Edomite.  Then there was Jethro, a priest of God who was a Midianite.  And how about Naaman, who when he went back home prayed to God, In this thing Jehovah pardon your servant: when my master goes into the house of Rimmon to worship there, and he leans on my hand, and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, when I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, Jehovah pardon your servant in this thing, 2 Kings 5:18.  Naaman fully intended to continue serving Jehovah, even though his occupation sometimes had him enter an idol’s temple.  Elisha’s answer was, “Go in peace.”  So why in the world couldn’t these girls serve Jehovah in Moab?  Naomi wanted what was best for them in their lives and evidently she had enough faith in them to know they could stay faithful to God even without her standing over them.
    And so Orpah did go back, crying all the way, (1:14).  But Ruth would not.  I am not sure her level of faith was any higher than Orpah’s, but I am sure her level of love for her mother-in-law was as high as it gets.  You don’t inspire that level of love and devotion without consistency and a large amount of time.  Especially in that culture, I have no doubt they worked together, laughed together, maybe even shared a few secrets as women are prone to do—sisterhood we call it nowadays, but one that also came with respect for an older woman who proved her love was genuine over and over and over.
    What are you inspiring in your daughter-in-law?  You can’t build a good relationship if she thinks you look down on her, if she thinks you resent her, if she thinks nothing she does is good enough.  She will never learn to trust that you have her best interests at heart if you are constantly criticizing, taking offense at her words, finding hidden meanings where there are none.  When you say to her, “I decided I would accept whoever my son brought home as his wife no matter what!” you are being far more transparent than you realize.  There would have probably been a “no matter what” no matter who he brought home.
    Genuine love and friendship, not something forced or pretended, that’s what every daughter-in-law needs from her mother-in-law.  And it will show in everything you do and say.

But Ruth said, "Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the LORD do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you." And when Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more. Ruth 1:16-18.

Dene Ward

The Hitchhiker

11/7/2014 0 Comments

We live thirty miles from the meetinghouse, about forty minutes with good traffic flow and no construction.  Otherwise it can be up to an hour. 

    To make the before-services meeting of the men who will be serving that day, we usually leave our house about 7:45 every Sunday morning.  One Sunday we passed a hitchhiker at the four-way stop a couple of miles from the house.  He was an older gentleman, decently dressed, holding a sign that said “Gainesville.”  So we stopped and picked him up.  We understood that he was taking a risk too, so as he settled into the backseat we mentioned that we were on the way to church and pointed out our stack of Bibles next to him.  This instantly set him more at ease, and he talked with us some. 

     He was on his way to work at Sears, a good thirty miles from the corner where we had picked him up, and several miles opposite where we were headed.  He didn’t have to be there till noon, but since he did not know how long it would take to get a ride, he had left his house on foot at seven-fifteen and made it to the corner where we found him.  His car had broken down and he was only able to buy a part a week as his paycheck came in, so until he fixed it, he was hitching rides.

    “But just take me as far as you can and I’ll thumb another ride and another until I get to the bus stop in front of Wal-Mart.  If I make it there by eleven I can get the bus I need in time.”  We took him all the way to Wal-Mart.

    Now just imagine this:  you find out your car doesn’t run on Saturday.  You live way out of town where no one else does.  How early would you be willing to get up to hitch a ride to a nine o’clock service?  That isn’t the half of it, people.  What others things do we miss doing for the Lord because we aren’t willing to make a sacrifice like that, because it’s so easy to say, “I can’t?”  This man was nearly 70 years old, yet he spent nearly five hours every morning getting to work, working a whole shift, and then more hours getting home after work—in the dark.  Have you ever gone to that much trouble for the Lord?

    The next Sunday the man was once again at the four-way stop.  We picked him up and dropped him off at Wal-Mart once again, after inviting him to sit with us at church till eleven, with an offer to take him straight to Sears afterwards.  He politely declined, and also declined to tell us exactly where he lived when we offered to pick him up and take him to work every day.  But he did tell us that his wife had died several years before and he had lost all his savings paying for her medical care.  “I have to have this job,” he said.  “I am only six payments from paying off my mortgage, but without a paycheck I will lose my home.”

    Ah!  There was the real motivation.  He didn’t want to lose his home, an old double wide on a rural lot.  He got up at 6:30 every day for a job that didn’t start till noon, so he could be sure of getting there.  And he did it so he wouldn’t lose a humble, barely comfortable home.

    We have a home waiting for us too, far better than that man had, a home that is eternal, “that fades not away.”  He didn’t want to lose his home.  Don’t we care whether we lose ours?

By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God, Heb 11:8-10.       

Dene Ward


(For hints, help, and instructions on using this blog, click on the FAQ/Tutorial page on the left sidebar)

Swagger

11/6/2014 0 Comments

Have you seen them?  Nearly every dramatic television series these days has one—a shot of the team--police, spies, crime scene techs, Robin Hood types, doctors, even lawyers!—walking in a line three, four, five or more abreast, slow motion, grim determination etched on their faces, a breeze off the set blowing just enough to ruffle a curl onto a handsome, stony forehead or whip the jacket aside to show off an outline of chiseled physique.  Wow!  Who could ever beat these guys?

    No matter what you might say otherwise, this obligatory shot must impress us.  Otherwise it would not be “obligatory.”  Why does it succeed?  Because it projects a team filled with confidence, strength, and solidarity.  

    I seldom watch the Power Point on Sunday mornings now because I cannot read most of the passages and the announcements.  But I glanced up once a week or so ago, and the shot of our three elders flashed up.  We do that so any visitors from the community can recognize them easily.  I suddenly remembered all those slo-mo swaggers and wondered what the effect might be if we did one of those.  Knowing my humble shepherds as well as I do, I know they would be embarrassed, but I could not help but smile and think, “Our guys could pull it off.”

    Then I thought to myself, you know what?  It might not be such a wild thought.  Shouldn’t we as Christians have that swagger too?  Not because we are so good, but because of who would be standing in the middle of our line, perhaps a step or two ahead of the rest of us walking thousands abreast through the world.  How could it not have an effect?

    There was a time when that Leader did walk the roads with his twelve special followers beside and behind him.  But they did not have the swagger necessary for the full effect.  They were not as confident as they should have been.  Didn’t they all fear as the storm raged around their boat, even though they had their Lord with them, who lay calm enough to sleep despite the tossing waves?

    They were not as strong as they should have been.  Didn’t they sleep while he suffered in the garden, and then scatter when he was arrested?  

    They were certainly not as unified as they should have been.  More than once he caught them arguing about who was the greatest.

    We are not any better sometimes.  At least by the Day of Pentecost, fifty days after they fled in terror from the Roman soldiers, those men finally shaped up.  They went on to perform miracles, preach astounding sermons, and face persecution, even to the death.  

    What about us?  When will we mature enough to understand that with the Leader we have, we can turn the world upside down?  But only if we walk the walk.  

    Confidence:  I can do all things through him who strengthens me, Phil 4:13.

    Strength:  So that with good courage we say, The Lord is my helper, I will not fear; what shall man do to me? Heb 13:6.

    Solidarity:  That they may all be one, even as you Father are in me and I in you, that they may also be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me, John 17:21.

    If the world is not impressed with us, it is not because of our leader or his message.  It is because we have failed him.  Any confidence, strength, and solidarity we may have come only from our faith in him.  When we are lingering behind, cringing at what lies ahead, or tugging and fussing with one another instead of firmly, confidently striding out to the fight, all the Enemy will do is laugh.  
    
For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world—and this is the victory that has overcome the world—faith, 1 John 5:4.

Dene Ward

Incomplete Evangelism

11/5/2014 0 Comments

Today’s post is by guest writer Melissa Baker.

The Plan of Salvation. The steps to salvation.  The Roman Road. Personal testimony. Are these familiar to you?  As people who are already Christians, we memorize these in an attempt to learn to share the gospel with our friends.  All churches seem to have one version or another they stick to.  When I was a kid, I even had a bracelet with different colored beads to help me remember.  While none of these things are wrong, I recently read a book that challenged me to believe that many of these methods of evangelism don't go far enough in letting people know what being a Christian is all about.  

In his book The Gospel According to Jesus, John MacArthur explores the way that Jesus evangelized and compares it to modern church evangelism. While I must say that there is a whole host of things I disagree with the author about in this book (he is a staunch Calvinist), he made a strong argument that our simple plans of salvation don't come to the heart of conversion as Jesus taught it: someone who becomes a Christian must acknowledge through their actions the lordship of Christ.  

The New Testament is replete with the image of slavery, the idea that a Christian is a slave to Christ.  Our culture doesn't like to speak of slavery, most likely because of our relatively recent history with slavery in the Unites States.  Many versions of the Bible even omit the word "slave," exchanging it for the more politically correct word "servant."   But Mr. MacArthur points out that the Greek work doulos isn't talking  about a hired man.  "It describes someone lacking personal freedom and personal rights whose very existence is defined by his service to another.  It is the sort of slavery in which 'human autonomy is set aside and an alien will takes precedence of one's own.' This is the total, unqualified submission to the control and the directives of a higher authority -- slavery, not merely service at one's own discretion."

Jesus himself is the one who began to use this term, and he never softened its edges (Matthew 10:24-25; Matthew 25:21; Luke 9:57-62).  In fact, many times his hard teachings drove would-be followers away because they were unwilling to follow them.  The rich young ruler, for example, put his money before Jesus and would not follow Christ if it meant giving up his wealth (Matthew 19:16-22).  How many times have we made absolutely sure our Seekers know the cost of following Christ before they make a decision?  Jesus told a whole crowd of people exactly what they would have to give up.
Now large crowds were going along with Him; and He turned and said to them, "If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.'" (Luke 14:25-30)

No simple plan of salvation I've seen has ever contained the enormity of these words, yet Jesus over and over again let people know that he was calling them to a changed life.  Not just a life of salvation, but a life of obedience to Him above all else.  

There is a man in my life whom I love dearly and pray for every day.  Because he intellectually believes everything about Jesus, he thinks his soul is secure.  I was understandably concerned because he had not put Christ on in baptism.  I thought if he would only do that, then I would be able to sleep at night knowing his salvation is secure.  But his refusal to be baptized is a sign of something much deeper.  He is unwilling to submit to the Lordship of Christ in any way, and because of the "easy believism" prevalent in the church today, he thinks he is safe.  My letter urging him to be baptized should have been a long conversation urging him to become a slave of Christ.  

What about you? What do you think of when you think of evangelism? An easy, five step process? A path through the Scriptures? That's the way I used to think about it, but The Gospel According to Jesus has challenged me to share my faith the way Christ, the Author of that faith, did. In turn, I challenge you to do the same.

Melissa Morris Baker
- See more of Melissa’s writings at: http://www.maidservantsofchrist.com/

Southernisms

11/4/2014 0 Comments

I understand that the term “Southernism” refers to a trait of language or behavior that is characteristic of the South or Southerners.  I have a cookbook, Cooking Across the South compiled by Lillian Marshall, which extrapolates that definition to include certain Southern recipes, particularly older recipes.  She includes in that list things like hominy, frocking, poke sallet, and tomato gravy.  If you are from north of the Mason-Dixon Line, I am sure you are scratching your head at some of those things, wondering just what in the world they are besides strange.

    In the same vein, I wondered if we could stretch that idea to something we might call “Christianisms,” things a Christian would do that might seem peculiar to someone who isn’t one.  Like never using what the world now calls “colorful language;” like remaining calm and civil when someone mistreats you, doing, in fact, something nice for them; like not cheating on your taxes; like giving back the change that a cashier overpays you; like paying attention to the speed limit and other laws of the land even if there is not a trooper behind you; like cooking or cleaning house for an invalid; like making time for the worship on Sunday morning and arriving at the ball game late even if those tickets did cost a small fortune; like being careful of the clothing you choose to wear; like choosing not to see certain movies or watch certain television shows; like thinking that spending time with other Christians is far more enjoyable than things like “clubbing;” —these are my idea of Christianisms.  I am sure you could add more to the list.

    In the cookbook, I must admit, are many things I have never heard of, despite being a born and bred Southerner—frocking, for one.  You see I came along at a time when the South was starting to change, especially my part of it.  Disney changed everything.  Orlando used to be a one-horse town instead of the metropolis it has become.  I actually learned how to drive in Tampa on what is now I-275.  Can you imagine letting a first timer do that?  My part of the South has become less “southern” as the years have passed.  So, while I had roots in the traditions of the Deep South, I have lost familiarity with many of them.

    Wouldn’t it be a shame if we got to that point with “Christianisms?”  When you read that list I made, did you stop somewhere along the line and say, “Huh? Why would anyone do that?”  Have we allowed the “worldisms” to take the place of concepts and behaviors that ought to be second nature to us?  Can we even compose a list of things that make us different or have we become assimilated?

    Try making a list of the “Christianisms” in your life today.  Make sure you can come up with some, and if not, maybe it’s time to make a few changes.

Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent,  children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation,  among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life…Phil 2:14-16a.

Dene Ward

The Naomi Project 2-Acceptance

11/3/2014 0 Comments

Let’s just start our study with this simple observation:  Naomi accepted her daughters-in-law the way every young woman wants to be accepted by her husband’s family.  

    And Elimelech, Naomi's husband, died; and she was left, and her two sons. And they took them wives of the women of Moab; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth: and they dwelt there about ten years. Ruth 1:3-4.

    If any mother-in-law could have complained about a foreign daughter-in-law, one raised in an idolatrous culture, Naomi could have—and she had not one, but two of them.  Instead she seems to have accepted them with open arms and without judgment.  In fact she seems to have taught them.  How easy would that have been if they had sensed resentment and suspicion?  I am sure her sons taught their wives as well, but those girls stayed with Naomi even after the death of their husbands, even before she decided to go back to Israel, and then they both wanted to go with her, not just Ruth.  Here is a mother-in-law who knew how to cultivate a loving relationship with those of another culture, with the women who came into her boys’ lives and became more important to them than she was.  That is hard for a mother, but her example says it can be done and is important in establishing a lasting and loving relationship with a daughter-in-law.

    Mothers-in-law today have the same obligation.  If your daughter-in-law is a Christian, count your blessings.  That should take care of any reservations you may have about her.  Now treat that new daughter like an especially beloved sister in Christ.  You would be surprised how many times people forget to treat family that way—“that’s church stuff,” I’ve heard.  Yes, and you are a member of the Lord’s church even in your home.  Act like it.

    But if she isn’t a Christian, cultivate that relationship for the thing that matters most—her soul.  You owe her that.  Paul said that as a Christian he was a debtor to everyone else to tell them the good news (Rom 1:14).  So are you.  Be kind, be patient, do not give her any reason to look down on Christianity or the church if you ever hope to gain her soul.  

    No matter what her background, accept her whole-heartedly.  Trust me, she will always be able to tell if you do not like her, no matter how hard you try to hide it.  Do not talk about “my son.”  He is now her husband, a relationship that supersedes the parent-child relationship.  A man shall leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife and the two shall become one flesh, Gen 2:24.  That’s what God said about it. In your mind, their two names should always be attached.  

    If you want a continuing relationship with your son, then do not come between them in any way.  Do not allow him to disparage her to you, and certainly do not revel in it if he does!  Do not ever allow him to say to her in your presence, “That’s not how Mom does it.”  Do not expect him to visit without her.  Do not expect him to drop everything and leave her and his family for anything less than an emergency.  From now on it is not “him,” it is “them.”  They are “one flesh.”  If it is wrong for man to put it asunder, it’s wrong for a mother-in-law to amputate it.

    Welcome your new daughter into the family with open arms.  You are the one with the obligation here, not her.

And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, Will you go with this man? And she said, I will go…And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife…Genesis 24:58,67

Dene Ward

Everyday People

10/31/2014 0 Comments

Today's post is by guest writer Keith Ward.

Before I retired, often on a cool morning I built a fire of twigs before I left for work to have a few moments, “Just God and me”.  I’ve been thinking quite a bit about the ordinary things in Jesus’ life. How many times did he sit around a fire in the evening with the apostles? What did they talk about?  It was not all religion, I bet: “Did you see the size of that viper under the bush this afternoon?”

Those desert nights get cold.  They might have built more than one fire so that when they bedded down, there would be enough for all of them to be near one.  Even when they were near a town, there would be difficulty finding enough rooms for all. Jesus, twelve apostles, up to half a dozen women who ministered to him (probably not all there all the time, but maybe there were others occasionally who were not listed as they were not there often); from the 120 in Acts 1, they selected two that had been with him all the way, and once he sent out seventy in pairs of two, so they had to have journeyed with him some of the time.  It was a small army -- never less than thirteen; often more than a hundred. Firewood would be a problem, as would food.  Jesus might wake up in the morning to the sound of the women getting the fires re-started and breakfast on.  (NO BACON!! No sausage gravy.  What would be the point of even having breakfast? )

If Jesus came to me, at my morning fire, what would he say?  I have imagined several conversations centered around my perception of my problems and needs.  I do wonder, though, if I have faced myself well enough to even be in the ballpark.

Then, I was working in the garden one day and wondered, “Did Jesus garden?”  Surely, he must have.  Most homes had what our parents called “kitchen gardens.”  The wife cared for those, and the young children helped.  Think about Jesus pulling weeds, planting seeds, watering. “Mom, I finished, can I go play now?”

He was a carpenter taught by his father.  Joseph demonstrated, corrected, helped.  Or do you think he formed furniture and houses by fiat?

That first century generation had great difficult seeing that this everyday man was in fact, God.  For many generations, we have over-taught deity so that we have difficulty seeing him as a real man.

The reality of this overemphasis is that many dismiss his example and do not try very hard to measure up—after all, he was deity, I cannot do that.  The truth is that no one, especially they of Nazareth who knew him best, saw him as being any different than any other child, teen, adult.  Obviously, after he was 30, he did miracles, but in no other way was distinguished from any other man in anyone’s eyes.

So, when we read Peter and others urging us to follow his example, to be what he was, to let him live in us, it is possible.  He was tempted like we are, He “in like manner” partook of flesh and blood that he might deliver us.  We can live like he did because he lived “in like manner” as we do (Heb 2:12).   Take hold of the power of that example.

Keith Ward

Prayers Not Prayed

10/30/2014 0 Comments

A couple of weeks ago Keith had an appointment with the audiologist at the VA hospital.  This meant he was late arriving to work, heading up highway 231 about 9:30 that Friday morning.  It takes awhile to park, go through the search checkpoints and all the gates.  He arrived at his office in time to hear the news that had just filtered back.

    A man in the town had stabbed his girlfriend and fled down that very highway at speeds far exceeding the speed limit and, with apparent intent, hit a van head on.  Both drivers were killed instantly.  It had happened at 9:40.  A ten minute delay anywhere along the road and one of those dead drivers might have been Keith.

    Many times we go through life thinking God has not answered our prayers.  Because we are self-oriented and earthly minded, we see only what happens to us or to others right in front of us.  But occasionally we are reminded that God is out there answering prayers we did not even know to pray.  

    So many have asked me how I can stay positive in the circumstances in which I find myself.  They do not know what I have been told.  

    Five years ago was not the beginning of all this.  It is the ending.  Many times, many different medical personnel, including three or four doctors famous in their fields, have told me that as severe as my problem is, they do not know how my eyes have lasted this long, how I did not have a crisis long before.  God has been answering those unsaid prayers since I was born.  He has not let me down; he has given me far more than anyone else in my position had any right to expect.

    So today, while you are wondering why God has not answered a prayer you have prayed, when you think He has forsaken you in a time when you need Him most, take a moment to consider all the prayers He has answered that you are unaware of.  He knows far better than we what we most need.  He is, in fact, answering your other prayers too, but He is not required to keep to your timetable or your methods.  Just trust Him.  He is there, working while you sleep, while you work, while you play, and while you plan all those big plans that so often exclude Him.  

    You may never realize what He has truly done for you today, but then just think how horrible it might have been if He hadn’t.

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, unto him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all generations for ever and ever. Amen. Eph 3:20,21

Dene Ward

Godly Sorrow--Comparing Psalms 51 and 32

10/29/2014 0 Comments

I’ve known a lot of people who seem to think that true repentance is shown by moping around in a depressed state for weeks on end, as if the longer they beat themselves up the more worthy they are of forgiveness.  If we have learned anything in our Psalms study lately, it’s just the opposite.  

    David shows us in the progression of repentance that occurs between Psalms 51 and 32 that we should “get over it;” that a failure to do so is harmful to our souls.

    In our class we charted the verses in those two psalms.  We found similar things in each:  repentance, the effects of sin, and the effects that God’s forgiveness ought to have in our lives.  Guess what we discovered?  In Psalm 51, obviously written within a short time after Nathan’s visit to David in 2 Sam 12, even though at that time Nathan proclaimed God’s forgiveness, David is fraught with guilt and sorrow, even physically ailing from that burden of regret.  He uses every synonym you can imagine for sin and his plea for mercy.  In our modern divisions, those pleas take up seven verses.  Another three describe his woeful emotional and physical state after finally recognizing the enormity and complexity of what he has done, a total of ten verses.

    Yes, he finally recognizes his forgiveness and spends three verses on his desire to get back to work for the Lord and on his concern for others, a general list of things he plans to carry out as “fruit meet for repentance.”  

    And Psalm 32?  This psalm is much less emotional.  David repents yet again, but in two verses this time instead of ten.  Does that mean it is not as heartfelt?  Of course not, but his focus has changed.  This time he spends most of the psalm recounting what he has learned from his sin and how to avoid it in the future.  Listen to instruction, hear counsel, consider and come to an understanding, learn to control yourself.  He has gone past emotion and is now using the experience to gain wisdom and strength.  Then he spends more time in concern for others, that they learn the same lessons he has. Finally he shouts for joy, the joy found in forgiveness and a renewed fellowship with God.  This section takes up four verses of an eleven verse psalm, where in 51 we are looking at three verses of a nineteen verse psalm.  Those four verses in Psalm 32 are far more practical and helpful to us in terms of overcoming than the ones in 51, where his grief over his sin is the focus.  

    By the time of Psalm 32’s writing, David has learned an invaluable lesson—though indeed his sin was “ever before me,” he understood that allowing one’s grief to paralyze him and pull him down into despondency was as much an aid to Satan as sinning in the first place.  He was no longer serving God; he was no longer serving others.  In fact, he was bringing others down with his depression.  There is a selfishness in this sort of sorrow that is completely inappropriate—a “worldly” sorrow.

    Grief is certainly fitting.  I wonder if we ever experience the kind of grief David did over sin, especially as shown in Psalm 51.  If we did, perhaps we would sin less.  But there comes a time when we must “get over it” and get back to work.  “Restore unto me the joy of your salvation,” David says (51:12).   “Be glad in the Lord and rejoice,” and “Shout for joy!” (32:11). Sitting in sackcloth and ashes for the rest of your life, David is telling us, is not the way to show gratitude for your forgiveness.   

For even if I made you grieve with my letter, I do not regret it—though I did regret it, for I see that that letter grieved you, though only for a while. As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us. For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. For see what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you, but also what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what punishment! At every point you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter, 2 Cor 7:8-11.

Dene Ward

Glowing in the Dark

10/28/2014 0 Comments

I found a verse the other day that intrigued me—for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit, Rom 14:17.  While the meaning is obvious—in the context of eating meats sacrificed to idols, Paul is telling them that being in the kingdom is a matter of the inner man not the outer man—I still wondered why those three things were chosen among the many traits describing Christians.

    Before much longer I found Romans 5:1-3.  Those three things are not three separate items, as if they can be chosen one without the other, they are a chain reaction.  I am justified (made righteous), and as a result have peace with God, and that creates joy in my life.  

    Keep reading down to verse 5 in Romans 5, then add 12:12 and 15:13 to the mix and you see that joy is inextricably bound with hope.  The Greeks did not use “hope” the way we use it, a wish for something that could go either way, but as a confident assurance or, as Keith likes to say, “a vision of a certain future.”  Along with the apostle John in 1 John 5:13, I should be able to say, “I know I am saved; I know I have been forgiven; I know I have a relationship with God; I know I am going to Heaven.”  Is there anything that should inspire any greater joy?

    Being joyful does not mean we may not face sad times; it does not mean we must not ever grieve in a trial.  What it does mean is that we will bounce back from those times because joy is the foundation for our lives.  If, instead, I come through a trial with an attitude only toward myself, what I have endured, and what I believe others should be doing for me because of it, my joy has turned into bitterness.  In fact, I have not successfully endured that trial at all. Whenever I allow something to smother my joy, in at least that much I have allowed that thing to be more important to me than my relationship with God.
 
    This is easier said than done.  I used to wonder how to have this joy that everyone kept telling me I was supposed to have.  God does not leave us without direction.  Col 1:9-14 gives us several techniques for having joy.  Be filled with the knowledge of Him; walk worthily of the Lord; bear fruit in every good work; give thanks for our salvation.  Do you know what that boils down to?  Focus on the good things and stay busy serving others.  

    Joy is like a glow-in-the-dark toy.  The more I focus on what God has done for me and what he expects me to do for others, the longer I sit in the light and the stronger my glow will be.  But if I sit too long in the shadow of sadness and grief, focusing too long on myself, my joy will begin to fade until eventually it is gone altogether.      

    If you find yourself alone in the dark today, it’s time to come back into the light before your joy disappears, along with the hope that reinforces it.  This is a choice you make, one that has nothing to do with what happens today or what anyone does to you, but with the path you choose to take regardless.       
That the proof of your faith, more precious than gold that perishes though it is proved by fire, may be found unto praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ:  whom not having seen you love; on whom, though now you see him not, yet believing, you rejoice greatly with joy unspeakable and full of glory:  receiving the end of your faith, the salvation of your souls. 1 Peter 1:7-9.

Dene Ward