full lives

Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.

Romans 12:15

Christians should not solo through life events. We have other friends and family in Christ who share life with us. We are never islands of personal experience. We are to share good times and bad, laughter and tears, celebrations and disappointments, happiness and sorrow.

I am not alone because I have invited others to share life in Jesus with me. And this isn’t just about 90 minutes on Sunday either! It’s an every day joy and duty to live in Christian community. It is truly “life together”. I allow other people full access. And I share with them my full availability. This is what it means to believe, obey, and follow the command that Paul gives here. It is a full willingness to be open… clear in how I live… clear in entering the lives of my brothers and sisters with empathy, love, and respect.

Looking at my week, I am planning my days in many ways around obeying these two polar opposites: rejoicing and weeping. I will support folks in hard circumstances. I will hear their stories, rejoice where God is blessing them, and cry with them in pains. I will attend a funeral at the end of this week both in celebrations of a long life that made deep impact for Christ, and in sorrow for a family who has honestly felt the loss of so much. I will counsel broken relationships, care for needy situations, rejoice in God’s healing, and worship with those grateful to God for His gifts. And others will enter into these sorts of things with me. I share my joys and sorrows knowing I need friends with me in the journey. This is the life that Christians can live… full, powerful, filled with God’s presence because we dare to open our lives together before Him.

two types of testimony

Come and hear, all you who fear God,

and I will tell what he has done for my soul.

I cried to him with my mouth,

and high praise was on my tongue.

Psalm 66:16-17

This psalm calls those who worship God to joyfully share their experiences of God at work. There are two categories of such testimony as recorded in verse seventeen. They are broad experiences that we keep in mind with God even today. And it is good to remember that God works both these ways.

The first category is described as the God Who is there in our pains and troubles. This is described with the phrase: “I cried to Him with my mouth”. We cry out in difficulty. We cry out to God in our helplessness. We cry out to Him overwhelmed and repenting of our sin. We cry out to Him in danger. We cry out to Him in fear. These are prayers of intensity, urgency, and emotion, often the simplest prayers not asking much, but expressing depth. They come from what is wrong in our world. They can be short, powerful cries to God, often in the vein of: “O God… No!”

There is a second kind of testimony about God. These are testimonies of pure praise, perhaps not as intimately linked to our own heartaches or pains, but insights into the very character of God that move our souls. The phrase “high praise was on my tongue” captures this sort of worshipful testifying. We can’t help but tell of His holiness, His glory, His power, His salvation, His grace, His mercy, and His love… ad infinitum! You start really thinking of the attributes of our great God, and your heart will inevitably sing! These prayers are moving, with the simple declaration: “God, You are ________!”

O Lord my God,

When I in awestruck wonder consider… what You have done to deliver me, and Who You are in Your majesty, my soul will declare Your greatness!

Amen

unfathomable, unsearchable, inscrutable

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!

Romans 11:33

Unfathomable riches in Christ…

Valued beyond price!

Unfathomable wisdom in God’s Word…

Always before my eyes.

Unfathomable knowledge of God…

Forever to make me wise.

Unsearchable statues of God…

Faultless and true.

Unsearchable judgments of God…

Rendered on what I do.

Unsearchable decrees of God…

Perfect through and through.

Inscrutable actions of God…

Showered in grace and love.

Inscrutable presence of God…

Spirit’s presence like a dove.

Inscrutable ways of God…

Leading to my true home above.

lest I forget

…then take care lest you forget the LORD, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

Deuteronomy 6:12

Today is Thanksgiving Day. For many people in American culture the day is simply the official start of the rat race filled with holiday shopping, feasting, football and family. Its origins historically were at least Christian influenced, but that is being quickly lost in this generation.

So I’m going to let my Thanksgiving begin with reflection on this scripture. Deuteronomy 6:10-12 reminds Israel of the good gifts God was giving to them. 

• He honored a promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in bringing them to Canaan. They did not earn it. It was a gift.
• They moved into cities they did not build.
• They moved into homes furnished with goods they did not buy.
• Wells they did not dig watered them.
• Farms, vineyards, and orchards that they did not plant fed them.

All the good stuff of their lives was a gracious gift of God.

And the unfortunate tendency would be to accept these gifts and then drift from thanking and remembering the God Who gave them. Humans will forget God if we don’t pay careful attention to regular worship, thanksgiving, and praise.

Lest I forget, here is my list:

• I have life in Christ, forever, that I did not earn. 
• I have the everlasting promises of God in Christ that I trust by faith… I did not make them. God did it all.
• I have a home and family that God blesses me with daily.
• I have the Church, the Body of Christ, as my family in Jesus… a deep gift I live in daily.
• I have the blessing of being cared for by people who love me, even when I am imperfect in my love to them!
• I have mission, purpose, and joy in the gospel that brings peace.
• I have the honor, joy, and privilege of a life of ministry. Caring for people, though challenging and humbling, is rewarding. And God makes me a better man through all my family, all my friends, and all my experiences!

near in Word and prayer

Keep them and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the LORD our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? And what great nation is there, that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law that I set before you today?

Deuteronomy 4:6-8

Today I am reminded of the unique nearness of God in both His Word and in prayer. Moses said these words to Israel not long before they would enter into the Promised Land to end a 40 year, generational judgment ending in renewed blessing. He reminded them that the Law of God made God near to them. They could be wise in God’s ways. They could understand God’s will. They could do what pleased the Lord God by reading and obeying His Word. God is near in His Law. Other nations would wonder at God’s closeness to His people. He revealed Himself not as a distant and angry deity, but as a close and caring Creator.

Moses also reminded Israel that God is near in prayer. He hears when His people pray. When they seek Him, walking in His ways, God is close to them. God leads His people. He cares about their needs, concerns, praises, and worship. He receives and answers prayer. Especially in the Old Covenant, God was very relational. And now in Jesus Who fulfilled all God’s Law for us, God remains relational. Prayer is a major experience of His nearness. We should love to be praying!

Lord,

I am grateful for Your Word. You show Yourself clearly as I come to You for wisdom and understanding. Your Holy Spirit, near me even now as I read, guides me to see You and Your care for Your people. In Your Word You are instantly and intimately accessible.

I am grateful for the nearness of prayer. My pains and sins may sometimes cloud You as seeming to be distant. That is the fault of my broken sinfulness. You are always ready to hear me. You know me. You loved me forever in Jesus! You forgive my transgressions. In prayer You are also instantly and intimately accessible. You are near, and I will call out!

Amen

soul security: waiting in silence

For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence,

for my hope is from him.

He only is my rock and my salvation,

my fortress; I shall not be shaken.

On God rests my salvation and my glory;

my mighty rock, my refuge is God.

Psalm 62:5-7

The deepest life lessons and the dearest moments with God will come while waiting in silence. David reminds himself even from the very first line of this psalm that God is worth waiting for (Psalm 62:1). Here he talks to his soul, commanding himself to silently wait for the hope that he knows will eventually arrive in God.

Waiting is a lost art in an Amazon Prime world! We are used to our drive-thru lifestyle… always busy, cramming our agendas, breathlessly breaking the sound barrier with our pace, always on the move, always working, always busy, and so restless it takes an Ambien to put us down at night. This is not the way of a soul that rests in God! He calls us to contemplation. God calls us to trust… by waiting… ready to silently expect Him to move on His cosmic scale. And although we live tragically hurried lives, God is not bound by our schedules. He calls us to halt our pace, to sabbath rest, to renewing worship by taking rest as one of His best gifts. “The sabbath was made for man,” just as Jesus taught. And we would do well to get away and rest just like Jesus modeled for us.

The results of waiting for the Lord are soul-satisfying, and humanly healthy. Look at this list of results from Psalm 63:5-7:

• A sense of real hope in God.
• Finding strength in God.
• Finding security in God’s protection
• Salvation. Hello?! That’s a big one!
• Shelter in His presence.
• Stability in our shaking situations.
• A focus on true worship as awareness of God’s glory pushes out busy thoughts and brightens the silence.
• Power in God’s might.
• Protection in His refuge.

Lord,

Help me to be a person willing to permanently forfeit the rat race! I tell my soul today: “wait in silence”! You are my hope. You are my shelter. Jesus, You are my salvation. I will not shake under your shelter.

Amen

agenda of kingdom care

And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’

Matthew 25:40

These are the words Jesus will say to His blessed believers at the last judgment. They will be blessed by God the Father. They will inherit the kingdom that has been God’s sovereign work prepared before the universe began. 

Why do these ones find blessing in the end? It is because their faith in Christ led them to a life changed by Christ. Their actions backed up belief. They fed the hungry and gave drink to the thirsty. They welcomed strangers into their homes. They clothed the naked. They visited the sick. They reached out to prisoners. Every time they cared for another person with specific, action-based love, they really cared for Jesus. That is the basis of their reward. They stood on the right to enter the kingdom of life because of Jesus’ saving work. They were rewarded in His kingdom because they already lived to make His kingdom visible after they had been changed by Jesus.

Jesus, the rewarding King, is also Jesus, the promised punisher of sin. And those on His left, on the basis of the same judgment, will be sent from Him, cursed to eternal fire because they had not come to Jesus for the change that would have led them to care well. Thus by not doing anything for the “least of these” they failed to show their commitment to the King.

The stakes could not be higher. And the advance of a present kingdom could be no clearer. Christians will not only say they love Jesus, but our lives will be arranged by an agenda of kingdom care. We will give to, sacrifice, enter into he needs of those around us, Christian and non-Christian alike, to live out a gospel looking like Jesus. Let’s feed those who hunger (not just on Thanksgiving). Let’s clothe the shivering (not just in winter). Let’s welcome the strangers (especially the immigrants). Let’s care for the imprisoned (without judgment). This will keep us busy until Jesus calls us into account.

life in the Spirit

If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.

Romans 8:11

The fact that believers are indwelt by the Holy Spirit upon salvation is more than a theological point. It goes much deeper. This is the Spirit of God Who raised Jesus from the dead! That same Spirit, Who brought about the victory of all the ages, lives inside each Christian. He Who raised Jesus raises us! And He will be the assurance that eternal life is ours as well. Our God lives… in us… and will raise us again one day as well.

The Holy Spirit is alive in me right now. He leads. He works. He confirms the truth of scripture. He is the new life in me that is not my own. His resurrection power is currently remaking me. His resurrection power will raise my body when death is defeated! Praise the Lord for His Holy Spirit.

the best surprise

Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.

Matthew 24:42

It’s early morning as I write this. I’ve had a long night before hitting the pillow. I’m short an hour or so of my normal sleep cycle. It would have been so easy to stay in bed today. But this reminder from Jesus Himself rings like an alarm clock in my soul, stirring me from thoughts of slumber to realize I must be awake and alert. My Lord will return and as His own teaching reminds me, wicked days mean I need to expect Him all the more.

I’m not a prophecy aficionado. You won’t find me in a robe and sandals on a street corner holding “The End of Near” on a home made sign. But I do believe Jesus is coming again to judge this world and to physically reign over all of us. I also believe Jesus warned us to be ready for that time. Certainly our world is callously dismissive of the concept of accountability before a holy God. If we aren’t living in days like “the days of Noah” (Matthew 24:37-38) that preceded the Genesis Flood, then we can’t be far from them.

My soul must be ready. And so, rather than curse the darkness of these days, I choose to await the bright dawn of the coming Son of Man, working early to be ready. Jesus will return. This will ALL be dealt with… the whole mess will resolve in Jesus! Creation will be restored to all that God intends. A new heavens and a new earth will be the home of righteousness and God’s people will rejoice in peace in it. I must now do my best to be alert for my Master.

Wake up! The Day is drawing near. And our Lord wants us ready for His surprise! (Matthew 24:44)

Safe in the Storm

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!

Let your glory be over all the earth!

Psalm 57:5

I need mercy and Lord, You provide.

I need shelter Lord, in You I hide.

Covered by Your wing,

I can weather anything.

You fulfill Your purpose in my pain.

In Your faithfulness You reign.

Lions surround.

Weapons abound.

But You are on high!

You answer my cry!

Enemies lie in wait to end me,

But Your hand protects me.

They trip into their own pit.

Their own net catches them in it.

With steadfast heart I sing.

I am secure by deliverance You bring.

I will give thanks globally

for You save me totally.

Your grace greater than the sky…

Your faithfulness with You on high!

look and live

And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.”

Numbers 21:5

Selfish desire can have a demoralizing, poisonous spread among God’s people. It did so in Israel under Moses on several occasions. The Israelites in the wilderness, led and fed by God, were living under a plan from God that they didn’t like. After seeing tremendous victory in the defeat of the King of Arad who had harassed the nation of Israel, many now presumed they could speed up their wilderness wandering. But God led them in a winding road on purpose. They were to take a winding way, around Edom, and the people grew impatient, accusing, and complaining. They questioned God’s goodness, they questioned Moses’ leadership, and they ignored God’s provision, considering manna from heaven as “worthless food”. This was faithless, selfish, willful rejection of God and His care for them.

Yes, this generation had been already doomed to die in the desert because of their unbelief (see Numbers 14 for how they all went down). They were brought out of Egypt to die in the desert. But not their children. It seems though that they thought they could just shake off that consequence. After all, hadn’t God just given them an awesome military victory against this Canaanite king? But their actions show unchanged hearts. Their grumbling and rebellion only intensified.

So God sent snakes of fire among them and many of the grumblers died from their poison. Then the people recognized their sin and pled once again for undeserved mercy. And God told Moses how to make a way of faith. A bronze snake, fashioned in the likeness of a fire-snake, was lifted on a pole. Faith would save them. Bitten and bitter Israelites looked to it and were healed, a precursor to the cross of Jesus (John 3:14-25) that Jesus Himself proclaimed. In Jesus, all those poisoned by sin introduced by The Serpent can be healed by faith, looking to His cross. God will save even the most selfish, rebellious heart that will humbly look to His sole means of salvation.

deliverance from “frenemies”.

God will give ear and humble them,

he who is enthroned from of old, Selah

because they do not change

and do not fear God.

Psalm 55:19

David’s prayer for deliverance from “frenemies” is accompanied by a firm trust in God’s refining justice. What is a “frenemy”? It is a friend who has turned against you, which is the pain David gave to God in this psalm (see Psalm 55:13). David trusts that those who work against God and His people, who betray even close friendships, do so to their own downfall. They seek the ultimate harm of God’s people and plan, but ultimately they themselves will find that God will cast them into destruction. They destroyed a relationship. God will destroy them. David trusts God, even as he waits for God’s justice to have its effect.

Why does God bring justice against those who oppose His rule? Why would He humble those who intimately betray? The two reasons stated in this verse are powerful: 1) They do not change, that is, they refuse to humble themselves and repent of their sin. These our lives diabolically dedicated to evil and pain. They have no intention, no desire, no sense of the holy, and in their twisted deception of themselves, will not turn to God. 2) They do not fear God. They have been captivated in self-fulfillment to such a degree that they will stomp on their closest relationships to get what they want. They worship the false and profane a holy God by what they selfishly desire to achieve. For those who will not repent and will not bend the knee and humble the heart before God, His judgment will fall. This is an inescapable reality.

Meanwhile, the rewards for God’s righteous ones are renewing. He hears the cry of the one who is harassed by God-haters who are former friends (Psalm 55:16-17). God safely redeems those under human oppression when they call out (Psalm 55:18). He keeps His righteous people in place, even as all the world capitalizes on betrayals to try to eliminate them (Psalm 55:22). 

In the end those who oppose God and seek the destruction of His people and plans do not live to see half their days (Psalm 55:23). The heritage received and passed on for God’s people of faith is protection, trust, security, and most importantly, redemption. We are saved! David’s observations concerning even the most emotionally intimate of oppressions all find their ultimate fulfillment in Jesus. Jesus is our Savior, Defender, Judge, Redeemer, and Friend!

broken black crown

For if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:17

Every child of Adam has been shackled by mortality. Death will always be our end in this world. Sin will always be our default moral programming. We are all born in fealty to Emperor Death as our king. Adam’s sin leads to Death’s win. In every soul. Inevitably.

Until Jesus came to reign instead. But in order to break Death’s iron fist, Jesus Himself had to die. To cover sin’s horrendous stain, Jesus had to shed His blood on the cross. To ensure that grace and life would start a new reign in those whom Christ redeemed as they came to Him in faith, Jesus had to give Himself as a sacrificial gift and then be raised again to new life by the Father’s power in order for us to have eternal life… free from death’s tyranny.

Once death had its dark empire; now it no longer reigns. Instead, death now gives way to life for the Christian. Once death was the prospect of eternal separation from God in punishment for what our sins deserved, but now death is the bright gate to eternal life, joy, and fellowship with our God forever for those who by gospel belief know Jesus as Savior and Lord. Grace is abundant in Christ. Righteousness reigns in the life that Jesus gives us! The dark cloud lifts in the reign of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords shining now and forever!

Lord Jesus,

You now reign to end death’s reign. I am alive in You, made alive by You, to always have life in You, for You, by Your grace. And although death is still in this world, writhing, bitterly sulking in its own death throes like a poisonous snake still quite dangerous to those who do not yet know Jesus, it has no power over Your people. You Who died and are now alive reach nail-scarred hands through death’s fog to draw us to You in our last earthly moments… to enter the embrace of our Savior! PRAISE THE LORD! You reign in life so that we might reign in life too.

Amen

the total package

More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Romans 5:11

Because we have been justified by God through faith in the saving work of Jesus Christ on the cross, we have peace with God. This is life’s biggest deal. This is the best, all-inclusive, most life-changing gift ever given. It closes the open loop of sin and death that led us down a broad gate into a burning hell. We would never be good enough because none of us, even through one action, could match the holiness of God. We are given instead the righteousness of His perfect Son. We are reconciled to God.

Paul has explained this so clearly in Romans 5:1-11. Here is an attempted summary:

• We are justified by faith and bring nothing but our faith with us in the deal (Romans 5:1).
• Jesus is our Justifier (Romans 5:1).
• We stand in what Jesus does by faith, secure in a future hope that sees us safe from initial justification all the way through to future glory (Romans 5:2).
• We gain a full rounded perspective in life, enduring suffering because God gives us a confident hope in our position in Christ (Romans 5:3-6).
• There is a golden chain of personal experience of the gospel that transforms even our toughest experiences (Romans 5:3-6). It looks something like this: suffering —> endurance —-> character—-> hope—-> God’s love—-> Holy Spirit indwelling.
• We were weak, helpless in our sin, impotent. Christ is strong, righteous, and powerful to save (Romans 5:6-8).
• We were saved from the worst possible future: the wrath of God (Romans 5:9).
• We were enemies. Now we are family (Romans 5:10-11).

Lord Jesus,

I rejoice in Your work. You have a church now, worldwide, Your body of believers who by faith are changed by You forever! I am reconciled to God by faith in Jesus. Nothing will take away what You have done. And so I endure any hardship, let You keep making me what You desire, wildly excited in the hope I have since I am in God’s love, not under His wrath.

Amen

bigger & better Deliverer

Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?”

Matthew 22:41-42a

Even Jesus’ own critics were silenced when they had to confront the reality that David himself prophesied that the Messiah, who would be born of the king’s lineage, would also be the Lord that David worshiped. Jesus has let the Pharisees struggle with a theological hot potato. They had no answer back to Him once he showed how David called the Messiah “Lord”. Jesus gave them a scripture clearly pointing to Incarnation — God becoming man. Ultimately it pointed to Jesus Himself, the One Who asked them this question. And the Pharisees were silenced by the implications of the teaching Jesus just set loose in their minds.

Yet David believed what the Pharisees could not. David knew that One coming after him would be mightier, and would not only be a deliverer for Israel, but would be The Deliverer for the world. God was doing a much bigger thing in sending a Messiah than anyone ever could imagine. The Lord was coming. And as Jesus revealed Himself to His enemies through that scripture, the Lord had indeed already come. David’s Lord was showing His authority. And soon enough, in His death and resurrection, Jesus would indeed be The Deliverer beyond what they ever could have hoped.

O Lord of David… Lord of me,

What a wonder Your Incarnation truly is! You came to set Your people free from sin’s dominion and death’s destruction. You came to widen the definition of God’s people, breaking down dividing walls between Jew and Gentile and offering deliverance for all the world. You surprise us in grace and mercy! You thrill us with Your love. You have us in awe of Your majesty, Jesus, Son of David, Son of God, Lord of all!

Amen

It is all God’s doing.

It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Romans 3:26

God gives His righteousness by faith to all who believe that Jesus Christ is Savior and Lord. God is just. He has judged all sin at the cross in the death of His Son, Jesus Christ. God is the Justifier. We could not save ourselves, even by keeping God’s Law, and so through Jesus God will see us as perfectly forgiven. Every person whom God saves is a sinner falling far short of God’s glory in desperate need of salvation, unable to do what is good. Every person saved by Jesus is made right with God by a gift of God’s grace… redeemed solely in the work of Jesus… a gift that no person deserves.

This is the very root and substance of ALL Christian doctrine. Jesus died for our sins. He provides forgiveness of sins. Through His death and resurrection we find true life, eternal life, and meaningful life right now. And we live in and by His great grace in this present time, knowing God is both holy and just to deal with our sin, and God is gracious and merciful to give us such life by the grace that is in Jesus.

I live my days in the grace that can only be mine because Jesus gave Himself for me. I am a sinner saved by grace. God is holy and just to judge all sin, and because Jesus carried all my sin with Him to the cross, I am right with God by faith in His Son. I will trust Jesus. I will believe Him. I will accept His sacrifice and not try even to think that my “goodness” impresses a holy God! The praise goes to Jesus Who has saved me. My life is His. I bring nothing to the deal… Jesus paid it all!

doing… not just saying

But to the wicked God says:

“What right have you to recite my statutes

or take my covenant on your lips?

For you hate discipline,

and you cast my words behind you.”

Psalm 50:16-17

One of the worst kinds of wickedness gives lip service to the Word of God, but lives far away from it. Those who may look impressive by reciting scripture or having a form of knowledge “about” God’s Word are not close to God at all if they fail to “do” God’s will as He has revealed it. God isn’t impressed with what we say we know. He wants us to live under the discipline of His will for us as His word reveals it to us. To fast-forward to the New Testament book of James: God wants doers of His Word, not just hearers of His Word.

This is of particular warning to those who have been “given much” in terms of scriptural truth. I have lived a half century, from childhood, in the American evangelical church. I have tons, literally tons, of published resources at my disposal, more than any Christian could digest in twenty lifetimes, for understanding God and His Word. I’ve invested my life and my resources in personal and academic study of biblical teaching, ancient language, and two thousand years of church history, teaching, and theology. Yet with all that, my sinful struggle is STILL to be superficial, to recite and parrot the truth, while secretly resisting the life-changing application of God’s Word.

Lord,

It does me no good to know only about You. I want to know Your Word, to know You, to experience transformation as a follower of Jesus. Forgive my sinful holding back, my wicked pride stops with just the facts. Give me a holy discontent with mental trivia so that I may be changed by the discipline of Your loving precepts, rebukes, and wisdom in what I do. I want Your words to lead the way for what I do… every day… for Your glory… to lead me to know You in all Your glory.

Amen

worship turned upside down

Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

Romans 1:22-23

Humans will build a god of nearly anything EXCEPT God. We crave to worship something… and we will. Everybody worships. Nobody is exempt. That object of worship can be something human, and most commonly is so these days. Societies enshrine leaders, philosophies, celebrities, politicians, artists, entertainers, and achievers in various fields. Such hero building is de facto worship, and the systems built around them (Hollywood, political parties, sports franchises, businesses, communication platforms, and social media) have all become religious temples in their own right. Our idolatry may not look as overtly “pagan” as when Paul wrote to first century Rome, but it is certainly a replacement for God and it ignores Him just the same.

People are worshipers. It is what God made us for. We are created to give God our worship, to be enthralled in His glory alone. It is human to grow close in heart to our Creator. But sin has twisted us. It has made us foolish, even as we tell ourselves all the human and earthly stuff we adore makes us wiser. We can sincerely worship what destroys us. And that is exactly the end game of Romans chapter one. When God is not our glory, sin will be. Sin will lead us to dishonor, to embrace shameless immorality, to have debased minds, and to propagate a topsy-turvy morality that gives approval to what God decrees is sin that leads to death (Romans 1:32).

Lest I nod my head in agreement that such is the end of those caught in false worship, I must look at my own heart. This stuff seeps in. Because the appeal of these false glories is indeed strong, the influence can be subtle. And as culture hurls away from God’s truth at breakneck speed, it becomes easier for anyone to be allured by these false objects of worship. A generation now exists that is content in being foolish about God… a generation that embraces a “wisdom” that is self-proclaimed. Everything is now permissible in the name of tolerance, individuality, and self-expression… everything, that is, except the insistence that the One True God calls us into account before Him. This makes the gospel all the more important in a marketplace crammed full of idols. Culture constantly creates brand new idols like kids playing with Mr. Potatohead! Fortunately, the gospel isn’t sold like these commodities, it is offered free to the all who believe. And Christians must realize we proclaim it to an upside-down world!

secure mission

Walk about Zion, go around her,

number her towers,

consider well her ramparts,

go through her citadels,

that you may tell the next generation

that this is God,

our God forever and ever.

He will guide us forever.

Psalm 48:12-14

This was a song meant to be sung in the temple of God. It is a song about the temple of God AND the God of the temple. This temple on the beautiful mountain of Zion was to be “the joy of all the earth” (Psalm 48:2). Within the citadels of Zion God had made His very self the fortress of Israel (Psalm 48:3). God was to be worshiped with a sense of secure faith. And a big part of that worship is known in a secure mission at the end of the psalm.

Once again a call is made to tour the towers, ramparts, and citadels of the temple complex. But the goal of that tour was not just worship, but to bolster security for a big purpose. The goal was an increased confidence in the greatness of God to be passed along to the next generation. God kept His people secure. He dwelt among them in a real temple. He could be known in real ways. He commissioned them to proclaim Him and His truth to the next generation. The confidence of Zion wasn’t just a call to worship, it was a catalyst for generational faith.

How much more in Christ can we trust in the secure confidence of our saving God?! Jesus dwelt among us, died for our sin, rose again to insure our eternal salvation, lives with us, and through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, indwells each believer as His temple. We are secure. And this same Jesus commands His followers to tell this good news to the next generation. This is our God! He is our God forever and ever.