Good catch, Lord!

I was pushed hard, so that I was falling,

but the LORD helped me.

Psalm 118:13

I’ve had seasons where I can relate to the sentiment of this section of the 118th psalm. Life can press in hard. People can push you. People can seek your downfall. You can feel backed up to the edge of the abyss, and a look over your shoulder confirms a potential disaster. And still life presses in and pushes hard. In that moment God will rescue. He will catch you. He will help you.

Sometimes I get myself into this predicament, running full speed without spiritually refueling, cramming my week with activity while neglecting sabbath rest. Letting that busy kind of high fuel me while people press in and my personal problems go unaddressed. “I’ll get to them later”, I think. And then, before I know it, there is no where to go… I’m backed up on the cliff’s edge again and my feet are slipping.

When my heart turns to do my Helper, He never fails. He catches me in my failing fall and graciously enforces a time of resting in Him. He disciplines me to get my soul back into balance. And in the wisdom of His Word I see the beauty of walking with Him, not being busy AROUND God, but quietly, carefully, joyously walking WITH God.

Lord,

Once again I find my rest in You. You have caught me numerous times when life has pushed too hard, or I have pushed myself too hard. And when I’ve created that pressure by my own foolish, selfish ways, You have forgiven, disciplined in love, and renewed me. Thanks for Your loving arms that catch me when I fall. Teach me to rest, and walk with You!

Amen

conceited “one anothers”

Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

Galatians 5:26

Sinful pride will take us to some very bad places. It can make the church, the Body of Christ, horribly disfigured and ugly. Paul has already reminded the Galatian church to serve one another in love. He has appealed to the scriptures (Galatians 5:14) to bring that healing understanding: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself (Leviticus 19:18). Doctrinal argumentation over the Christian’s relationship with the Old Testament law had divided the Galatians. Paul observed that the resulting legalism had completely pulled them off center from Jesus and was destroying the true gospel. A vast portion of this epistle corrects their bad doctrine. Now Paul pivots to how they live out the gospel, and love was so scarce in their atmosphere of harsh legalism. They were literally on constant attack of one another. Paul warned that this was going to consume the church completely if they did not repent of it (Galatians 5:15).

But such destructive pride isn’t just a first century church problem. This is a very real issue today. It places a destroying role in every conflict among Christians. We HAVE to be individually right, and might even start was a good reason, such as gospel clarity or doctrinal purity. But then in pride we may judge others, condemn them, talk bad about them, or go on the attack, rather than seeking to lovingly correct, care, and truly reconcile the issue. Our emotions get tangled in the mess and we start provoking them to justify our own “rightness”. Perhaps we envy them because we perceive they get away with what we despise about them.

If we are not careful our perceptions of the problem (skewed by our pride) turn the person into the problem. We are in constant defend mode of ourselves and attack mode of the person in the conflict. We may become so defensive that we are completely blind to the way we are now sinning against one another. And this is so easy to do… sadly today over the really minor issues of health protocols, conscience issues, and worldly politics. Oh how we need to repent of pride and heed the reminder to be sensitively led by the Spirit, crucifying our flesh, so that strife does not mark us, but the fruit of the Spirit does (Galatians 5:22-25)! Oh Lord, help us!

I believe still

I believed, even when I spoke:

“I am greatly afflicted”.

Psalm 116:10

Winds blow hard

and storms rage on

I believe still

that You calm storms

and keep me from harm

The world shakes

and my soul quakes

I believe still

as everything changes

You have it all arranged

My body aches

in sickness and pain

I believe still

that You strengthen and heal

in the affliction grace revealed

Life disrupts strangely

and suddenly unfamiliar

I believe still

Lord You are the same

my salvation remains

both small and great

he will bless those who fear the LORD,

both the small and the great.

Psalm 115:13

God does not see humanity the way we see ourselves. We easily divide by class, income, fame, power, and race. God will have none of that. He isn’t wowed by riches or celebrity status. He doesn’t bless only beautiful people and turn away from the commoners. He really only looks at one criteria: worship - what the text here in Psalm 115:13 calls “fearing the Lord”.  This is a life worship that loves God, obeys Him, seeks Him, and honors Him. No matter who you are, no matter where you live, no matter what you do in your life, God wants to bless you if you fear Him in this way.

I think about my fellow worshippers throughout the week. I have Christian friends who worship in my congregation gathered with me on Sundays. I have Christian friends who gather in other congregations. God loves them all equally. From the elderly who make their way to worship with canes or wheelchairs, to the youngest child holding the hand of a parent, God wants their worship. He loves them. He blesses them as they bless His great name.

Lord,

Help me to see around me how You are not a respecter of persons. You bless all who fear You, small and great. Give me a heart like yours, equally gracious to all those around me. Jesus, help me love all, small and great, like You do. You gave Yourself for everyone. May that love fill me to broaden my view of all people.

Amen

rooted redemption

So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.

Mark 15:15

What Pilate did motivated by populist ideology and expediency actually became the most eternally significant event in the universe. Jesus would be crucified at the decision of a hasty and easily influenced corrupt politician. And it is ironic in a divinely orchestrated way that careless self-absorption and power politics would lead Jesus to the cross. All our sins, all my sin, sent Him there. But the story makes absolute sense in redemptive drama. Jesus would suffer for sins at the hands of sinners with cruel injustice and selfishness apparent everywhere. Even His own disciples sinfully denied Him and fled in fear.

Pilate had guilt in this injustice. So did the Jewish Sanhedrin who perjured lies about Jesus. So did Peter who willfully denied Christ three times in just a few hours. So did I in my sinfulness, pride, and selfishness. Pilate may have thought he was doing Jerusalem a favor by releasing Barabbas and condemning Jesus, but he actually just contributed to the sin debt Jesus would bear as He died on the cross Pilate assigned to him. And God would grant the true GREAT FAVOR of grace as Jesus died for the sins of the entire world.

Looking back now at that cross, I know Jesus willingly laid down His life. He wasn’t just caught in a conspiracy. He was led, by the Father’s eternal plan, to the place where He would lay down His life… the last sacrifice as the Lamb of God… to take away the sins of the world. Pilate may have signed the execution papers, but Jesus gave Himself for us.

Salvation is rooted in the grit and drama of human history. Redemption is a real event. Eternal life is offered now because Jesus really died, was really buried, and really rose again. It is as real as yesterday and as hope-filled as an eternal tomorrow with our Savior!

“How” is as important as “What”.

It is well with the man who deals generously and lends;

who conducts his affairs with justice.

Psalm 112:5

“How” is as important as “what”. How I do something is as important as the thing that I do. How I choose to do a right thing is as important as the right thing itself. In fact, if I do a right thing with wrong motivations, for the wrong reasons, in a wrong way, I’ve made a wrong thing out of what was right.

This psalm reminds us that a blessed people must also bless others. We are not stingy with what God gives to us. We give out of what we are given because that is what grace does to us. Grace makes us gracious. God’s generous love in turn compels us to be generous to others. Blessing should make us blessers.

And when we do these right things in the right way, God’s blessing marks our lives. We are known for our generous care. We become a people of justice. The heart of God motivates us to care not in mere sentiment, but in impactful action. God wants His people concerned with the “how” of love and justice, to give of themselves in what they do, sharing His blessing in the world.

So we should share the blessing of the gospel generously, ready at any time to tell the good news of Jesus, Savior of sinners. We should give our time in service to Him, especially to the neediest among us. We should use our abilities to share God’s love. We should use our goods to spread healing and hope worldwide, clothing people, sheltering people, feeding people, bringing health to the unhealthy, bringing truth to the deceived, and bringing freedom to those captured in sin. We should be generous in EVERY way.

nothing I did

I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.

Galatians 2:21

It’s all Your work, Jesus.

You did it all.

You gave Your life

as the perfect sacrifice.

And it is Your work that saves me.

My good couldn’t do it.

My actions would not atone.

Try as I might

I will never be right.

Your righteousness was what I needed.

God gave all the grace.

He sent His only Son.

And there on the cross

Jesus paid all the cost

so that all who believe can be redeemed.

I believe Your work, Jesus.

I trust it all.

Your blood covers my sin

so that grace now takes me in.

And my work will never save me.

Praise God for such love!

…that He provided the Savior

…that God made known His grace

to the entire human race.

Shout this good news everywhere!