A deep yearning

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might" - Deuteronomy 6.5

This is the last of my Summer blogs, and I was unsure of what to do, until I came across this verse.

For the last few years, I have been mulling over the word yearning. It is very similar to the word mourning, since both speak of the pain that comes from something being absent and yet they are very different. With mourning the pain is of losing something we love - it looks back; yearning though is the pain of waiting for something for which we long. The first is like the child who has lost their teddy bear, the second like the one opening the first door of their advent calendar. If mourning is the pain of loss; yearning is the pain of hope. It pulls the heart forward - the heart stretches out for it. Yearning therefore is a fundamentally Christian experience.

One of the experiences that produces yearning is suffering. I love Don Carson's comment that suffering can give us a homesickness for heaven. It is that proper response to a world damaged by rebellion against God. Indeed that world itself waits with eager expectation for the revealing of the children of God. Likewise, we too groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies (Romans 8.18-25)

It is also my experience in my struggle with sin. I read Deuteronomy 6.5 and I so long for it to be true of me - that I should be wholeheartedly committed to God - just as Jesus was and is. It is also my deep prayer for the church I love in Wallington - that we might truly begin to live like this - to stop paddling around in the shallows of worship and service and to give ourselves wholly and unreservedly to him. That our smallest acts of service might be marked by such a joy and a zeal as we seek to serve those who are lost.

And so I find that my heart goes through the stages of yearning: grief that I am so far off; a longing that my heart should change more quickly; a deeper excitement that one day I will truly live like this. That one day I will see the Lord Jesus face to face and that he would use that vision of him to change me from glory into glory.

Eye catching hope

"always being prepared to make a defence to anyone who asks you the reason for the hope that is in you." 1 Peter 3.15

I know this verse very well, but when I came across it recently, I was hit by the word hope. Why doesn't Paul say faith or belief. I think that the answer can help us get better at obeying Jesus' command in 1 Peter 3.

I think that there are a couple of reasons we struggle to live this out. The first is that we don't know how to explain what we believe. The second is perhaps the bigger one - no one is asking! I fear that the reason that no one asks is because they don't think I am any different from anyone else. I'm like the person on a diet who never loses weight (and I've been there several times) - no-one's going to ask me for the details of the diet!

So how does my faith make a visible difference? Is it that I am a better person than other people - people notice that I swear less, and am more generous etc. Perhaps, perhaps not. On their own those things can make us look more distant to people, or even holier than thou. The answer is not to stop living godly lives, but to make sure that it flows from our hope.

If my hope in eternal life becomes so real to me that my priorities change, then people will notice the difference. Think what a life that deeply believed in a glorious future with Christ would look like: 

• I would be less desperate in this life to have everything and so I would be more generous with what I have; 
• I would handle the prospect of death differently; 
• I would sit more lightly to the judgments of others (real or imagined), because I know that there is a judgment day to come in front of the judge who gave his life for me; 
• I wouldn't hold grudges because I know that I will one day see face to face the one who has forgiven me all things; 
• self-control will be easier, because I have a hope of a bigger pleasure than that which temptation offers;
• I will no longer live for my work - my work life will no longer be based around things which will only last a short time (like building sandcastles on a wobble board), but on the things which will last forever.

Hope truly changes everything.

So if we yearn to live out 1 Peter 3.15, the answer is not to do more revision - or try to work harder at crowbarring the gospel into conversations - it is to spend more time working out our hope in our lives, allowing it to shape our priorities. Then, Peter suggests, people will start asking questions. 

A Sweet Rebuke

"speaking the truth in love" Ephesians 4.15

In the Family service yesterday, I found it a real challenge when the preacher asked the question that God's word raised, "How good am I at being told off" - and I was the one preaching! In preparation for the sermon it struck me powerfully how appropriate it was that we were looking at this as part of a Family Service. I realised that I was much better at being told off, or set right when I was a child - I expected and accepted rebuke. I understood that that was part of learning. Now that I am an adult, I handle it much less well.

At the service I also promised that I would blog about the other side of rebuke. How do I know when and how to rebuke others. This is a bit of a mine field - most of us probably avoid rebuking, thinking that that is the more loving thing to do. Others of us will be too ready to rebuke and often inappropriately. How can we get this vital thing right?

As ever, God points the way in his word. Perhaps the most helpful place to look is the verse from Ephesians above. From it, I think that we can develop good questions to ask as we consider giving a rebuke:

1. Is it true? Do I know the whole picture, or am I only responding to part of the story? There are too many times when I have been so incensed that I have said something without checking the full facts. As my father used to joke when I was being particularly strident, "don't let the facts get in the way of a good argument!" As important, am I rebuking with truth? Can the person recognise Jesus in the rebuke?
2. Is it humble? Jesus talks about the person who rebukes wrongly in Matthew 7.3. He compares them to the one who points out the speck in someone else's eye without noticing the plank in their own. I find this quite alarming as there is most of a log cabin in my own eye. There is always a danger, when I rebuke someone else, that I am in fact meeting a need of my own, rather than their need. I am trying to feel better about myself by pointing out the mistakes of others. So how can I ever rebuke? At the very least it will make me humble about my rebuke. If my rebuke leaves someone else with the impression that I am better than they are, then the rebuke has failed. So I must consider, how can I so word the rebuke that it is clear to the person that I am a forgiven sinner in need of rebuke myself. A key test before we rebuke someone else is this: when was the last time I responded positively to someone else's rebuke of me? If the answer is: "I cannot remember," then we need to think first about spending time doing some carpentry on ourselves before we take up eye surgery on others.
3. Is it loving? Paul writes to us that we are to speak the truth in love. So good questions to ask include: Do I have a relationship of encouragement with that person? Do they value me as someone who blesses them with my speech? Is my hope that God will build them up through this? Is my goal that they should grow up into Christ? Am I doing this rebuke in the best possible way? Am I being gentle in how I rebuke, after all Jesus made sure that he would not break a bruised reed or snuff out a smouldering wick? Conversely, can I not give the rebuke and still be truly loving to that person - earnestly seeking their blessing? If the answer to any of these questions is No, then now is not the time to give a rebuke.

It is a daunting challenge, but the goal is glorious - so that we, "are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ". What a thought.

I'm feeling a bit challenged

"Cursed is he who does the work of the LORD with slackness..." Jeremiah 48.10

Now, I know that the Lord Jesus has taken the curse upon himself - and I do not need to fear the judgment he has borne, but it shows God is serious about how I do his work. It's a reminder of whose opinion really matters.

Disappointed with God

"And do you seek great things for yourself? Seek them not!" Jeremiah 44.5

I think that one of the most serious errors into which I keep falling, is the one of thinking that I can earn God's favour -  the idea that somehow God owes me something. It is one of those errors that is mostly unconscious. If you asked me, "Does God owe you anything David?", I would answer with Paul's great exclamation, "By no means!" And yet in practice I keep falling in to it. The reason I know that is my tendency to disappointment, discouragement and disillusionment. 

All three are 'dis'-s. They are about an appointment being missed, a courage being lost, an illusion being shattered. They all speak about something being found to be false. But when it comes to God, what is false? 

Is it God?

As I was reading Jeremiah 43.1-44.5 the other day I was struck that that was the conclusion of two people after the victory of the Babylonians and the flight to Egypt. The first person is actually the people as a whole who had fled to Egypt. They had decided to go back to their idol worship because they were disappointed with God. They had stopped their idol worship during the siege of Jerusalem, but in their words, "since we had left off making offerings to the queen of heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, we have lacked everything and have been consumed by the sword and by famine." In other words being faithful to God hadn't delivered for them, so they turned away from obeying his word. They certainly think that it is the Lord's fault.

The other person was Baruch. Baruch is another hero of the book of Jeremiah. He is Jeremiah's right hand man. But here he is rebuked. His is a different story. One of constant faithfulness to the Lord in the face of trouble, persecution and personal danger - and he is tired and discouraged. Serving the Lord has just brought trouble. So, he complains and laments, and the Lord rebukes him.

I tend to scoff at the first group - their turning to the Lord was no real turning at all. The direction of their life remained the same - their own comfort. They were still at the centre. The Lord is just a means to an end, a service provider and so their worship of him was not true worship it was merely flattery. Not all worship of God, is true worship of God.

Baruch though is much more unsettling. He's like Job. His case seems strong. I know that I fall into this: when I see that following Jesus makes many things harder; when I struggle that a Christian who seems less deserving than me enjoys greater success in his or her ministry.

Both make the mistake of thinking that the 'dis' is a result of a failure on the part of God as opposed to a failure on the part of the expectation. The reason I remain faithful to God is not because he has promised to make my life better, make me great, but because he is God. If I believe the former, I will suffer a lifetime of 'dis'-s The reason I am a Christian is not because it works for me, but because it is true. Once I get that, I am ready to hear the other part of what God says to Baruch - the promise of his protection and salvation. 

I have a great reward to look forward to. For now though, God calls me to follow and serve him, not for reward, but because he is God, because he is true, because nothing else is worth worshipping.

An unexpected hero

"For I will surely save you... because you have put your trust in me." Jeremiah 39.18

I have discovered a new Bible hero - his name is Ebed-melech - it doesn't exactly trip off the tongue. One of the great things about reading through the whole Bible, is that you discover jewels you never noticed before. Ebed-melech is one of them. He could also prove useful in a really hard Bible quiz!

The book of Jeremiah and the story of the prophets life is captivating. He is called to such a difficult task at such a dangerous time. By chapter 38, Jerusalem is surrounded by an invading army, that is set to overwhelm her. All the prophets of Jerusalem are prophesying the Lord's deliverance - preaching 'Peace, peace'. The ruling elite of Jerusalem, must have loved it - the prophets were a fantastic propaganda machine! Of course, when I say all the prophets were saying this, that doesn't include Jeremiah. No, he is telling the people of Jerusalem to surrender to the Babylonians, because the Lord God has given them victory as part of his judgment on his people.

Jeremiah, unsurprisingly, finds that he has made some powerful enemies in Jerusalem. He is seen as a fifth columnist, someone who will damage the morale of the people of Jerusalem. A traitor in their ranks who will weaken resolve and cause others to defect. It's difficult to imagine just how unpopular that must have made him. The upshot is that the king is persuaded to allow his nobles to put Jeremiah in a pit in the ground - in which he will certainly die. 

In walks our hero Ebed-melech.

He is a surprising hero. He is not from Israel, but is an outsider, an Ethiopian. More than that, he is a eunuch. This is a double reason for being an outsider as eunuchs were not permitted to enter the Temple - they were cut off from the direct presence of God.

Yet he trusts in God's word and is willing to risk unpopularity and hostility by standing up for Jeremiah before the king. At least Jeremiah had heard God's voice. Ebed-melech recognised God's voice in the words Jeremiah spoke. So one doubly on the outside shows more courage and faith than the rest of God's people. That made me think.

Am I willing to hold to God's word if it makes me unpopular? Am I willing to stand by and stand up for others who do likewise.

The end of the story is that in the midst of the terrifying and humiliating carnage of the fall of Jerusalem, God promises to protect Ebed-melech. But of course he does. Against all appearances Ebed-melech had backed the winner.

Fearful forgiveness

"...therefore you are to be feared" Psalm 130.4

I have a new favourite children's song. It can be found here:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubN6VziBJik 

It is a song all about how we don't, as Christians, need to hide. There is nothing to fear. In particular there is nothing to fear from the things we have done wrong. Why is that? The answer is in the chorus:

    Blessed is the one who fears the Lord
    And admits his sin
    Blessed is the one who trusts the Lord
    Who alone forgives
    Jesus died so I don’t have to hide anymore.

I like it because it sums up one of the most surprising verses in the Bible. When you read the verse above "...therefore you are to be feared" what did you think came before?

The answer is this: "With you there is forgiveness of sins... therefore you are to be feared".

The psalmist when he thinks about God's great mercy and forgiveness, which I surely don't deserve, he trembles. But what a wonderful trembling. So wonderful that as the children's song says, we don't have to hide, we don't have to be ashamed. So incredible that it gives us hope. 

Why is that? God has promised it. 

In the psalm, the psalmist says, "in his word I put my hope". How do I know I am forgiven? Because I don't think my sin is that bad? No. Because I feel forgiven? No. Because someone else tells me I'm forgiven? No. Because I persuade myself it wasn't wrong in the first place? No.

The reason I know I am forgiven is because God has said he will forgive me - "If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness". The God who knows just how badly wrong I've gone, forgives me - and at such cost. The Psalm finishes with - "He himself will redeem Israel (which includes all of God's people) from all their sins." When the psalmist said that God himself would redeem us, did he know that God would use himself as the price for our redemption? That is something so wonderful that it makes me tremble.