goodness

 This week we begin worship with:

Psalm 25:6-7

Remember your mercy, O LORD, and your steadfast love, for they have been

from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions;

according to your steadfast love remember me, for the sake of your goodness,

O LORD!

At the family reunion, at the Christmas dinner, at the most embarrassing moment possible, the phrase is heard "Remember when . . .".  What comes next is a detailed account of a time that you wished forgotten.

We all have mistakes, errors in judgement, even willful acts that we can't explain away.  We are all stained. 

The Psalmist pleads with God, "Remember not . . . ".  

He, like us, don't-have-a-leg-to-stand-on.  We have nothing to support our case.  The Psalmist leans on one thing, the "goodness" (ṭûḇ) of God.

A good God is just.

1 John 1:9

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

God is just to forgive us, because the penalty has already been paid by our Lord Jesus Christ.  It would be unjust to require that penalty to be paid again. 

paths

This morning we start worship with:

Psalm 25:9-10

He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. All the

paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his

covenant and his testimonies.

When this was written, there were no four lane roads connecting cities.  There were paths.  

Those that hike know the difference between a bit of logging road that runs nearly flat and is wide enough to walk two abreast, and the narrow steep rocky trails up to a vista at the top of the mountain.  When in unfamiliar territory a guide is necessary to choose the best path.  

Those who are humble (ʿānāv) and willing to be redirected, He will guide into His paths.

Those that garden know that bushes need to be trimmed or they become overgrown, so too what grows along the path.  Every hiking trail must be maintained or it quickly becomes impassible.  

Our God maintains two paths "steadfast love" (ḥeseḏ) [many translations "mercy"] and "faithfulness" (ĕmeṯ) [many translations "truth"].  There is a duality in these verses because these nouns are not verbs, and are not strictly associated with either God or to us, but to the path.

No, God is not maintaining a pasture where we are simply to enjoy His steadfast love and faithfulness.  We are on a path, where our humble obedience keeps us away from the dangers that lie just off the path.  He is loving as we are merciful.  He is faithful as we walk in truth.

Stayed

 This week we begin worship with:

Isaiah 26:3-4

You keep him in perfect peace

    whose mind is stayed on you,

    because he trusts in you.

Trust in the Lord forever,

    for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.

“Stayed” is not a word we normally use. More commonly we say, “He steadied himself”.  But “Stayed” (sāmaḵ) is quite a bit stronger.  When you steady yourself, you are still trusting in . . . yourself. When you lean on something to the point of trust, you are “stayed”.

Isaiah warns of trusting in a man.  Leaning too hard on them may cause that reed to splinter and inflict incredible pain.

Isaiah 36:6
Behold, you are trusting in Egypt, that broken reed of a staff, which will pierce the hand of any man who leans on it. Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him.

But not so our LORD, the everlasting Rock. 

Matthew 7:24

“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.

 

heart

This morning we being worship with:

Psalm 45:1

My heart overflows with a pleasing theme; I address my verses to the king; my

tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.

This is the first verse of a Psalm that celebrates King David and the God that had appointed him.  

A long time ago, I sat in a circle of college friends at church that had formed around our now aged senior pastor.  One friend carried his mandolin and asked our pastor how he did "it" every Sunday, how he gave clear sermons that pointed us to the LORD, each and every Sunday.  His answer was similar to today's verse, and that friend, a gifted musician, then sang for us a song he wrote that week "A minstrel in the King's court".

From your heart (lēḇ), do the same with whatever gift you have been given.

1 Peter 4:10

As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace:

Joy

This week we begin worship with:

Psalm 30:4–5

Sing praises to the LORD, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name.

For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.

This passage has lots less words in Hebrew. The last two sentences contain:

• Anger moment - These two words tell us that the moment reḡaʿof God’s anger, is like the blink of an eye. 
• Weeping over night - Has one more word lûn, which speaks of a traveler that spends only the night. 
• Joy morning  - But force of the verse comes from a conjunction vᵊlabōqer that drives home the idea that after this brief night, the morning brings joy.

Lamentations 3:22-23

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;

    his mercies never come to an end;

they are new every morning;

    great is your faithfulness.

plant

 This week we begin worship with:

Jeremiah 31:28

And it shall come to pass that as I have watched over them to pluck up and

break down, to overthrow, destroy, and bring harm, so I will watch over them

to build and to plant, declares the LORD.

This verse comes in the middle of Jeremiah's prophecy concerning the restoration of Israel and the institution of the New Covenant (Jeremiah 31).  The first half of which occurred as a dream, and from which he woke and declared:

Jeremiah 31:26

At this I awoke and looked, and my sleep was pleasant to me.

As a farmer, as a shepherd, as a gardener, there are times when you must "bring harm".  This is for the health of the crop, the flock, and the tree.  That time is now past.  It is now time to plant!  

Watch what is planted . . . the Word of God.

Jeremiah 31:33
For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.  

And from the New Testament and the parable of the Sower: 

Luke 8:11
Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. 
 

provision

Today we begin worship with:

Romans 13:11-12

Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.

When we are up north, the weather and our activities change so dramatically throughout the day.  Regularly we "cast off" the long pants needed for the chilled mornings to "put on" the swimsuits of the afternoon, only to put back on the flannel shirt for the evenings campfire.

What Paul is describing here is rather a one-time decision to cast off "works" and put on "armor".  He explains further, what (or better said, "who") we are putting on:

Romans 13:14
But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.

The flesh clamors for our attention and our attentive "provision" (pronoia).  But covered by armor the flesh is silenced and the call to battle can be heard above its complaints.  We are not called to an ascetic lifestyle where the battle is against the body, but rather we are called to a generous lifestyle where the battle cry is "love" (Romans 13:8-10).

 

compassion

 This week we begin worship with:

2 Chronicles 30:9

For if you return to the LORD, your brothers and your children will find compassion with their captors and return to this land. For the LORD your God is gracious and merciful and will not turn away his face from you, if you return to him.

When King Hezekiah began his reign, he restored the temple, re-established the priesthood, had them cleanse the temple and offered long overdue sacrifices.  

2 Chronicles 29:35b

Thus the service of the house of the Lord was restored.

He then sent couriers throughout the country with today's message, which contains the promise:

• "If you return to the Lord", then 
• "your brothers and your children will find compassion".

This is not about them.  This is about the nation.  

Their actions would bring about God's "compassion" (raḥam) on the nation, and not only on the current generation, but on the next.  This word is often translated "tender mercies" in the Psalms and is best understood as the care given by a mother to her newborn.

Let us continue to sanctify and sacrifice ourselves as prescribed (Romans 12), so that God will have mercy on this nation.

Lose

This week we begin worship with:

Mark 8:34–35

And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.

This is not the call to asceticism where the body is continually punished.  This is a call to sacrifice where the body is used for God’s purposes. This call was among the first things taught by Jesus.  Most of the Beatitudes talk of a future blessing, but two promise a present blessing. They are the first and the last.

Matthew 5:3

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 

 

Matthew 5:10

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Becoming a citizen of heaven is a present blessing for those that come with an empty hand when approaching God and a full hand when an enemy approaches us.  We contribute nothing to our salvation for Christ Jesus was the perfect sacrifice.  And we should sacrifice when necessary following His perfect example.

Proverbs 25:21

If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat,

    and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink, . . .

 

Proverbs 25:26

Like a muddied spring or a polluted fountain

    is a righteous man who gives way before the wicked.

With both courage and care draw clear water for your enemy today.  

 

keeper

This week we begin our worship with:

Psalm 121:7-8

The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The LORD will

keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.

Adam was given the task of being the garden's keeper (Genesis 2:15).  Cain famously defended himself with the question "Am I my brother's keeper?" (Genesis 4:9).  We are told in today's passage that God will be our "keeper" (šāmar), if we call upon Him.

Psalm 121:1

I lift up my eyes to the hills.

    From where does my help come?

freedom

 This week we begin worship with:

Galatians 5:13

For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.

In Paul's letter to the Galatians, he is responding to reports that they have fallen back to the comfortable place, where one's actions were the source of self-righteousness and their justification.  

Galatians 2:15-16

We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.

Once understood that no-one can justify themselves, faith in the work of Christ brings freedom.  My actions are not necessary.  But that freedom immediately brings the temptation to enthrone oneself.   

We must regularly be reminded that our freedom has a purpose, to love one another.  

A classic example would be getting the family ready for church, packed into the mini-van, only to hear the cry of a neighbor for help with a family emergency.  Some in this situation would feel the tug of the Law to drive on.  Others who felt the tug of self-enthronement are still in bed.  But we are freed to love through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.