The Gift of God in Jesus

Gifts and the Gospel

Let’s talk about gifts.

Christmas day has come and gone and many of us gave and received gifts. Some of us gave an expensive gift and some of us received an expensive gift. Some of us gave a less expensive gift and some of received a less expensive gift. Perhaps it was a mix of both. But, whether we gave or received an expensive or less expensive gift, each gift had a cost associated with it. Every gift given or received cost someone something.

Now let’s talk about the gospel.

In the gospel, God gave us the greatest gift of all in his Son, Jesus (John 3:16). Jesus even refers to himself (and everything that comes with him—the eternal life or living water he brings and the Holy Spirit) as “the gift of God” —“Jesus answered [the woman at the well], ‘If you knew the gift (δωρεά) of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water” (John 4:10). Jesus is the greatest gift.

One of the best ways to see and appreciate Jesus’ superiority is to observe how he fulfills what others in the redemptive narrative of Scripture pointed to. One of the best characters to study for this purpose, a man whose life pointed to and anticipated Jesus in many ways, is King David.

 

King David’s Christlikeness

In 1 Chronicles 21:18–22:1, King David intercedes for his kingdom and Jerusalem by offering a sacrifice. Why did he need to do this? Well, God had sent an angel to destroy Jerusalem because of David’s sin of taking a census of Israel (1 Chronicles 21:1–17). In response, David pleaded with God to spare the people from the plague and to let God’s wrath fall on him and his household alone since he was the one who sinned (1 Chronicles 21:17). So, God commands David to go and build an altar and to make sacrifice to the LORD at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite (1 Chronicles 21:18). And here, David does something remarkable.

When David comes to acquire the threshing floor, David buys it at full price. Why is this remarkable? Well, David could have exercised his divine right as king and simply taken the threshing floor. In fact, Ornan tries to give it, along with the oxen and wood, to David for free. But David will not accept Ornan’s offer. Why? David says why: “No, but I will buy them for the full price. I will not take for the LORD what is yours, nor offer burnt offerings that cost me nothing” (1 Chronicles 21:24, emphasis mine). The Greek translation of the OT, the LXX, could be woodenly translated into English, “I should certainly not take what is yours for the LORD, to carry up as a burnt offering gift (δωρεά) to the LORD” (my translation; Notice, the LXX uses the same word here for gift [δωρεά] that appears in John 4:10 to describe the gift of God in Jesus and the eternal life he brings). David will not offer a gift that costs him nothing. Therefore, he buys the threshing floor, offers sacrifices, and the LORD accepts them and spares Jerusalem. David then announces that the temple and altar will be built at this location, the threshing floor of Ornan.

How does this point us to the superiority of the gift of the person of Jesus? Well, we know that David, as a King of Israel, is a type of Christ. He points to and anticipates the greater David, the promised Son of David (1 Chronicles 17:11–14). And here we see King David looking Christlike in that he successfully intercedes on behalf God’s people by offering a sacrifice. But to fully appreciate how Jesus is supreme, we don’t just note the similarities. We look for the differences.

 

King Jesus’ Superiority

The differences between David here in 1 Chronicles 21:18–22:1 and Jesus are stunning.

 

Sinful David intercedes for God’s people because they suffer the consequences of his sin (1 Chronicles 21:17; cf. 21:1–17).

Righteous Jesus intercedes for God’s people because they suffer the consequences of their own sin (1 Peter 3:18).

 

David tries to offer himself as a substitutionary sacrifice for God’s people (1 Chronicles 21:17).

Jesus does offer himself as a substitutionary sacrifice for God’s people (Ephesians 5:2; Hebrews 10:10, 12).

 

David’s gift to save God’s people costs him 600 shekels of gold (1 Chronicles 21:25).

Jesus’ gift to save God’s people costs him his life (Mark 10:45; Romans 5; Philippians 2:5–8)

 

David’s sacrifice leads to the building of God’s house, the temple, made of stone and brick (1 Chronicles 22:1; 2 Chronicles 3:1)

Jesus’ sacrifice leads to the building of God’s spiritual house, his temple, made of living stones, his people (Ephesians 2:19–22; 1 Peter 2:1–5; Revelation 21:1–3).

 

Jesus is the better David. The better king. God’s people do not suffer due to his sinfulness. Rather God’s people are healed and saved by his holy righteousness. Jesus does not simply try to lay down his life as an acceptable offering to God. Jesus successfully lays down his life as an acceptable offering to God. Jesus does not purchase us as God’s people with silver and gold. Jesus purchases us with his infinitely valuable blood that never diminishes in value. Jesus does not build a temple with wood and stone in a fixed location. Jesus builds a living temple of God’s people inhabited his own Holy Spirit so that God’s people worship him in spirit and in truth no matter where they are (John 4:21–24). And through Jesus, God does dwell in the midst of his people now and will dwell in the midst of his people forever (Revelation 21:1–3). Jesus is the greatest gift.

 

The Gift of God in Jesus

Gifts come in all shapes and sizes. They come with different costs. But all earthly gifts, even our favorite gifts that we received this Christmas, pale in comparison to the gift of God. In Jesus, God has given us the gift of his very own Son. God has given us eternal life. God has given us his very own Spirit. Jesus is the greatest gift because Jesus gives us everything. Jesus gives us his own life so that we might have God. Through the gift of Jesus, then, God gives us himself.

So as we joyfully reflect on our gift giving and receiving from this past Christmas—and let us enjoy those gifts fully—let the taste of joy those gifts give us be just that, a taste. And let that taste of joy remind us of the supreme gift God has given us in his Son, Jesus, who gives us everything. Because if you know the gift of God, and who it is who offers us that gift, then you will ask him, and he will give you the fullest taste of living water (John 4:10).

A Christmas Gift to Yourself

Advent and Christmas celebrate the coming of Jesus into the world.

But why did He come?

The Apostle Paul tells us: “The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” (1 Timothy 1:15)

That’s the truth about Jesus. He came to glorify God through the salvation of rebels.

But that truth only helps us if we acknowledge a second truth: I am among such rebels. So the Apostle continues by stating that he is the foremost of sinners.

We must know who Jesus is.

And we must know who we are.

Only by acknowledging and responding to those truths do we reap the benefits of Jesus’ coming into the world.

Jesus’ great ancestor David elaborates on such self-knowledge in Psalm 86. Let’s learn from him four truths we need to acknowledge about ourselves.

David was among God’s people, chosen by His grace. The four truths will be true of us also if we are in Christ Jesus, having come to God by grace through faith.

First: David knows that he is God’s poor, needy servant.

We see this in Psalm 86:1, 2, 4, and 16. Indeed, in Psalm 82:16 David calls himself not only a servant but the “son of your maidservant.” He is saying, “I’m like the son of Your household slave, born into your household, and thus having no inheritance, no assets, and absolutely no social standing apart from You. I am completely dependent on You.”

Now, David was king! He ruled! He had riches! People would bow down before him!

And yet he sees himself rightly as only a servant of God, one who can accomplish nothing on his own, one whose very purpose is to do the will of God.

Do you see yourself that way?

Second: David depends on and desires God

Psalm 86:4 says David lifts up his soul to God.

Now, other than when reading Scripture, I have never used the phrase “lift up my soul.” I doubt you have either. While it’s a fairly common phrase in the Old Testament, what does it mean?

Deuteronomy 24:15 is helpful in this regard, for the phrase is translated differently in that verse. Speaking of a poor and needy hired servant, Moses commands:

You shall give him his wages on the same day, before the sun sets (for he is poor and counts on it), lest he cry against you to the LORD, and you be guilty of sin. (emphasis added)

“Counts on” translates the same phrase we saw in Psalm 86:4, literally “lifts up his soul.” He desires those wages. He depends on those wages to be able to buy food that evening.

From this verse and elsewhere we can see that to “lift up your soul” to something is to desire and to depend on it.

So David in Psalm 86:4 is saying: “Bring joy to my whole being, for my whole being depends on and desires you!”

Thus both the first and second truths emphasize David’s dependence on God. This second adds the element of delight in God, of desiring Him.

Third: David knows that He does not know God’s way.

Psalm 86:11: “Teach me your way, O LORD, that I may walk in your truth.”

Again, David is king, he is seen as wise – but he acknowledges that he cannot walk in God’s truth apart from God teaching him. He can’t live rightly, fulfilling the purpose of His creation, apart from God. He needs God’s guidance. He depends on God’s revelation, His instruction, His torah.

Fourth: David knows He is beloved by God

David speaks of God’s steadfast, covenant, unfailing love in Psalm 86:5, 13, and 15. Psalm 86:13 is personal: “Great is Your steadfast love toward me.”

While we don’t recognize it in most English translations, Psalm 86:2 makes a similar point. In the ESV, this verse begins, “Preserve my life, for I am godly.” That almost sounds as if David is saying, “Preserve me because I’m such a good guy!”

However, the word translated “godly” has the same root as the word translated “steadfast love.” The word used in verse 2 refers to a person who both receives and loyally returns such steadfast love. So we might paraphrase the verse, “Guard me, O Lord, for You have put me in covenant relation with You; I am loved by You and You enable me to return loyal love to You.”

Do you know these truths? Do you know you are poor and needy, dependent on God? Do you see Him as your desire and delight? Do you acknowledge that should you try to forge your own path apart from Him, you will inevitably go astray, harming yourself and others? And do you know that if you are in Christ, you are loved with a love beyond imagining?

David knew those truths. He generally lived by those truths – and when he didn’t, he exemplified what happens when we fail to live by those truths.

Give yourself the greatest Christmas gift possible: Acknowledge who you truly are, and who that baby in the manger truly is. Repent before Him. See Him as your delight.

And then bask in the love made possible by Christmas.

[This devotion is taken in part from a section of the December 8 sermon. The sermon audio is available at this link.]

The God of Reversals

In the book of Esther, Haman plots to kill Mordecai and then wipe out the Jews; God turns that plan on its head, as the king has Haman hung on the gallows prepared for Mordecai, and the Jews win a great victory over their foes. Even more importantly in the storyline of Scripture, God saves the line of Jesus, the Messiah by destroying those who would kill His ancestors.

But when Mordecai refused to bow down before Haman, and when Esther approached the king without being summoned, neither knew what would happen. Both took dangerous actions that could have led to their imprisonment or death.

The Apostle Paul assures us that “God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28). All things. He causes our efforts to work for good; He causes the evil acts of evil men like Haman to work for good. He causes your struggles and trials to work for good – sometimes in ways you can see in retrospect, oftentimes in ways you will not see until eternity.

God informs us of that truth – and He graciously gives us examples in Scripture to show us what that looks like. Here are a few more of the many reversals in Scripture:

  • Joseph’s jealous brothers sell him into slavery, but God raises him to a position of power over those brothers – and Joseph’s leadership saves those very brothers, the entire line of the promise to Abraham, from dying in the famine (Genesis 37-50).
  • Pharaoh refuses to comply with God’s command through Moses and Aaron to let the Israelites go to worship Him; God sends plagues and so works in Pharaoh’s heart that the Israelites end up leaving with abundant silver and gold, the Egyptian army is destroyed, and God’s Name is proclaimed in all the earth (Exodus 5-14; see especially Exodus 9:13-16).
  • A young shepherd boy armed with a sling and a few stones has no chance in single combat with a giant, experienced warrior, but God gives the giant into David’s hand so that “all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel … [and that] the battle is the Lord’s.” (1 Samuel 17:46-47).
  • The most powerful army in the world comes to attack the Kingdom of Judah and its capital Jerusalem. King Hezekiah acknowledges that he cannot defeat them, but prays that God would save them “that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O LORD, are God alone” (2 Kings 19:19). God kills 180,000 soldiers in their sleep and the Assyrians retreat.
  • After centuries of warnings and prophecies about what will happen if the Israelites continue to rebel against Him, God sends the Babylonians to destroy the Kingdom of Judah and the very temple that pictures God’s presence with His people. The siege and its aftermath are horrible – read the poetic accounts in the book of Lamentations. Yet, as God assures Habakkuk after telling the prophet ahead of time that this will happen, the end result will be that “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea” (Habakkuk 2:14).
  • Or think of the Fall itself: Adam and Eve reject God, choosing to trust in their own senses and to believe Satan’s lie instead of relying on the one who created them, who loved them, who provided everything for them (Genesis 3). Many millennia of tragedy follow, to the present day. Yet a time is coming when there will be “a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages … crying out with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!’” (Revelation 7:9-10).
  • And all this comes about because of the greatest reversal of them all: Jesus – the only man ever to live a sinless life – is tried in a kangaroo court, sentenced to death, mocked, beaten, and hung on a cross where He dies. Evil and cowardly men bring this about. Yet God through that death pays the penalty for the sins of all those who trust in Him, and raises Him from the dead, “so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10-11).

Add to this list others you can think of in Scripture. Meditate on these reversals – and on the God who brings them about. Think of the ways God has effected similar reversals in your life, and in the lives of those you know. And consider your own present trials, difficulties, pressures, and sorrows – knowing that God is working in ways you cannot fathom to bring about obvious or subtle reversals, so that every pain becomes a means of bringing glory to His Name and good to His people.

Sin and Confession

[This Sunday in our journey through the book of Psalms we reach the prayer of confession David prayed after committing both adultery and murder. We will only briefly review on Sunday the events leading up to this confession; here are edited excerpts from a sermon preached twenty years ago from that narrative. You can read the entire sermon – preached at the height of the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal – at this link. The four principles are taken from a sermon by Gary Vanderet – Coty]

The political leader of a great nation commits adultery and murder; an accuser then stands before him and confronts him with his sin. How does that political leader react? What insights does this give us into the nature of sin? We’ll learn four key principles about sin as we follow the story in 2 Samuel 11 and 12.

One clear night King David is out on the roof of his palace, looking down on his capital. He must be feeling some sense of pride and accomplishment when he notices a movement on another, lower roof. A lantern; water splashing. David peers and sees — a woman undressing, then bathing. He notices her great beauty.

Now, David already has multiple wives; if he simply wanted to engage in sexual relations, he had several women to choose from. But I suggest this was part of the problem, not part of the solution. Instead of following God’s intention that one man should be united in marriage with one woman in a one flesh relationship, David has followed the pattern of other prosperous men in the surrounding nations, indulging his sexual appetites by bringing attractive women into his harem. Indulgence inevitably leads not to satisfaction but to more and more indulgence.

So David figures this will be one more case of the same, one more beautiful woman for the harem. He inquires about her — but doesn’t get the answer he wants. He supposes this young woman to be unmarried, but not only is she married — her husband is one of David’s most loyal men, Uriah.

David now has a choice; either to commit adultery, explicitly breaking one of the Ten Commandments, and cuckolding one of his best friends — or to control himself. David chooses adultery.

Think about this: God uses David as a type of Christ, a foreshadowing of Jesus; God has called him a man after His own heart (1 Samuel 13:14). David himself has written “I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart” (Psalm 40:8). Yet David violates that very law, explicitly, knowingly. Why?

Here we come to our first principle: Sin always deceives. Sin always promises something it cannot deliver. When we hear such promises, we are tempted to give in, to accept the deception and justify our actions. David must have done that; he knows he is doing wrong, but he tries to justify himself, perhaps by saying

  • “It’s only one night — I can go back to delighting in God’s law tomorrow;” or,
  • “She’s willing — we’re just consenting adults;” or,
  • “No one is hurt by this; Uriah will never know; indeed, no one will ever know;” or,
  • “Think of all I’ve done for this country; surely I deserve this one little fling!”

Have you ever heard such temptations? Satan is the deceiver, a liar and the father of lies, and he uses similar lies with all of us. Satan presents sin to us as the way to life, the way to enjoyment, the way to fulfillment — when really it is the way to death and destruction. Satan persuades us that engaging in sin will fulfill our desires, when sin gives satisfaction only to our least important desires, and that only briefly, leaving us dying for true love, for true joy, and for true peace. Sin always deceives.

David and Bathsheba have their fling, and she returns home. Weeks pass. David doesn’t see her again, and figures it is all over. Then one day he receives a message: “David, I’m pregnant.” Now, Uriah has been away from Jerusalem for months; when Bathsheba’s belly starts to grow, her adultery will be evident to all. According to the law, she should then be stoned — along with her accomplice (Leviticus 20:10).

David tries to think quick: “Let’s see, this many weeks have passed. It’s not too unusual for children to be born several weeks early. If I can just get Uriah home, he and Bathsheba will have sexual relations. Surely no one will raise questions then.”

So David has Joab send Uriah home. He and David discuss the war; then David encourages him to go home. But Uriah does not do so, telling David the next day,

“The ark and Israel and Judah are staying in tents, and my master Joab and my lord’s men are camped in the open fields. How could I go to my house to eat and drink and lie with my wife? As surely as you live, I will not do such a thing!” (2 Samuel 11:11)

Uriah’s statement must have cut David to the quick. Uriah has not seen his wife for months, but will not even visit her. What a contrast to David, who should have been out in the field with the army, but instead chose to indulge his sensual appetites — and to do that not with his own wives, but with the wife of this most loyal subordinate.

David proceeds to get him drunk that evening, hoping that this will overcome his loyalty, and that he will then sleep with Bathsheba. But even a drunk Uriah shows considerably more restraint that a sober David; Uriah does not go home. He sleeps on a mat at the palace with David’s servants.

So David has to come up with Plan B, and a monstrous plan it is. He writes a letter instructing Joab, the commander, to put Uriah in the front lines and then have the other soldiers abandon him. And then David has Uriah carry instructions for his own execution — because he trusts him! He knows this loyal servant will never think of opening the letter. This is murder, plain and simple.

Joab is more crafty than David, and manages to have Uriah killed without causing soldiers to ask questions. But the deed is done.

So what started as a one night stand, as a consensual relationship between two people, has led to destruction and death. And the destruction and death are far from over, as we will see. This is our second principle: Sin always destroys. Sin destroys our relationships to man and God, sin destroys what is best in us, sin destroys whatever we love most.

Don’t listen to anyone who tries to tell you that there is a sin that hurts no one. Sin always destroys.

Bathsheba mourns for her husband, and then moves into the palace as David’s wife. She grows great with child — and everyone in the palace is able to count. Everyone knows that Uriah had come home but never saw his wife. So at least the palace insiders know exactly what happened. Behind the king’s back, people are talking. But David pretends that this is a natural occurrence, that he is doing his old friend a favor by taking care of his widow. Bathsheba gives birth to a healthy boy — and to David all seems well. It looks like he has gotten away with adultery and murder.

However, “the thing David had done displeased the LORD.” (2 Samuel 11:27)

God acts by sending the prophet Nathan to David. He tells the king a story about a rich man who stole a pet lamb from a neighbor to prepare a meal for a guest. David is incensed, saying “As surely as the LORD lives, the man who did this deserves to die!” (2 Samuel 12:5). Nathan replies, “You are the man!” He continues speaking God’s words to David:

“I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. I gave your master’s house to you, and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. Why did you despise the word of the LORD by doing what is evil in his eyes?” (2 Samuel 12:7b-9a)

David thought all was covered up; he pretended that no one knew. Well, other people did know, but more importantly, God knew. God always knows.

This is our third principle: Sin is always discovered. In the long run, there are no secret sins. As Jesus Himself states, “There is nothing covered up that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known. (Luke 12:2)

Satan tempts us to believe that no one will ever know, that we can hide our sin; Satan is so effective in this that many of us are lying to ourselves, thinking that our sins are known only to us, thinking that we have succeeded in covering our tracks. But God sees all; everything is laid bare before his eyes; God will not be mocked. Sin is always discovered.

What is David’s reaction? Does he try to justify himself? Does he attack his accuser? Does he argue that Nathan shouldn’t have brought up the matter, saying, “This is private, and none of your business. Leave me alone! Let me deal with this among my wives and children!” No. David confesses simply, “I have sinned against the LORD.”

No excuses. No attempt to mitigate the seriousness of the sin. So Nathan replies immediately, “The Lord has taken away your sin.” This is our fourth principle: Confessed sin is always forgiven.

What is the nature of true confession? We can identify three characteristics from Psalm 51, David’s song of repentance, written on this occasion:

 (1) True confession addresses all those affected by the sin.

This was not a private matter between David and Bathsheba, or David and Uriah’s relatives. The king sinned, and all Israel suffered. So David must confess before all Israel.

(2) True confession admits that punishment is justified

We must be broken and contrite when we come before God and those we have sinned against; we must not downplay our sin or blame the other person, but admit that we deserve judgment.

(3) True confession depends on God’s mercy alone.

David calls out for God to act in accordance with his unfailing love, in accordance with his great mercy. He calls out to God to cleanse him, to wash him, and then — since the external washing is not sufficient — to change his very heart, to create a new heart within him.

David deserved death for his sin, both the ending of his life on earth and eternal separation from God. God forgave him; those of us who are saved will join David in praising God eternally, and David did not die on earth in punishment for adultery and murder.

But note that there were other temporal consequences of David’s sin. The judgment that Nathan states prior to David’s confession still holds. Israel and, in particular, David’s family suffer immensely from this sin. And Uriah remains dead. Forgiveness does not imply the absence of temporal consequences for sin. But, praise God, when we come to God with broken and contrite hearts, when we call out to God pleading for His mercy, when we depend only on the shed blood of Jesus to cover all our sins, God never turns his ear away. God always listens. Confessed sin is always forgiven.

So examine your own heart. Paul tells us, “If you think you are standing firm, take care that you don’t fall.” What sin are you knowingly engaged in? Are you loving the Lord your God with all your heart, and all your soul, and all your strength, and all your mind? Are you loving your neighbor as yourself?

My dear friends, sin always deceives. Sin always destroys. Sin is always discovered. Let us take the occasion of great sins by a great man to ask God with David:

Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. (Psalm 139:23-24)

When He shows you the sin in your heart, confess it — and then know the joy of living a life blameless before Him. Confessed sin — Praise God! — is always forgiven, by the blood of Jesus.

 

 

To Sin is to Despise God

If God were to confront you after you sin, what would He say?

Scripture tells us what God told David after his sins of adultery and murder:

I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul. And I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your arms and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah. And if this were too little, I would add to you as much more. Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil in his sight? (2 Samuel 12:7-9)

Similarly, God could rightly say to those of us who claim to be followers of Jesus:

I delivered you out of the hand of Satan. I sent My Son to die for you. I anointed you with My Holy Spirit. I brought you into my family and gave you brothers and sisters in Christ to love you, care for you, and pray for you. I made you part of a kingdom of priests. I gave you life and breath and health and abilities and jobs and houses and food and clothing. I gave you earthly families and joys. And if this were too little, I would give to you even more – ask and you will receive! Why then have you despised My word, to do what is evil in My sight?

You see, God does not set arbitrary rules and then slap us when we violate them. He is not a cosmic killjoy looking down to see who He gets to punish today. Nor is He an uninvolved, distant enforcer who mechanically and dispassionately deals out retribution for misdeeds.

No. God is the gracious Giver who, despite our disobedience and rebellion, continues to provide all humanity with the good gifts abounding around us.  And if we claim to be in Christ, we say that He has saved us by completely unmerited grace, calling us out of darkness into His marvelous light. He makes us into a holy nation, a people for His own possession to proclaim His excellencies (1 Peter 2:9). He has adopted us into His family and made us joint heirs with Christ, promising to conform us to His likeness (Romans 8:14-17, 29). He works all things together for our good and His glory (Romans 8:28). He is an eternally loving Father to us, who knows how to give good gifts (Matthew 7:9-11) – and who knows how to discipline us for our good (Hebrews 12:7-11). Far from being arbitrary, the commands He gives us tell us how we can live in this fallen world for His glory and our joy (Deuteronomy 10:12-13).

So when we disobey, we, the creatures, are claiming to know better than He, our Creator. We are claiming that we discern our good better than He, the all-knowing One. We are claiming that we can run our lives better than He, our Designer. We are claiming that we have a better moral sense than He, the Source of all good.

And so to sin is to despise Him and His Word.

Yes, sin is a breaking of God’s rules. But it is much more.

  • It is complete foolishness, because it never leads to our greatest good.
  • It is grossly presumptuous, because it assumes we know more than God.
  • And it is a rejection of the Person of our heavenly Father, effectively spitting in His face, telling Him to get out of our lives and let us run them on our own.

Don’t despise God or His Word. Submit to Him. And find with David that His love is better than life (Psalm 63:3).

 

Silence in Afflictions

[In pain because of God’s discipline for his sin, David prays, “I am mute; I do not open my mouth, for it is you who have done it” (Psalm 39:9). While we will consider this verse in the context of the entire psalm on Sunday, the English Puritan pastor Thomas Brooks wrote an entire book based on David’s statement, The Mute Christian Under the Smarting Rod (1659). Here are some excerpts and the first part of his outline in updated language for your consideration and meditation. You can read the entire book via this link. To distinguish between my words and Brooks’, my paraphrases are in italics – Coty]

Christians, it is mercy, it is rich mercy, that every affliction is not an execution, that every correction is not a damnation.

There is a PRUDENT silence, a HOLY, a GRACIOUS silence; a silence that springs from prudent principles, from holy principles, and from gracious causes and considerations; and this is the silence here meant.

I: What does this silence include?

It includes and takes in these eight things:

First, acknowledging that God is the author of all our afflictions

There is no sickness so little—but God has a finger in it; though it be but the aching of the little finger.

Such as can see the ordering hand of God in all their afflictions, will, with David, lay their hands upon their mouths, when the rod of God is upon their backs, 2 Sam. 16:11, 12. If God’s hand be not seen in the affliction, the heart will do nothing but fret and rage under affliction.

Secondly, acknowledging God’s majesty, sovereignty, might, and authority over us.

A man never comes to humble himself, nor to be silent under the hand of God, until he comes to see the hand of God to be a mighty hand. . . . When men look upon the hand of God as a weak hand, a feeble hand, a low hand, a mean hand—their hearts rise against his hand.

Thirdly, this silence springs from a quiet and calm mind and spirit

Aaron, Eli, and Job. . . saw that it was a Father that put those bitter cups in their hands, and love that laid those heavy crosses upon their shoulders, and grace that put those yokes about their necks; and this caused much quietness and calmness in their spirits.

Some men . . . hide and conceal their grief and trouble; but could you but look into their hearts, you will find all in an uproar, all out of order, all in a flame; and however they may seem to be cold without, yet they are all in a hot burning fever within. Such a feverish fit David was once in, Psalm 39:3. But certainly a holy silence allays all tumults in the mind, and makes a man ‘in patience to possess his own soul.’

Fourthly, this silence springs from acquitting God of all blame or injustice in bringing the affliction on us.

God’s afflictions are always just; he never afflicts but in faithfulness. His will is the rule of justice; and therefore a gracious soul dares not cavil nor question his proceedings. The afflicted soul knows that a righteous God can do nothing but that which is righteous; it knows that God is uncontrollable, and therefore the afflicted man puts his mouth in the dust, and keeps silence before him.

Fifthly, this silence springs from five conclusions about the eventual impact of the afflictions on us.

Five conclusions based on Lamentations 3:27-33

a) The afflictions shall work for their good

Surely these afflictions are but the Lord’s pruning-knives, by which he will bleed my sins, and prune my heart, and make it more fertile and fruitful; they are but the Lord’s potion, by which he will clear me, and rid me of those spiritual diseases and maladies, which are most deadly and dangerous to my soul!

b) Afflictions shall keep them humble and low

c) The rod shall not always lie upon the back of the righteous.

d) God will he have compassion, according to the multitude of his mercies

The life of a Christian is filled up with interchanges of sickness and health, weakness and strength, want and wealth, disgrace and honor, crosses and comforts, miseries and mercies, joys and sorrows, mirth and mourning. All honey would harm us; all wormwood would undo us—a composition of both is the best way in the world to keep our souls in a healthy constitution. It is best and most for the health of the soul that the warm south wind of mercy, and the cold north wind of adversity—do both blow upon it.

e) God’s heart was not in their afflictions, though his hand was.

He takes no delight to afflict his children; it goes against his heart. It is a grief to him to be grievous to them, a pain to him to be punishing of them, a sorrow to him to be striking them.

Sixthly, this silence springs from a conviction from our own conscience to be quiet and still before God

I charge you, O my soul—not to mutter, nor to murmur; I command you, O my soul, to be dumb and silent under the afflicting hand of God.

Peace, O my soul! be still, leave your muttering, leave your murmuring, leave your complaining, leave your chafing, and vexing—and lay your hand upon your mouth, and be silent.

Seventhly, this silence includes a surrendering of ourselves to God while being afflicted.

The silent soul gives himself up to God. The secret language of the soul is this—’Lord, here am I; do with me what you please, write upon me as you please—I give up myself to be at your disposal.’

Eighthly and lastly, this silence comes from a hopeful patience while waiting upon the Lord to work His deliverance.

II: What does this patient silence NOT EXCLUDE

Eight things:

First, this silence does not exclude our feeling the pain of our afflictions

Psalm 39:10-11: [David] is sensible of his pain as well as of his sin; and having prayed off his sin in the former verses, he labors here to pray off his pain.

God allows his people to groan, though not to grumble.

Secondly, this silence does not exclude praying for the end of our afflictions

Thirdly, this silence does not exclude sorrow for our sin that led to the affliction, as well as efforts to crush that sin.

A holy, a prudent silence does not exclude men’s being kindly affected and afflicted with their sins, as the meritorious cause of all their sorrows and sufferings,

In all our sorrows we should read our sins! When God’s hand is upon our backs, our hands should be upon our sins.

Fourthly, such a silence does not exclude teaching others the lessons from our afflictions.

Fifthly, such a silence does not exclude some mourning and weeping

Sixthly, such a silence does not even exclude sighing and groaning

A man may sigh, and groan and roar under the hand of God, and yet be silent. It is not sighing—but muttering; it is not groaning—but grumbling; it is not roaring—but murmuring—which is opposite to a holy silence.

Sometimes the sighs and groans of a saint do in some manner, tell that which his tongue can in no manner utter.

Seventhly, such a silence does not exclude the use of means to end the affliction

We may neglect God as well by neglecting of means, as by trusting in means. It is best to use them, and in the use of them, to live above them.

Eighthly, and lastly, such a silence does not exclude speaking against those humans who have been the earthly cause of our afflictions.

III:  Why must Christians exercise this kind of silence under even the greatest afflictions and trials?

Eight Reasons:

Reason 1. That they may the better hear and understand the voice of the rod.

Reason 2. That they may . . . distinguish themselves from the men of the world, who usually fret and fling, mutter or murmur, curse and swagger, when they are under the afflicting hand of God.

Reason 3, that they may be conformable to Christ their head, who was dumb and silent under his sorest trials.

Reason 4. it is ten thousand times a greater judgment and affliction, to be given to a fretful spirit, a froward spirit, a muttering spirit under an affliction, then it is to be afflicted.

Reason 5: a holy, a prudent silence under afflictions, under miseries, doth best . . . fit the afflicted for the receipt of mercies.

Reason 6: it is fruitless . . . to strive, to contest or contend with God.

Reason 7: [these afflictions] shall cross and frustrate Satan’s great design and expectation.

Reason 8: That we may be like our forefathers in the faith who were patient and silent under such afflictions.

Last sentence in the book:

Thy life is but short, therefore thy troubles cannot be long; hold up and hold out quietly and patiently a little longer, and heaven shall make amends for all.

 

God’s Enemy and God’s Delight

Are you God’s enemy? Or are you God’s delight?

In Psalm 18, David is attacked by enemies. He prays to the Lord, and God gives him victory over them. This occurs, David says, because he is God’s delight; his hands are clean:

He rescued me, because he delighted in me.  The LORD dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me.  For I have kept the ways of the LORD, and have not wickedly departed from my God. (Psalm 18:19-21)

Who are these enemies: From Israel or from other nations? The previous Israelite king, Saul, certainly tried to kill David, and might have been termed David’s enemy. But David never fought against Saul. David never had victory over him. Instead, God arranged for Saul and his son Jonathan to die in battle against the Philistines. So these enemies referred to in Psalm 18 must be from other nations.

David’s victory is total:

You made those who rise against me sink under me. You made my enemies turn their backs to me, and those who hated me I destroyed.  They cried for help, but there was none to save; they cried to the LORD, but he did not answer them. I beat them fine as dust before the wind; I cast them out like the mire of the streets. (Psalm 18:39-42)

David then draws an implication from this victory granted by God:

For this I will praise you, O LORD, among the nations, and sing to your name. (Psalm 18:49)

Why does he say that he will praise God “among the nations”? Is David gloating in triumph over his fallen enemies?

No. Note how Paul uses Psalm 18:49 in Romans 15:

I tell you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised to show God’s truthfulness . . . in order that the nations might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, “Therefore I will praise you among the nations, and sing to your name.” (Romans 15:8-9, own translation)

Paul quotes Psalm 18 as support for his statement that Christ became a Jew, Christ became incarnate in part so that these non-Israelite peoples would receive God’s mercy and then praise Him. God has always had a heart for all nations: “The people must praise You, O God; all the peoples must praise You” (Psalm 67:3, own translation).

How, then, do we understand Psalm 18? Why does God defeat David’s enemies?

God defeats David’s enemies for two causes: The cause of justice and the cause of mercy. Justice, in that they were fighting against God’s chosen king – a king, moreover, who is a picture of His coming Christ. In the end, if not before, He will bring down all who oppose Jesus. King Jesus deserves all honor, glory, and praise; justice demands that those who resist Him will be conquered.

But God also defeats these enemies for the cause of mercy. They have no hope as long as they continue in rebellion against God’s anointed One. He defeats them. And then, as Psalm 18:49 says, they hear His praises. They hear of His goodness. They hear of His mercy. They hear of His grace.

And today they hear that “while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son” (Romans 5:10); they hear, “since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). Once fighting against God’s anointed King; now subdued by Him. Once enemies. Now at peace. Once unrighteous; now declared righteous.

Hear that carefully: Declared righteous. So that the one-time enemies can now say with David in Psalm 18: “The LORD dealt with me according to my righteousness” (Psalm 18:20). A righteousness that comes from another – from the very King Jesus I opposed and resisted. I am granted His righteousness.

So I once was God’s enemy. I once was conquered by King Jesus. By His grace and through faith in Him I was united with Him, as His death paid the penalty due for my rebellion. In union with Christ, I am credited with His very righteousness, so that I can say with David, “my hands are clean!”

And there is even more. Psalm 18:19 also is now true of me: ”He rescued me, because he delighted in me.” Since I am one with Christ, when God looks at me, He sees Jesus.

From enemy to delight. From fighting against God to being rejoiced over by God. From rebel to child.

Praise God for conquering us, His enemies, so that we might become His delight.

Responding to Conflict – When You are at Fault

How do you react when your wrong decisions cause pain and trouble for yourself and others? What do you do when others then bitterly blame you and accuse you?

We all make mistakes in judgment. And we all sin. There are consequences to these mistakes and sins. Surely we must take responsibility for those consequences.

But every mistake, every sin, and every conflict is an opportunity for God to display His sovereign goodness. And thus every error and sin of ours provides us with the opportunity to trust in Him, and thus to glorify Him.

Consider present conflict in your family, among your friends, or in your workplace. Limit your thoughts to those conflicts for which you are in large measure responsible: Your sin, or your error of judgment, has led to this dispute. How should you respond biblically? How can these problems lead to God’s glory?

This is the situation David finds himself in at the beginning of 1 Samuel 30. (more…)