Who is #Blessed?

Who is blessed?

If you search social media for #blessed, what will you find?

Or consider a similar question: What leads to a happy, satisfied, fulfilling life?

If you were to ask that question of random people in Charlotte, what might they say? You would likely find people who would answer:

  • Career success/accomplishment
  • Working to change the world, to make it a better place, perhaps through local service, perhaps through politics
  • Working to help those around you who are less well off
  • Others might focus on possessions: Having a nice house, or a second house at the beach, in the mountains, on a lake; having the latest gadgets, or car, or clothes
  • Yet others would say: Having good health and a great body
  • That’s then related to: being attractive sexually, having great sex – and, some would say, with multiple partners
  • Others might focus on aesthetics and intellectual engagement: Great music, great books, great art, great conversation
  • Others might focus on friends or family
  • Others might say: There’s no way in this crazy world to be happy and satisfied; the only way to some joy is to escape through drugs, fantasies, virtual reality, or the metaverse
  • Others might say – believe in Jesus, and you will be blessed.

What does Psalm 119 say?

Psalm 119:1-3: Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD! Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart, who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways!

How does the psalmist’s answer compare to the others?

This answer differs from all of them, including the last. The psalmist’s answer is more complex than any of the others. He tells us to walk in the Law, to walk in His ways, on His paths, and to seek God with all that we are. This answer clearly is not speaking of a one-time decision that moves you from “unblessed” to “blessed.” Indeed, the psalmist is not speaking of something you obtain or an activity you do.

Instead, the psalm describes a relationship with God. Indeed, a specific type of relationship with God – the type of relationship Jesus had with the Father during His time on earth. For Jesus walked in the Law of the Lord. Jesus kept God’s testimonies. Jesus sought the Father with all His heart. Jesus did no wrong but walked on the Father’s ways and paths.

Before He began His public ministry, Jesus referred to this idea. Do you remember what He said when He had fasted for forty days and was hungry, in response to Satan’s temptation to turn stones into bread? Quoting Deuteronomy 8, He says, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4).

That’s the attitude of the author of Psalm 119: “Your Word is my life! I live by listening to You, following You, trusting You!”

So Psalm 119 describes a right relationship with God, which Jesus then lived out.

The psalm promises that we too can have such a relationship with God: life-giving, fulfilling, satisfying – blessed. Furthermore, we know from 2 Corinthians 1:20 that “Every one of God ‘s promises is ‘Yes’ in [Jesus].” So the promise of Psalm 119 of a blessed life, true life – deep joy in Him in the midst of a crazy, fallen, dangerous world – that promise is yes in Jesus, as we come to the Father through the crucified and risen Son.

That’s the central message of this psalm: We find true life only in God, and He communicates Himself in His Word. And today we know: Jesus is the living Word who displayed and fulfilled the written Word, enabling rebels like us to have that blessed relationship with the Father.

Consider the structure of this psalm. There are 22 sections containing eight verses each, and thus 176 verses in total. Most Bibles label each eight-verse section with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet, for all eight verses in every section begin with the same letter.

Almost every verse refers to God’s Word in some way, using words such as: Law, Word, ordinances, testimonies, commandments, statutes, precepts, sayings, and promise.

But the Word in this psalm is not at all a set of rules we obey in order to gain access to God. Nor is this Word a set of laws we obey outwardly to satisfy the Lawgiver, while deep in our hearts we long to violate them.

No. This Word is the path to true life, true joy, true happiness, true blessedness. For this Word is the path of a relationship with our loving Creator – the path that Jesus walked before us.

So I encourage you: Read this psalm expectantly. Learn how you can know and love God through His Word.

And then – walk in His ways, to His glory and to your joy.

[This devotion is edited from the introduction to the July 24 sermon, “Know and Love God Through His Word.” You can listen to that sermon via this link.]

What is Old Testament “Law”?

[On Sunday we return to the sermon series on the book of Psalms, The Songs of the People of God, with the first of several sermons on Psalm 119. This longest of all psalms begins: “Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD!” The Hebrew word translated “law” is “torah.” This devotion on the meaning of “torah” is edited from the introduction to a sermon on Malachi 2:1-9 preached March 16, 2008. You can listen to the audio here – Coty]

What is Old Testament law?

Most English translations use “law” to translate the Hebrew word “torah.” But torah is not “law” in the sense of a speed limit or the internal revenue code. Indeed, three times in Malachi 2:7-9 the ESV translates “torah” as “instruction.” That alone shows us we might benefit from investigating the meaning of the Hebrew word.

So what is “torah”?

Torah is the revelation of God to man, fundamentally communicating His character, and consequently instructing us how to live in light of who God is. It is thus the source of joy and well-being, the foundation of any right view of the world, the foundation of any wisdom, any knowledge, any insight. Through torah we learn who God is, who we are, how we can be reconciled to Him, and how we can live every day before Him to our joy and His glory.

As the Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament puts it: “The true purpose of torah is to lead man into a fruitful, abundant life of fellowship with God.” I would add “and thus fellowship with each other, and with the created order.”

Therefore:

  • Don’t think of torah as a list of rules or laws that we must keep in order to earn God’s favor
  • Don’t think of torah as a set of hoops He requires us to jump through
  • Don’t think of torah as arbitrary standards God sets up.

But think of torah as precious revelation from God given to us for our good.

Deuteronomy 10:12-13 is helpful here:

“Now, O Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the LORD’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good?” (NIV)

This is torah – God’s commands given to us for our good:

  • He tells us to fear Him; that’s the right response when coming before a majestic, perfect King.
  • He tells us to walk in His ways, His paths, His road – and on no other road, not turning off that road but observing His commands.
  • He tells us to agree that He is wise – much wiser than we are – and thus to follow His ways even if doing so doesn’t seem to make sense.
  • And He tells us to do all this from a heart devoted to Him. Thus we are not just going through the motions, but our outward behavior flows from an inner change, from hearts that love Him and thus serve Him wholeheartedly.
  • Finally, He tells us doing all this doesn’t limit us, doesn’t keep us from true life, but rather leads to our good.

Many of the same ideas come out in John 15:1-11 as Jesus elaborates on His statement, “I am the vine, you are the branches.” That is, “I am the source of all that is good in you. If you are to accomplish anything of value, you must depend on Me. So abide in Me, remain in Me, depend on Me always. If that is to happen, My words, My torah, must abide in you. As you keep My commandments, my torah, you abide in my love. And all this is to your great joy; all this leads to life, to fulfillment, to peace/shalom. Furthermore, all this leads to My glory – to your creating alleluia.”

The bottom line is this: God does not set up hoops for us to jump through, and then say, “On your marks, get set, go! Jump through those hoops! Show Me that you deserve eternal life! If you succeed, I’ll give you that life!”

Nor does God set up barriers to joy: “If you want heaven, you have to prove to Me that you can give up everything that you enjoy, everything that is good, everything that leads to life.”

No. We are to desire God because He is the greatest joy. He is true life. He is peace/shalom. His torah is the way to the greatest happiness imaginable.

Our task is not to prove our worth, but to help each other to turn away from cheap, momentary pleasures that never satisfy and to turn to the greatest pleasure of all: Knowing God through Jesus Christ, knowing the King of the Universe through the King of kings and Lord of lords, knowing the heavenly Father through the crucified Son.

This is torah. This is the torah that leads to peace/shalom. This is the torah that leads to our joy and God’s glory.

What Changed at Pentecost? Part 1

Acts 2 describes the events of the day of Pentecost. Before the day ended, God had saved 3,000 people. But if God saved 5,000 people tomorrow, Pentecost would still be a far more important day.

Why? Why should we consider Pentecost to be one of the most important days in the history of the world?

Most Christians would answer: Pentecost is important because on that day the Holy Spirit came. But we know the Holy Spirit was active prior to this day. So what changed? And why is this change so important?

Let’s look at this by, first, considering how the relationship of the Holy Spirit to believers is the same before and after Pentecost. Next week we’ll consider how that relationship changes on this momentous day.

How is the relationship of the Spirit to Believers Similar Before and After Pentecost?

Five ways:

1) The Spirit gives life to those who believe

This statement is true of all believers of all time

Consider Ephesians 2:1-5, one of the most important biblical passages describing salvation:

You were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience– among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.  (Ephesians 2:1-3)

Paul makes clear that he is not speaking only about the readers of this letter, for he says we are by nature objects of God’s wrath. That is, God, as the moral authority of the universe, must mete out punishment in response to our sinful nature, not only our sinful deeds. And since this holds “for the rest of mankind,” this is true of all men everywhere at all times since the Fall. No one is able do anything on his own to change his being under God’s wrath.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. (Ephesians 2:4-5)

“But God!” Only He could change our condition. He makes us alive; He enables us to believe; He cuts through the blinding fog so that we might see Him.

There has never been anyone saved by any means other than by God’s grace through faith. This is true before Pentecost and after Pentecost: The Spirit gives life to those who believe.

2) The Spirit gives love for the character of God, and thus for His Law

The Law is a reflection of the character of God, helping us to know Who He is. So the one who loves God must love His Law.

This is one of the New Covenant promises in Jeremiah 31: That His people will have His Law written on their hearts. There will be an inner change, not only external obedience to rules.

But while Jeremiah 31 is not fulfilled until after Pentecost, there are those in the Old Testament who have a similar inner change – who have the Law on their hearts, who love God’s Law. Consider the following verses:

  • Isaiah 51:7 Listen to me, you who know righteousness, the people in whose heart is my law.
  • Psalm 119:97  Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day.
  • Psalm 119:18-19   Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. I am a sojourner on the earth; hide not your commandments from me!

Note that in Psalm 119:18-19, the psalmist acknowledges that this love for God’s Law is God-given.

So before and after Pentecost, God engenders love for His character, for His Law, in the hearts of people.

3) The Spirit is constantly with those who believe

This is clearly true after Pentecost, as it is another of the New Covenant promises contained in Ezekiel 36:27: “I will put my Spirit within you.”

But hear what David says:

Psalm 139:7-10  Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.

David is not only saying, “God is everywhere.” He is also saying, “No matter where I go – even if I am being rebellious, trying to flee from You – You are with me, leading me, holding me.”

So the Spirit’s presence with believers was real before and after Pentecost.

4) The Spirit enables obedience in those who believe

Again this is obviously true after Pentecost; it is the Spirit that bears the fruit of love, joy, and peace in believers (Galatians 5:22-23). And Ezekiel had prophesied that God would “cause you to walk in my statutes” (Ezekiel 36:27).

But before Pentecost, David says, ‘He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake” (Psalm 23:8)

Or as the author of Psalm 119 writes:

Make me walk in the path of Your commandments, For I delight in it. Incline my heart to Your testimonies And not to dishonest gain. Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity, And revive me in Your ways. (Psalm 119:35-37 NAS)

The Spirit enabled obedience in believers before and after Pentecost.

5) The Spirit enables perseverance in those who believe

Once again, this is clear after Pentecost; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 and many other passages teach this truth.

But consider the perseverance in faith of Old Testament characters. We have already seen from Ephesians 2 that faith is a gift of God. In Hebrews 11, the author lists many Old Testament characters who display extraordinary faith. After summarizing the difficulties they endured, he concludes:

Destitute, persecuted and mistreated– the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground. These were all commended for their faith (Hebrews 11:37b-39a)

This is extraordinary perseverance. And it is the result of Spirit-given faith.

The Spirit has always been at work. No one would ever believe, ever obey, ever persevere apart from the Spirit. As Jesus says in John 15:5, “Apart from me you can do nothing.” He was speaking to his disciples, using present tense, before Pentecost. And His statement is therefore true of all men, of all times.

Next week: How then does the relationship of the Spirit to believers change after Pentecost?

[This is an edited, shortened excerpt from the sermon ”What Changed at Pentecost?” preached 10/19/08. The audio is available here. The two previous sermons on Acts 2, “The Promise of the Father” and “The Crucified is Both Lord and Christ” are also relevant. John Piper’s sermon “How Believers Experienced the Spirit Before Pentecost” is another helpful resource on this topic.]

The Desire for Selfish Gain

What does your heart go after? What does your heart desire?

Our hearts naturally desire abundance, ease, and security. Indeed, the candidates for various offices in this fall’s election all tried to attract our votes by claiming that they – and not their opponents – would be best for our pocketbooks. And such appeals work.

The psalmist warns us against these natural desires:

Psalm 119:36 Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to selfish gain!

There is an inherent trade-off between having a heart inclined toward God and His Word, and a heart inclined toward the things of this world. The two are like oil and water. They may be mixed for a brief period of time, as the Holy Spirit works within us. But in the end, one will come out on top. (more…)