Steps to peace with God.

 

And He said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation."

I grew up in a Baptist church.  Our denomination was very evangelical--not Evangelical as in the political subgroup of Christians that pollsters target today, but we were taught to share our faith to everyone we met.  There were little booklets, called tracts, that were given out to help us in our witnessing endeavors.  They went under various titles: The Four Spiritual Laws, Steps to Peace with God, and others.   They all had the same basic message: God is holy, but He loves us; sin separates us from God; we need a Savior; and life with God is possible through our faith in Jesus Christ.

In my walk through the book of Psalms this past month, I have discovered that these four principles are not new.  The Old Testament points to the Gospel, and many of the Psalms are labeled "Messianic", for they look forward to a Savior.  However, when I read Psalm 36 this week, I was reminded of those little evangelistic tracts we used to carry with us everywhere.

Man is inherently sinful

Transgression speaks to the wicked deep in his heart; there is no fear of God before his eyes.  For he flatters himself in his own eyes that his iniquity cannot be found out and hated.  The words of his mouth are trouble and deceit; he has ceased to act wisely and do good.  He plots trouble while on his bed; he sets himself in a way that is not good; he does not reject evil.  --Psalm 36:1-4

Anywhere you go you can see that the world is going to hell.  People no longer hide their sin or expect us to turn a blind eye to it; sin is now celebrated and exalted.  It seems the media is doing a better job of proselytizing sinners to go deeper in sin than the Church is doing in gaining converts to heaven.

It has been so since the Fall described in Genesis.  God gave Adam, Eve, and their family a paradise on earth.  They had no need for anything--all good things were theirs for the asking.  However, Satan came in the form of a Serpent and tempted them, promising they could have more than what God was offering.  Ever since, we have been separated from God.  As David wrote in our text today, where there is no fear of God, transgression speaks to us in our innermost being.

The Hebrew word for "transgression" is sometimes translated "rebellion".   If we rebel against God, it is not God who condemns, for as Jesus said in John 3:17-18, "For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him.  Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the Name of the only Son of God."  We stand condemned by our own actions, but the consequences are dire: eternal separation from a Holy God.  Psalm 5:10 says, "Make them bear their guilt, O God; let them fall by their own counsels; because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out, because they have rebelled against you."  This is right and just; God will not welcome an enemy combatant or a spiritual rebel into His holy presence.

God's love is greater than our sin.

Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, Your faithfulness to the clouds.  Your righteousness is like the mountains of God; Your judgments are like the great deep; man and beast you save, O Lord.  --Psalm 36:5-6

The World loves to take this spiritual truth out of context: God is Love.  Unfortunately, they equate love with agreement with their wicked hearts and acceptance of their sinful works.  God does love us, but He cannot abide sin.  In the Old Testament He set up a system of blood sacrifices for sin, because sin leads to death.  

Did you know the word "scapegoat" is from the Bible?  Leviticus 16 says that the priests were to select a goat, and that he would lay his hands on the goat's head as a symbol of transferring all the sins of Israel onto the head of the goat.  The goat was then set outside the camp, to fend for itself in the desert.  This was probably a death sentence, since in the desert there is no water, and a kid goat would be a great meal for birds of prey.

Psalm 51:3 says, "For I acknowledge my transgressions; my sin is ever before me."  This is the first step in getting right with God: confessing that you are a sinner, and realizing that only God can save you from the penalty of sin.  Psalm 89:32 says, "Then I will punish their transgressions with the rod and their iniquity with stripes."  Thank God that Isaiah 53:5 shows that God has a remedy for us, to deal with our sin.  It says, "But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed."  Jesus became our "scapegoat", and bore the punishment for our sin.  

We must believe in Him, and trust Him fully for our salvation

How precious is Your steadfast love, O God!  The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of Your wings.  They feast on the abundance of Your house, and You give them drink from the river of Your delights.  For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light do we see light.  --Psalm 36:7-9

If we truly believe in God's deliverance from sin, then we will repent of it all.  Psalm 25:7 says, "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!"  This verse implies that "the sin of our youth" is the folly we followed before we placed our faith in Him, and that now, as a more mature person, we are no longer controlled by sin but rather provoked by the steadfast love of God to good works.

A prayer of repentance will look something like Psalm 51:1-2, which says, " Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your steadfast love; according to Your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.  Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleans me from my sin."  Romans 6:13-14 says, "Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.  For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

Sin leaves us in darkness; God's mercy brings us into the Light.  Jesus is the Light (John 8:12).  Sin brings death; God's mercy gives Life.  Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6).  Our faith is in Jesus alone, because He is the atonement for our sin.

Once we place our trust in Him, we are secure

Oh, continue Your steadfast love to those who know You, and Your righteousness to the upright of heart! Let not the foot of arrogance come upon me, nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.  There the evildoers lie fallen; they are thrust down, unable to rise.  --Psalm 36:10-12

God is faithful.  He has provided the perfect sacrifice for our sin.  Psalm 103:11-12 says, "For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His steadfast love toward those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does He remove our transgressions from us."  Think about that for a minute.  The sin which placed us in darkness, separated us from God's presence, and guaranteed certain death, was taken away from us by the blood of Jesus.  It was not removed a few yards, or a few miles, or a few lightyears.  The earth has a north pole and a south pole; if He had said our sin was removed as far as the north is from the south, it would be a finite distance.  On the other hand, east and west are an infinite distance apart.  On the earth, no matter how far west you go, you can go still farther.  The same with east--you can go east forever, and there is still more east of your position. 

We still have that sinful nature, and as long as we are alive on this earth we will fall.  1 John 2:1-2 says, "My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.  But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous."  He is our righteousness.  We do not have to fear falling out of His favor.

Thus we find that the Psalms held the Gospel of Salvation in four easy steps.  The concept is more fully developed the further you read in the Scripture.  That is why we are commanded in Matthew 28 to go into all the world and make disciples, not just converts.  The more we know of Jesus, the better prepared we are for life's uncertainties, and the more prepared we are for the next life.  If you have not trusted Him as your Savior, I would encourage you to do so right now, at this very moment.

Cover Me

 

O my Savior, Shield, and Sun, Shepherd, Brother, Husband, Friend, Every precious Name in one, I will love Thee without end.  --John Newton

The Psalms is a rich and diverse source of scriptural wisdom.  In it you can find solace, strength, and sustenance.  It is at different times potent, piercing, and prophetic.  The poetry contained in this collection have varied themes.  We have already looked at the theme of the Law of God (see blog post from April 29).  We have also seen the theme of praise in the Psalms (see blog post from May 7).

Today I want to look at the theme of who God is.  We could spend years expounding the attributes of God in the Psalms.  God certainly wears a lot of hats, so to speak.  He manifests Himself differently to different people, yet remains consistent with His nature.  The Apostle Paul, in imitating Christ in order to spread the Gospel, said he had "become all things to all people in order that I might save some." (1 Corinthians 9:23).  Today I want to focus on three distinct yet similar personas.

Let's look at Psalm 3 together

O Lord, how many are my foes!  Many are rising against me; many are saying of my soul, "There is no salvation for him in God." Selah.  But You, O Lord, are a Shield about me, my Glory, and the Lifter of my head.  I cried aloud to the Lord, and He answered me from His holy hill.  Selah.  I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the Lord sustained me.  I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around.  Arise, O Lord!  Save me, O God!  For You strike all my enemies on the cheek; You break the teeth of the wicked.  Salvation belongs to the Lord; Your blessing be on Your people.  Selah.

He is a Glorious Shield

Many of the Psalms have a military theme.  A warrior on the front lines of battle has prepared himself the best he can for his own protection.  He trusts his equipment; a modern soldier with a Kevlar vest feels less vulnerable than one without.  He trusts his comrades; a squadron willing to "take a bullet for you" is a lot more preferable than comrades in arms who would cut and run, leaving you exposed.  He also trusts his Commander; a wise leader will at least attempt to take every advantage--taking high ground, flanking the enemy at their weakest or most vulnerable position, bringing in timely air support and reinforcements.  These are all ways to think of a "shield" in military terms.

I have said before that I am not a Hebrew scholar.  However, a look at Strong's Concordance reveals that there are at least two Hebrew words translated "shield".  One is mâgên,  a word that literally means shield or buckler.  It also carries with it the idea of the scaly hide of a crocodile.  This word is found 60 times in the Old Testament, beginning with Genesis 15:1.  "After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: 'Fear not, Abram, I AM your shield; your reward shall be very great'."

Abram had no reason to fear, because God had promised to be his covering, his defense.  God promised to defend Israel.  "Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield.  For our heart is glad in Him, because we trust in His holy Name." (Psalm 33:20-21).  God cannot bless you unless He protects you.  If He has made a promise to His people, then He will protect His people.  The promise extends to those of us who place our trust in Him for our salvation.  "For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor.  No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly." (Psalm 84:11)

The other Hebrew word translated "shield" is tsinnâh, and it is variously translated as shield or buckler, but several times it is translated "target," once as "hook" and once as "cold".  In 1 Kings 10 and again in 2 Chronicles 9 we read that Solomon made expensive shields or "targets" out of beaten gold.  I am not sure if these shields were round and looked like targets, but I do know that they were of great value.  Think about how God shields us from attacks we don't even know about.  He makes Himself the target so that we are protected.  He is our shield, of more value than gold.

Proverbs 25:13 says, "Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest is a faithful messenger to those who send him; he refreshes the soul of his master."  The word translated "cold" is the same word shield or covering.  The protection of God is refreshing.  In military terms, we speak of "cover fire"; that is, shots taken by your partners to pin down the enemy so that you can escape a dangerous place or move into a more strategic position.  This is what I thought of when I thought of the cold covering or shielding of snow over the fields; it is comprehensive, overpowering, and effective.  There is a similar thought in Scripture when the same word for shield is translated "hooks" in Amos 4:2.  "The Lord has sworn by His holiness that, behold, the days are coming upon you, when they shall take you away with hooks, even the last of you with fishhooks." It may be stretching the idea a bit, but when God sends "cover fire" to shield His people from their enemies, the enemies are pierced and taken away.

Psalm 91:4 says, "He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and a buckler."  This may have been in Jesus' mind when He said in Matthew 23:27, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it!  How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!"  His desire is to shield us, to shepherd us, to save us.

He is a Good Shepherd

We read Psalm 3 earlier.  I bring you attention back to verses 5 and 6: "I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the Lord sustained me.  I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around."

We are all familiar with Psalm 23.

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.  He makes me lie down in green pastures.  He leads me beside still waters.  He restores my soul.  He leads me in the path of righteousness for His name's sake.  Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.  You prepare a table for me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

We see from this passage that He is our shepherd.  What does a good and faithful shepherd do?  He is present with the sheep; he provides for the sheep; and he protects and defends the sheep.  This idea is outlined further in John 10, when Jesus called Himself the Good Shepherd.

Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.  All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them.  I am the door.  If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.  The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.  I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.  I am the good shepherd.  The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep."  --John 10:7-11.

This brings us to our final point.

He is a Great Savior

Back to our passage in Psalm 3.  Let's read verses 2 and 8.  "Many are saying of my soul, 'There is no salvation for him in God.'  Salvation belongs to the Lord; Your blessing be on Your people!"  For what purpose is He shielding us?  For our own health and well being?  I don't think so.  It is for His glory.  Psalm 40:16 says, "Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; let such as love your salvation say continually, 'The Lord be magnified'!"  Psalm 18:46 says, "The Lord lives! Blessed by my Rock!  Let the God of my salvation be exalted." 

For what purpose or to what end does He shepherd us?  So that we can be slaughtered and roasted and served up at His table?  Not at all!  He guides us so that we can ultimately glorify Him and give Him praise forever.  Titus 3:5-7 says "He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to His own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life."

We need mercy, because we are eternally separated from His holy nature due to our sinful nature.  We need grace, because we cannot be made holy without His direct intervention.  2 Corinthians 9:15 says, "Thanks be to God for His inexpressible gift!"  What gift is that?  Ephesians 2:8 says, "For by grace you have been saved through faith.  And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God."  Psalm 22 foretells of this gift: God sent His one and only Son (John 3:16), and used Him as a sacrifice for us.  The sin of all mankind, past and future, was laid on Him and He was put to death for us.  "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me," Jesus cried, referencing Psalm 22:1.  He bore our sin, and a Holy God could not look upon sin, so that He turned away from His only Son and condemned Him to death.  Psalm 22:7 says, "All who seek me mock me; they make mouths at me; they wag their heads; 'He trusts in the Lord; let God deliver him'." This is just what the Pharisees said when Jesus uttered those devastating words, "My God why have You forsaken me?"  Psalm 22:17-18 says, "I can count all my bones--they stare and gloat over me; they divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots."  This is exactly what happened at the crucifixion, and God foretold it through David the Psalmist.

Our salvation was purchased through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God's anointed. Psalm 2:2 says, "The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against His Anointed."  Friend, do not follow the rulers of this world, who have their reward in this life.  Let Him shield you from the wrath to come.  Let Him shepherd you in His Way so that you can praise Him in this life and enjoy Him in the next.  Let the blood of Christ cover you, so that when you stand before God in His final judgment, He will not see your sin, but rather the blood of Jesus who by His great sacrifice offers a great salvation.

Worthy of our praise

 

I will give to the Lord the thanks due to His righteousness, and I will sing praise to the name of the Lord, the Most High.  --Psalm7:17

One of the great themes in the book of Psalms is praise.  According to Strong's Concordance, there are 132 verses in the book of Psalms that use the word at least once; a form of the word is used over 150 times in this one book alone.

Last week we started our study of the book of Psalms with the first chapter, which centers on the Law.  We saw that there are blessings that follow those who follow the Law, and wickedness follows those who do not pursue it with their whole heart.

Today I am going to skip to the last chapter, which centers on praise; specifically the praise of God.  We will try to show how one logically follows the other--how the Law of God leads to the praise of Him.  Praise is a form of worship, but it is so much more.

I am not a Hebrew scholar (by any means!), but Strong's shows me at least four Hebrew words that are translated "praise" in English.  The first is t'hilla (tranliterating into the English alphabet).  It is a noun, as in giving praise to God.  It means praise, adoration, thanksgiving, and glory, all of which God deserves.  The second Hebrew word is zamar, a verb meaning to sing praise or make music.  Many of the Psalms in our Bible were set to music and were either played or sung in the Temple.  The third term is yada, which is most interesting, because it means to throw or cast down, to give thanks or laud (something or someone), and to confess.  I can imagine the sincerest form of praise might be when we first see Jesus in heaven--we might throw ourselves to the ground, thanking Him profusely for His great mercy and sacrifice, and confessing His great might and power.

The fourth Hebrew word translated "praise" is halal and it is where we get our word "Hallelujah".  The Hebrew word literally means to shine, to be boastful, or to be commended.  When combined with the first syllable of the name Jahweh, we get halal-Ja, or Praise God.  More specifically, it is glorifying His name, to boast about Him, to commend Him to others.  Interestingly, it has an alternate meaning in Hebrew--it also means to be foolish.  In our context, I take that to mean putting so much effort into our praise that the world thinks we are insane.  I hope that I am not taking too many liberties here, but we all know someone who is so sold out for God, so full of His praise that he borders on craziness.

Let's explore the passage together.

Praise the Lord!  Praise God in His sanctuary; praise Him in His mighty heavens!  Praise Him for His mighty deeds; praise Him according to His excellent greatness!  Praise Him with the trumpet sound; praise Him with lute and harp!  Praise Him with tambourine and dance; praise Him with strings and pipe!  Praise Him with sounding cymbals; praise Him with loud, crashing cymbals!  Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!  Praise the Lord!

Praise is a Command

We are commanded to praise (acknowledge and glorify) God throughout the Bible, not just in the Psalms.  When God called Abraham and promised him that He would make a nation of his descendants, He commanded that Abraham sacrifice what was most precious to him: his son, Isaac.  Once Abraham was shown to be willing, God substituted a ram in place of his son.  Later in the Old Testament, God instructed Moses on conducting blood sacrifices as a form of worship.  In the New Testament, God substituted His only Son as a blood sacrifice, so that blood sacrifice of sheep and bulls is no longer necessary.

This is why Hebrews 13:15 says, "Through Him (Jesus) then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge His Name."  We are commanded to praise God because of His mercy and grace, His mighty deeds, His excellent greatness.  It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves (Psalm 100:3).

God does not demand our praise because He needs it.  He is great whether we acknowledge Him or not.  C.S. Lewis says "it is in the process of being worshiped that God communicates His presence to man." (Reflections on the Psalms, pg 108).  He wants us to praise Him for our own benefit.  It is an evidence of our salvation.  Psalm 50:23 says, "The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; to one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God."  Thus praise is a bridge from the Law to our salvation.

Praise is a Contagion 

Not only does godly praise give us access to God, it can be a work of evangelism.  We can show others how great God is by our act of blessing the Lord at all time, so that His praise will continually be in our mouths (Psalm 34:1).  The very next verse says, "My soul shall make her boast in the Lord; the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad."

C.S. Lewis said, "Just as men spontaneously praise whatever they value, so they spontaneously urge us to join them in praising it: 'Isn't she lovely? Wasn't it glorious? Don't you think that magnificent?'  The Psalmists in telling everyone to praise God are doing what men do when they speak of what they care about."  (Reflections on the Psalms, pg 110).

It is not so important that the hearer believe you, but that you said it.  Sharing our favorite singer, or movie, or television program may not make everyone appreciate it; but for a select few, those who trust your judgment enough to try it for themselves and find similar enjoyment and fulfillment, you have made a convert.  How much more praise, then, should we offer up for the Supreme Object of our affection?  If you love Him fully, you will tell others about Him. The world should hear your offerings of praise.

Praise is a Coronation

When I was growing up there was a popular song on Christian radio that said, "He inhabits the praise of His people."  This text was taken from Psalm 22:3, but it is a poor translation.  I think the ESV gets much closer to the meaning of it: "Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel."

When we praise God, we invite Him to rule over us.  When we spend time praising Him, we give Him dominion over our time.  When we spend our breath praising Him aloud, we give Him dominion over our life and breath; in essence, the breath of life is pouring out from God into us and overflowing in our words and songs. 

C.S. Lewis again:

I think we delight to praise what we enjoy because the praise not merely expresses but completes the enjoyment; it is its appointed consummation.  It is not out of compliment that lovers keep on telling one another how beautiful they are; the delight is incomplete until it is expressed.  It is frustrating to have discovered a new author and not to be able to tell anyone how good he is; to come suddenly, at the turn of the road, upon some mountain valley of unexpected grandeur and then to have to keep silent because the people you are with care for it no more than for a tin can in the ditch; to hear a good joke and find no one to share it with.  This is so even when our expressions are inadequate, as of course they usually are.  But how if one could really and fully praise even such things to perfection--utterly 'get out' in poetry or music or paint the upsurge of appreciation which almost bursts you?  Then indeed the object would be fully appreciated and our delight would have attained perfect development.  The worthier the object, the more intense this delight would be.  If it were possible for a created soul fully to 'appreciate', that is to love and delight in, the worthiest object of all, and simultaneously at every moment to give this delight perfect expression, then that soul would be in supreme beatitude.  It is along these lines that I find it easiest to understand the Christian doctrine that 'Heaven' is a state in which angels now, and men hereafter, are perpetually employed in praising God.  --(Reflections on the Psalms, ppg 111-112).

The beatitude, or blessing, of God is met through our voicing His praise.  The Law is fulfilled through our giving Him praise.  The halls of heaven are closer when we praise Him.  Hallelujah!