Full of Grace and Truth

 

You will say in that day: "I will give thanks to you, O Lord, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, that you might comfort me.  Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation." With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.  --Isaiah 12:1-3

Christmas has come and gone.  By now you have most likely thrown away all of the wrapping paper and ribbons, which looked so festive when they adorned the gifts under the Christmas tree.  Now they are destined for a land fill somewhere, a remnant of Christmases past.  Perhaps you are spending this weekend taking down the Christmas tree, carefully removing and boxing the surviving ornaments, storing them away for next year.

In removing all the clutter and returning the family room back to normal you may see something that gives you pause.  Something you swept up off the floor--maybe a piece of the nativity set that somehow got separated from the rest--something small, but it makes you stop and smile.  You may remember the Christmas Eve service at church, or maybe a line from an old carol you hold dear.  A Bible verse may cross your mind, something you read to the children from the gospel accounts of Luke, or maybe Matthew, where the birth of Jesus is recounted in detail.

Matthew and Luke tell us the most about the events leading up to and surrounding the birth of the Christ child.  Mark doesn't mention it at all, introducing the Savior as a full grown man.  Then there's the gospel of John.  John's account of the Nativity is summed up in the first chapter.  Verse 9 speaks of Jesus's purpose: "The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world."  Verse 10 speaks of his anonymity: "He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him."  Verse 11 speaks of his rejection: "He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him."  Verse 12 speaks of his disciples: "But to all who did receive him, he gave the right to become children of God."

The whole of Jesus's ministry is summed up in verse 14: "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth."  The Word of God, whom Solomon referred to as Wisdom, the One who spoke the world into existence left the glory of heaven and walked among us.  God did not decide one day to just walk a mile in our sandals.  Rather, He became one of of us.  The creator of life spent nine months in utero.  The divine and eternal took on the flesh and blood of a mortal man.

Professor Chad Bird put it this way:

God becomes no bigger than a dot to save a cosmos. He doesn't just send a child to do a man's job. He sends an embryo to do a God's job. Jesus did not come down to earth to walk a mile in our shoes. He chose to live for the rest of eternity in our skin. The incarnation was not an internship. If there was ever any doubt about God's commitment to humanity, the incarnation removed that doubt. For the joy set before him, Jesus entered the womb, suffered through puberty, fought the good fight, endured the cross, exploded the tomb. For what joy? For the joy of calling you brother and sister, flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone. For the joy of your salvation. It all began inside a virgin, when God became a man forever. And thus he is our brother, our kinsman redeemer, the God who would move heaven and earth to save us.

 Jesus's incarnation is the intersection of grace and truth.  

My wife gave me a book for Christmas called Breakfast With Bonhoeffer by Jon Walker.  In it, Walker compares the marriage of grace and truth to a husband and wife who have different ways of loading a dishwasher.  His wife is a structuralist, believing there is one and only one way to properly clean the dishes.  Jon, by contrast says he is improvisation.  His approach to cleaning dishes is more free-form, "that is, if it's in the machine somewhere, somehow, then surely it will get clean."  Walker notes that this marriage of legalism and grace is fraught with potential pitfalls.

Jesus came from the Father "full of grace and truth" on his mission to bring us into the Kingdom (John 1:14 NIV).  God's truth and grace work hand-in-hand, just like a couple who are polar opposites can work together when loading the dishwasher.  The danger as we follow Jesus into the Kingdom is that we can slip off the narrow path, on one side sliding into a ditch of burdensome religion--what we commonly call legalism--and on the other side sliding into a ditch where there is a presumptive disregard for the bloody cost of God's grace, something Bonhoeffer refers to as cheap grace. (Walker, page 52)

The Christian life is often compared to walking a narrow path.  The challenge is to keep our way between the ditches.  Too many times we follow "blind guides" referred to in Luke 6:39. On the one hand are fundamentalists who fastidiously follow all the rules,  On the other hand are the hyper-grace types who have no idea of the price Jesus paid for our salvation.  Both are in danger of falling into a ditch.

Both of these ditches look a little bit like following Jesus, and so we can trudge through the mud, thinking we're still hot on the heels of Jesus.  But both these ditches carry us away from the intimate relationship God desires that we have with Jesus Christ.  Both of these paths attempt to do the impossible: the first tries to separate grace from truth and the second tries to separate truth from grace.  Either way, it only creates a monumental mess. Bonhoeffer says either extreme will leave us perpetually immature, the one following rules instead of learning to be dependent upon Jesus and the other following impulse instead of learning to be obedient to God's Word.  The idea that we can disconnect from Jesus or that some part of our life can be disconnected from Jesus is a delusion straight from the pit of hell. (Walker, page 53.)

 The prophet Micah asked God what might cover man's sin.  Did he want sacrifices? If so, what kind, and how much?  Would one bull or ram sacrifice be enough, or would it require more?  If it required more, how much more?  A hundred animals? A thousand? The sacrifice of Micah's first-born son?  God's answer is one of my favorite verses in all of Scripture: "He has told you, O man, what is good: and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness (or mercy), and to walk humbly with your God? (Michah 6:8, emphasis added).

Jesus came to speak God's truth.  God is holy.  Man is sinful, separated from God.  Jesus also came to show us what grace looks like.  God requires punishment for our sins, but Jesus was willing to take that punishment for us.  Being the recipient of God's grace through the blood of Jesus does not give us license to sin.  A total surrender to Jesus should make us want to be holy.  

While you are busy boxing and storing the Christmas decorations, do not reflect so much on the baby, who came naked into this world through Mary.  Remember that this same man died naked on the cross, bearing our sins upon him, so that we may be the recipient of God's grace. 

The "Star" of Bethlehem

 

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from old, From everlasting.  --Micah 5:2 (NKJV)

Bethlehem literally means "House of Bread."  As we wade into the Christmas season, we will be reminded often that Bethlehem was the birthplace of Jesus.  This same Jesus once called Himself the "bread of life."  In fact, at the Last Supper (the first Communion) Jesus broke bread, and told his disciples to "Take, eat, for this (bread) is My body which is broken for you."

So what do we know about the little town of Bethlehem?  Why was this village featured so prominently in the Bible? And what lessons can we learn from its most prominent residents?

The first mention of Bethlehem in Scripture is the place where Jacob, the Patriarch of Israel, buried his wife Rachel.  Rachel was the mother of Joseph, who was sold into slavery, falsely accused by the wife of Potiphar, thrown into prison, and was subsequently freed by Pharaoh when Jacob interpreted a dream.  You will recall that Jacob was then elevated to a high position in Egypt, and was instrumental in feeding thousands.  Jacob is sometimes referred to as a "type" of Christ, meaning there are parallels between his life and the life of Jesus.  Jesus was falsely accused and was taken prisoner.  Jesus was also highly exalted, and was instrumental in feeding thousands.  Just as Joseph saved his family from the famine, Jesus saves His people from their sins.

Another mention of Bethlehem in Scripture is the twelfth chapter of Judges.  A man named Ibzan from Bethlehem ruled Israel for 7 years.  Bible scholars are divided about who this man Ibzan was, and even whether it was the same Bethlehem that was called "the city of David."  Jewish tradition, however, says that it was the same village.  Moreover, Jewish tradition equates Ibzan with Boaz, another prominent resident of Bethlehem.  You will recall that Boaz was kinsman/Redeemer of Ruth.  Similarly Jesus is our kinsman/Redeemer.  Jesus paid the price for us.  We (as the Church) are His bride.

The last reference we will mention today is a combination of all the passages in Samuel and Chronicles involving David and his proximity to Bethlehem.  Before he was king, David watched his father's sheep in Bethlehem.  While he battled Saul for the kingdom, David longed for water from his hometown, so much so that three mighty men broke through the Philistine forces to get him a container of water.  David was impressed, but did not drink the water when the men brought it to him.  Instead, he poured it out on the ground as a sacrifice to God.  Jesus was broken and spilled out for us.  He poured Himself out as a sacrifice for us.

Of all the prominent sons of Bethlehem, there is none brighter than Jesus.  He is the Star of Bethlehem that shines so brightly it beckons wise men from the East, who shines so long that He calls to you and me some 2000 years after His sacrificial death and resurrection.  He is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. 

This is the preparation He made for His Advent.  He prepared a place called the House of Bread so that Mary and Joseph could travel there and give birth to the Bread of Life.  It is by this preparation that we can break bread in holy Communion, in remembrance of Him and in some way becoming a member of His body, the body that was broken for us.

Wisdom Incarnate: The Gospel of Proverbs

 

If you turn at my reproof, behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make my words known to you.  --Proverbs 1:23

We are entering the Christmas season.  Having cleaned up the Thanksgiving meal, we have likely set about the setting up of the Christmas tree.  Today is the first Sunday of Advent, so no doubt in our church services we have begun singing Christmas carols and hymns.  

One such hymn was sung in our worship service this morning.  The song, O Come, O Come, Emmanuel is a haunting tune expressing a longing for the Messiah to come to ransom Israel.  One of the verses in that hymn (depending on the hymnbook your church uses, or the translation that the editors chose), goes something like this:

O come, Thou Wisdom from on high
And order all things, far and nigh
To us the path of knowledge show
And cause us in her ways to go

The poetic invocation of Wisdom here is not just a plea for divine knowledge, although the dissemination of that godly knowledge was certainly the divine work of the Messiah.  I would urge you, though, to open up your mind a little bit here.  Wisdom is the personification of God.  Remembering the beginning of John's gospel: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word, was God,"  Author Chad Bird puts it this way: 

"God has wisdom like a father has a son.  I mean that the Father begot wisdom, brought forth wisdom to be by His side, to work alongside Him in creation, to teach humanity, and eventually to Tabernacle with humanity.  Like the word of Yahweh, the wisdom of Yahweh is a person.  Using trinitarian terminology, scholars sometimes cal this the "hypostatization" of wisdom.  They mean that wisdom is a hypostasis (person) who, while essentially of God, is also distinguished from God.  I would say, more simply, that wisdom is another name for the Father's Son." (Chad Bird The Christ Key 2021, page 36).

 If we understand this concept, then we see the book of Proverbs as a Gospel message.  Proverbs 1:20-23 says,

Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks: "How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge? If you turn at my reproof, behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make my words known to you.

If you can get past the fact that the word for wisdom in Hebrew is a feminine noun, then you can see how the Wisdom that Solomon speaks of in Proverbs is a foreshadowing of the Son of God.  Did not Jesus cry out in the streets and marketplaces?  Did He not promise to pour out His Spirit on all people?

A more direct image is found in Proverbs 3:19: "The Lord by wisdom founded the earth."  There are several New Testament passages that flesh out this thought.  1 Corinthians 8:6 says, "For there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist."  Jon 1:3 says, "All things were made by Him (the Word), and without Him was not anything made that was made."

Looking further into the New Testament equivalency of Wisdom and the Christ, we see in Hebrews 1:2-3, "In these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed the heir of all things, through whom also He created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature, and He upholds the universe by the word of His power."  Colossians 1:16-17 says, "For by Him (Jesus) all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things were created through Him and for Him.  And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together."

1 Corinthians 1:30 says, "And because of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us Wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption."  I challenge you to read the 8th chapter of Proverbs and not see the work of Christ in almost every verse.  "For my mouth will utter truth." (verse 7).  "I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me." (verse 17).  "For whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from the Lord." (verse 35).  

If you have one of those Bibles that prints the words of Jesus in red, these verses in Proverbs 8 should be red as well.  This is the speech of God's Son.  He is telling us that He is begotten of the Father.  He was "brought forth" by Him.  Moreover this was "before the beginning of the earth" (*:23); before anything was created, He was there.  But once the Father was forming seas and erecting mountains, what was the Son doing? Wisdom was the "master workman" of architect of creation, "rejoicing in His inhabited world and delighting in the children of man" (8:30-31).  (ibid Chad Bird, page 68).

Was it any accident that Joseph, the man who raised the boy Jesus on earth, was a carpenter?  Joseph, in all likelihood, trained Jesus in this trade.  Jesus probably earned His livelihood by being a carpenter up until age 30, when He began His earthly ministry.  Why is this important?  The Greek word for "beginning" is arche, from which we get our English word "architect".  A carpenter's work will not stand without an architectural drawing, and cannot be completed with a certification from an architect.  Not only is Jesus the builder of the universe, He is the architect.  He is both the founder and the foundation.  Revelation 3:14 says, "And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write, 'The words of the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the beginning of God's creation'."  John is describing Jesus here; not only is He the Amen (the end), but He is the beginning of creation.

Another favorite song of mine is the hymn Be Thou My Vision.  The second verse says this:

Be Thou my wisdom, and Thou my true word
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord
Thou my great Father, and I Thy true son
Thou in me dwelling and I with Thee one

Jesus was the Wisdom spoken of in Proverbs.  He is the Son of God who dwelt among us.  He bids us all to become children of God.  For this reason we sing, "Rejoice!  Rejoice!  Emmanuel has come to ransom Israel."

A little help here, please?

 

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. --Psalm 46:1

I just got back from vacation, where we visited my family near Waco, Texas.  We stayed with my sister, who is helping to raise her grandchildren.  My wife and I have no grandchildren, and after seeing our two- and four-year-old great nephews run their Gram ragged, I'm kind of glad we don't.

Gram sometimes refers to her grandsons as "feral children."  They run and explore and play all over the property all day long.  They have quite a few ride-on toys, as well--bicycles, scooters, a toy tractor and a battery powered four-wheeler.  Whenever they drive off the paved driveway and into the yard or the gravel road that heads to the shop out back, the driving is less than reliable.  They often get into situations where the wheels spin, but they don't go anywhere.  Whenever they get themselves into this situation, they merely have to call on Gram or G.G. (which is what they call their great-grandmother) to come give them a push.

I was thinking of this on the flight back home.  Even when the nearest adult is in the shop, or in the house, or at the other end of the property, those little guys know that calling "help!" will get someone's attention.  And because they know from experience that the nearest adult will help them when they call, they do not stop calling.  Whenever they are stuck they will cry out until Mommy, Gram, or G.G. comes to their aid.  The call is never panicked.  It is never tearful.  It is simply persistent.

Jesus spoke of this in Matthew 7:7-11.

"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.  Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent?  If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!"

Greek scholars have pointed out that the verbs ask, seek, and knock are in the present perfect tense, which to be properly translated into English would be keep on asking, keep on seeking, keep on knocking.  Not just a one and done prayer, but a continuing action of asking, seeking, and knocking.  I think this is what Paul was driving home in 1 Thessalonians 5:17-18, "Pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."

Those little guys in rural Texas don't stop calling for help after one or two tries.  Mommy may be on the phone.  Gram may be putting away the breakfast dishes.  G.G. may be folding clothes.  Eventually, though, someone will answer the call if they are persistent.  It is the same with us.  We can't give up if God doesn't seem to hear our prayer the first time.  We must be persistent.  We must be consistent.  We cannot see what God is doing at all times, but we know that He will meet all of our needs.

Now, I don't want to take the position that God is a cosmic Santa, or that our prayers are some kind of Christmas list.  He will not give us what we don't need, even if we beg Him for it.  On some occasions, He may even withhold good from us in order for us to grow and mature.  Let me give you an example.

There may come a time when my sister's four-year-old grandson needs to learn to get himself out of a jam.  Instead of sitting in the driver's seat calling out, "Help, help!", Gram may want to urge him to get out of the four-wheeler and give it a little push himself.  In the same way, our heavenly Father may want to get us out of our comfort zone, urging us to stop doing what we've always done.  He may even allow us to go through a rough patch, either to shake us out of our complacency or to fully appreciate His grace and mercy when He finally does come through for us.

Before our vacation last week, I was going through a bit of a rough patch myself.  I was crying out to God for mercy as I was putting dirty clothes into the washer.  The thought occurred to me that in order to get fully clean, the smelly sock or the stained shirt had to be plunged deep into the water.  There is a device inside a washing machine that ensures the clothes get pulled deeper into the soapy water.  That device is called an agitator.

It struck me that without that agitator in the washing machine, not all of the clothes would come out fresh and clean.  In the same way, sometimes God allows us to be agitated, to be pulled deeper and deeper in over our heads, so that He can cleanse us and make us new.  Does this mean we should stop praying? Certainly not!  Remember Jonah, who cried out to God as he was sinking further into the sea.  What might have been his worst fear turned out to be his salvation; he may have been terrified of being eaten alive by a great fish, but God had prepared that fish to swallow him up and keep him safe, all the while transporting him back to the seashore.

What was Jonah's response?  We see it in Jonah chapter 2.

Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, saying, "I called out to the Lord, out of my distress, and He answered me; out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and You heard my voice.  For You cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the flood surrounded me; all Your waves and Your billows passed over me.  Then I said, 'I am driven away from Your sight; yet I shall again look upon Your holy temple'." --Jonah 2:1-4

Next time you are stuck and it seems your wheels are spinning and you are going nowhere, call upon the Lord, who is your help.  If He delays in answering you, be persistent.  Pray continually.  And if your situation turns to agitation, or if you feel you are in over your head, to the point where your worst fears are coming true, pray some more.  God will hear you.  He will mature you.  He will be with you til the end, and beyond. 

A Glorious Word Picture

Shower, O heavens, from above, and let the clouds rain down righteousness; let the earth open, that salvation and righteousness shall bear fruit; let the earth cause them both to sprout; I the Lord have created it. --Isaiah 45:8 

Every once in a while I read something that touches me so deeply that it literally takes my breath away.  This happened to me this week while I was reading through the Psalms.  When I read Psalm 85, I found a word picture so vivid, so vibrant, so clear that I had to stop and give praise to God for His salvation.  The more I studied it, the more commentaries I read about it, the more I knew that I was not alone.

By way of background, the Psalm speaks to Man's greatest need, summarized in Verse 7: "Show us Your mercy, O Lord, and grant us Your salvation."  These days the Gospel is so watered down that we forget we need mercy.  On the one hand, modern culture preaches that there is no such thing as sin; that any action or behavior by any person is okay.  No judgement, right?  On the other hand, modern churches preach that Jesus loves everyone unconditionally, and there is no reason for repentance.  Any person who stands up against sin is accused of hate speech, and is shunned.  Any person who preaches the need for atonement for sin is called a fanatic.

The writer of this Psalm knew that sin--both personal and corporate--had taken them captive and had separated them from God.  Verses 4 and 5 says, "Restore us, O God of our salvation, and cause Your anger toward us to cease. Will You be angry with us forever? Will You prolong Your anger to all generations?"  The Psalmist knew that the people had acted foolishly, and prayed "Let them not turn back to folly." (Verse 8).  He also knew that repentance was necessary, a turning from their sins.  "Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him, that glory may dwell in our land." (Verse 9).

With this in mind, here is the passage that stands out:  "Mercy and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed.  Truth shall spring out of the earth and righteousness shall look down from heaven." (Verses 10 and 11).  At first glance, I see a word picture of God looking down from heaven, shining as the sun, and in response the flower growing up from the earth, the tree reaching its boughs toward heaven.  In my mind's eye, I picture warm breezes bringing moisture from the sea, forming clouds.  When these clouds are kissed by colder air aloft, the earth receives merciful rain.

Bible commentator David Guzik writes:

Mercy and truth have met together: In beautiful terms the psalmist describes the salvation God brings to His people. It might seem that mercy and truth are set against each other, with mercy looking to grant pardon and truth determined to condemn. In God’s great work of salvation, mercy and truth have met together.

Mercy and truth have met together: The word here translated mercy is the great Hebrew word hesed, which often has the idea of grace or loyal love. This verse may have been the inspiration for what John later wrote: And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:14). For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ (John 1:17).

Righteousness and peace have kissed: Even as mercy and truth meet, so righteousness and peace greet each other warmly. It might seem that righteousness would condemn me and prevent God’s shalom (peace) from ever reaching me. In God’s great work of salvation, His righteousness and peace are the best of friends.

C.H. Spurgeon puts it this way:

"Earth carpeted with truth and canopied with righteousness," shall be a nether heaven. When God looks down in grace, man sends his heart upward in obedience. The person of our adorable Lord Jesus Christ explains this verse most sweetly. In Him truth is found in our humanity, and his deity brings divine righteousness among us. His Spirit's work even now creates a hallowed harmony between his church below, and the sovereign righteousness above; and in the latter day, earth shall be universally adorned with every precious virtue, and heaven shall hold intimate intercourse with it. There is a world of meaning in these verses, only needing meditation to draw it out. Reader, "the well is deep," but if thou hast the Spirit, it cannot be said, that "thou hast nothing to draw with."

Are you beginning to see the word picture I saw?  God's grace comes down as our prayers go up, creating a vertical relationship between truth and righteousness.  Mercy and peace meet on a horizontal plane, intersecting the vertical relationship at the Cross of Christ.  Thomas Leblanc (1689) wrote: 

Mercy and truth; righteousness and peace. Note, four virtues stand out prominently in the incarnation; namely, mercy, truth, righteousness and peace, or love producing peace. These were like four steps of the throne of Christ, or four princes standing near and accompanying Him.

1. On the right hand, is mercy presenting the olive.
2. On the left, truth holding the white lily.
3. Before Him walks justice bearing the balance.
4. Peace follows Him, having a cornucopia full of flowers, and scattering the flowers around.

Going back to David Gezek:

“These four divine attributes parted at the fall of Adam, and met again at the birth of Christ.... Mercy was ever inclined to save man, and Peace could not be his enemy; but Truth exacted the performance of God’s threat, ‘The soul that sinneth, it shall die’; and Righteousness could not but give to every one his due.” (Horne)

“Now, Where did these meet? In Christ Jesus. When were they reconciled? When he poured out his life on Calvary.” (Clarke)

Paul later expressed this idea in Romans 3:26: That He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. At the cross, God demonstrated His righteousness by offering man justification (a legal verdict of “not guilty”), while remaining completely just (because the righteous penalty of sin had been paid at the cross). God could be only just, and simply send every guilty sinner to hell, as a just judge would do. Only God could find a way to be both just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Keith and Kristyn Getty wrote a hymn that encapsulates this word picture for me in a song called The Lord is My Salvation.

The grace of God has reached for me
And pulled me from a raging sea
And I am safe on this solid ground
The Lord is my salvation

I will not fear when darkness falls
His strength will help me scale these walls
I'll see the dawn of the rising sun
The Lord is my salvation

Who is like the Lord, our God?
Strong to save, faithful in love
My debt is paid and the victory won
The Lord is my salvation

Life is hard

 

Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.  --Hebrews 12:3

Last week we introduced what are known as Impreccatory Psalms--that is, Psalms that seem to call down curses against the enemies of God.  Psalm 69 is a great example: David became so fed up, so tired of the lies and deception, the traps set by his enemies that he cried out to God for their destruction.  Here's what he wrote.

Let their own table before them become a snare; and when they are at peace, let it become a trap.  Let their eyes be darkened, so that they cannot see, and make their loins tremble continually.  Pour out your indignation upon them, and let your burning anger overtake them.  May their camp be a desolation; let no one dwell in their tents.  For they persecute him whom you have struck down, and they recount the pain of those you have wounded.  Add to them punishment upon punishment; may they have no acquittal from you.  Let them be blotted out of the book of the living; let them not be enrolled among the righteous.  --Psalm 69:22-28

What could have caused David to be so, well, ungracious? Vindictive? Acrimonious?  I think the rest of the Psalm explains the attitude.  If we look a little deeper, perhaps we see a bit of human nature coming out.  The great thing about this Psalm, however, is that parts of it are quoted in the New Testament describing the suffering that Jesus went through, and how He handled what life threw at Him.

Drowning in a flood of trouble

Save me, O God!  For the waters have come up to my neck.  I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me.  I am weary with my crying out; my throat is parched.  My eyes grow dim with waiting for my God.  More in number than the hairs of my head are those who hate me without cause; mighty are those who would destroy me, those who attack me with lies.  What I did not steal, must I now restore?  --Psalm 69: 1-4

Many of us can relate to feeling like we're in over our heads, drowning in a deluge of personal problems.  Like David, we feel we have prayed until we are parched; we have cried out to God until we are blue in the face.  We sometimes feel as if we might die before we see the power of God rescue us.

Then we remember Jesus.  He was hated without cause; He was attacked with lies.  How did He react?  In Matthew 26, starting in verse 36, we see that Jesus took a few of His closest friends and went to the Garden to pray.  Verse 37 says, "He began to be sorrowful and troubled."  The Amplified Bible says, "He began to be grieved and greatly distressed."

Jesus prayed, "Let this cup pass from me"--in other words, God, take away this stress, this burden, this problem that will be the very death of Me.  In hindsight, we know that God did not rescue Him.  Further, we see in John 15:25 a direct quote from Psalm 69:4, when Jesus said, "But the word that is written in their Law must be fulfilled: 'They hated me without a cause'."

Jesus endured hatred, false accusations, persecution and even death, even after praying that God would spare Him.

The constant drip of disapproval

O God, you know my folly; the wrongs I have done are not hidden from You.  Let not those who hope in you be put to shame through me, O Lord God of hosts; let not those who seek You be brought to dishonor through me, O God of Israel.  For it is for Your sake that I have borne reproach, that dishonor has covered my face.  I have become a stranger to my brothers, an alien to my mother's sons.  For zeal for Your house has consumed me, and the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.  --Psalm 69:5-9

David knows that he is not perfect, but only God could judge him.  David felt the criticism of his enemies, and the sting of their words.  He felt especially bad when they criticized him for being too religious.  He felt like he was being called out for doing the right thing.  Yet his heart was pure, and David prayed that none of his actions would lead men astray.  He did not want his own actions to cause any believer to stumble, or to make anyone fall away from God because of His actions.  That's what constant criticism can do--it can make you feel guilty for doing the right thing.

Remember Jesus getting violent in the Temple?  In John chapter two, beginning in verse 13, Jesus came to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover, but sees atrocities in the Temple.  Profiteers were selling sheep and oxen at exorbitant prices.  Sacrifices were necessary, but not the price gouging.  Money changes were there, converting world currencies for the Temple tax.  Tithes were necessary, but not at the expense of integrity and fair-dealing.  Jesus saw it, and Scripture says he wove a whip out of cords.  He went into the pens of the livestock, and drove the animals out.  He stepped up to the tables where the currency exchange was taking place, and He threw the tables over onto their sides causing the cash boxes to spill onto the ground.  Seeing this, the disciples remembered the words from Psalm 69:9: "Zeal for Your house will consume Me." (John 2:17).

This episode early in the ministry of Jesus made enemies of the religious leaders.  Eventually it led to His death.  Doing the right thing may get us into hot water, too.  That doesn't mean we should stop doing what is right and good in the sight of God.

Our dying prayer

Deliver me from sinking in the mire; let me be delivered from my enemies and from the deep waters.  Let not the flood sweep over me, or the deep swallow me up, or the pit close its mouth over me.  Answer me, O Lord, for Your steadfast love is good; according to Your abundant mercy, turn to me.  Hid not your face from your servant, for I am in distress; make haste to answer me.  Draw near to my soul, redeem me; Ransom me because of my enemies!  You know my reproach, and my shame and my dishonor; my foes are all known to You.  Reproaches have broken my heart, so that I am in despair.  I looked for pity, but there was none, and for comforters, but I found none.  They gave me poison for food, and for my thirst they gave me sour wine to drink.  --Psalm 69:14-21

Our world may be literally shaken with bad news.  Life is truly hard.  In his book Limping with God: Jacob and the Old Testament Guide to Messy Discipleship, author Chad Bird writes this:

Divine visitations are not always pleasant experiences.  Nor will they necessarily take on the visionary quality of Jacob's.  They may look like a tumor on a CT scan.  An email about your termination of employment.  Or a phone call at 3 a.m. that begins with, "I am so sorry I have to tell you this, but..."  And suddenly, in an instant, everything changes.  In the weeks and months to come, following Jesus feels like a cruel joke.  You're not following anyone.  You're chained to despair.  The glowing eyes of monstrous uncertainties blink at you from the darkness.  Rather than seeing a ladder from earth to heaven, it seems there's an escalator from hell to earth, with demons showing up in legions on your doorstep.  This is ordinary.  These things happen to the people of God in our fractured world.  So, when they do, when you feel beyond overwhelmed, know that the Lord Jesus is near, right at the door.  He is wading into the darkness, eyes only for you.

Remember Jesus, who in Matthew 27 was led to be crucified, carrying His own cross.  Psalm 69:21 was fulfilled not once, but twice (see Matthew 27:34, and again in verse 48).  They offered Him sour wine to drink when He was so dehydrated He cried out.  It was for us, for our sins that He bore this suffering.  Again from author Chad Bird:

Christ has come because you cannot come to Him.  He is following you, not the other way around--following you into the vortex of pain and loss and fear and anger.  He does so unblinkingly.  Without hesitation.  Since Jesus, "for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross," do not for a moment imagine that He grimaces or flinches or weighs His opinions before entering your pain and loss and the crucible of your own suffering (Hebrews 12:2).  He's all in, all in for you, all for the joy of loving and saving you.  You will learn much about yourself, but more importantly, you will learn much about the magnanimity of the Lord's heart.  With greater clarity, you will realize that apart from Him, you have no hope.  But in Him, hope is an inexpressible gift that enables us all to face the future, which is already enfolded within the resurrection of Christ.

Whatever your trial, whatever your trouble, remember Christ.  He endured far more than we could imagine, endured far worse that whatever we are going through.  The suffering that we endure in this life do not compare to the joy that will be ours when we see Jesus. 

An old Spiritual goes like this:

1 Jesus walked this lonesome valley;
He had to walk it by himself.
Oh, nobody else could walk it for him;
He had to walk it by himself.

2 We must walk this lonesome valley;
We have to walk it by ourselves.
Oh, nobody else can walk it for us;
We have to walk it by ourselves.

3 You must go and stand your trial;
You have to stand it by yourself.
Oh, nobody else can stand it for you;
You have to stand it by yourself.

 

 

Don't imprecate me, Bro!

 

But whoever causes one of these little ones who believes in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.   --Matthew 18:6

One of my favorite Facebook groups, and a source of many biblical memes that I use on my own page, is called "Imprecatory Psalms for Dads and Malms."  It's a play on words, encouraging parents to teach the entire Scripture to their children, even those passages that aren't all warm and fuzzy.

Imprecatory is an adjective that means to curse or invoke evil on someone.  Yes, the Bible does that.  This week in my daily Bible readings I came upon Psalm 59, which is considered to be one of six or seven Imprecatory Psalms in the Bible.  

Before you shut me out or stop reading because this idea offends you, let me point out some things.  In the secular world, we use some pretty violent imagery in our daily struggle on this Earth.  How do we describe someone who happened to pick some winning stocks or bonds?  "He made a killing in the market."  How do we encourage a friend who may be going through a divorce?  "Hit him where it hurts."  What is the first thing a child might think if he has gotten into trouble?  "My parents are going to kill me."

I am a fairly decent sports fan.  Yesterday was a day for college football, where rivals on the gridiron were encouraged to "knock their heads off" or "cut them into tiny pieces."  Former football star Dick Butkus said, "When I played pro football, I never set out to hurt one deliberately--unless, you know, it was important; like a league game or something."  Today two of my favorite NFL teams played in nationally televised games.  One smashed the other team into submission; the other got beat like a rug.

Not a sports fan?  Then how about politics?  You can hardly turn on the television or radio without being subjected to the vitriol and spite hurled at the other side in order to convince you to vote for one side or the other.  Imprecations are part of the human experience; we are hard-wired to invoke curses on one another.  This doesn't stop when one becomes a believer; it is merely tempered with grace.

My enemies try to implicate me

Deliver me from my enemies, O my God; Defend me from those who rise up against me.  Deliver me from the workers of iniquity, and save me from bloodthirsty men.  For look, they lie in wait for my life; the mighty gather against me, not for my transgression nor for my sin, O Lord.  They run and prepare themselves through no fault of mine.  Awake to help me, and behold!  You therefore, O Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel, awake to punish all the nations; do not be merciful to any wicked transgressors.  --Psalm 59:1-5 NKJV

David was running from Saul, because Saul was determined to kill David.  Saul want to accuse David of treason, a crime for which David was completely innocent. David's prayer was a cry for justice, not limited to the house of Saul only, but against any nation that came against God's people.

Jesus said in John 15 that His followers would have to endure persecution for His Name's sake.

But all these things they will do to you for My name's sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me.  If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin.  He who hates Me hates My Father also.  If I had not done among them the  world's which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father.  But this happened that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law: "They hated Me without a cause."  --John 15:21-25

Jesus quoted Psalm 69:4 and 109:3-5, which by the way are also known as Imprecatory Psalms.  They underscore His innocence, and prophesy that evil will one day come upon His accusers.  David's words preceded Christ's, but they spoke of the same problem, because the wicked would always accuse the innocent.

My God will vindicate me

I will wait for You, O You his Strength; for God is my defense.  My God of mercy shall come to meet me; God shall let me see my desire on my enemies.  Do not slay them, lest my people forget; scatter them by Your power, and bring them down, O Lord our shield.  For the sin of their mouth and the words of their lips, let them even be taken in their pride, and for the cursing and lying which they speak.  Consume them in wrath, consume them, that they may not be; and let them know that God rules in Jacob to the ends of the earth. --Psalm 59:9-13

They say that truth is the best defense, but it is not so in this day and age.  I have a friend who posted a meme about the non-government organizations who are providing the most assistance after the devastating hurricanes in Florida: they are churches and faith-based organizations, not political ones--not Planned Parenthood or Black Lives Matter or any other pseudo-political "grass-roots" movements we have seen in the news in recent years.  Unfortunately, my friend was beset by internet trolls, who accused him of outright lying.  Their argument seemed to be that he did not know who was sending help of contributions to those in need, and therefore he needed to shut up about it.  He took down the meme, and said that he would focus instead on his own ministry.

Even as we pray that God would set things right, we do not pray for death and destruction against our enemies.  "Do not slay them," David wrote, because of God's tender mercy (long-suffering or steadfast love, as the ESV translates the Hebrew word hesed, which we have written about many times before.)  We want God's will to be done, even if that means they come to know Christ and start preaching His word.  Remember Paul?  As David described his enemies "belching out" lies and corruption (see verse 7), we are reminded that Paul was "breathing out threatenings and slaughter" against believers (see Act 9:1).  God showed mercy to Paul; He may also have mercy on our enemies, or not--that is up to Him.  If He wants to consume them utterly for their unbelief, He is entitled to do that.

Their sin will imprecate them

And at evening they return, they growl like a dog, and go all around the city.  They wander up and down for food, and howl if they are not satisfied.  But I will sing of Your power; yes I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; for You have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble.  To You, O my Strength, I will sing praises; for God is my defense, my God of mercy.  --Psalm 59:14-17

It is good to have God on our side.  We are sinful, separated from God, but we receive mercy.  1 John 2:1 says, "My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin.  And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous."  Isn't it good to have an advocate, a defense attorney who is in the Judge's good graces?

The danger with our message is that it is often too grace focused.  Will everyone believe in Jesus, and be saved from God's wrath by His shed blood?  Unfortunately, no.  Jesus Himself said, "Whoever causes on of these little ones who believes in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depths of the sea." (Matthew 18:6).  This Imprecatory statement (e.g. curse, wishing evil upon someone) came from Jesus Himself.  In John 3:18 Jesus said, "He who believes in Him (God's Son) is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the Name of the only begotten Son of God."

Believe in Him today.  Call upon Him for forgiveness and salvation before your eternal soul meets a fate worse than death.  Confess your sins, for that is the only way to obtain God's mercy.

 

Grace wins

 

Thy mercy Lord doth to the heavens extend,
Thy faithfulness doth to the clouds ascend;
Thy justice steadfast as a mountain is,
Thy judgments deep as is the great Abyss;
Thy noble mercies save all living things,
The sons of men creep underneath thy wings:
With thy great plenty they are fed at will,
And of thy pleasure's stream they drink their fill;
For even the well of life remains with thee,
And in thy glorious light we light shall see.—Sir John Davies.

Ralph Waldo Emerson is quoted as saying, "What you do speaks so loudly I cannot hear what you are saying."  Said another way, actions speak louder than words. It is a mark of maturity to be able to look past flowery language to see the heart of a person.

God knows our heart, and in the 36th Psalm we see David contrasting the heart of evil man with the heart of God as evidenced by His steadfast love, His faithfulness, and His righteousness.  David goes on to pray that God's favor would continue to be with him (and people like him) and that we would not be tripped up by the wickedness of men among whom we live.  Let's take a closer look together.

The evil that men do

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

Shakespeare wrote in Julius Caesar, "The evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones." People have interpreted these words in several different ways.  Some say it means that all your evil deeds will be remembered long after the good you have done is forgotten.  Others interpret it to mean that someone may speak well of a person at their funeral, overlooking their sin and evil nature.

Similarly, there are several different interpretations of verse 1 of the 36th Psalm.  Here are just a few of them.  The Hebrew word for "speaks" is sometimes translated a "Oracle".  So the NKJV renders it this way:  "An oracle within my heart concerning the transgression of the wicked: there is no fear of God before his eyes."  So we see that the sinful actions of man bespeak the evil within them, as would a prophet or an Oracle (i.e. one who sees with spiritual eyes.)  Another interesting deviation among the various translations is the pronoun "his", as in "his heart."  The ASV translates it this way: "The transgression of the wicked says within my heart, There is no fear of God before his eyes."  Once we start questioning whether this should be a first person or second person pronoun, we are faced with the fact that we may see the sins of others quite easily, but we ourselves are prone to the very same sin.  Romans 3:10 reminds us that "None is righteous; no, not one."

The point, I think, is that when we see ourselves and others through the filter of our sins, our true heart is revealed.  We may flatter ourselves, or speak well of others, and kind of brush our sins under the rug so that no one can see them.  This is like putting lipstick on a pig.  People are still wicked in their heart of hearts.  The Phillips paraphrase renders verse 4 like this: "They lie awake at night hatching sinful plots.  Their actions are never good.  They make no attempt to turn from evil."  In Genesis 6:5 God made this assessment: "Every thought of man was evil all the time."  Jesus said in Matthew 24:37 that the last days would be as the days of Noah.  If you believe that we are in the last days, one of the evidences would be the utter and complete depravity of man that we see around us every day.

The absolute goodness of God

Contrast the wickedness of man with the attributes of God.  We see in verses 5-9

Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, You 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.  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 given them drink from the river of Your delights.  For with You is the fountain of life; in your light do we see light.

What do we see about God in this passage?  How does David describe Him?  The first adjective he uses is the Hebrew word hesed.  This word is found almost 250 times in the Old Testament, and it is variously translated as mercy, kindness, lovingkindness, goodness, and favor.  Many would equate it with the Greek word agape, which describes the sacrificial love of God; but this is too limiting.  It does not merely mean the love of God, but goes so much deeper.  This steadfast love, this hesed, is indeed precious.

The second adjective describing God is His faithfulness.  This word can mean firmness, fidelity, steadfastness and steadiness.  In ancient times sailors would plot a course to get to their destination, and if they stayed true, and did not drift off-course, did not turn to the right or to the left, they would faithfully reach their destination.  In modern times pilots will do the same: set a course, and stay true to that heading, so that their passengers (souls on board) and cargo can safely reach their destination.  How much more is God true and faithful in bringing about His will for us?  This is what Steven Curtis Chapman was thinking when he wrote the song, the refrain of which says, "My Redeemer is faithful and true; everything He has said He will do.  Every morning His mercies are new.  My Redeemer is faithful and true."

The third word David uses to describe God in these verses is righteous.  He is without sin.  You will note that the first word used to describe man was sinful, wicked, transgressing His ways--these words are the defining qualities of man.  By contrast God is righteous, sinless, and pure; but that is not even the best or most important thing about Him.

Because His love is steadfast, we can take refuge in Him (verse 5).  Because of His faithfulness (verse 5), we can "feast on His abundance" and can "drink from the river of His delight" (verse 8).  Because of His righteousness, His sinless purity, He is the very light by which we see.  Without the shadow of any guilt or stain in the lens through which we see reality, we can see His goodness, His love, His righteousness.  We can also see our own sin.

The prayer for deliverance

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.  --verses 10-12

When we are confronted with the sinfulness of man, it speaks to our heart.  When we recognize the righteous favor of God, we run to Him for refuge and forgiveness.  Yet even then we are prone to look back, to revisit our sin, to even long for it.  We must pray, as David did, that God's love would remain steadfast.  We must pray that God would impute His righteousness upon us, covering our sin.  We must not be drawn away, because then we become like those overcome by evil, lying in the dirt, unable to have fellowship with a holy God.

Salvation is not a "one-and-done" event.  We are to take up our cross daily (Luke 9:23), dying to our sinful selves and allowing God to cleanse us, to use us, to love us unconditionally.  Let us continually grow in grace, and avoid arrogance.  We must humbly call to Jesus, and not let the hooks of evil men around us draw us away from Him.  Hebrews 12:1 says, "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us."  I believe the writer of Hebrews was writing to Christians, not to "sinners."  We all must shake off the effects of sin to be an effective Christian.  We all need grace.

John Newton, was a former slave trader turned Christian, who wrote the hymn Amazing Grace.  Near the end of his life he said, "Although my memory is fading, I remember two things very clearly: I am a great sinner; and Christ is a great Savior."  

We must not forget the mercy of God in our sin.  As Christians, we know that God's mercy and grace have overcome our sin.  Grace wins.

God's got this!

Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You.  --Psalm 56:3 NKJV

What just happened? Something you dreaded, something unexpected, something dangerous.  Whatever it was was out of your control.  Your heart begins to race, and you panic.  Your racing heart sets off a danger alarm in your brain and sends your body’s fear response into overdrive. 

Adrenaline floods into your bloodstream, putting your body on high alert.  Your pupils dilate, and your mind becomes laser focused. Your breathing rate increases, allowing your body to take in extra oxygen. Cellular metabolism shifts to maximize the amount of glucose available to the brain and muscles. Your blood is diverted away from non-essential regions like your fingers, toes and stomach and towards the major muscles of the arms and legs — steeling them to either fight off a threat or flee the scene.

You are literally fighting to gain control.

You may think your response is the difference between life and death.  What do you say?  After an uncontrollable scream or cry, after the "Ohmygodohmygodohmygod!" is done, as you try to control what happens next, what words come out of your mouth?  Those words could reflect your level of faith.

David described his own panic attack in Psalm 31:21-24.

Blessed be the Lord, for He has shown me His marvelous kindness in a strong city!  For I said in my haste, "I am cut off from before Your eyes"; nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications when I cried out to You.  Oh, love the Lord, all you His saints!  For the Lord preserves the faithful, and fully repays the proud person.  Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart, all you who hope in the Lord. --NKJV

What was the situation that caused David to panic?  In this instance, he was in what was described as a "strong city."  This may be a reference to 1 Samuel 23.  Saul was pursuing David aggressively, intent on killing him.  Beginning in verse 7 we read, "And Saul was told that David had gone to Keilah. So Saul said, "God has delivered him into my hand, for he has shut himself in by entering a town that has gates and bars."  Then Saul called all the people together for war, to go down to Keilah to besiege David and his men."  In fact, several other versions of Psalm 31:21 (including the ESV, which I normally read) translate "strong city" as "a besieged city."

In other words, Saul heard that David had gone to a fortified city.  The gates and bars may have made David and his followers feel more secure.  Saul saw this as an opportunity to trap David.  Sure, there was no way in; but if Saul set a siege against this fortified city, David had no way out.  David literally had no hope of escape.

When David heard that the king had declared war on Keilah where David had gone for refuge, he panicked.  Verse 22 says, "I said in my haste, 'I am cut off from before Your (God's) eyes'."  The Hebrew word for "haste" literally means to be in a hurry, to be alarmed, to be terrified.  In other words, David trembled at the news, and his heart sank.  In his panic he cried out, "God has left me."

God knows our hearts.  For this reason, fear (or panic) is a theme discussed throughout Scripture.  Isaiah wrote:

I said "I shall not see YAH, the Lord in the land of the living; I shall observe man no more among the inhabitants of the world.  My life span is gone, taken from me like a shepherd's tent; I have cut off my life like a weaver.  He cuts me off from the loom; from day until night You make and end of me." (Isaiah 38:11-12)

Like David, King Hezekiah (whose words are recorded by the prophet Isaiah) feared that God had left him.  Hezekiah had been sick, and he was afraid that it was a sickness unto death.  However, after crying out to God, the prophet was sent to tell him that God had heard his prayers, and that he would recover, and live another 15 years.  Hezekiah's cries of anguish turned into words of praise, for later he says, "Behold, it was for my welfare that I had great bitterness; but in love You have delivered my life from the pit of destruction, for You have cast all my sins behind Your back." (Isaiah 38:17 ESV).

Maybe you haven't yet had a health scare that drove you to panic.  Perhaps your experience with intense fear has been with more immediate emergencies.  King Solomon describes a near death experience from drowning.  Lamentations 3:54 says, "Water closed over my head; I said, 'I am lost'." (ESV--the NKJV says "I am cut off".)  Whenever I think of water closing over one's head, I think of Jonah.  As he was sinking into the depths of the sea, he said, "I have been cast out of Your sight; yet I will look again toward Your holy temple." --Jonah 2:4 NKJV

Whatever causes us to panic should drive us to our knees.  Psalm 17:7 says,  "Show Your marvelous lovingkindness by Your right hand, O You who save those who trust in You from those who rise up against them." (NKJV)  This word "lovingkindness" (or "steadfast love" from the ESV) is the Hebrew word hesed.  David used this same word in our text in Psalm 31:21, "Blessed be the Lord, for He has shown me His marvelous kindness (hesed) in a strong city!"  How did God show His marvelous kindness and mercy toward David?  Even after David panicked and thought, "God has cut me off!" we see God's hand in verse 22: "nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications when I cried out to You."

What is the lesson that David learned from this experience? "Oh, love the Lord, all you His saints!  For the Lord preserves the faithful, and fully repays the proud person.  Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart, all you who hope in the Lord." (verses 23 and 24).  We should never let panic control us.  When we feel out of control we must remember God has control.  He will either save us by His power, or He will use the calamity for His glory.  In David's case, we know that Saul did not, in fact, kill him.  If you read on in 1 Samuel 23, you will see that David consulted a priest, and asked God two questions: Was Saul coming to lay siege to the city?  And if so, would the people of Keilah give David over to Saul to save their city?  God's answer was yes to both questions, so David was able to escape before Saul could capture him.

Charles Spurgeon said, "Our anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, but only empties today of its strengths."  Our strength is in the Lord, and in the power of His might.  No matter how much we struggle to maintain control, we must realize that we actually control nothing.  It's all in God's hands.  He is ultimately in control by His Providence and His power.

If we respond in faith rather than fear, we can say with Job, "Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him." (Job 13:15)

If only there was a mediator for me

 

Your first father sinned, and your mediators transgressed against me.  --Isaiah 43:27

In ancient Greek mythology, there was a doctor-demigod named Asclepius.  According to Wikipedia, Asclepius was said to be such a skilled doctor that he could even raise people from the dead.  So stemming from the myth of his great healing powers, pilgrims would flock to "healing temples" built in his honor in order to seek spiritual and physical healing.  These temples, called Asclepieia were scattered throughout ancient Greece, and throughout the Roman empire.

Some might say that the Pool of Bethesda mentioned in John chapter 5 was just such an Asclepieon, or "healing temple."  In fact, there may have been some Hellenistic influence in this Jewish site, but the spot was definitely of Hebrew origin.  The name itself means "house of mercy" or "house of grace," and the Jews who gathered there had not made a pilgrimage to some Greek demigod.  According to verse 4, the people there were waiting for a messenger of God (usually translated "angel") to stir the waters, so that the first to wash in the water would be healed.

This Messianic hope of an intermediary, a messenger or interpreter from God to intervene on behalf of His people is evident from the earliest Jewish writings.  Perhaps the oldest book in our biblical canon is the book of Job, and in chapter 33 we see the fourth "friend" of Job excoriating him regarding repentance and deliverance.  Let's read Elihu's message in verses 23 through 30:

If there be for him an angel, a mediator, one of the thousand, to declare to man what is right for him, and he is merciful to him, and says, "Deliver him from going down into the pit; I have found a ransom; let his flesh become fresh with youth; let him return to the days of his youthful vigor"; then man prays to God, and He accepts him; he sees His face with a shout of joy, and He restores to man his righteousness.  He sings before men and says: "I sinned and perverted what was right, and it was not repaid to me.  He has redeemed my soul from going down into the pit, and m life shall look upon the light."  Behold, God does all these things, twice, three times, with a man, to bring back his soul from the pit, that he may be lighted with the light of life. (Job 33:23-30, ESV)

Reading the book of Job is difficult, because the "friends" whom Job called "miserable comforters" (Job 16:2) all spoke half truths.  Their advice, which each one voiced vehemently, was couched in theological jargon and sounded right, but was a misinterpretation of Scripture.  Like many false teachers today, they believed that God's blessing was always found in health, wealth, and prosperity.  If a man was found to have lost his fortune, or to be stricken with disease, then he must have committed a heinous sin and God must be terribly angry with him.  The remedy, then, was repentance and penitent acts that might ease God's anger, after which one could only hope that God might forgive, and then perhaps restore what was lost.

The Pulpit Commentary explains the passage (from verses 23 and 24) this way:

"If there be a messenger (or angel) with him." It is generally supposed that "the angel of the covenant" is meant, and that the whole passage is Messianic; but much obscurity hangs over it. The Jews certainly understand it Messianically, since they read it on the great Day of Atonement, and use in their liturgies the prayer, "Raise up for us the righteous Interpreter; say, I have found a ransom." Elihu's knowledge of an Interpreter, or Mediator, one among a thousand, who should deliver the afflicted man from going down to the pit, and find a ransom for him (ver. 24), is certainly very surprising; and we can scarcely imagine that he understood the full force of his words; but it cannot be right to denude them of their natural signification. Elihu certainly did not mean to speak of himself as an "angel-interpreter, one among a thousand;" and it is not probable that he intends a reference to any merely human helper.

"Then he is gracious unto him; and says." Some interpret, "Then he (i.e. God) is gracious unto him, and he (i.e. the angel) says. Others make God the subject of both clauses. But the angel is the natural subject. "Deliver him from going down to the pit." The mediating angel thus addresses God, and adds, "I have found a ransom," leaving the nature of the ransom unexplained. Some notion of ransom, or atonement, underlay the whole idea of sacrifice, which appears to have been universally practiced from the remotest times, by the Oriental nations.

In short, Elihu was speaking more than he knew.  If God sent a messenger, or mediating angel, to intervene on Job's behalf (and it was a one-in-a-thousand shot, that may happen once in a lifetime, or maybe twice or three times if he was lucky), then Job would receive from God the light of life.

Just like the paralytic in John 5, who could not have dreamed that the man Jesus could do so much more than the mythic angel who would stir the healing waters in the pool, Elihu in Job 33 could not have imagined that the mediator whom God would send would not be merely a messenger, not merely an angel, but the very Son of God.  Without intending so, Elihu was prophetically testifying of the Messiah Himself.  Job knew better than Elihu, because in Job 19:24 Job declared, "For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will stand upon the earth."

The Enduring Word Bible Commentary says this about Elihu's wish for a messenger or Mediator:

"If there is a messenger for him": Again, Elihu (in is overly wordy way) told Job that God did send a messenger of some sort; Job’s problem was that he did not receive it.

i. On mediator in Job 33:23: “Or interpreter: i.e., one who can interpret and reveal the truth concerning God and His ways.” (Bullinger)

ii. “Jesus Christ is indeed a blessed interpreter. An interpreter must understand two languages. Our Lord Jesus understands the language of God. Whatever are the great truths of divine intelligence and infinite wisdom, too high and mysterious for us to comprehend or even to discern, Christ fully understands them all… Moreover, Jesus understands our language, for he is a man like ourselves, touched with a feeling of our infirmities, and smarting under our sicknesses. He can read whatever is in the heart of man, and so he can tell to God the language of man, and speak to man in the language of man what God would say to him.” (Spurgeon)

 I had never thought of a mediator in this way.  In the business world, a mediator will meet with both sides in a dispute, and help bridge the gap.  Jesus does this.  However, thinking of a mediator as an interpreter is more than just thinking in terms of international business.  It is more than a person fluent in both English and Japanese helping to negotiate terms between equal businesses in the US and Japan.  It is more of a spiritual exercise, by which a physical man and a spiritual God are at odds, and God becomes a Man to stand between the physical and the spiritual, and to thereby create a way for holy God to speak to sinful man, and for sinful man to come into fellowship with holy God.

Chad van Dixhoorn said, "On the judgement day, the accuser will have no arguments to match our Advocate, for the wounds of our risen Savior will eloquently plead our case."  Again, from Spurgeon:

We were neither righteous nor yet good, yet Christ died for us. “Oh!” said a little boy once to his mother, “I do not think so much of Christ dying for men, I think I would be willing to die if I could save a hundred men by dying.” But his mother said, “Suppose it was a hundred mosquitoes,—would you die for them?” “Oh, no!” he said, “I would let the whole lot of them die.” Well, we were much less, in comparison with Christ, than mosquitoes are in relation to men, yet he died for us, good-for-nothing creatures that we are. Well does one say, “God shows part of his love to us in many different ways, but he shows the whole of his love in giving Christ to die for us.” Here you see his heart laid bare, the very heart of God laid open for the inspection of every believing soul. To die for saints would be great love; but to die for sinners, while they are yet sinners, and regarding them as sinners,—this is love with emphasis, the very highest commendation that even divine love can have. (C. H. Spurgeon, “Grace Abounding,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 58 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1912), 263).

"If only," cried the paralytic at the Pool of Bethesda.  "If only there was someone to carry me to the waters when they are disturbed, then I might be healed."  Jesus provided another way.  "If only," cried Elihu.  "If only there was an angel/messenger, a mediator, an interpreter who could act on Job's behalf, then he would not suffer so."  Jesus is all that and more.  Call upon Him and live.

 

The faithfulness of Job (a type of Christ)

 

As many were astonished at you--with appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of mankind--so shall he sprinkle many nations.  Kings shall shut their mouths because of him, for that which has not been told them they see, and that which they have not heard they understand.  Who has believed what he has heard from us?  And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?  For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him.  He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.  Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken smitten by God, and afflicted.  --Isaiah 52:13-53:4

 Have you ever heard anyone spoken of as having "the patience of Job"?  This was a phrase more in use several generations ago that now.  I think it comes from a passage in the New Testament book of James, where the writer is encouraging Christians to hold fast to their faith.  "Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord," he says in James 5:7.  He gives the example of a farmer, who waits for the fruit of the earth, knowing that in time the seed he planted will bring forth abundance.

He goes on to say, "You also, be patient.  Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand." (James 5:3).  Our hope is in Jesus, who will come and take away our suffering, and will give us rest and comfort.  Using the prophets as examples, he says in verses 10 and 11: "As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.  Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast.  You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful."  The NKJV translates the word "steadfastness" as "perseverance."  The Amplified Bible calls it "patient endurance."

The Greek word used here is hypomonē which means steadfastness, constancy, and endurance, all words used to describe Job.  The prophets were patient, according to James, because they knew the end from the beginning; they knew by faith that things would get better, either in this life or the next.  Job was not a prophet, but he did speak prophetically in Job 19:25 when he said, "For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will stand upon the earth."  In the end, I believe that James was using the prophets as an example of patience, but Job is used as an example of faithfulness.

Ezekiel 14: 13-14 says, "Son of man, when a land sins against Me by acting faithlessly, and I stretch out my hand against it and break its supply of bread and send famine upon it, and cut off from it man and beast, even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they would deliver but their own lives by their righteousness, declares the Lord God."  Here, Ezekiel listed Job along with Daniel and Noah, men who were faithful in all things.  All three, I believe, can be called types of, or men who foreshadow, Christ.  Perhaps future blog posts will feature Noah and Daniel as types of Christ, but in this particular one I want to focus solely on Job. 

The Righteous Brought Low

Job is described as a righteous man.  The very first verse of the first chapter of Job describes him as "blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil."  Job was a wealthy man with 10 children, whom he loved dearly.  In fact, whenever the children would gather together, probably on their birthdays (verse 4), there would be eating and drinking and much merriment.  After the party was over, "Job would send and consecrate them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all.  For Job said, 'It may be that my children have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts.' Thus Job did continually." (verse 5).

Unbeknownst to Job, he was a topic of discussion in the spiritual realm.  God bragged on him (verse 8), and Satan challenged God to remove his wealth and his family to see if his faith would be shaken.  When that didn't work, Satan doubled down, demanding that God take away Job's good health.  After having lost his possessions, his family, and his health, surely Job would turn away from God.  As it turns out, even when Job suffered all this loss, he was still faithful.

In similar fashion, Jesus was sinless and without blame.  He had all the riches of heaven at His disposal, yet He gave all that up so that He could be clothed in flesh as a man--not a wealthy man, but rather one born of humble means (laid in a manger, for goodness sake).  Jesus withstood spiritual oppression, facing Satan himself, who tempted Him in the wilderness when Jesus was fasting (see Matthew 4:1-11, Luke 4:1-13, and Mark 1:12).

Just as Job had unsightly sores all over his body, so Jesus had open wounds from scourging and beatings.  Jesus went even further--He offered His life as a sacrifice for sinners, suffering death on a cross.  Philippians 2:7-11 says, "But (Jesus) emptied Himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.  And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.  Therefore God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the Name that is above every name, 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."

The Restoration and Exaltation

Each Christmas we watch the movie "It's a Wonderful Life."  George Bailey was an influential member of the community who fell on hard times, but when his friends and all the folks he had help heard about it, they all brought money and gifts to help him stay out of trouble.  The value of the money and gifts more than made up for his deficit, but the realization that his community supported him and his friends would sacrifice for him made him feel accepted and affirmed.

After having endured the loss of his possessions, his family, and his health, as well as being berated by three so-called "friends", Job remained faithful.  As a reward, God "restored the fortunes of Job" and "gave him twice as much as he had before." (see Job 42:10).  "And the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning." (verse 12).  All Job's relatives and all who had known him before and who had eaten at his table came to comfort him and show him sympathy, and each of them gave him a piece of silver and a ring of gold (verse 11).  Not only were his fortunes restored, God gave him ten more children, each of them more beautiful than the last.  We are not told how Job felt after all this, but we do know that "after this Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons, and his sons' sons, four generations. (verse 16).

When Jesus was crucified, He was resurrected.  After this, He ascended back into heaven, having completed the work that God the Father had given Him to do.  And now, according to 1 Peter 3:22, Jesus, "who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to Him."  Jesus has been restored to His former place in glory.  In addition, He has opened a pathway for those of us who had been outcast to gain access to God through Christ.  Hebrews 10:19-22 says, "Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the news and living way that He opened for us through the curtain, that is, through His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us drawn near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from and our bodies washed with pure water."  Jesus's sacrifice opened heaven for Gentiles and penitent sinners, of which I am one.

The Reconciliation Through Intercession

God gave Job a job to do.  Just as Job had sacrificed for his ten children to cover for their sins, God required a sacrifice from Job's friends to atone for the sins they had committed against Job.  "Now therefore take seven bulls and seven rams and to to my servant Job and offer up a burnt offerings for yourselves.  And my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept his prayer not to deal with you according to your folly.  For you have no spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has." (Job 42:8).  When Job was obedient, the Lord accepted Job's prayer (verse 9) on their behalf.

Romans 8:34 says, "Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died--more than that, who was raised---who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us."  1 John 2:1 says, "My little children, I am writing these things to you that you may not sin.  But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous."  And Hebrews 7:25 says, "Consequently, He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them."  Jesus performs the job of intercessor much better than Job ever could.

Matthew Henry, in his Introduction to the commentary on Job, says this:

In general, Job was a great sufferer, was emptied and humbled, but in order to his greater glory. So Christ abased himself, that we might be exalted. The learned bishop Patrick quotes St. Jerome more than once speaking of Job as a type of Christ, who for the job that was set before him endured the cross, who was persecuted, for a time, by men and devils, and seemed forsaken of God too, but was raised to be an intercessor even for his friends and had added affliction to his misery. When the apostle speaks of the patience of Job he immediately takes notice of the end of the Lord, that is, of the Lord Jesus (as some understand it), typified by Job, James 5:11.

What can we take from this comparison?  The whole point of typology is not to venerate Job (or any other Old Testament character) as our savior, but to show how the life and work of Jesus was foretold by Scripture.  The entire Bible narrative centers around the Christ, using the stories of sinful men who foretold the coming of the sinless Savior.  Job teaches us patience, yes, but also faithfulness, perseverance, and steadfastness.  Most of all, however, Job point us to Jesus.

The Gospel According To Nehemiah

 

He spread a cloud for a covering, and fire to give light by night.  They asked, and He brought quail, and gave them bread from heaven in abundance.  He opened the rock, and water gushed out; it flowed through the desert like a river.  For He remembered His holy promise, and Abraham, His servants.  So He brought His people out with joy, His chosen ones with singing.  --Psalm 105:39-43

The word "gospel" originated in Old English, combining gōd meaning "good" and spel which is "news," or "a story."  In modern English it means "the teaching or revelation of Christ."  In common usage, it is a set of principles or beliefs, and also something that is absolutely true.

When we think of gospel or "gospels" in the Bible, we think of the first four books of the New Testament.  In this essay I want to show that the good news, the absolute truth of the revelation of Jesus Christ is found throughout the Scriptures, not just in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.  Come along with me and see if you agree.

Let's begin in the book of Nehemiah.  Now this is not a book that springs to mind immediately when we think of sharing the good news of Jesus.  In fact, along with the book of Ezra, it is basically a history of the Jewish exiles returning to their homeland, and the rebuilding of the capital city of Jerusalem after the 70 year exile in Babylon.  The bulk of the story is Nehemiah's leading the people in rebuilding the wall around the city, and overcoming many obstacles including threats of violence from other nations living in and around Palestine.

In chapter 8 we see Nehemiah's friend Ezra reading the Torah, the Book of the Law that God had given them.  All of the people gathered around to hear these words read aloud for the first time in a generation.  They wept when they realized how far they had gotten from God's law.  Nehemiah declared it a holy day, (the origin of our word holiday), and encouraged the people, saying, "Do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." (Nehemiah 8:10).

God is creator and sustainer of all things

Our focus today will be on Nehemiah chapter 9, in which the entire gospel is laid out step by step.  The first declaration of good news is that God created us.  Read with me verse 6: "You are the Lord, You alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and You preserve all of them; and the host of heaven worships you."

This is good news, because it means there is order and purpose in life.  Life did not begin from chemical reactions stemming from oceanic heat vents releasing gases and energy.  Nor did we evolve from primordial cells through a process of evolution.  If that were so, then life on Earth is one giant accident, and life has no meaning.  There would be no reason for moral development, because Man, the epitome of the evolutionary process, would exist and operate like the lesser animals.  The meaning of life would only be the survival of the fittest, kill or be killed.

On the contrary, if we know that God created us in His own image, then we do have a moral basis, and life has meaning and purpose.  Christ came to clarify that meaning and purpose for us.  As it says in Colossians 1:15-17, "He (Christ) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.  For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or ruler or authorities--all things were created through Him and for Him, and He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together."

Christ is all we need

The entire 9th chapter of Nehemiah is a praise song, sung to God for what He has done for His people.  The people were reminded of Abraham, their forefather, and how God blessed him.  They were reminded of Moses, the descendant of Abraham who had led them out of slavery in Egypt.  They were also given the hope of a savior, who we now know is Jesus, the Son of God.

Let's read verse 15.  "You gave them bread from heaven for their hunger and brought water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and You told them to go in to possess the land that You had sworn to give them."  If you are familiar with God's provision during the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, you will recall the stories.  Scripture often recalls those miracles, not because of an obsession with the past but also as a prophecy for the future.  How would they know the Savior when He appeared?  He would fulfill those signs and symbols in such a way that it would be obvious to anyone who had eyes to see.

Bread

One of the elements of survival for any living creature is food.  God provided food in the wilderness, food the likes of which had never been seen before.  The people called it manna which basically means, "what is it?"  Even though they didn't know exactly what it was, or where it came from, it did sustain them for the duration of their lives, until they reached the Promised Land.

Jesus said, "I am the bread of life.  Your fathers are the manna in the wilderness, and they died.  This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die'.  I am the living bread that came down from heaven.  If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever.  And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh."

Water

Another element of survival is water.  In the most dire circumstances, and over the bitterest complaints, God came through by providing a spring of water from a rock.  There were no visible springs or rivers in the wilderness where they were.  God, in His infinite wisdom, knew where the underground springs were.  He showed Moses where to access the life-giving water, and the access point was not soft earth from which Moses could sink a well.  Instead, it was from the hardest substance around.  Interestingly, God did not command Moses to break the rock, but only to touch it with his staff.  It was Moses who struck the rock (twice!) in disobedience to God's express instructions.  God did not want the people to venerate Moses because he was not the source of the spring.  It was God, the source of life itself, who provided for the people.

Jesus, when speaking with a Samaritan woman who met Him at a well in the heat of the day (not a normal time for drawing water), said this: "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again.  The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (John 4:13-14).  Later, He spoke to the crowds in Jerusalem, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.  Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, 'Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water'." (John 7:37-38)

There is also the metaphor of Jesus as the rock from which the water flowed.  Paul said in 1 Corinthians 10:1b-4, "Our fathers were all under the cloud, and passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all at the same spiritual food, and all drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ."

Shelter

The people listening to Ezra at the direction of Nehemiah their governor were celebrating the Feast of Booths, what is today called Sukkot.  The genesis of this celebration was described in Deuteronomy 6:10-12. "And when the Lord your God brings you into the land that He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you--with great and good cities that you did not build, and houses full of all good things that you did not fill, and cisterns that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant--and when you eat and are full, then take care lest you forget the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery."  He goes on to instruct them to build temporary shelters, like tents or booths, to remind them of the temporary quarters they lived in during the 40 year trek through the wilderness.

Jesus also spoke of a Promised Land, a heavenly home that we have no hand in building.  John 14:1-3 says, "Let not your hearts be troubled.  Believe in God; believe also in Me.  In my Father's house are many rooms.  If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to Myself, that where I am you may be also."  Our spiritual survival depends on His sheltering us, eventually taking us home with Him in Heaven.

The Spirit gives us comfort

The third point of the Gospel found in Nehemiah 9 is found in verse 20: "You gave Your good Spirit to instruct them and did not withhold Your manna from their mouth and gave them water for their thirst."  Even when they had sinned against God, He still sustained them.  The verses leading up to this point out that although the people demanded Aaron build them a golden calf, He did not withdraw His Spirit from them.  He still sent a cloud by day and a fire by night.

Did you realize that the cloud and the fire were pictures of the Trinity?  A cloud requires three elements: water vapor, colder air, and condensation nuclei (the particles in the air that water droplets adhere to--they can be soot or smoke, ocean spray, and dust or particles of soil aloft.)  A fire requires three elements as well: heat, fuel and oxygen.  The children of Israel were led through the wilderness day and night by representatives of the triune nature of God.  Think about that.

Jesus said, "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My Name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you." (John 14:26).  Why is that good news? Because Jesus is no longer with us bodily, and we continue to need a mediator, and advocate before the Father.

We need a savior

As the people were reminded, sin had separated them from God.  Disobedience caused them to be exiled for 70 years.  "Therefore You gave them into the hand of their enemies, who made them suffer.  And in the time of their suffering they cried out to You and You heard them from heaven, and according to Your great mercies You gave them saviors who saved them from the hand of their enemies." (Nehemiah 9:27).

We, too, are separated from a holy God by sin and disobedience.  Ne need a Savior.  The good news, the Gospel, is that God, in His infinite mercy, has provided one for us.  His name is Jesus Christ.

In Christian theology, we speak of saviors as "types" of Christ.  Moses was a "type" of Christ, as he led Israel out of bondage in Egypt.  Other "types" of Christ in the Old Testament include Noah, Jacob, David, and Samson, to name a few.  All of these Bible characters were "saviors" in a way, leading us to the Savior of the world, who is Christ Himself.

One more interesting (to me) tidbit of information from this passage: Ezra read the words of the law, and Nehemiah had gathered the people together.  The Levites were there, as well, encouraging and preaching to the people, bringing revival from the former outcasts and exiles.  One of the Levites listed in verse 5 was a man named Jeshua.  As you may know, the Jewish name for Jesus was Yeshua.  This is a mere coincidence, I'm sure.  Jeshua may have been a common name in Israel over the years.  It is just one more link in a chain of evidence that shows the good news, the gospel truth that is Jesus Christ made evident in the Old Testament.