Loose Lips

Psalm 34; Matthew 5

Psalm 34 is a victorious psalm. It speaks of the reliability of God when we call on him and of the futility of wickedness and evil. It reminds of how well God treats the righteous and cares for the brokenhearted. Matthew 5 is the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus begins with the beatitudes and then offers clarification and re-alignment on many aspects of the law.

It was so interesting to me as I read through these two passages today to be reminded that returning to familiar passages brings a new freshness to scripture. Seasons of life bring new perspectives into our reading and offer new light into our understanding. As I read through Psalm 34 I was particularly struck with the first verse which reads, "I will extol the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips." I thought to myself, "What a declaration!". It is filled with strong and committed phrases like "at all times" and "always". These are powerful statements. Also,as I read through Matthew 5 I was struck afresh with with verses 15 and 16 which reminded me that people do not light lamps to hide them and encouraged me to let my light shine. I know that sounds a little cliche but I was struck by Jesus' words as I read them today.

I titled this post "Loose Lips". This is a title that is not so much because of poor quality conversation such as slander and gossip that is coming from me but rather because of what is not coming from me. As I read these two passages today I was particularly struck with the first verse of Psalm 34 which I quoted above. I began to think about whether or not I am extolling the Lord at all times and whether or not his praise is always on my lips. Not that I am speaking poorly of the Lord but rather I am not speaking of him at all. I think that it is incredibly easy to allow my faith to become such a personal thing that no one else ever comes into contact with it. Sure it is easy for me to speak to others about Jesus and about faith when I am preaching, praying, or leading Bible study. However, I am forced to wonder how frequently if at all in my day to day life do people encounter Jesus through me. My loose lips are filled with idle chatter about hockey, baseball, or groceries but perhaps I need to tame these lips of mine and train them to extol the Lord at all times and to allow his praise to rest on them always. This ties in so well with the section of Matthew 5 which speaks of letting my light shine. If I can bring these loose lips under control then I will be able to let my light shine all the time. My faith while personal is not meant to be exclusively personal. I have a responsibility and a desire to praise Jesus all the time and to bring these loose lips of mine back in line.

Dear God,

Thank you for constant reminders. Thank you that your word is always fresh and that it speaks into real life. Lord, I am so privileged to be in relationship with you. It is my desire to tame my loose lips and to fill them with praise for you and by extolling your name. I ask Lord that you will cause me and my loose lips to praise you at all times and always. Give me the courage to not be afraid to let my light shine radiantly so that all who I encounter will not encounter only me but they will encounter you as well. Thank you for the incredible opportunity to be your light. I ask that you will lead me on.

Amen

Source of Joy

Psalm 66; 2 Corinthians 7

Psalm 66 is a psalm of celebration. The psalmist is declaring praises to God and is listing off all the great things that God has done. 2 Corinthians 7 speaks of Paul's joy. He tells the Corinthians how happy he is and how proud he is of them. In it he describes how he can boast in confidence about them.

The joy in the psalm is pouring off of the page. It is very difficult to read this psalm without wanting to do so out loud while dancing in the street. There is such tangible excitement! The psalmist cannot help but testify and witness to others about the great things that God has done and how great He is. It made me excited simply reading this passage. It was very interesting to read this psalm next to Paul's letter in 2 Corinthians. While 2 Corinthians 7 is about joy it does not have the same feel as the psalm. It does not have any less joy but it reads more as a proud father who is filled with joy because he has seen his child make the right choice in a particular circumstance. The type of joy that is felt when a lesson taught is seen being applied by the student. A knowing that effort has not gone in vain. Paul had earlier written a letter to the Corinthians that was painfully revealing regarding how they were living. The Corinthians responded by repenting of their sins and returning to God. This action has filled Paul with great joy and he reaffirms them saying in verse 16, "I am glad I can have complete confidence in you." What an incredible statement! That must have given the Corinthians warm fuzzies all over! The key here is the response of the Corinthians. Their response to Paul's earlier letter was not anger or defensive walls or excuses. It was what Paul calls Godly sorrow. In verse 10 Paul says, "Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death." This is a truth that we would all be wise to apply to our own lives.

In my life I am going to aim to respond with Godly sorrow to my shortcomings. I can respond by getting defensive, making excuses, expressing sorrow because I got caught or even expressing sorrow that someone got hurt. However those responses do not lead to repentance and those responses do not respond to God. They are all focused on me and how it affects me. That is not how I am to live my life, that is not how I am to love others, that is not how I am to love God. At least not if I want to call myself a Christian. Godly sorrow means genuine sorrow for what I have done. Godly sorrow means humble approach to God to confess my ways. Godly sorrow means genuine desire to repent, to turn from what I have done and to not return to it. Godly sorrow is what God wants from me. This is not and can no longer be about me and how I am affected. This is about God!

Dear God,

I thank you that I can rejoice in you. I thank you that you are the source of tangible, jump up and down joy! I thank you that you fill me with that sort of joy. I am sorry that I do not always live my life in a way that honours the joy you give me. I am sorry that I do things that are not what you have intended for my life. Today I come to you with my shortcomings, with my selfish desires and actions. I come to you humble and sorrowful. I come to you to repent. To turn. And to live in a manner that makes you joyful and makes you proud of the lessons you have taught me. You are the reason for my joy and I want to live in a way that makes you joyful. I want to shout and dance and tell the world to praise you because you are the God!! Thank you God. Thank you.

Amen

The Bank of God

Psalm 49; 1 Corinthians 16

Psalm 49 speaks a great deal about the fact that riches accumulated on earth cannot be taken past death into eternity. It declares that men cannot redeem men. There is no ransom that humans can pay to redeem each other. 1 Corinthians 16 speaks about the church giving financially and about supporting each other and those working for the Lord.

It was very interesting to read in Psalm 49 the statement about men redeeming men. Although this is something that very few people would explicitly state that they believe is possible, many people live as though it is. Many people stack up riches as though that is going to make a difference when we come before God. Now this is not a judgment by me on those with wealth. I believe that this passage is speaking specifically about wealth but I also believe we all have figurative riches that we like to accumulate. Perhaps it is recognition of all we have done or record of how much we have given away or perhaps what we do with our time. I think it is quite common for us to view our time as even more valuable than money. I think we often treat it as though it is the most valuable commodity on earth. While that is the case I believe that we like to think of tithing involving not just money but time or talents as well. It seems to me that this is because we would rather not talk about money and our personal finances and we often think that the pulpit is certainly not the place where what I do with my money is to be discussed. I was pleasantly surprised to see money spoken of so explicitly in the beginning of 1 Corinthians 16. Paul is essentially saying put aside money each Sunday so that when he comes there he won't have to harp on you about it. As Christians we have a responsibility to take care of those who are working for the Lord and we have a responsibility to take care of the Church and the church that God has entrusted us with. God has explicitly told us to give and give we must. The Bank of God will reward our faithfulness. However, that is not why we are to give. We are to give quite simply not for reward but because it is what God commands. As Christians that should be enough.

Personally, while giving regularly has become a discipline that is practiced in my family I believe that it is important to look for and take advantage of ways that I can further contribute financially and otherwise to the growing of God's kingdom. I must do this responsibly and that means trusting that God will show me how and when to give. I must be willing to respond when he speaks.

Dear God,

I thank you for all those who are doing your work across the world. I thank you for the blessings you have given me. Please help me to see where you are asking me to help out those who need it and help me to have a willing heart. Lord, I pray that you will help me to give not only because I am compelled to by you but because I desire to. Open my eyes Lord.

Amen

Grudge Match

Psalm 132; Matthew 18

Psalm 139 consists of an oath made by David and an oath made by God. There is emphasis on keeping one's word throughout the psalm. Matthew 17 consists of three parables and a lesson regarding what to do if your brother sins against you.

That is merely a superficial description of what is happening in these two passages. I put that at the beginning of the entry to set the stage for my thoughts and for what God has taught me through this study. I see psalm 132 as a prequel to what is happening in Matthew 18. Psalm 132 shows me that when God gives his word he is going to keep it. This is important to know because when it comes time to read Matthew 18 I begin to read it with a different tone knowing that God means what he says. This passage in Matthew is filled with what I would call well-known portions of scripture. There is the parable of the lost sheep, there is the time when the disciples ask Jesus who is greatest in the kingdom of heaven and he tells them to be like a child, the parable of the unmerciful servant rounds out the chapter. These are passages of scripture that most people in the church know the gist of. However there is some very serious and very intense stuff going on here. It starts out with Jesus saying we must be like children to enter the kingdom of heaven. Then Jesus says in verse 6, "But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea." Whoa! What is that? Whatever happened to the tender and loving Jesus that we all picture? He is just getting started too. Later he says to cut off your hand or your foot if it causes you to sin and to gouge out your eye if it is responsible for sin. I could spend weeks working through the serious and drastic words of Jesus in this chapter. However, keeping in mind that we know God keeps his word, I want to focus on the last verse of the chapter. Verse 35 says, "This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart." This verse comes at the end of the parable of the unmerciful servant. I do not have space to write out the entire parable here but go read Matthew 18:21-35. Basically Jesus says it will not be good at all for me if I do not forgive my brother from my heart.

So what does this mean for me? How does this play into my life? Jesus is saying that I must forgive my brother from my heart. And based on the rest of this chapter I believe that he is giving this instruction with a very serious tone. I am forced to ask what is forgiveness? Jesus is not asking merely for lip service here. It is not enough for me to merely tell someone that I forgive them and then continue to hold a grudge against them. That is not how God has forgiven me. I must forgive them from my heart. That means that any chip on my shoulder, any feelings of anger, any trace of that mental scowl must be wiped away and I must welcome them and acknowledge them with the love of Christ. That is freaking hard! So it is. Jesus is not messing around though. As Christians we have been forgiven of sins against God and are accepted lovingly into the kingdom of Heaven. The least we can do is forgive sins against each other. I am now striving to be conscious of any form of long-standing grudge or unresolved conflict that I will be reminded of. I must with the strength of God forgive those who are involved and do so from my heart.

Dear God,

Sometimes what you ask of us is very difficult and quite honestly is sometimes something we are not even interested in doing. However, I have made a commitment to follow you and to live by your standards. I have told you that I am giving my life to you. So whether I want to do something or not becomes irrelevant because I have given my life to you and it is yours now. So this life will be lived by your will. I will do my best to keep myself on your course. So if you bring across my path someone who I need to forgive I pray that you will give me the wisdom, the strength, and the desire to forgive that person from my heart and to see them as you do. While this will be challenging I am willing to do so because my deepest desire is to live my life for you.

Amen.

God is Bigger Than the Boogey Man

Psalm 68; Matthew 17

Psalm 68 is described as a psalm of David. Throughout this psalm David expresses how majestic and big God really is. He goes on at length to declare that there is nothing that can compare with the true majesty of God. Matthew 17 displays this greatness. The chapter begins with the description of the transfiguration, then Jesus heals a boy with a demon and the chapter concludes with what is described as the miracle of the temple tax.

When Matthew 17 is read along with Psalm 68 it becomes very difficult to argue with the greatness of God. It is apparent that David was right and that the rules and parameters of our world really cannot contain God. I cannot imagine what it would have been like for the disciples who witnessed the transfiguration. All of a sudden they see Jesus joined by what can be called the "greats" of the Bible. Elijah and Moses are standing there talking with Jesus. However it happened the disciples were able to identify these men they had not met in person. The experience was so surreal that they offered to build shelters for all three men. Looking back it seems like somewhat of a silly offer but I am not sure I would not have done the same thing in the same situation. Then as quickly as it happened it was over. a moment to be kept and treasured for the disciples. Jesus continues to display the lack of restrictions on God when he heals a boy with a demon and then tells the disciples that they could tell mountains to move if they had even a small amount of faith. Finally Jesus suggests that being the Son of God should exempt him from the tax but he decides to pay it to avoid offending people. He does prove his point though by causing the money for the tax to come out of the mouth of a fish.

As there does not seem to be any sense denying the greatness and the majesty of God I must apply this truth to my life. I cannot cause myself to become a better Christian and I cannot cause myself to have a better spiritual life. I cannot be the centre of worship. I especially cannot be the centre of my life. As a Christian I have an obligation to focus on God and the greatness of God. As a Christian I have a responsibility to truly put faith in God and not merely say that I am going to put my faith in Him. When I pray I must pray with the expectation and the faith that God will answer my prayers. If I have faith enough to pray expecting God to answer I trust that through that faith God will give me wisdom regarding what I should pray. Today I begin to have faith in God (that is different from saying today I will start to believe in God. That has been the case for as long as I can remember) and stop merely saying that I will put my faith in him.

Dear God,

I trust you. I know that you are bigger and better than anything or any person I can comprehend. Today I begin to pray to you with the respect you command and with the faith that you ask for. Today I put you at the centre. My life is not about me and about what I want but it is about you and what you are capable of and what you desire. Thank you for the opportunity to be a part of such an awesome life.

Amen

Preparation 2

Psalm 139; Matthew 16

Psalm 139 is a very well known Psalm. This is a Psalm that is probably even recognized by those who have never read the Bible. This Psalm speaks of the omnipresence of God. It speaks of how there is nowhere that a person can go to get away from God and at the same time there is nowhere that they will be abandoned by God. In Matthew 16 Jesus faces another test from the Pharisees. After this test Jesus begins to discuss with the disciples who he really is and he also tells them of his impending death.

The omnipresence of God is an interesting characteristic. It can be what people sometimes describe as a double-edged sword. On one hand it can be very comforting to know that no matter where we are or what we are doing or what situations that we are facing that God will always be and is always there. What comfort and security can be found in that! Having said that, it can also be looked at from the perspective that there is no escaping God. If ever we want to do something that we know may not be exactly what God wants us to do there is nowhere that we can go to hide from God. Jonah learned this first-hand. He ended up in the belly of a big fish! It means that if we tell God that we are going to follow him and obey him and give him our lives that there is really no room for any hypocrisy in that. What we say we are going to do and what we do had better be the same because God sees it all! When this psalm is read in conjunction with Matthew 17 it is easy to see and to focus on the benefit of having an omnipresent God. Jesus begins the chapter by telling the Pharisees that they will not receive a sign and then he instructs his disciples to beware the teachings of the Pharisees. This is an interesting instruction from Jesus because all along he has been with his disciples and has been there to refute the teachings of the Pharisees. All the disciples had to do was to sit back and watch. Not too hard. Except this time. This time Jesus warns them to be on their guard against the teachings of the Pharisees. The only reason that he would do this would be because he is no longer going to be with the disciples. Just as Jesus prepared himself for times of great faith demonstrations he is now preparing his disciples for times of great faith demonstrations. He takes the time to ensure that they really do know and understand who he is and what he has been doing with them. He tells them that he is going to die. This is a time when Jesus understands that the disciples need to be prepared for when he is no longer walking on the earth with them. The disciples training is ending and it is now time for them to get to work.

In my life this has an interesting application. If I am going to sit and be trained and learn from God but never take what I am learning and use it in my life, if I never live out in the world what God teaches me in my times of training then I am really not doing what he has asked me to do. I can sit here at the computer and type out great ideas and sound so spiritual and like it is all together. But if I am not living out and practically applying my lessons to my life then it is all for not. Being a Christian is not a theoretical relationship with God. It is a real relationship with real life impact and real consequences. God has called me to actively live for him and to take what I am learning and to share it. So here goes.

Dear God,

It is scary sometimes. You ask me to do hard things. You ask me to do things that I am not comfortable with. I know that I can trust that no matter where I am and no matter what I am doing that you will be there with me, but I am still nervous. I have been taught a number of lessons by you and I look forward to being taught more. Now though even as I am still learning I must take you out of the safety of my home and into the real world with me. The lessons that I have learned and shared here must be learned and shared with the people I meet. I ask that you will drive me out of my comfort zone....this is a scary prayer because I can only imagine the potential that a prayer like that holds.....but do drive me out of the comfort of my home. Help me to embrace the opportunities that you place before me to share you and your love and the lessons that you have taught me. Help me to do so with a positive attitude and with a trust in you that will comfort my fears and my nerves. Lord, I have committed myself to serve you, so let's get at it!

Amen.

Mouthwash

Matthew 15

Mathew 15 continues on with reports of events in the ministry of Jesus. It includes Jesus responding to a challenge from the Pharisees and then taking the time to explain his response to his disciples. Also, there is a report of Jesus healing the daughter of a Canaanite woman who demonstrated great faith. Finally Jesus feeds more than four thousand people with only seven loaves of bread and a few small fish.

There are a number of very interesting aspects of the passage today that have caught my attention. First I think it is particularly interesting that despite all that Jesus has done the thing that the Pharisees have a problem with is the fact that the disciples do not wash their hands before they eat. While in studying the Pharisees there is more to their complaint than just the surface issue it does seem to be a little silly. However, the response that Jesus gives is brilliant. In verse 11 Jesus says, "What goes into a man's mouth does not make him 'unclean,' but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him 'unclean.' " This is a truth that should stick with us forever. If this was a motto that people around the world used today it would probably change the world in countless ways. How often are we so quick to speak and to say something without considering all the consequences? How many of us have ever regretted saying something or have said something that "came out wrong?" If only we took the time to remember that it is what comes out of our mouths that makes us unclean.

Later on in the chapter Jesus is approached by a Canaanite woman who is begging and crying for him to heal her daughter who is demon-possessed. By the end of the report Jesus is impressed with the woman's faith and does heal her daughter. However, I find his initial response to be very interesting. He responds by saying, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel." (verse 24) This seems like a very cold and abrasive response from Jesus. I imagine that it is some sort of test or lesson that Jesus is trying to teach but I have not quite figured out what it is that he is doing when he responds in this way.

Finally, in the chapter Jesus has been healing a large group of people and he decides that he should feed them before he sends them off. He tells this to his disciples and they respond that there are only seven loaves of bread and a few fish. There were more than four thousand people to be fed. I am amazed at how quickly the disciples have forgotten about Jesus feeding the five thousand people with less food. This is documented in the previous chapter. Logically I would think the disciples would say to each other, "Remember last time? We are set!" Then I look at myself and am amazed at how much I have to be reminded of lessons that God has taught me only days earlier. Maybe the disciples are not so bad after all.

There are two main lessons from today's scripture that I am realizing that I need to apply to my life right now. First, I need to recognize and be conscious of the fact that it is what comes out of my mouth that can make me unclean. I must be cautious with my words, even in jest. What comes out of my mouth should reflect the God I serve and not the sinful nature from which he saves me. My words need to be God glorifying and truly honouring and respectful. The second lesson that I must bring into my life is that if God teaches me something I need to hold onto that golden nugget and truly apply it to my life. Not just for a day or for a week but truly make it a part of my life. I learn the lesson and must not keep going back to God to teach me the same thing over and over again.

Dear God,

I am so grateful that you are patient with me. I am stumbling through this relationship with you as best as I can. I am awkward and slow to learn. Forgive me. I know that you teach me lessons for a reason and I desire to truly learn those lessons and to keep them with me as I journey. I see today that my words can be powerful and I must be very aware of what I say and how I say it. I want my words to honour you and to reflect who you are. Please guide my words and please help me to control my words and examine them before they leave my mouth. Make me aware of words that will keep me clean and words that will make me unclean. God please teach me and grow me.

Amen