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[Small Group] Psalm 65 – How?

As we continue our study of Psalm 65, we continue to the question of HOW?

We gained a mental picture of our actors in the first question WHO? Then we gained a mental picture of the stage and environment in the question WHEN/WHERE?

Now we will ask the question HOW?

Our goal is to now summarize and picture what happened and the sequence of events. A good way to tackle this is to consider — If you were writing out a script and recreating this as a child would in a play or game, what is the general order of events?

Matthew Henry’s commentary ( https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/mhc/Psa/Psa_065.cfm ) says about the order of events in this Psalm:

In this psalm we are directed to give to God the glory of his power and goodness, which appear,

I. In the kingdom of grace (v. 1), hearing prayer (v. 2), pardoning sin (v. 3), satisfying the souls of the people (v. 4), protecting and supporting them (v. 5).

II. In the kingdom of Providence, fixing the mountains (v. 6), calming the sea (v. 7), preserving the regular succession of day and night (v. 8), and making the earth fruitful (v. 9-13).

And we can find other commentaries online like Scott Shauf ( https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=954 ) who says similarly:

When one surveys Psalm 65 as a whole, what is most striking is the breadth of the psalm’s subject matter.

It begins with praise to God in Zion (verse 1), a setting which continues through verse 4. Even here the topics of praise are varied, including prayer being answered (verse 2), sins being forgiven (verse 3), and the blessedness of dwelling with God (verse 4). Verse 5 turns briefly to God’s mighty acts of deliverance but then quickly moves to “the ends of the earth” and “the farthest seas.” This global setting stays in view through verse 8, asserting God’s might with references to the mountains (verse 6), the seas and the “tumult of peoples” (verse 7), and the farthest points east and west (verse 8).

Verses 9-13 maintain the focus on the earth, but the emphasis moves from God’s might to God’s bounty in the harvest, which is described in lavishly descriptive language.

So if we could summarize in our own simple words, we might say something like —

SCRIPT:

1) All praise is rightfully due to you, oh God, you are worthy to be praised and lifted high, oh Lord!

2) You hear and answer our prayers. All men must come to the One from whom all blessings flow.

3) Even though in our weakness, we have fallen victim to all kinds of sin and region against you, even though not even one of us is righteous before you in and of ourselves — in your grace and mercy you have forgiven us, you have purged us, you have atoned for us, and cast our sins away from your sight.

4) It is you who have chosen us and brought us into your presence where we could not have survived, but that we now live. In fact, we are now the very temple of your holy presence — and we are the body, the physical vessels of your will being done here on earth as it is in heaven.

5) You are the source of our salvation, and it is an awesome work that you have done in our hearts and minds and desires –as you have not only given us a firm hope, but you deliver us into righteousness and holiness that was as far from our grasp as the ends of the earth or the farthest star in the sky.

6 & 7) Your mighty power is seen not only in creation of, but also in your sovereignty over, even the mountains and the seas and even over all of mankind.

8) Those who stand back and consider the things that the Lord God Almighty has done are overcome in awe at the evidence of your presence, even if they only were to consider the rising or setting of the sun.

9-13) And the visitation of your presence, the inhabitation of your creation by the Holy Spirit of its very own creator — it births an outpouring of life — and the earth and all in it are blessed — and everything with breath in creation will sing your praises.

Obviously, my “script” that came from me identifying the HOW? is not a word by word translation, but it is something that I can understand and grasp — and when combined in my mind with the actors and stage we’ve already discussed in the previous two lessons, it can begin to take a firm shape within my mind’s eye — within what my imagination can grasp hold of more easily. And in turn, it should be something that is more easily relatable to me personally, and is something that I can more easily share with another.

Yours won’t be exactly like mine either, so there’s no copying off of someone else’s paper for this type of study. In fact, there should be enough differences in each of our scripts that we can each likely pick up on things that another person noticed as important that maybe we missed, etc. This is what makes this process so valuable and revealing in a group of people with different perspectives and gifts and seasons of life. That’s why I’m so excited to see what we all have as a group once we gather together to discuss next Wednesday night!

I believe that is enough for tonight, but I encourage you to practice this on your own. Break it down into parts that make sense to you, then put it in your own words that are still true to the heart of the message but that are also a short/quick/easy summary as if you were relaying the story second-hand to someone without a copy of the written text to reference.

Next, we will tackle the question of WHY?

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[Small Group] Psalm 65 – Where/When?

Continued from yesterday: https://hballinger.com/2018/01/12/small-group-psalm-65-who/

Psalm 65 itself doesn’t outright tell us when or where David wrote this Psalm. When I come to a question that I cannot answer by myself, I remember the wise advice about seeking counsel from others that is in the Bible.

You can find a wealth of information on that topic here: https://www.openbible.info/topics/wise_counsel

In this case, we are going to look at “Commentaries”. I have various physical, paper commentaries that I keep in my beside bookshelf and in my study/office, but we are going to stick to the commentaries we can easily reference online for the benefit of us researching this together.

Don’t just read what I’ve written in this post, but follow the links I provide and walk through the process yourself. This will help you learn to do this yourself. And my goal is not to gather a bunch of people listening silently in the pews with an occasional “like” as a virtual “Amen” to my “preaching”, but my goal is for you to be a disciple yourself — a student of the Word of God — a follower of Jesus who will have an active and saving Faith and a living testimony of living, serving, and sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ to all the nations.

A few great places for multiple online Bible commentaries are here:

https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/

http://biblehub.com/commentaries/

https://www.blueletterbible.org/commentaries/

Many of these sites have links to the related commentaries directly from the page when you go to the scripture itself on their sure as well.

I usually end up with Matthew Henry’s commentary first when working online because Google seems to provide his first if you search for something like “Psalm 65 commentary”: https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/mhc/Psa/Psa_065.cfm

But we can see after reading through it, that Mr. Henry gives us no clear opinion on specifically when or where David might have written this Psalm. Since David is primarily talking about the glory of God’s goodness and power and not about something in His own life, there are few clues that point to a point along the timeline of David’s life.

If we ask Google more specifically “When did David write psalm 65”, it leads us to this exposition/ commentary:

https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/treasury-of-david/psalms-65-1.html

And we can find a section with three parts that read:

Whole Psalm. The author of the Psalm is mentioned, but not the date of its composition; but from an examination of its contents, it would seem to have been intended as a song for the “day of atonement,” and for the “feast of tabernacles,” which followed immediately after. Numbers 29:7 Numbers 29:12 . The sins of the year were then “covered over,” and a thorough purification of the sanctuary was made by a special service of expiation. The labours of the year were all by that time concluded, and its fruits secured; and Israel could look on the goodness of God towards them, through its entire extent; and this Psalm was penned to serve as a fitting expression of their feelings. It opens with a reference to the “silence” that reigned in the sanctuary; to the profound, unbroken, solemn stillness that reigned within it; while, in deep abasement, the people without waited in hushed expectation the return of their high priest from the immediate presence of God, Leviticus 16:17 . It goes on to a statement of the blessedness of those who are accepted of God, and admitted to fellowship with One so unspeakably great; and concludes with a description of the various processes by which the Almighty had fitted the earth to yield a year’s supplies for his people. Dalman Hapstone, in “The Ancient Psalms in appropriate Meters… with Notes.” 1867.

Whole Psalm. We have here a psalm of thanksgiving to be sung in the Temple during a public festivity, at which the sacrifices were to be offered which had been vowed during a long and protracted drought ( Psalms 65:1-2 ). To the thanksgiving, however, for a gracious rain, and the hope of an abundant harvest ( Psalms 65:9-14 ), is added gratitude for a signal deliverance during a time of distress and commotion affecting all the nations around ( Psalms 65:7-8 ). Thus the Psalm becomes a song of praise to Jehovah as the God of history and the God of nature, alike. From the “Psalms Chronologically Arranged. By Four Friends.” 1867.

Whole Psalm. This is a charming psalm. Coming after the previous sad ones, it seems like the morning after the darkness of night. There is a dewy freshness about it, and from the ninth verse to the end there is a sweet succession of landscape pictures that remind one of the loveliness of spring; and truly it is a description, in natural figures, of that happy state of men’s minds which will be the result of the “Day spring’s visiting us from on high.” Luke 1:7-8 . O. Prescott Hiller.

The first commentary speaks more primarily to the authorship, the facts, and the likely circumstances surrounding David’s writing this Psalm. The second commentary speaks more to this Psalm’s use in religious ceremonies and how it might have fit into the “Hymnal” of the day. The last focusses on the feel and the mood and the atmosphere of the Psalm itself.

Understanding all three of these components I believe will seriously help us in creating the stage in our minds for today’s question of WHERE/WHEN? today where our actors from yesterday’s question of WHO? so that this Psalm can begin to come alive within our mind’s recreation that we are working so hard in this study to see fully manifested.

That’s probably enough for this post, but dig more into the commentaries if you like. See if you can find even more that we can consider about this stage as we are building in our mind’s eye a complete picture, in order to better understand this Psalm.

Next post, we will continue our work on the questions…

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Beautiful Nails

Today, I’m a business man at work in my cubicle with painted fingernails and toes.

As I showered this morning, I couldn’t imagine washing this beautiful color from my nails:

NailsLR

 

And it isn’t because I went to a high dollar salon where the most popular stylist made me look beautiful. It isn’t because the most expensive products had been applied to my fingers to confirm that I could afford such luxuries. It wasn’t because I wanted to show up and make a statement or draw attention to myself. No, it didn’t have to do with anything like that.

My daughter did this to me. In fact, she did it for me. And her smile and her laughter and her love in that moment is a treasure that I dare not forget. I don’t wear this polish today because it is the best by the standards of the world, but it is the absolute best her heart had to offer her daddy last night, and it is more beautiful than the Mona Lisa TO ME.

I wonder if many of us worry about the quality of the sacrifices we might be able to offer up to God and decide to not even make the effort? I wonder if sometimes we forget that it isn’t the burnt offerings, the money in the plate, the time surrendered itself that is beautiful or detestable to the Lord — it is who it is coming from and the heart behind it. No “thing” we could offer our God is a worthy sacrifice, that is true. But when it comes from His Children, offering something in love and gratitude to their “Good Father”, it becomes treasured, valuable, priceless.

This visible nail polish on my hands today are so very precious to me that I don’t care what looks I might get or what questions may come — because I LOVE MY DAUGHTER. Jesus Christ also bears something on his body that shows His love for you.

HeChosetheNails

He took the stripes and the nails and the crown of thorns and the spear thrust into His side for you, and He wears them because of HIS LOVE FOR YOU. And He also accepts bottles of perfume and tears from His precious children.

Luke 7:36-50 (NLT)
Jesus Anointed by a Sinful Woman
One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to have dinner with him, so Jesus went to his home and sat down to eat. When a certain immoral woman from that city heard he was eating there, she brought a beautiful alabaster jar filled with expensive perfume. Then she knelt behind him at his feet, weeping. Her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them off with her hair. Then she kept kissing his feet and putting perfume on them.

When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him. She’s a sinner!”

Then Jesus answered his thoughts. “Simon,” he said to the Pharisee, “I have something to say to you.”

“Go ahead, Teacher,” Simon replied.

Then Jesus told him this story: “A man loaned money to two people—500 pieces of silver to one and 50 pieces to the other. But neither of them could repay him, so he kindly forgave them both, canceling their debts. Who do you suppose loved him more after that?”

Simon answered, “I suppose the one for whom he canceled the larger debt.”

“That’s right,” Jesus said. Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Look at this woman kneeling here. When I entered your home, you didn’t offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You didn’t greet me with a kiss, but from the time I first came in, she has not stopped kissing my feet. You neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed my feet with rare perfume.

“I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.” Then Jesus said to the woman, “Your sins are forgiven.”

The men at the table said among themselves, “Who is this man, that he goes around forgiving sins?”

And Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Do not turn back from showing Him love for what He has done for you because the liar has convinced you that you have nothing valuable or worthy to give.

Mark 12:41-44 (NLT)
The Widow’s Offering
Jesus sat down near the collection box in the Temple and watched as the crowds dropped in their money. Many rich people put in large amounts. Then a poor widow came and dropped in two small coins.

Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has given more than all the others who are making contributions. For they gave a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she had to live on.”

Come, paint his nails with your tears, with your troubles, with your praises, with your prayers, with your time learning to draw close to Him by the Word of God, with your loving service – and see how a life laid down, when you give Him all you have to give, even though it seems like so little to offer in return, is a treasure and a glory to God.

 

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[Small Group] Psalm 65 – WHO?

Psalm 65 (AMP)

God’s Abundant Favor to Earth and Man.

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. A Song.

To You belongs silence [the submissive wonder of reverence], and [it bursts into] praise in Zion, O God;
And to You the vow shall be performed.O You who hear prayer,
To You all mankind comes.Wickedness and guilt prevail against me;
Yet as for our transgressions,
You forgive them [removing them from Your sight].

Blessed is the one whom You choose and bring near
To dwell in Your courts.
We will be filled with the goodness of Your house,
Your holy temple.

By awesome and wondrous things You answer us in righteousness, O God of our salvation,
You who are the trust and hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest sea;Who creates the mountains by His strength,
Being clothed with power,Who stills the roaring of the seas,
The roaring of their waves,
And the tumult of the peoples,So they who dwell at the ends of the earth stand in awe of Your signs [the evidence of Your presence].
You make the dawn and the sunset shout for joy.
You visit the earth and make it overflow [with water];
You greatly enrich it;
The stream of God is full of water;
You provide their grain, when You have prepared the earth.You water its furrows abundantly,
You smooth its ridges;
You soften it with showers,
You bless its growth.You crown the year with Your bounty,
And Your paths overflow.

The pastures of the wilderness drip [with dew],
And the hills are encircled with joy.

The meadows are clothed with flocks
And the valleys are covered with grain;
They shout for joy and they sing.

So let’s examine the WHO? of this Psalm.

I would say this Psalm has the following that should be considered while reading it:

  • PERSON: David, the author
  • PERSON: God, the creator
  • TYPE: Mankind, made in His likeness
  • TYPE: World, His creation

And as we continue our study of Psalms, David has regularly been a part of our list of people, groups, and types. We see in David’s writing this Psalm, that he clearly and he fully appreciates his position in comparison to God, the other “person”, who we also see in this Psalm:

“Wickedness and guilt prevail against me;
Yet as for our transgressions,
You forgive them [removing them from Your sight].”

This “confession of sorts” from David should establish for us something about how David sees himself in comparison to God.

Let’s look at the word prevail in that first line:

If something prevails over us, it has overcome us, it has proven itself stronger.

So David acknowledges that he is overcome by both “wickedness and guilt“ in this Amplified translation. We will see similar wording in other English translations as well.

However, the Hebrew here is a single Hebrew word:

Looking at the definition of dabar primarily pointing towards speech and words, this reminds me of something Jesus said that seems to fit in this circumstance:

The good man, from his [inner] good treasure, brings out good things; and the evil man, from his [inner] evil treasure, brings out evil things. But I tell you, on the day of judgment people will have to give an accounting for every careless or useless word they speak. For by your words [reflecting your spiritual condition] you will be justified and acquitted of the guilt of sin; and by your words [rejecting Me] you will be condemned and sentenced.”
MATTHEW 12:35‭-‬37 AMP

And it also reminds me of

But now the righteousness of God has been clearly revealed [independently and completely] apart from the Law, though it is [actually] confirmed by the Law and the [words and writings of the] Prophets. This righteousness of God comes through faith in Jesus Christ for all those [Jew or Gentile] who believe [and trust in Him and acknowledge Him as God’s Son]. There is no distinction, since all have sinned and continually fall short of the glory of God, and are being justified [declared free of the guilt of sin, made acceptable to God, and granted eternal life] as a gift by His [precious, undeserved] grace, through the redemption [the payment for our sin] which is [provided] in Christ Jesus, whom God displayed publicly [before the eyes of the world] as a [life-giving] sacrifice of atonement and reconciliation (propitiation) by His blood [to be received] through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness [which demands punishment for sin], because in His forbearance [His deliberate restraint] He passed over the sins previously committed [before Jesus’ crucifixion]. It was to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the One who justifies those who have faith in Jesus [and rely confidently on Him as Savior].
ROMANS 3:21‭-‬26 AMP

Yes, I can see here that David is not claiming his own righteousness(he just confessed that sin had prevailed over him), but he is here acknowledging that God forgives them.

David acknowledges that our transgressions (the Hebrew pesha):

We see they are purged away, covered, atoned for by the Lord:

And this is the Good News since the beginning, seen yet again here to remind us of the covenant relationship between God and His people. We are weak, but He is strong. Even when we have failed Him and not loved Him, He has still loved us and offered us His mercy and grace.

While we were still helpless [powerless to provide for our salvation], at the right time Christ died [as a substitute] for the ungodly. Now it is an extraordinary thing for one to willingly give his life even for an upright man, though perhaps for a good man [one who is noble and selfless and worthy] someone might even dare to die. But God clearly shows and proves His own love for us, by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Therefore, since we have now been justified [declared free of the guilt of sin] by His blood, [how much more certain is it that] we will be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, it is much more certain, having been reconciled, that we will be saved [from the consequences of sin] by His life [that is, we will be saved because Christ lives today].
ROMANS 5:6‭-‬10 AMP

Having addressed the two PERSONS (individuals) of the WHO? question for this Psalm (David and God), now we will talk about the TYPES that we can recognize hee as well.

We could include the world and mankind in the WHERE? question that comes later, and I believe we probably will once we get there, but I believe we should include both in the WHO? question as well, because there are things in this Psalm where there are exchanges between these two types and the Lord. There are interchanges and interactions that can be seen with each, so they play an active and participatory role as “characters in the story” and not just as the passive settings or environment in which this Psalm takes place.

For example, we see:

O You who hear prayer,
To You all mankind comes.

So “the Lord hears prayer”,

Yes this is in fact — “mankind coming in to the Lord”…

“mankind“:

“Coming in to the Lord“:

There is this interaction between God and His people – not just on a personal level as we saw particularly with David, but as a type, as “mankind” that we see as well.

We see it further played out in the relationship between mankind and God in the following verses:

Blessed is the one whom You choose and bring near
To dwell in Your courts.
We will be filled with the goodness of Your house,
Your holy temple.By awesome and wondrous things You answer us in righteousness, O God of our salvation,
You who are the trust and hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest sea;

Yes, there are ones He chooses:

And He is our salvation and our hope:

We can see this right relationship again established with our dependence upon God and not upon ourselves. We can see that this is available to all who might come:

Opening his mouth, Peter said: “Most certainly I understand now that God is not one to show partiality [to people as though Gentiles were excluded from God’s blessing], but in every nation the person who fears God and does what is right [by seeking Him] is acceptable and welcomed by Him.
ACTS 10:34‭-‬35 AMP

And our last type in our study of the WHO? of this Psalm is the World/Creation. You might have even noticed that we started out with God’s relationship to David, then to Mankind, and now to the whole of Creation — almost as if we were on a rocket ship that had departed from David’s presence and the higher we go up, the more that we see how things that once seemed individual are just parts of a greater whole.

The rest of this Psalm discusses the many ways that God not only has sovereignty and power over every facet of His creation, but that He shows favor in and through His creation:

You visit the earth and make it overflow [with water];
You greatly enrich it;
The stream of God is full of water;
You provide their grain, when You have prepared the earth.You water its furrows abundantly,
You smooth its ridges;
You soften it with showers,
You bless its growth.You crown the year with Your bounty,
And Your paths overflow.

The pastures of the wilderness drip [with dew],
And the hills are encircled with joy.

The meadows are clothed with flocks
And the valleys are covered with grain;
They shout for joy and they sing.

So that covers the WHO? question fairly reasonably for now. So we’ll continue on in our study of this Psalm later this week.

God bless you, and may He continue to reveal Himself more in His Word and in your living testimony, child of God!

hballinger1 Comment

Keep your chain letters…

Please, I’m going to give you a piece of advice if you message or email me:

Keep your chain letters to yourself.

Some great verses that apply to chain letters: https://www.openbible.info/topics/chain_letters

They are mostly lies, and most people never actually care enough about the message to look into it to see how they could help, or how they could better pray, or to see if the issue has already been resolved by the Lord before they even received the message themselves. Many people don’t even say a heartfelt prayer for the person or the message or examine what this should show them about their own hearts in drawing them closer to the Lord in humble prayer, but they say a quick, religious and obligatory, “Hey God, take care of this for me, will you?” and just forward the message along, with no actual work of the Holy Spirit having taken place at all. And they might have even carelessly perpetrated a lie by passing it along.

1 John 4:1 ESV

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.

So I’ll say it again:

Keep your chain letters to yourself.

Because I used to look into them — into each one of them. And I found them all to be utter lies and nonsense. And not only that, but when I’ve shared the truth with those who have sent them to me, somehow I end up being the bad guy for tearing down their comfortable “Christian works” of spreading lies to more unsuspecting folks in their friends list.

Let me show you a real world example of what happened today, and what is pretty much the running theme of what happens when I receive yet another chain letter from someone. This is actually from my Facebook Messenger thread, but I’ve added the graphics on the right to make a point:

Don't Want To hear Truth

In this case, I pointed out that it was fake, provided evidence, and pointed out that I’ve received these same messages multiple times over the years and they have always been lies. Even though I wanted to, I didn’t even mention who the father of lies was…

And then “This came from my Pastor!” — with a capital “P” no less!

I guess that she expected that I might say “Oh, then it must be true and all evidence to the contrary must be lies — and all the past times that it proved to be lies must have also been somehow true as well — since I’m sure you believe wholeheartedly that he is clearly not a child of His father, the devil, and that you can fully trust in a man.” But no. I must speak the truth, and I do not take it as truth just because it comes from a man who has accepted a title and gathered unto himself a people.

This link is a great reference to wonderful scriptures about not putting your trust in a man: https://www.openbible.info/topics/trust_no_man

So, I’m blocked again. But at least the number of lies showing up in my inbox is lower today. I just pray and trust that truth wins out.

Why is it that truth is so hated sometimes?

Matthew 23 (AMP)

Pharisaism Exposed

23 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, 2 saying: “The scribes and Pharisees have seated themselves in Moses’ chair [of authority as teachers of the Law]; 3 so practice and observe everything they tell you, but do not do as they do; for they preach [things], but do not practice them. 4 The scribes and Pharisees tie up [a]heavy loads [that are hard to bear] and place them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves will not lift a finger [to make them lighter]. 5 They do all their deeds to be seen by men; for they make their [b]phylacteries (tefillin) wide [to make them more conspicuous] and make their [c]tassels long.6 They love the place of distinction and honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues [those on the platform near the scrolls of the Law, facing the congregation], 7 and to be greeted [with respect] in the market places and public forums, and to have people call them Rabbi.8 But do not be called Rabbi (Teacher); for One is your Teacher, and you are all [equally] brothers. 9 Do not call anyone on earth [who guides you spiritually] your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.10 Do not let yourselves be called leaders or teachers; for One is your Leader (Teacher), the Christ. 11 But the greatest among you will be your servant. 12 Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be raised to honor.

Eight Woes

13 “But woe (judgment is coming) to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven in front of people; for you do not enter yourselves, nor do you allow those who are [in the process of] entering to do so. 14 [d][Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you swallow up widows’ houses, and to cover it up you make long prayers; therefore you will receive the greater condemnation.]

15 “Woe to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel over sea and land to make a single proselyte (convert to Judaism), and when he becomes a convert, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.

16 “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears [an oath] by the sanctuary of the temple, that is nothing (non-binding); but whoever swears [an oath] by the gold of the temple is obligated [as a debtor to fulfill his vow and keep his promise].’ 17 You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the sanctuary of the temple that sanctified the gold? 18 And [you scribes and Pharisees say], ‘Whoever swears [an oath] by the altar, that is nothing (non-binding), but whoever swears [an oath] by the offering on it, he is obligated [as a debtor to fulfill his vow and keep his promise].’ 19 You [spiritually] blind men, which is more important, the offering, or the altar that sanctifies the offering?20 Therefore, whoever swears [an oath] by the altar, swears both by it and by everything [offered] on it. 21 And whoever swears [an oath] by the sanctuary of the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells within it. 22 And whoever swears [an oath] by heaven, swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.

23 “Woe to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you give a tenth (tithe) of your mint and dill and cumin [focusing on minor matters], and have neglected the weightier [more important moral and spiritual] provisions of the Law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the [primary] things you ought to have done without neglecting the others. 24 You [spiritually] blind guides, who strain out a gnat [consuming yourselves with miniscule matters] and swallow a camel [ignoring and violating God’s precepts]!

25 “Woe to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of extortion and robbery and self-indulgence (unrestrained greed). 26 You[spiritually] blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the plate [examine and change your inner self to conform to God’s precepts], so that the outside [your public life and deeds] may be clean also.

27 “Woe to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which look beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. 28 So you, also, outwardly seem to be just and upright to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

29 “Woe to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build tombs for the prophets and decorate and adorn the monuments of the righteous, 30 and you say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have joined them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Fill up, then, the [allotted] measure of the guilt of your fathers’ sins. 33 You [e]serpents, you spawn of vipers, how can you escape the penalty of hell?

34 “Therefore, take notice, I am sending you prophets and wise men[interpreters, teachers] and scribes [men educated in the Mosaic Law and the writings of the prophets]; some of them you will kill and evencrucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues, and pursue andpersecute from city to city, 35 so that on you will come the guilt of all the blood of the righteous shed on earth, from the blood of righteous [f]Abel to the blood of Zechariah [the priest], the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36 I assure you and most solemnly say to you, [the judgment for] all these things [these vile and murderous deeds] will come on this generation.

Lament over Jerusalem

37 “[g]O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who murders the prophets and stones [to death] those [messengers] who are sent to her [by God]! How often I wanted to gather your children together [around Me], as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. 38 Listen carefully: your house is being left to you desolate [completely abandoned by God and destitute of His protection]! 39 For I say to you, you will not see Me again [ministering to you publicly] until you say, ‘Blessed [to be celebrated with praise] is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’”

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[Small Group] A New Season of Faith

We had a wonderful gathering last night at our house to kick off another season of Bible study. We discussed James 5:13-20, “The Prayer of Faith” and it was a great outline for our gathering. We enjoyed a wonderful meal, so huge thanks to Mandee and Kim for keeping us fed so well!

We shared testimonies as a group of our sufferings and rejoicings that we had gone through since pour last gathering — and how powerful we have seen the Lord moving!

We then broke up into the men gathering downstairs and the ladies upstairs and we confessed our sins to one another, shared intimately with each other, and prayed fervently for each other.

Finally, we came back together to wrap things up and come into unity of purpose and direction for the week ahead. We are so thankful for friends that are truly “family in Christ” and we love the opportunity we are given to walk through this life together, being there for each other, in prayer, encouragement, accountability, love, and service to each other.

I encourage you with this song this morning: https://youtu.be/5rvuDYP_jLY

Also, for study this week, let’s read Psalms 65-68.

Pray for the Lord to reveal His wisdom to your heart and spirit, not for you to just acquire knowledge in your mind. And pray that you won’t doubt and that it won’t be stolen away. Trust Him. He is faithful and true.

Keep a journal by your side while studying and take notes in it – not just of the answers, but anything that jumps out to you while studying.

Read through each Psalm once, all the way through.

Then ask yourself the following questions:

1) Who?

2) When/where?

3) How?(What?)

4) Why?

NOTE: With the first three, we are trying to intentionally and consciously paint a picture in our minds (or walk out a play or movie in our minds) that activates our senses and draws us in like a good movie does. This is a creative exercise for our minds, like a child’s faithful “make believe” game, not just a factual/academic exercise.

Who?
Who are the people or groups of people involved in this (author, spoken of, spoken to, playing a part in it, etc)?

When/where?
What is the background/stage/ environment for this text? What would it have looked like, felt like, smelled like, sounded like or even tasted like? If you were going to make a video to recreate this Psalm, how would you set up the stage for the actors?

How?
Can you summarize and picture what happened and the sequence of events? If you were writing out a script and recreating this as a child would in a play or game, what is the general order of events?

NOTE: Now we have stepped through the above, we will step past “just the facts” and surface level written letter “meaning” of the passage and move on to application.

The Why?

“The why inside them”
What is an underlying message or theme the people “inside the story” or the author would have been learning or teaching through this passage?

“The why through Christ”
How does knowing what we know today about the life and teachings of Christ reveal something new or additional or parallel to this passage? Is there a way that we can understand or find parallels in this passage?

“The why inside me”
If we are truly Christians at heart and not just claimed by name, we have the spirit of Christ in us. Knowing this about ourselves and knowing our identity in Christ, what does this teach us, or stir up in us, or convict us to repent of?

NOTE: This is a method of study that I use with my daughter as we read through the Bible together, and it is one of the primary and most profitable ways I have found to approach studying scripture in a way that makes it real, makes it memorable, and makes it effectively applicable for my day to day life.

This approach takes time that is still, quiet, and focused on the Word of God. I know that many of us have busy lives where God may only have had access to our left overs in the past. This is not me judging you or condemning you, I’m just speaking the truth about many times in our lives when we have let other things take priority over God and we have missed out on blessings and growth and kingdom opportunities as a result. I promise that this approach will bear riches for you of you try it. And quality is king here, not quantity. It would be better to dive into this fully committed to the method and to seeing just one passage “come alive” to you — rather than rushing through it like a last minute homework assignment so you can say to yourself that you finished all four Psalms before time to turn in your work.

If you feel stuck or stumped, walk away from the book and spend time praising the Lord for the wisdom you know He is planting in your heart through time in His Word, even if you can’t yet see the fruit of it in your mind, etc.

And let’s stay in touch with each other this week and actively pray for each other. God bless you, dear family!

Extra Credit: If you make it through this process and are still hungry for more study, feel free to then look at the questions in the Wiersbe Study guide lesson 4 to see what Wiersbe has to share with you about these four Psalms.

Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit. My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
James 5:13‭-‬20 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/jas.5.13-20.ESV

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What a rollercoaster!

What an amazing rollercoaster yesterday was!

We woke up to family devotionals that pushed us to trust in the Lord, and I got ready and hurried to church for praise team practice where the Holy Spirit fell on us so thick and amazing that none of us wanted to stop praising.

As we finished up and prepared for the actual service, two of our very close friends came in to visit with us at The Well, so I was excited to see them. After we finished praise and worship, they checked their phones because their teenage daughter was driving to their church and usually sends them a text message when she gets there. They stepped out to check and realized they had missed a phone call from Spartanburg Regional and that their daughter’s GPS tracking on her phone was not showing her at the church.

Even though the hospital couldn’t confirm when they called to see if their daughter was there, now the GPS was showing her phone at the hospital. So they asked if we could keep their younger daughter after service and they rushed out to the hospital, tearful and unsure of what was happening. I hit my face in the aisle even as the pastor was continuing service and wet the floor with prayerful, hopeful, hurting tears of compassion for these dear friends, knowing that the uncertainty was a heavy burden as they rushed to the hospital.

We waited for a text, but none came, so we continued in the service, and at the end, I gathered the elders to pray. Then I rushed off to the hospital as Mandee took the Mia and their younger daughter home to our house. As I was on the way, Mandee confirmed they were in ICU. I sent a text to the leadership at their church (our old church) and knew that we now had two large bodies of believers seeking God over this shocking situation. I sent a text to our small group that meets in our house that all know them close and personal, and to my closest kingdom friends. It was time for battle, so the call went out to ready the troops.

I arrived at the hospital, checked for directions and room number and they sent me to the Neuro ICU. I continued praying, not knowing what I could even say or do at a time like this. I let them know that I was there and they called me in, and there was their daughter — I should really say “our daughter” because they are closer to us than most of our blood family. Her body was shuddering erratically while she lay unconscious, and there were so many machines, tubes, protective gloves over her hands, and most noticeably a ventilator tube going into her mouth. And mom and dad were on each side of the bed, clinging to her close — and just in complete shock.

I didn’t even know if I was wanted there in this moment, if I was intruding upon this moment. I had no idea what do say or do, because I was overcome myself. But their family urged me in close with them saying, “They need you.” So we prayed. We had a “come to Jesus” moment where I cried out, not acting like we understood better, not blaming the Lord, but asking the Lord how in the midst of our seeking to bring Him praise we should be torn from that to find our loved one seemingly broken before us. And it wasn’t prayed in anger but in hopes that we could understand, because at this moment we were hanging on by faith alone, clinging to the promises of the Word of God, and trusting that He knows better than us.

But still hurting.

We finished praying WITH the Lord, to the creator and the healer, to Almighty God the Father, imploring Jesus Christ our great intercessor, asking for the power of the Holy Spirit to move and heal and restore today as He has done in the past. And the weight in the room lifted enough that our precious friends who had been muted by their grief could now speak just a few words, even in their still shell-shocked state.

So we hugged, we cried, we stood together, and I even fell on my face again, wetting the second patch of floor this day over a burden so heavy to bear over to the cross. She was not responsive — she hadn’t been since the accident. And there was precious little information available to us even about the accident, or her condition, or her prognosis — so we prayed, and we hoped, and we trusted in the Lord. I couldn’t even give so many friends who were praying any type of update, because we knew so little. We were blind to so much else because our attention was focused on what was happening inside that small little hospital room with the continual sound of the ventilator feeding her air to breathe and the beep of the heartbeat monitor, and the occasional sound of medicine being delivered intravenously. Our world had become so small and compressed, tight knit, close, personal — we were intimately entwined in this challenge, but we weren’t alone.

Over time they could speak, and we agreed that I would go run some necessary errands at their house for them and come back. I called my wife on the way out of the hospital and she said the girls are doing fine, but they have had questions. I was so encouraged by the answers she had given them, the reassurance, the wise counsel she had given them in trusting in the Lord. I praised God for this godly woman that I see Him raising up beside me daily. I asked her to pack me an overnight bag with Bible, pillow and blanket, “I’ll camp out in the waiting room” I told my wife.

So I ran the errands, traveling back the way that I had come earlier, returning from the urban environment of Spartanburg to the rural mountain foothills of Landrum, but I didn’t notice the normally beautiful skyline mountain views that I usually would. I was traveling not in awe of the creation, but awestruck by this circumstance, and seeking the Lord closely. There were no bright songs of praise playing on the radio like usual, because even though He is worthy of all praise, I also know the foolishness that Proverbs 25:20 tells us about singing joyful songs to a heavy heart.

And when I returned to the hospital, nothing had yet changed except they had gathered her belongings. No new news to share with those praying. No new answers to give our girls that were at the house with Mandee. Even heavier to realize — no new evidence that mom and dad’s hope and faith and love is on solid ground. But they were coming out of the shock. They were standing with the nurse, pleading with their daughter to wake up, to squeeze their hand, to respond in any possible way to outside stimulus. I had prayed for the Lord to breathe life and healing into her, but I knew when I prayed it that it would be on his time. We were past the 6 hour timeframe for a normal concussion at that point, so I didn’t know if it would be hours, days, weeks, months because unconsciousness is a tricky thing.

Then her mom mentioned that her best friend was on his way, and her daddy mentioned to her “He’s on the way… you’re going to want to wake up and squeeze my hand before he gets here.” And something in that heartfelt plea of her daddy gave me a ray of hope that hasn’t shone until that point. I have to admit that I was even tempted to dismiss it as only emotional, but as they pleaded with her, she squeezed a hand, she opened her eyes, she even wiggled her toes at the nurses prompting —

and BOOM!

A bomb of joy erupted into that room that had been so heavy, and the darkness fled, and hallelujahs were raised, and I even danced! It was one of the most beautiful things I had ever seen firsthand — like a really good Lifetime movie, or a great motivational message — but this was real life, this was our lives! So we praised even as the nurse calmed her and she went back to sleep.

And then, we got to share the testimony with her young friend — we got to pray a joyful prayer of thanksgiving, and for hope that others in this hospital facing such similar fears would find the living faith that sustains, and that peace that passes all understanding, that only is found in Jesus Christ.

And we stood in awe and commented on the stark contrast of the highs and lows of the day. We commented on the fact that we had sang “Show me your glory” that morning, and we had seen it first hand — but that it took a trip through the fire to get to it. And that took me back to something we had discussed in the early morning hours before praise team practice about how we have to understand better the weight of God’s judgement in order to better understand the precious nature of the cross and God’s grace. And we all agreed that knowing and trusting that God has a purpose and a plan doesn’t make the grief and the pain disappear, but it carries us through.

I wouldn’t wish what we went through on anyone — but I can’t explain how much I appreciated being there at that moment when she became responsive.

Enjoy the ride.

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A Life of Change

Yesterday we moved my grandmother from independent living into assisted living. This was a major change as she has lived there for 17 years. This was the last place that she lived together with her husband who went home to be with the Lord 7 years ago. And part of this change involved downsizing, giving things away to family and donating them. It is a trying time, especially for her and my dad, as they face and deal with some of the very real and present challenges of this fleeting life — even as we try not to miss out on the opportunities of the day.

There are “things” that we received from grandmother, but the greatest gift she has given us is the testimony of her godly walk with the Lord. But even she needs extra encouragement and prayer and support sometimes as well, and I got to pray for her and over her situation and circumstances yesterday in a new way, and it was truly a blessing.

Out of all of the “things” we brought back and are integrating into our household, it isn’t the bed, or the antiques, not even the Bible study resources that are most precious to me. The things most precious are a few extremely worn/loved Bibles and three Church hymnals.

One hymnal is from the 40’s, one from the 50’s, and another from the 70’s. And the list of songs has changed within each of them, just as many of the songs we will sing this Sunday morning are different than when I was a child. But there is something about those wonderful, heavy books that you can flip through and see song after song dedicated to praising and worshipping different aspects of this relationship with our God. Call me old fashioned, but it isn’t quite the same as a playlist on YouTube or Amazon Music.

Yes, I miss a lot of the old songs. Yes, I miss the heavy hymnals in each row. Yes, I miss many things. But my grandmother misses her husband. She misses the place where they lived together. She misses the bed where they slept together. But we both press on towards the call that the Lord has upon our life TODAY.

Lord, don’t let us get so caught up in memories that we miss out on the blessings for today. And don’t let us be so mindful and longing for heaven that we miss out on kingdom opportunities around us today. Keep us balanced, content, grateful, patient, kind — even in those times where we don’t fully understand where you’re taking us. Help us to move when you move, Lord, and to be still and know that you are God. Amen.

For everything there is a season,

a time for every activity under heaven.

A time to be born and a time to die.

A time to plant and a time to harvest.

A time to kill and a time to heal.

A time to tear down and a time to build up.

A time to cry and a time to laugh.

A time to grieve and a time to dance.

A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.

A time to embrace and a time to turn away.

A time to search and a time to quit searching.

A time to keep and a time to throw away.

A time to tear and a time to mend.

A time to be quiet and a time to speak.

A time to love and a time to hate.

A time for war and a time for peace.
Ecclesiastes 3:1‭-‬8 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/ecc.3.1-8.NLT

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Before we sing “My Soul Longs for You”…

It’s interesting to look into what scripture is alluded to and what the words actually mean that we are singing. I mean, a lot of times we might sing a familiar tune on the radio not giving much thought to the actual words… But what about when we are “singing to God”?

Before we get to the song itself, let’s look at some scripture to get a little background on “longing for God” first.

The Psalmist tells us:

I long, yes, I faint with longing to enter the courts of the Lord . With my whole being, body and soul, I will shout joyfully to the living God.
Psalms 84:2 NLT

And:

As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him?
Psalms 42:1‭-‬2 NLT

And:

O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water. I have seen you in your sanctuary and gazed upon your power and glory. Your unfailing love is better than life itself; how I praise you! I will praise you as long as I live, lifting up my hands to you in prayer. You satisfy me more than the richest feast. I will praise you with songs of joy. I lie awake thinking of you, meditating on you through the night. Because you are my helper, I sing for joy in the shadow of your wings. I cling to you; your strong right hand holds me securely.
Psalms 63:1‭-‬8 NLT

This doesn’t sound like God as a Sunday morning afterthought, but as — dare we say — an obsession? A passion? An all consuming fire?

We will start service tomorrow with this song:

Can we sing such songs in spirit and truth? Are we really longing for God like the Psalmist described? Or only playing around with this deadly game of religion?

I wonder if God has looked down on so many Sunday morning religious gatherings and said something like He had said before in Isaiah:

Stop bringing me your meaningless gifts; the incense of your offerings disgusts me! As for your celebrations of the new moon and the Sabbath and your special days for fasting— they are all sinful and false. I want no more of your pious meetings. I hate your new moon celebrations and your annual festivals. They are a burden to me. I cannot stand them! When you lift up your hands in prayer, I will not look. Though you offer many prayers, I will not listen, for your hands are covered with the blood of innocent victims. Wash yourselves and be clean! Get your sins out of my sight. Give up your evil ways. Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows. “Come now, let’s settle this,” says the Lord . “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool. If you will only obey me, you will have plenty to eat. But if you turn away and refuse to listen, you will be devoured by the sword of your enemies. I, the Lord , have spoken!”
Isaiah 1:13‭-‬20 NLT

Or maybe in Amos:

“I hate all your show and pretense— the hypocrisy of your religious festivals and solemn assemblies. I will not accept your burnt offerings and grain offerings. I won’t even notice all your choice peace offerings. Away with your noisy hymns of praise! I will not listen to the music of your harps. Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice, an endless river of righteous living.
Amos 5:21‭-‬24 NLT

Man, what a shame it would be for a people to gather in the name of the Living God but have no actual abiding relationship with Him but just be going through the motions, traditions, obligations, self serving dogmas of their religion!

“Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’
Matthew 7:21‭-‬23 NLT

It seems like a pretty big deal to me. It seems that like Paul urges the Corinthians, we should be examining ourselves — even questioning the underlying reasons behind what we are doing:

Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you ; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith.
2 Corinthians 13:5 NLT

Are we making a name and a reputation amongst men so that we can be honored?

Or are we lounging for Him to receive all praise and honor and glory because He alone is worthy?

I pray that we won’t just sing a catchy, or emotional, or memorable, or beautiful, or gifted, or entertaining song — but that we will TRULY lift our praises to Him, mean what we say, say what we mean, believe In Him, surrender fully and see His will done on earth as it is in heaven.

Lord, show us your glory, because we have none in and of ourselves, and there is a wield in need of your saving grace. Have mercy on your servants, and bless those enemies who might reticent and know the power of the Blood of the Lamb and the fire of the Holy Spirit. Amen.