Can you hear me now?
“And Pharoah hardened his heart…”
It is so easy for us to look at the story of Moses and to wonder at how Pharoah could continue to fight against God’s obvious might and power. This morning I was reading Exodus 9 and was struck with the following passage:
Exodus 9:3-7
“Behold, the hand of the Lord will fall with a very severe plague upon your livestock that are in the field, the horses, the donkeys, the camels, the herds, and the flocks. But the Lord will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that nothing of all that belongs to the people of Israel shall die.” And the Lord set a time, saying, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this thing in the land.” And the next day the Lord did this thing. All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one of the livestock of the people of Israel died. And Pharaoh sent, and behold, not one of the livestock of Israel was dead. But the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.
So after he was told that God would kill all of his nation’s livestock but would not touch the livestock of the Hebrews, then all of Pharoah’s livestock died. He sent scouts to determine the situation with the Hebrews livestock. And the report back was that the Jew’s livestock was fine. And yet he hardened his heart and would not let the people go.
It seems that he was very hard-headed.
But I think we are that hard-headed many times as well. I know that I often hear what God says through his Word, but then I do my own thing anyway. I know that following what God has set out in His Word is the path of least resistance, so to speak, and yet I trudge off down the path that is strewn with logs, tar pits, and cliff faces dropping to certain death. I don’t think we’re so unlike Pharoah—we just don’t want to admit it.
Why be divisive?
I often stir up trouble with blog posts, comments I make in conversations, and just general discussion of theology and ecclesiology with my friends. Our post-modern cultural mindset contributes to this problem by making us think we are being personally attacked when someone expresses a disagreement with our thinking on a particular topic. This cultural phenomenon comes dangerously close to the censorship of totalitarian regimes, except that this is cultural and social censorship rather than political and governmental censorship.
I try to comment on things that are happening around me—observations I have made regarding Evangelicalism, Christianity, and my own social networks. I comment on these things because commenting on things that are not currently on the cultural radar doesn’t make a lot of sense and wouldn’t promote a lot of interest in the coversation.
I think this social censorship quite likely happens to all of us who comment on current events from a political or theological or philosophical bent. During the Enlightenment, these types of comments were conversation starters—they began the dialog. Opposing opinions were voiced and folks considered the pros and cons of each argument and everyone’s thought process was challenged and improved.
The new censorship is evidence that we would rather not discuss the pros and cons of an argument but would rather simply believe what we believe and not be challenged to do any actual thinking about it. It is a shame, but it is nothing new—it did not begin with Postmodern thought. In fact, the Great Reformer Martin Luther dealt with these same attempt at censorship and he responded with:
“If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Christ.
“Where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved and to be steady on all the battlefield besides is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that one point.”
– Martin Luther
Rising above the crowd
Luke 6:32-36
“If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.
I find it so easy to pat myself on the back. Like the Pharisee who thanked God that he was not like the tax collectors and sinners, I look at evil people and notice with pride that I am not doing some of their evil acts.
But this is not what I am called to. This passage from Luke reveals that many of the things I think are good deeds are in fact normal courses of action for human beings—loving my friends, loaning money to those I know will pay it back, doing something special for someone who regularly does nice things to me—none of these things rises above the run-of-the-mill actions common to humanity. We are called to love those who hate us, to do good to those who “despitefully use us,” and to loan to people with bad credit. These are the things that will make us as Christians stand out from the crowd.
Rising above the crowd
Luke 6:32-36
“If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.
I find it so easy to pat myself on the back. Like the Pharisee who thanked God that he was not like the tax collectors and sinners, I look at evil people and notice with pride that I am not doing some of their evil acts.
But this is not what I am called to. This passage from Luke reveals that many of the things I think are good deeds are in fact normal courses of action for human beings—loving my friends, loaning money to those I know will pay it back, doing something special for someone who regularly does nice things to me—none of these things rises above the run-of-the-mill actions common to humanity. We are called to love those who hate us, to do good to those who “despitefully use us,” and to loan to people with bad credit. These are the things that will make us as Christians stand out from the crowd.
A father’s grief
Life is hard. Not much more than that needs be said. We often wonder what God is doing as our lives seem to unravel. I was reminded recently by a friend that it is okay to question God as long as we are willing to accept his answer (or willing to accept his decision to not answer our “why?” question). My friend pointed out that Job asked God “why?” on a number of occasions—even, at one point, asking God why he had been born. But in the end we are told that in all that Job said he did not sin.
Many of my why? questions seem to revolve around my role as a parent. Being a father is not an easy job and I often feel that I am not up to the task. But in my personal bible reading this morning and read part of the story of Joseph and I was struck with a different viewpoint on this story that what we normally think of—the viewpoint of Jacob, Joseph’s father
Imagine the difficulties, agony, and emotional pain Jacob had to endure as his sons showed their hatred for their brother, Joseph. Imagine his disappointment when Joseph started saying things that appeared to be calculated to make his brothers hate him even more—such things as, “you all are going to bow down to me one day … and I heard this news from God in my dreams last night.” Imagine Jacob’s pain upon the news that his favored son had been killed by a wild animal, the news of which was brought to him along with a bloodied garment to prove the violent report.
But it didn’t end there. Years later, during the famine, His sons were told to bring their younger brother with them to Egypt or they would not be able to receive food. Jacob must have felt terrible trepidation at letting his youngest son, the only other brother of his favored wife Rebecca, go with the other brothers to Egypt. And then for the younger brother to be kept in Egypt when the brothers returned to Canaan, it must have been almost unbearable for Jacob.
In fact, the brothers told the Egyptian leader in Genesis 44:30-31, “Now therefore, as soon as I come to your servant my father, and the boy is not with us, then, as his life is bound up in the boy’s life, as soon as he sees that the boy is not with us, he will die, and your servants will bring down the gray hairs of your servant our father with sorrow to Sheol. This must have been a terrible thing for Jacob, the father.
But in the end, Joseph tells his brothers:
Genesis 50:19-21
But Joseph said to them, “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.” Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.
From this story I find great comfort in knowing that whatever happens in my parenting—whatever happens with my children, I must rest in God’s total and complete sovereignty over all that happens. Whatever happens, I know that it will bring ultimate glory to God. In that I must rest.
A father’s grief
Life is hard. Not much more than that needs be said. We often wonder what God is doing as our lives seem to unravel. I was reminded recently by a friend that it is okay to question God as long as we are willing to accept his answer (or willing to accept his decision to not answer our “why?” question). My friend pointed out that Job asked God “why?” on a number of occasions—even, at one point, asking God why he had been born. But in the end we are told that in all that Job said he did not sin.
Many of my why? questions seem to revolve around my role as a parent. Being a father is not an easy job and I often feel that I am not up to the task. But in my personal bible reading this morning and read part of the story of Joseph and I was struck with a different viewpoint on this story than what we normally think of—the viewpoint of Jacob, Joseph’s father
Imagine the difficulties, agony, and emotional pain Jacob had to endure as his sons showed their hatred for their brother, Joseph. Imagine his disappointment when Joseph started saying things that appeared to be calculated to make his brothers hate him even more—such things as, “you all are going to bow down to me one day … and I heard this news from God in my dreams last night.” Imagine Jacob’s pain upon the news that his favored son had been killed by a wild animal, the news of which was brought to him along with a bloodied garment to prove the violent report.
But it didn’t end there. Years later, during the famine, His sons were told to bring their younger brother with them to Egypt or they would not be able to receive food. Jacob must have felt terrible trepidation at letting his youngest son, the only other brother of his favored wife Rebecca, go with the other brothers to Egypt. And then for the younger brother to be kept in Egypt when the brothers returned to Canaan, it must have been almost unbearable for Jacob.
In fact, the brothers told the Egyptian leader in Genesis 44:30-31, “Now therefore, as soon as I come to your servant my father, and the boy is not with us, then, as his life is bound up in the boy’s life, as soon as he sees that the boy is not with us, he will die, and your servants will bring down the gray hairs of your servant our father with sorrow to Sheol. This must have been a terrible thing for Jacob, the father.
But in the end, Joseph tells his brothers:
Genesis 50:19-21
But Joseph said to them, “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.” Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.
From this story I find great comfort in knowing that whatever happens in my parenting—whatever happens with my children, I must rest in God’s total and complete sovereignty over all that happens. Whatever happens, I know that it will bring ultimate glory to God. In that I must rest.
Where is God when things go bad?
I stood a mendicant of God
before His royal throne
And begged him for one priceless gift,
which I could call my own.
I took the gift from out His hand,
but as I would depart
I cried, “But Lord this is a thorn
and it has pierced my heart.
This is a strange, a hurtful gift,
which Thou hast given me.”
He said, “My child, I give good gifts
and gave My best to thee.”
I took it home and though at first
the cruel thorn hurt sore,
As long years passed I learned at last
to love it more and more.
I learned He never gives a thorn
without this added grace,
He takes the thorn to pin aside
the veil which hides His face.
Steve Saint is the son of Nate Saint, one of the five missionaries slaughtered by the Auca Indians of Ecuador in the 1950s. He and his family continued to take the gospel of Jesus Christ to the Aucas (now known as the Waodani) and the resultant changes to this people group are amazing.
I recently listened to a recording of a message that Steve Saint gave at a conference on worldwide evangelism. His talk was convicting and motivating. He has a wonderful sense of the total sovereignty of God—even in the midst of such terrible things as the murder of his father.
Steve read the poem at the right to help explain the concept of God’s love and goodness shining through even the seemingly bad circumstances of our lives.
"No" means "no"
So often I feel compelled to push my point of view. I think, “surely others would see the wisdom in my way of thinking, I must have simply not stated my position clearly enough.” In other words: “No one could possibly actually have a legitimate disagreement with me.”
What lies behind this way of thinking, is probably a lack of trust in God’s sovereign control of everything. If I truly trust God’s working in all matters, I will state my case as clearly as I can, hoping that others will agree and will put into practice the things I think should be done. But when I hear the word “no,” I will accept that answer and move on.
Those of you with children probably realize already that this is a lesson we regularly try to teach our children—usually a verbal lesson though; teaching by example can be much too hard.
Acts 21:12-14 When we heard this, we and the people there urged him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” And since he would not be persuaded, we ceased and said, “Let the will of the Lord be done.”
Apparently, these early Christians did not have as much of a problem with this as I do. After trying to persuade Paul to go somewhere other than Jerusalem, they accepted his answer and stopped trying to dissuade him.
Maybe someday I’ll learn to be this accepting of God’s will.
When quitting is a virtue
Quitting is not seen as a virtue. From a very early age we are taught that we must continue at a task until it has been completed. But C.S. Lewis points out that if anything we pursue begins to attract our attention more than our desire to know God, it is time to quit that pursuit.
As the author of the Theologia Germanica says, we may come to love knowledge—our knowing—more than the thing known: to delight not in the exercise of our talents but in the fact that they are ours, or even in the reputation they bring us. Every success in the scholar’s life increases this danger. If it becomes irresistible, he must give up his scholarly work. The time for plucking out the right eye has arrived. (C. S. Lewis, “Learning in War-Time”, in The Weight of Glory and Other Addresses, p. 50.)
When quitting is a virtue
Quitting is not seen as a virtue. From a very early age we are taught that we must continue at a task until it has been completed. But C.S. Lewis points out that if anything we pursue begins to attract our attention more than our desire to know God, it is time to quit that pursuit.
As the author of the Theologia Germanica says, we may come to love knowledge—our knowing—more than the thing known: to delight not in the exercise of our talents but in the fact that they are ours, or even in the reputation they bring us. Every success in the scholar’s life increases this danger. If it becomes irresistible, he must give up his scholarly work. The time for plucking out the right eye has arrived. (C. S. Lewis, “Learning in War-Time”, in The Weight of Glory and Other Addresses, p. 50.)
Blow your own horn?
We have learned from our society that we must proclaim our own worthiness at every turn. We must let others know what we are good at. I have attended business meetings at which the presenter admonished us that if we don’t tell everyone how good we are, “no one else will.”
—Thomas à Kempis
As Christians, we are not called to boast of our own accomplishments—neither in church, in our homelife, nor at work.
Jeremiah 9:23-24 reads: “Thus says the Lord: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.'”
Thomas à Kempis
I was reminded today of one of the side-effects of focusing on God and boasting in God rather than in ourselves—how we treat others. I am currently reading The Imitation of Christ by Thomas à Kempis. The following quote from this outstanding book prompted me to think in this direction. May we all strive to follow this biblical advice:
If you wish to learn and appreciate something worth while, then love to be unknown and considered as nothing. Truly to know and despise self is the best and most perfect counsel. To think of oneself as nothing, and always to think well and highly of others is the best and most perfect wisdom. Wherefore, if you see another sin openly or commit a serious crime, do not consider yourself better, for you do not know how long you can remain in good estate. All men are frail, but you must admit that none is more frail than yourself.
Blow your own horn?
We have learned from our society that we must proclaim our own worthiness at every turn. We must let others know what we are good at. I have attended business meetings at which the presenter admonished us that if we don’t tell everyone how good we are, “no one else will.”
—Thomas à Kempis
As Christians, we are not called to boast of our own accomplishments—neither in church, in our homelife, nor at work.
Jeremiah 9:23-24 reads: “Thus says the Lord: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.'”
Thomas à Kempis
I was reminded today of one of the side-effects of focusing on God and boasting in God rather than in ourselves—how we treat others. I am currently reading The Imitation of Christ by Thomas à Kempis. The following quote from this outstanding book prompted me to think in this direction. May we all strive to follow this biblical advice:
If you wish to learn and appreciate something worth while, then love to be unknown and considered as nothing. Truly to know and despise self is the best and most perfect counsel. To think of oneself as nothing, and always to think well and highly of others is the best and most perfect wisdom. Wherefore, if you see another sin openly or commit a serious crime, do not consider yourself better, for you do not know how long you can remain in good estate. All men are frail, but you must admit that none is more frail than yourself.
Losing by seeking too hard
Michael S. Horton of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church made a statement that I found greatly encouraging:
The paradox of seeker orientation seems to be that while its watchword is evangelism, its effect has quite generally been the opposite. Instead of reaching the lost, we’re losing the reached. Having been taught themselves, our members would be the first to admonish us if our elders decided to exchange catechesis for Christian versions of MTV and Disneyland. If we transformed our Sunday-evening catechetical preaching into entertainment, we would have a mutiny on our hands
Those who have been taught properly from the Word of God, who have experienced the majesty and solemnity of true worship in liturgical or non-liturgical assembly, will revolt when new methods are introduced that lose a sense of the majesty and holiness of God. This transcends the simplistic arguments for “which style (genre) of music we should sing in church” and gets to the heart of worshiping God in spirit and in truth.
“Perhaps some of the confusion in the worship wars would be lessened if careful consideration were given to the subversion of purpose that can take place when the underlying assumptions of various social structures are mixed. When churches begin to look at the congregation as consumers and the programs of the church as products, when worship services begin to resemble a well-staged Broadway show, then maybe, just maybe the church has taken a few steps into the wrong social structure. Is the church defeating herself by fraternizing with the enemy—by being on the wrong battlefield?”
—Maureen Bradley
If we are seeking to honor God through preaching that is bible-derived and bible-saturated, and through fellowship that is aimed at edification, and through corporate communication of our recognition of God’s worth and an understanding of God’s character, and through songs that proclaim God’s majesty, sovereignty, and holiness…and if all these things are done in a way that is honoring to God because we have done them to the best of our (corporate) abilities—then we will move far beyond the mundane arguments of “contemporary or traditional” and will build congregations that will revolt when the conversation turns to such mundane matters as “contemporary or traditional.”
Maureen Bradley has some outstanding thoughts on this subject at Worship Wars: Are We on the Right Battlefield?. May God grant today’s evangelical church the desire to return to worshiping Him in spirit and in truth without trying in the process to fill the pews or to entertain. Let’s leave God’s work to God.
Losing by seeking too hard
Michael S. Horton of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church made a statement that I found greatly encouraging:
The paradox of seeker orientation seems to be that while its watchword is evangelism, its effect has quite generally been the opposite. Instead of reaching the lost, we’re losing the reached. Having been taught themselves, our members would be the first to admonish us if our elders decided to exchange catechesis for Christian versions of MTV and Disneyland. If we transformed our Sunday-evening catechetical preaching into entertainment, we would have a mutiny on our hands
Those who have been taught properly from the Word of God, who have experienced the majesty and solemnity of true worship in liturgical or non-liturgical assembly, will revolt when new methods are introduced that lose a sense of the majesty and holiness of God. This transcends the simplistic arguments for “which style (genre) of music we should sing in church” and gets to the heart of worshiping God in spirit and in truth.
“Perhaps some of the confusion in the worship wars would be lessened if careful consideration were given to the subversion of purpose that can take place when the underlying assumptions of various social structures are mixed. When churches begin to look at the congregation as consumers and the programs of the church as products, when worship services begin to resemble a well-staged Broadway show, then maybe, just maybe the church has taken a few steps into the wrong social structure. Is the church defeating herself by fraternizing with the enemy—by being on the wrong battlefield?”
—Maureen Bradley
If we are seeking to honor God through preaching that is bible-derived and bible-saturated, and through fellowship that is aimed at edification, and through corporate communication of our recognition of God’s worth and an understanding of God’s character, and through songs that proclaim God’s majesty, sovereignty, and holiness…and if all these things are done in a way that is honoring to God because we have done them to the best of our (corporate) abilities—then we will move far beyond the mundane arguments of “contemporary or traditional” and will build congregations that will revolt when the conversation turns to such mundane matters as “contemporary or traditional.”
Maureen Bradley has some outstanding thoughts on this subject at Worship Wars: Are We on the Right Battlefield?. May God grant today’s evangelical church the desire to return to worshiping Him in spirit and in truth without trying in the process to fill the pews or to entertain. Let’s leave God’s work to God.
By His grace - For His glory 