Psalm 40

Verses 16-17... 

But may all who seek You 

     rejoice and be glad in You; 

may those who love Your salvation 

     say continually, “Great is the LORD!” 

As for me, I am poor and needy, 

     but the Lord takes thought for me. 

You are my help and my deliverer; 

     do not delay, O my God!

As I found myself in almost a physical panic tonight after church, overwhelmed by the responsibilities that now press down upon me, I quieted my soul through the reading (and praying) of this psalm. Psalm 40 can be broken down into two main sections. The first part, vv. 1-10, offers praise to God for His steadfast love, faithfulness, and the many past mercies received from Him. In the second part, vv. 11-17, the psalmist expresses his current distress and his need for God's continued help. Once again, I am so thankful for the honest of the Psalms and their honesty and relevance!

Heidelberg Catechism Week 35

96. Q. What is God's will for us in the second commandment? A. That we in no way make any image of God nor worship Him in any other way than He has commanded in His Word.

97. Q. May we then no make any image at all? A. God can not and may not be visibly portrayed in any way. Although creatures may be portrayed, yet God forbids making or having such images if one's intention is to worship them or to serve God through them.

98. Q. But may not images be permitted in the churches as teaching aids for the unlearned? A. No, we shouldn't try to be wiser than God. He wants His people instructed by the living preaching of His Word - not by idols that cannot even talk.

My reflections on the reading from the book...

Those who attempt to create visual images of God (whether the Father, the Son, or the Holy Spirit) are creating a lie, because the true God is an invisible Being. God's majesty and glory cannot be represented on paper or canvas or in stone. We cannot bring God down to our level! Unfortunately this is quite common in Christianity, especially in children's Bible stories. I know of only one children's Bible that does not attempt to portray Christ! I know the view I hold to is an unpopular one - I am in the minority even here at a Christian university. But it's one I've come to have a strong conviction about, because I know how easy it is for me to form mental pictures of just about anything I dwell on. God wants us to seek Him in His written Word and through Christ the Living Word. Faith comes by hearing, not by seeing. We walk by faith, not by sight!

Work that matters

My dear one,

If you are the sort of man I envision you to be, then you will appreciate this quote I just read...

Art is too important a term to be used just for painters. And sculptors. And playwrights. And actors. And architects of a certain type. No I think we need to broaden it to graphic designers and salespeople and bosses. To lay preachers, to gifted politicians and occasionally, to the guy who sweeps the floor. Art is a human act, something that's done with the right sort of intent. Art is when we do work that matters, in a creative way, in a way that touches them and changes them for the better. (Seth Godin)

Praying for you tonight... I leave you with this captivating video.
- Your Evenstar

Settling in for the journey

I sit in a quiet corner of my favorite coffeeshop and take some time to reflect on the responsibilities before me. My mind is still swirling from a workshop on Monday that prompted some serious self-examination of my artistic stewardship. And of course the book I happen to be currently reading (Emily P. Freeman's A Million Little Ways) addresses the same ideas:

Perhaps living into the fullness of who you really are is partially about learning to see beyond what is to what could be. Could it be there is more to the story that we don’t know yet? It doesn’t mean that God is trying to teach us a lesson in our difficulty. Perhaps he is simply creating a masterpiece...

Reject the temptation to believe you need to wait for a new set of life circumstances, a different job, or a new setting. Being who you already are no matter the circumstance of your life is what it means to release the art you were made to live. Respond to God where you are as you are...

Could it also be that there are things in you that aren’t in anyone else? That the way God has attached himself to you is a unique way he wants to display his glory to the world? Do you believe in his power to bring life out of death? Could it also be possible, then, that he can bring life out of you? Could there be some corner of the room he wants to influence and you are the person he has called to do that? It may not look like what you expect it to look like or the way other people expect it to look...

Fear says I’m going the wrong way. Doubt says I won’t find it at all. But hope? Hope says, Wait. It’s just a little farther. You are not alone and this is not just your idea...

The waiting and movement come first, and the courage follows close on the heels of art. Show up in the place where you already are fully alive as the image bearer God made you to be. Embrace the mysterious, invisible work of Christ even when it seems like nothing is happening. You are an image bearer and you have a job to do—whether you see the results or whether you don’t.

I don't have beautifully crafted words to explain this, but somehow I sense that this year is to be an important mile-marker in my life. There is much on the horizon. Some things I see in the distance, mirage-like. Other things remain completely out of sight. The barometer is changing, the wind is shifting. The Lord is beckoning me, summoning me to a place of courage and innovation. A calling of loneliness, yes, but one in which God will grant that "calm and heavenly frame" and provide "a light to shine upon the road that leads me to the Lamb."

Heidelberg Catechism Week 34

92. Q. What does the Lord say in His Law? A. [The Catechism quotes from Exodus 20:1-17, reciting the giving of the Ten Commandments.]

93. Q. How are these commandments divided? A. Into two tables. The first has four commandments, teaching us what our relation to God should be. The second has six commandments, teaching us what we owe our neighbor.

94. Q. What does the Lord require in the first commandment? A. That I, not wanting to endanger my very salvation, avoid and shun all idolatry, magic, superstitious rites, and prayer to saints or to other creatures. That I sincerely acknowledge the only true God, trust Him alone, look to Him for every good thing humbly and patiently, love Him, fear Him, and honor Him with all my heart. In short, that I give up anything rather than go against His will in any way.

95. Q. What is idolatry? A. Idolatry is having or inventing something in which one trusts in place of or alongside of the only true God, who has revealed Himself in His Word.

My reflections on the reading from the book...

This week's reading marks the commencement of a large "unit" dealing with the Ten Commandments. DeYoung makes several good points...

"The law doesn't just show us our sin so we might be drawn to Christ; it shows us how to live as those who belong to Christ... The law ought to follow the gospel just as the giving of the Decalogue followed salvation from Egypt." God's moral law, as summarized in the Ten Commandments is not something we can ignore or consider irrelevant. True, we can never live up to the holiness of God's law, but it is our calling and desire as His children to be holy even as He is holy (1 Peter 1:16-17; 2:9).

"The First Commandment ... can only be obeyed by worshiping Jesus. Jesus shows us what the true God is like." Without Christ, I cannot know or love God as I ought. What a privilege to have Christ as the perfect Mediator!

Heidelberg Catechism Week 33

88. Q. What is involved in genuine repentance or conversion? A. Two things: the dying-away of the old self, and the coming-to-life of the new.

89. Q. What is the dying-away of the old self? A. It is to be genuinely sorry for sin, to hate it more and more, and to run away from it.

90. Q. What is the coming-to-life of the new self? A. It is wholehearted joy in God through Christ and a delight to do every kind of good as God wants us to.

91. Q. What do we do that is good? A. Only that which arises out of true faith, conforms to God's law, and is done for His glory; and not that which is based on what we think is right or on established human tradition.

My reflections on the reading from the book...

DeYoung makes the powerful statement: "Christianity is not about refurbishing a few morals here, or helping you find your own unique spiritual journey there, or simply trying to get you to agree to a few theological statements. We need to be converted."

Conversion is often misunderstood by the unsaved. They view it pretty much like New Year's Resolutions, which are easily given up or forgotten when reality sinks in or the going gets tough. But conversion is not just a "new way of living;" as DeYoung reminds us, it is "a new way of thinking and feeling... When the Spirit of God brings us to life in Christ, He operates on the mind, the will, and the affections."

The chapter's closing thought: "Truly good deeds are done in God's strength through faith in Christ, conform to God's revealed will, and aim to make much of God and not us or the ones we serve. The Word of God must be our standard of goodness, not nice thoughts, nor pleasant smiles, nor the usefulness of charity."

As the new school year is upon me, it is my prayer that my life would not be one that merely demonstrates "moralism" to my students, but that my life would evidence Spirit-given awareness of sin, interest in the Word of God, passion for holiness, desire for prayer, and a heightened sense of the majesty of God.

Psalm 41

Verses 11-12...
By this I know that You delight in me:
     my enemy will not shout in triumph over me.
But You have upheld me because of my integrity,
     and set me in Your presence forever.

This psalm of lament is written from the perspective of one who is suffering an illness; it is his prayer for God's help and vindication, based on his consideration of the poor. The Psalmist testifies of God's faithfulness to deliver him, protect him, and sustain him despite the malice of his enemies and the betrayal of his friends.

The Psalmist's God is my God today! He delights in me, He upholds me, He invites me into His presence ... and all because of Christ, the Son of David!

Musings for summer's end

My dear one,

My business trip has come and gone (and nearly gone is my last week of summer break). The Lord was gracious to give much strength and patience for the trip. Much driving - through narrow mountain passes, rolling hills, horse country, flat cornfields, and harrowing city traffic. Much professional development - networking, delivering pedagogical information, and attending some outstanding concerts. Much walking - as my pictures prove.

City life can initially appear glamorous, but under the shiny facade is poverty, pollution, and sinfulness. I always try to see things (and people) for what they really are, and no doubt my own heart is the most difficult to read truthfully. "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (Jer. 17:9). Indeed, my heart is an "idol factory," as John Calvin so aptly describes it.

As I head into the new academic year, beginning with faculty meetings next week, my prayer is, "Teach me Thy way, O LORD; I will walk in Thy truth: unite my heart to fear Thy name" (Psalm 86:11). My heart is so often divided - I may do the right things, but for the wrong reasons, or do something half-heartedly. But if my heart is united in the fear of God, then the outworkings of my life - my thoughts, my service, my times of recreation - will be in tune with that one goal and aim of God's glory. Soli Deo gloria!

Thankfully, this final weekend of summer is a quiet one. I have been engaged in some thorough cleaning and organization and cooking in preparation for the busyness soon to commence, while still carving out time for reading, enjoying the outdoors, and fellowship with others.

As I find myself wondering how you are spending these late summer days, I pray that these days, and weeks, and months, and years leading up to our meeting would be profitable for our spiritual growth and personal development. May we never stagnate or atrophy during this "waiting time."

- Your Evenstar

Heidelberg Catecism Week 32

86. Q. We have been delivered from our misery by God's grace alone through Christ and not because we have earned it: why then must we still do good? A. To be sure, Christ has redeemed us by His blood. But we do good because Christ by His Spirit is also renewing us to be like Himself, so that in all our living we may show that we are thankful to God for all He has done for us, and so that He may be praised through us. And we do good so that we may be assured of our faith by its fruits, and so that by our godly living our neighbors may be won over to Christ.

87. Q. Can those be saved who do not turn to God from their ungrateful and impenitent ways? A. By no means. Scripture tells us that no unchaste person, no idolater, adulterer, thief, no covetous person, no drunkard, slanderer, robber, or the like is going to inherit the kingdom of God.

My reflections on the reading from the book...

What is the role of "good works" if they don't earn favor with God? 

DeYoung expounds upon the five reasons given in the answer to question 86:

1. We do good because the Holy Spirit is working in us to make us more like Jesus (2 Cor. 3:18).
2. We do good out of gratitude (Rom. 12:1-2). 
3. We do good so that God might be praised by the works we display in His name (John 15:8).
4. We do good so that we can be assured of our right standing before God (Matt. 7:15-20; 1 Peter 2:12).
5. We do good in order that we might adorn the gospel (Titus 2:10) and make it attractive to outsiders (1 Peter 2:12). 

DeYoung states truthfully, "Christians who live in habitual, unrepentant sin show themselves not to be true Christians." 

Sadly, many churches today seek to manipulate God's Word to make it fit with people's sinful lifestyles. But God is very clear on the sins that He hates! What sober warnings God's Word gives to those who jump freely into all kinds of sins: pride, slander, covetousness, sexual immorality, etc. Such people cannot inherit the kingdom of God because they are not evidencing changed hearts!

Light and Dark...

My dear one,

I'm heading out of town again in the morning, this time for a week-long business trip. Never fails to get me out of my comfort zone... I'm putting on my brave face, and more importantly, striving to remember that this is the "mission field" to which God has called me. I was just talking with a friend last night about how Christian musicians have a real responsibility to be ambassadors for Christ in the arts community. When I'm around these people I often recall Psalm 49:20 - "Man in his pomp yet without understanding is like the beasts that perish." So many in my sphere are deceived into thinking that success is measured by the number of adoring fans, or the number of albums released. They seek satisfaction in purchasing costly instruments and building up thriving studios. They boast of their awards and degrees and busy performance calendars. Their press photos are glamorous and their websites are sleek, but their souls are dark, dark, dark! I pray for grace and boldness to reflect the light of Christ's love to these lost ones. I pray that you will be doing the same, my dear one, in your spheres of activity and influence.

- Your Evenstar

Heidelberg Catechism Week 31

83. Q. What are the keys of the kingdom? A. The preaching of the holy gospel and Christian discipline toward repentance. Both preaching and discipline open the kingdom of heaven to believers and close it to unbelievers.

84. Q. How does preaching the gospel open and close the kingdom of heaven? A. According to the command of Christ: The kingdom of heaven is opened by proclaiming and publicly declaring to all believers, each and every one, that, as often as they accept the gospel promise in true faith, God, because of what Christ has done, truly forgives all their sins. The kingdom of heaven is closed, however, by proclaiming and publicly declaring to unbelievers and hypocrites that, as long as they do not repent, the anger of God and eternal condemnation rest on them. God's judgment, both in this life and in the life to come, is based on this gospel testimony.

85. Q. How is the kingdom of heaven closed and opened by Christian discipline? A. According to the command of Christ: Those who, though called Christians, profess unchristian teachings or live unchristian lives, and after repeated and loving counsel refuse to abandon their errors and wickedness, and after being reported to the church, that is, to its officers, fail to respond also to their admonition - such persons the officers exclude from the Christian fellowship by withholding the sacraments from them, and God Himself excludes them from the kingdom of Christ. Such persons, when promising and demonstrating genuine reform, are received again as members of Christ and of His church.

My reflections on the reading from the book...

The phrase "keys of the kingdom" is taken from Matthew 16:19, where Christ says, "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." Christ is truly the one with the authority to hold the keys, and the Church, as His Body, seek the will of Christ in prayerful use of those keys: preaching and discipline.

DeYoung observes, "Too many of our churches are like the false prophets of old, crying 'Peace, peace,' where there is no peace." I am thankful to be in a church that takes the preaching ministry seriously. My pastors declare the whole counsel of God, not twisting it to tickle the ears or padding it to soothe legitimately troubled consciences.

My church also takes discipline seriously. Chronic unfruitfulness, backsliding, or hard-heartedness in the life of one who claims the name of Christ must be taken seriously and sometimes necessitates excluding that one from fellowship around the Lord's Table, but always with the hopeful prayer for that one's repentance and restoration.

Psalm 42

Verses 8 & 11...
By day the LORD commands His steadfast love, 

     and at night His song is with me, 

     a prayer to the God of my life. 

Why are you cast down, O my soul, 

     and why are you in turmoil within me? 

Hope in God; for I shall again praise Him, 

     my salvation and my God.

Here are three more pertinent and edifying quotes from Richard Sibbes (see previous post in this series, Psalm 43):

Corruptions be strong, but stronger is He that is in us than the corruption that is in us. When we are weak in our own sense, then are we strong in Him who perfecteth strength in our weakness, felt and acknowledged... 

If God be our God, that love which engaged Him to bind himself to us in precious promises, will furnish us likewise with grace needful, till we be possessed of them. He will give us leave to depend upon Him both for happiness and all sanctifying and quieting graces which may support the soul till it come to its perfect rest in God. For God so quiets the hearts of His children, as withal He makes them better and fitter for that which He provides for them... 

None feel more sweet experience of God's providence than those that are most resolute in their obedience. After we have given glory to God in relying upon His wisdom, power, and truth, we shall find Him employing these for our direction, assistance, and bringing about of things to our desired issue, yea, above whatever we looked for, or thought of.

Psalm 43

Verse 5...

Why are you cast down, O my soul, 

     and why are you in turmoil within me? 

Hope in God; for I shall again praise Him, 

     my salvation and my God.

What a good friend the Psalmist is to the saints of God. How comforting it is to realize that I am not the only weak one. How strengthening it is to read his resolve to "hope in God" and "again praise Him" even as he is aware that his soul is cast down and in turmoil.

I've referred recently to the writings of Richard Sibbes (here and here), and this present psalm seems an appropriate place to share a few more quotes from his wonderful book The Soul's Conflict and Victory Over Itself by Faith...

Speak to God, to Jesus Christ by prayer, that as He rebuked the winds and the waves and went upon the sea, so He would walk upon our souls and command a calm there. It is no less power to settle a peace in the soul than to command the seas to be quiet... 

Faith looks to the word promising, hope to the thing promised in the word; faith looks to the authority of the promiser, hope especially to the goodness of the promise; faith looks upon things as present, hope as to come hereafter. God as the first truth, is that which faith relies on; but God as the chief good is that which hope rests on. Trust or confidence is nothing else but the strength of hope. If the thing hoped for be deferred, then of necessity it enforces waiting, and waiting is nothing else but hope and trust lengthened.