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Psalm 95: Let Us Kneel and Bow Down

Christ Church on October 7, 2018

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Introduction

Throughout the New Testament, we are given cautions and warnings. We are told repeatedly that we are to take lessons from what happened to our older brothers, the Jews. The things written down in Scripture were written for our edification, which means that we need to learn to read the narrative right. We are not told that the Jews could fall away, but that Christians cannot. Know that these warnings apply to us—not as though the decree of God’s election could be altered—but the warnings about our place in the visible covenant apply because our position is exactly that of the Jews. This will become plainer as we go on. The psalm is from David—although the psalm itself does not attribute it to David, that connection is made in the book of Hebrews (4:7).

The Text

“O come, let us sing unto the Lord: Let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, And make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. For the Lord is a great God, And a great King above all gods. In his hand are the deep places of the earth: The strength of the hills is his also. The sea is his, and he made it: And his hands formed the dry land. O come, let us worship and bow down: Let us kneel before the Lord our maker. For he is our God; And we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice, Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, And as in the day of temptation in the wilderness: When your fathers tempted me, Proved me, and saw my work. Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, And said, It is a people that do err in their heart, And they have not known my ways: Unto whom I sware in my wrath That they should not enter into my rest” (Psalm 95).

Summary of the Text

Biblical faith is a corporate affair. The godly looks around himself, and says to others, “Come” (v. 1). We need many to gather in order to make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. We come before His presence with thanksgiving, and the fact of a joyful noise is mentioned again (v. 2). We make that joyful noise with psalms. Why do we do this? Because the Lord is a great God, a king above all the other gods (v. 3). The deeps are in His hand. The wealth of the deepest mines are His (v. 4). He fashioned the oceans, and His were the hands that formed the dry land (v. 5). So the great invitation is issued again. Worship is corporate. Let us worship. Let us bow down. Let us kneel before our Maker (v. 6). He is our God. We are the people of His pasture. We are the sheep in His flock (v. 7).

Up through the first half of v. 7, the voice is that of one of the Lord’s people, inviting others to gather together in worship. It is a psalm of sheep exhorting sheep. In the turn from v. 7 to v. 8, we see that the voice is now the voice of the Shepherd. Do not harden your heart as you did before (v. 8), as your fathers did before (v. 9). There is ambiguity in v. 10. Did they grieve the Lord for forty years, or did they wander for forty years because they had grieved Him? I take it as the latter. These people err in their hearts (v. 10), and as a consequence God swore in His wrath that they would not enter His rest (v. 11).

These Ten Times

As Israel was fresh out of Egypt, they tempted the Lord because of a lack of water, and the place where they did this had two different names given to it—Massah and Meribah. “And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, Is the Lord among us, or not?” (Ex. 17:7). “Ye shall not tempt the Lord your God, as ye tempted him in Massah” (Deut. 6:16; cf. 33:8). Despite their provocation in this, the Lord did not relegate to a generation in the wilderness yet. That came about a year later, after the episode of the return of the unbelieving spies.

“Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it” (Num. 14:22–23).

Because of “these ten times” when they tested the Lord, all within the first year of their time in the wilderness, the Lord sealed them up in that wilderness for forty years.

Entering His Rest

As this psalm is interpreted and applied by Paul in Hebrews, there are multiple layers to the meaning of rest. In the psalm itself, the Lord was angry with that generation, and swore that they would not enter Canaan-rest (Ps. 95:11). There is the antitype of this, in the wilderness generation of Christians preparing to invade the world with the gospel, in what might be called the Great Commission rest (Heb. 3:14). Then there is personal salvation rest (Heb. 4:1-3). Then we have what can be called our corporate weekly-foretaste rest (Heb. 4:9-10). And last, we have what I take as a final heavenly rest (Heb. 4:11).

Covenant Continuity

As we consider these things, remember that God’ elect cannot be taken from His hand. Your regeneration is not reversible. No one can successfully thwart the work of salvation that God has once begun in a sinner’s heart.

At the same time, something can be thwarted. Apostasy is a real sin, committed by real people. It is not a sin that can be committed by any of God’s decretally elect, but it can be committed by individuals who are covenantally connected to Christ.

The New Testament Scriptures never say anything like this: In the Old Testament it was possible to fall away from the covenant, but now in the new covenant this is impossible. Not at all. “Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?” (Heb. 10:29).

Jesus is the vine, and branches can be cut out of Him (John 15:1-8). Christ is the root of the Abrahamic tree, and Paul tells Christians that they can be cut out of it just as the unbelieving Jews had been (Rom. 11: 18-24), and for the same reasons. And what kind of things were written down for our example (1 Cor. 10:6)?

So the Christ in whom we must believe has always been a present Christ. The Christ in whom we do believe is a Christ who is near to His people, and has always been near to His people. And when this is proclaimed, and the vicarious blood sacrifice that He offered to His Father is preached, there is only one reasonable response to it all. Come, let kneel before the Lord our Maker.

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Psalm 94: Mischief by a Law

Christ Church on September 30, 2018

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Introduction

As a thoughtful Christian meditates on this psalm, it is hard to escape the conclusion that a good name for it would be “A Psalm for the Secular West.” But this would be a mistake—while it is absolutely pertinent for our times, there have been many generations when the same things could be said, including the time it was written. God has always been holy, and man has always been sinful, and the math always seems to work out the same way.

The Text

“O Lord God, to whom vengeance belongeth; O God, to whom vengeance belongeth, shew thyself. Lift up thyself, thou judge of the earth: Render a reward to the proud. Lord, How long shall the wicked, How long shall the wicked triumph? How long shall they utter and speak hard things? And all the workers of iniquity boast themselves? They break in pieces thy people, O Lord, And afflict thine heritage . . .”  (Psalm 94: 1-23).

Summary of the Text

The plea is for Jehovah to show Himself, as He is the one to whom vengeance belongs (v. 1). God, please rouse Yourself, and hammer the proud (v. 2). How long are You going to let the wicked run on like this (v. 3)? How long will they be allowed to boast in their pufferies (v. 4)? God, do You not see that they are breaking Your people (v. 5)? They murder widows, aliens, and orphans (v. 6), and give themselves a free pass by saying that God does not see it (v. 7).

Understand then, you swinish men, learn wisdom, you fools (v. 8). Do you really think that the one who made the ear cannot hear? That the one who fashioned the exquisite mechanism of the eye is Himself blind (v. 9)? The one who chastises pagan nations, shall He not correct you (v. 10)? He that teaches knowledge to man . . . words then fail the psalmist (v. 10). God knows the thoughts of man—and they are three parts mist, and two parts fog (v. 11).

If God teaches and chastens a man, then that man is blessed (v. 12). God will give him rest from affliction, until the point when the wicked get theirs (v. 13). God will never forsake His own heritage (v. 14). The upright will follow a right judgment (v. 15). Who will stand on our behalf against the wicked (v. 16)? The Lord is the only one who could do that (v. 17). When our foot is about to slip, the mercy of God intervenes (v. 18). When our thoughts are buzzing like a hive full of irritated bees, the comforts of God delight us (v. 19). Shall the throne of iniquity, that which uses laws as instruments of mischief, have fellowship with God (v. 20)? And what is the consequence of God refusing fellowship to a throne? That throne must fall. But they gather, they assemble, they conspire, and they do so against innocent blood (v. 21). Nevertheless God remains our defense, and our rock of refuge (v. 22). There is a final holy warning given, no less ominous for its holiness. God will bend their iniquity back on them (v. 23). He will cut them off in their wickedness; He will absolutely cut them off (v. 23).

Understanding Imprecatory Psalms

As Christians we are instructed to sing the psalms, all of them (Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16). This means that God wants them to help shape our devotional lives, and this includes the imprecatory psalms. God wants us to have a piety that knows how to cry out for vengeance, a piety that calls for blood.

But if you find yourself singing psalms of imprecation because someone cut you off in traffic, then I would suggest that perhaps you are doing it wrong. If you utter curses from the Psalter because you open the fridge and find that someone finished off the ice cream, then perhaps a basic refresher is in order. Remember that Jesus rebuked some of His disciples who wanted to call down fire from Heaven (Luke 9:55). Elijah had done this in a showdown with the wicked king Ahaziah (2 Kings 1:10). James and John wanted to do it because some Samaritans had told them the Motel 6 was full when it wasn’t.

So when you have learned to treat your personal enemies the way David did (1 Sam. 24:1-15), then you are in a good place to begin learning how to sing the way he did about God’s enemies (Ps. 139:21). The heart of the lesson is that psalms of imprecation are instances of us turning the whole thing over to God because He is the one to whom vengeance belongs (Ps. 94:1). When you do it right, you are taking your fleshly desires out of the dispute, not inserting your flesh into the conflict, and all in the name of Jesus.

The Great Wickedness of Evolution

The impudence of evolution is seen in the fact that it denies the first premise that is set out by the psalmist. He that made the ear, does He not hear? He that formed the eye, does He not see? He that gives man knowledge . . . oh, he is out of patience. Just stop.

The point of evolutionary science is in no way the pursuit of knowledge. It is rather a pell mell flight from the knowledge of God. The problem is not “not enough” knowledge. The problem is that we have too much knowledge, and we are trying to offload some of it.

Mischief through the Law

When we pretend that God doesn’t see us, the first thing this does is open up a vacancy. We need a god who sees us. And because the Most High apparently cannot see us, we will appoint some rebels to rule in His place. They abuse that position, naturally, but it is better than having the living God try to run our lives. What do these jitney gods do? The vaunt themselves in their pride (vv. 2, 4). They break God’s people (v. 5). They attack the defenseless (v. 6). They think their great vain thinks (v. 11). They frame mischief through their legislation (v. 20). And their own iniquity rises up like scalding water out of a geyser, and crashes back down on them (v. 23).

God’s Gonna . . .

And it seems only fitting to conclude with the words of Johnny Cash, who expressed one of the central sentiments in this psalm very nicely.

Go tell that long tongue liar
Go and tell that midnight rider
Tell the rambler
The gambler
The back biter
Tell ’em that God’s gonna cut ’em down
Tell ’em that God’s gonna cut ’em down

And never forget that the only safe way to flee from the wrath of God, from the anger of His hot displeasure, is to turn on your heel and run as fast as you can toward the wrath of God as it was poured out on the crucified Jesus.

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More Highly Than He Ought

Christ Church on September 23, 2018

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Introduction

God has given us eyes to see with and, even with a mirror, it can be difficult to look at them. The same thing is true—and in spades—when it comes to the eyes of our soul. We use these eyes to look at absolutely everything . . . except the act of ourselves, looking. We see everything except how our seeing is colored by our circumstances. To grow past partial blindness is a profound step in spiritual maturation.

The Text

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness” (Rom. 12:1-8).

Summary of the Text

We are encouraged here to submit ourselves to the Lord, in both body and mind. We are told—in the name of God’s mercies—to present our bodies as a living sacrifice to God (v. 1). And as a sacrifice offered to Him, it must not be defiled—not by porn sites, not by immodest dresses, not by lascivious entertainment, and not by unclean joking around. If your body is constantly on the altar, and it is, then make sure it is not a blemished offering. The second thing is to present your minds to God, for Him to shape them. The alternative is that of having the world shape your mind. Offering your mind to Him in order to be shaped will prove the will of God (v. 2). Notice that the world wants to defile your body, but wants to shape your mind. Having told us not to have our minds molded by the world, he then goes on to tell us what it would look like if our minds were to be shaped by the world (v. 3). It would look like each man thinking of himself more highly that he ought. We can see from this that the world is a lying flatterer, and is whispering constantly. Go ahead. Believe in yourself. You can do it.

God’s alternative to this comes to us in the reality of body life. We are many members of one body (v. 4). We all, being many, make up one body (v. 5), which means that we are members of one another.

We have gifts that differ, Paul says (v. 6), and they differ according to the grace of God. This is important—note it well. If we are prophets, let us do that by faith. If it is ministry or service, then let us do that (v. 7). If it is teaching, then we should be teaching. If exhortation, then our duty is exhortation (v. 8). The same goes for generosity, but keep it simple. A ruler should rule, and with diligence. Someone with the gift of mercy should make a point to be cheerful.

What Paul Did Not Say

Ours gifts do not differ according to the obstinacy of that other fellow over there, doggedly exercising a gift different from mine. Imagine the cussedness of an ear that refuses to see, as everyone knows we all must (1 Cor. 12:14-21). “And if they were all one member, where were the body?” (1 Cor. 12:19).

Notice what Paul did not argue:

“Having then gifts that differ according to others refusing to be like us, if you are a prophet, then all should prophesy; if you are in service, then you must demand that all pitch in the same way you have done; if you are a teacher, then it is necessary to complain about how ignorant everyone is; if you have the gift of exhortation, then exhort everyone to join with you in exhorting; if you are generous, then this is the baseline for everyone else’s generosity, and make sure to keep track of it all; if you are a ruler, then use the laziness of others as an excuse; if you are in mercy work, make sure to complain about how unloving all the regular Christians are.”

Our temptation is to measure other Christians by the length of our own gifts. First, recognize your gift. Then inflate that assessment. Then take stock of how far ahead of other Christians you are. You might not see as well as you think, but you do see way better than the ear does. But actually . . . perhaps not.

Recognize that when you see a need, this is not given to you so that you might blame everybody else for not meeting it. Your ability to identify a need should be taken by you as an indication from God on what you ought to be doing. If you look around at the body, and see a bunch of discouraged saints, then perhaps you have the gift of encouragement. If you see doctrinal ignorance, then perhaps you have the gift of teaching. If you see dirty bathrooms, perhaps you have the gift of helps.

More Highly Than He Ought

Now it is not possible to turn away from the shaping lies of the world without simultaneously turning toward Jesus Christ. The more you love and honor Jesus, the more you are becoming like His Father. And the more you love and honor Jesus, the less certain things will be happening.

Turning toward Christ means that you will be . . .

  • Less inflated in your self-assessment;
  • More sober in your self-assessment;
  • Less competitive with Christians with differing gifts;
  • Less autonomous and independent;
  • And finally free from the besetting sin of envy.

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Psalm 93: Clothed with Majesty

Christ Church on September 16, 2018

https://www.christkirk.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/2160.mp3

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Introduction

All the attributes of God are unchanging and constant, by definition. But they are not always equally conspicuous to us. The Lord’s right arm is always infinitely what it is, but there are times when He bares His right arm. He is always strong, but there are times when He is revealed as clothed with strength. His majesty is a given, but there are times when He is clothed, not in the trappings of majesty, but in the reality of majesty itself. We are talking about the glory of God.

The Text

“The Lord reigneth, he is clothed with majesty; The Lord is clothed with strength, wherewith he hath girded himself: The world also is stablished, that it cannot be moved. Thy throne is established of old: Thou art from everlasting. The floods have lifted up, O Lord, The floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their waves. The Lord on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea. Thy testimonies are very sure: Holiness becometh thine house, O Lord, for ever” (Ps.93:1-5).

Summary of the Text

God is the king; He is the one who reigns (v. 1). But His reign is also gloriously legitimate—He is clothed with majesty. He rules over all—over inanimate nature, over those who rebel against Him, and over those who obey Him. Jehovah reigns. Because He is clothed with strength, the world is established. God’s throne is ancient and everlasting because God is from eternity (v. 2). The floods have lifted up their rebellion by means of their great voice (v. 3). God Himself, the Lord most high, is mightier than the sound of many waters (v. 4), and He is untroubled by the waves; He walks on them. When Jesus walked on the stormy water, He was a glorious antitype. Note the contrast between the world that is established by God’s throne, and the world of rebellious breakers that is turned to so much ocean spray. What this God reveals is certain; His testimonies are sure. Holiness befits His house, and it is that way forever and ever, amen (v. 5). His rule is eternal. His grace is absolute. His character is holy.

Jehovah and Majesty

The power of God is not simply raw power. We do not worship an omnipotent fiend, as though power could ever be detached from goodness. We are Christians who confess the omnipotent power of God, but we must not do this as though the doctrine of were somehow a regrettable intellectual necessity. No, the strength of Almighty God is splendid. It is not something for us to confess in embarrassed whispers. It is magnificent.

When God spoke to Job, it was out of a whirlwind (Job 40:6). When He spoke to Elijah, His voice was not in the wind (1 Kings 19:11-12). So whether God shouts, or whether God whispers, His wisdom is glorious. If every thunderclap that had ever sounded in every storm were all gathered up together, and broke about fifty feet over the top of our heads, the effect of that would be trivial compared to what the voice of God would be like. But not only that . . . it would also be beautiful. We are talking about majesty, splendor, glory, honor, might, and everlasting dominion.

It is not just that His Word is sure. It is that it is fitting that His Word is sure.

All Foam and Fury

The rebellions of the godless are vanity itself. But to us, who often do not have the vantage point of Heaven, their grimaces can be scary. Their bluster does not seem like bluster to us. Their posturing does not seem like posturing. Their great swelling boasts seem like swelling breakers that threaten to sink us all. But the promises of God are like rocks on the Oregon coast. When the waves meet the rocks, the waves lose.

So the Most High God is mightier than their noise (v. 4). Does the Supreme Court say that men can marry men? This decision was made by 9 mortals, every one of them dying. All the fruit flies of earth have declared war on the citadels of Heaven, and none of the watchmen on those celestial towers have even noticed. The throne of God’s dominion is utterly and infinitely out of range. So if you want something here on earth to be secured, the place where it must be anchored or secured is there, in the realm of God.

Truth, Holiness, Glory

But the God who reigns, the God who has reigned from all eternity, is a God who speaks. He is an author; He has written a book. This God who laughs at the sea foam of secularism is a God who has testimonies. These testimonies are His Word, and the doctrines of that Word are truth itself, and the precepts of that Word are holiness itself. His doctrines don’t require edits. His commandments don’t require upgrades or adjustments or moral improvements. They do not change with the times. They are in fact utterly behind the times—how could they not be behind the times. They were written by the Ancient of Days, the ultimate ruler who is behind the times. Another way of saying behind the times is before eternal ages.

Would you behold that splendor? Would you see that majesty? We know from this psalm that God is in fact clothed with majesty. We know that it is true. But would you see Him clothed in majesty? Are you hungry the way Moses was, when Moses asked if He could see the glory of God? We are invited to do so, and have been given a special “glass” or mirror that we are appointed to use. That glass is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, crucified for sinners, and raised for His saints.

“But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Cor. 3:18).

 

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Psalm 92: It is Good to Give Thanks

Christ Church on September 9, 2018

https://www.christkirk.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/2158.mp3

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Introduction

The enemies of God are primarily the enemies of God, and only derivatively ours. The principal contrast is between the futility of their rebellion, as over against the constant life of the everlasting one. They perish, and He remains forever. And then, as a result of that, a secondary contrast is set up—between the flourishing of “future hay” and the flourishing of cedar beams destined for the house of God. There is first the Creator/rebellious creature distinction followed by the obedient creature/rebellious creature distinction.

The Text

“It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, And to sing praises unto thy name, O most High: To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night, Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; Upon the harp with a solemn sound. For thou, Lord, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the works of thy hands. O Lord, how great are thy works! And thy thoughts are very deep . . .” (Psalm 92:1-15)

Summary of the Text

Praising God, giving thanks to God, is a good thing (v. 1). This happens when we declare His lovingkindness in the morning, and His faithfulness in the evening (v. 2). It is done with three kinds of stringed instruments (v. 3). God’s work makes us glad; we will triumph through the work of His hands (v. 4).

When we triumph in the works of God, we are not triumphing in trifles. His works are great; His thoughts are deep (v. 5)—and we are talking about infinite depths. A brutish man doesn’t get it; a fool doesn’t comprehend it (v. 6). He doesn’t comprehend the previous statement, the one about the greatness of God’s works, and he doesn’t understand the following contrast. The wicked spring up like thick green grass, they appear to flourish—but they will be destroyed forever (v. 7). They are but hay. But God does not wax and wane, grow and die. God is most high forever (v. 8). The enemies of God will perish, and the workers of iniquity will be scattered (v. 9).

This has an effect on the one who trusts in God. His horn will be exalted like the horn of a unicorn; he will be anointed with oil (v. 10). We could talk about what the unicorn is, but keep in mind we don’t have all day. The righteous will also will see his enemies (liers-in-wait) get their comeuppance (v. 11). The righteous will flourish like trees, in contrast to the grass earlier (v. 12). In order for these trees to flourish, they have to be planted in the right kind of soil; they must be planted in the right place. And where is that? In the house of the Lord, in the courts of our God (v. 13). They will still be fruit-bearing in old age; they will be fat and flourishing (v. 14, same word as v. 7). What will this show? What will it demonstrate? That the Lord is upright, that the Lord is our rock, that the Lord has no unrighteousness in Him. How could He? His righteousness is as immoveable as a great rock.

Good to Give Thanks

Gratitude is the path to wisdom, but we can’t be thankful to God for everything (Eph. 5:20) unless we believe that all things whatsoever come to us from His hand. We are not just to thank Him in all circumstances, but also for all circumstances. We would not be rebuked by Job for speaking like the foolish women speak. Shall we receive God from the hand of God and not evil?

And when this kind of gratitude has taken up residence in our hearts, what is the result? The result is musical gratitude. The result is lots of strings. But beware. The normal pattern is for this to be a musical overflow; this is pursuit of the headwaters, not pursuit of the delta. As the old Mahalia Jackson spiritual put it, “I sing because I’m happy, I sing because I’m free.” You don’t sing to get happy—you sing to keep from bursting. Of course there will be times when you are in a blue funk, and you sing a hymn of thanksgiving to God by faith. That’s different. But those who pursue fine music as an end are, to use Spurgeon’s comparison, “Fine music without devotion is but a splendid garment upon a corpse.”

But shall the mountains sing (Is. 44:23), the valleys sing (Ps. 65:13), the forests sing (1 Chron. 16:33), the stars sing (Job 38:7), while we men, women and children not sing? Shall the only ones with lungs be silent?

His Thoughts are Very Deep

The brutish man is blinkered and cannot see that he is standing under a cataract of glories. That’s just “the world,” he thinks. Just the way things are—atoms crashing around, and science has shown us how that imbecile natural selection can just pop out one exquisite engineering design after another. Nothing to be thankful about. No one to be thankful to. Nothing to mark as remarkable.

I recently saw an astoundingly beautiful, intricately-designed pattern—it was a microscopic photograph of a beetle’s foot. Consider, think, reflect, if you would not be a brutish man, how butterflies can just know the way to Mexico, how an owl’s feathers just sweep together seamlessly, how insects use their antennae for taste, smell, and touch, and dragonflies use them as speedometers, and how an octopus has three hearts. Keep in mind that, according to the secular evolutionist, the genes that code for sight are blind, the genes that code for hearing are deaf, and the genes that code for speech are dumb. Not only can they not do what they are coding for, they don’t even know what they are. They don’t know anything.

Finishing Strong

We see from this psalm that there is such a thing as finishing strong. We have already considered that God’s promises are not vending machine promises—not at all. But they are not crap shoot promises either. The world we live in is an intelligible world, and it is governed by a personal God. Talk to Him. And talk to Him about how the remainder of your life is going to go. When you are old, may your trunk be full of sap, enough for the outer branches. May you be like a palm tree, which Solomon used as a model for decorating the Temple. May you produce hundreds of pounds of dates annually. May you be like a cedar on the mountain of God.

May Christ be your rock.

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