Psalms To See Me Through Psalm 30: Rescue Me

Thanksgiving for Rescue from Death. A Psalm; a Song at the Dedication of the House. A Psalm of David.

Well, it is that time of year in which we begin to anticipate Thanksgiving; it is just around the corner. Though this is just the first day of November, the holiday season will soon be upon us. I have written before, and many others have as well, how vital thanksgiving to God is in our life. We should be thankful for all the Lord has done for us through all of our days, not just at Thanksgiving time. Though this prayer also, is a song for the dedication of the House of the Lord, we don’t have to wait until church on Sunday to give Him thanks. We can start now in our home cultivating a theology of thanksgiving throughout the year.

This Psalm is yet another in the category of thanksgiving Psalms in which the one praying is saved from distress. This song is a beautiful illustration of what our thankfulness to God should resemble. In this particular Psalm, David is thanking the Lord for saving him from death’s grip. In these times, saving from death’s grip does not seem distant from us. Disease, sickness, and the like are in our world and touch us all. David here rejoices once again that the Lord has snatched him from the clutch of his enemies.

I will exalt You, Lord, for You have lifted me up, And have not let my enemies rejoice over me {v.1}.

The Lord has lifted him up. The Hebrew verb used here is daloh. This word is used for drawing water from a well.[1] The Lord saved him from the deep pit of despair, and we know that we can have the same confidence when we cry out to God, He hears us and will draw us up from despair. The language here may indicate that his enemies may not have caused his despair, but rather that they gloat that death or despair has him in its clutches. Either way, the Lord has lifted him out and he seeks to thank the Lord for His goodness and mercy; David exalts the Lord and praises Him. I will extol your virtues with the highest of praise.[2] How can you praise the Lord today? This week? This month? Let’s become grateful today and cultivate a heart that is thankful and worshipful. The Lord is pleased when we fully depend on Him and He not only hears our cries, but He welcomes them. This confidence, this belief that God answers when called upon is essential to the “prayer Psalms” and this Psalm celebrates its vindication.[3] David did not want to give the enemy the last laugh.

Lord my God, I cried to You for help, and You healed me. Lord, You have brought up my soul from Sheol; You have kept me alive, that I would not go down to the pit {vv. 2-3}.

David’s despair was so deep that he believed he was literally in hell. The word used here in Hebrew is miyordey but means the speaker felt he had gone down to death.[4] Have you felt this way? That your despair has been your hell and there is no way out? I have experienced that level of despair in sickness and hardships—in myself and loved ones—but there is a way out; call on the Lord our God, who like David, rescues us from the pit of whatever trial we are in. He gives us the strength to endure whatever trial we are facing. We may not always get the outcome we desire, but He will rescue us and lift us up. David praises the Lord because though he was in the grave, he was raised up.

 Sing praise to the Lord, you His godly ones, And praise the mention of His holiness {v.4}.

God is so good. How can we utter anything worthy of Him? He is holy, mighty, good, love. “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” {Is. 6:3}. How can we mortals ever thank Him for all He has done for us? We must, by recognizing His glory, His attributes. No name truly describes God, for His essence is beyond our comprehension.[5] As I said above, we must cultivate a thankful heart and worship the Lord for His goodness in our lives, and that is necessary for our personal devotional life. It is also important to worship Him before all believers in the house of the Lord. The psalmist is calling us to praise as a lesson for the congregation that in our sufferings, there is God’s deliverance.[6]

For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may last for the night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning. {v. 5}.

Ellicot’s commentary speaks so beautifully of this:

“Sorrow is the wayfarer who comes to the tent for a night’s lodging, but the metaphor of his taking his leave in the morning is not carried on, and we have instead the sudden waking with a cry of joy, sudden as the Eastern dawn, without twilight or preparation. Never was faith in the Divine love more beautifully expressed.”[7]

 The apostle James encourages us,

“Consider it all joy, my brothers and sisters, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing {Jas. 1: 2-4 NASB}

God’s anger lasts only for a short time. But when we cry out in prayer, repent, and pray for mercy, we can expect joy once again. We can have joy now even when it is dark. Though it is dark this side of the trial on the other side is exceeding joy! 

Everything David has he recognizes as God’s favor on his life. He knows that without the Lord he would have nothing. The Lord anointed him king and gave him riches and honor; this was not David’s doing but the Lord’s. Our hearts should resemble the psalmist’s in that we acknowledge before the Lord that all we have, the roof over our head, the clothes on our backs, the breath in our lungs…is from the Lord and He deserves our thankfulness and praise. We must constantly be aware that no matter how hard some of our trials are, that life is a gift from God, and what better way to acknowledge this than through our worship.

Now as for me, I said in my prosperity, “I will never be moved.” Lord, by Your favor You have made my mountain to stand strong; You hid Your face, I was dismayed {vv. 6-7}.

David is explaining here that while everything seemed to be going his way, that nothing could shake him. But then he was shaken. This happened to me and can happen to all of us. Just when things seem to be fine, they can change in a moment. The Lord sometimes uses the trials and hard times that we experience to shake us out of reliance on the things of this world and to shift our focus back to Him—the only place our security is found. But it was during this trial in the deep pit of despair that caused David to feel as though God had turned His face from him and as we see in verse 8, David sought Him in prayer.

 To You, Lord, I called, And to the Lord I pleaded for compassion: “What gain is there in my blood, if I go down to the pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it declare Your faithfulness? “Hear, Lord, and be gracious to me; Lord, be my helper.” You have turned my mourning into dancing for me; You have untied my sackcloth and encircled me with joy, That my soul may sing praise to You and not be silent. Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever. {vv. 8-12}.

We will all be faced with hard times and trials. It is in these hard times that we need to seek the Lord. When hard things hit our lives we have two choices; either turn away from God or turn to God. When we trust in Him there is deliverance; not always from the trial itself (though that may happen) but from the power that it has over us. We can say like David that “I will not be shaken.” In agony, David cried out to God and bared his soul. We read that he had indeed secret wrestlings with God; he had his complaints and objections, cries, and pleadings. His rhetorical questions are a part of those wrestlings. Yet, God still heard Him and rescued Him from the pit. He prayed in the dark. We must pray while it is dark. Prayer is a constant source for us. When we are at the end of our rope and the end of ourselves the mercy seat awaits us. For we have this confidence that we can approach the throne of grace to obtain all that we need {Heb. 4:16}. Though an earthquake erupts and shakes our mountain, God’s throne of grace remains sure and will always welcome us to seek refuge in His presence. Always turn to prayer and have faith that He hears and answers. When He rescues do not forget to praise Him. He deserves our worship. He is worthy of all glory, honor, and praise {Rev. 4:11}.

David reminds the Lord that he cannot praise him or tell others of His marvelous works if he does not rescue him. The Lord heard him and rescued David from the pit. David asked that he could live to sing His praises.

I love Matthew Henry’s words on praise and worship to the Lord:

“We ask aright for life, when we do so that we may live to praise him. In due time God delivered the psalmist out of his troubles. Our tongue is our glory, and never more so than when employed in praising God.”[8] 

 

 

To read all the Psalms in this series click here: Psalms To See Me Through

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[1] Robert Alter, The Book Of Psalms (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2007), 102.

[2] Avrohom Chaim Feuer, trans., Nosson Scherman, and Meir Zlotowitz eds, Tehillim Vol.1 (Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 1995), 360.

[3] Craig C. Broyles, Understanding The Bible Commentary Series: Psalms (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1999), 155.

[4] Alter, 102.

[5] Tehillim, 362.

[6] Broyles, 154.

[7] Charles John Ellicott, An Old Testament Commentary For English Readers, Vol. 4 (London: Cassell and Company, 1897),129.

[8] Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary On The Whole Bible (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997), 479. 

Sabbath Sanctuary: The Sabbath Year

I have been contemplating sabbath rest. Resting has been something of which I write often and it has been at the forefront of my existence for the last couple of years.

Though we all are aware of the sabbath commandment to rest on the seventh day, my contemplation has been focused on the year of rest that the Lord commanded the Israelites:

“The Lord then spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When you come into the land which I am going to give you, then the land shall have a Sabbath to the Lord. For six years you shall sow your field, and for six years you shall prune your vineyard and gather in its produce, but during the seventh year the land shall have a Sabbath rest, a Sabbath to the Lord; you shall not sow your field nor prune your vineyard. You shall not reap your harvest’s aftergrowth, and you shall not gather your grapes of untrimmed vines; the land shall have a sabbatical year” {Lev. 25:1-5 NASB}.

As I read this passage, I thought about how hard this must have been for them. It is important to remember that this community was an agricultural one, their livelihood was tied to the land. If they could not grow their crops, they had nothing. But the Lord is always merciful, and He foresees their trouble and before they can even raise their lips to complain He answers them:

^“You shall therefore follow My statutes and keep My judgments so as to carry them out, so that you may live securely on the land. Then the land will yield its produce, so that you can eat your fill and live securely on it. But if you say, ‘What are we going to eat in the seventh year if we do not sow nor gather in our produce?’ then I will so order My blessing for you in the sixth year that it will bring forth the produce for three years. When you are sowing the eighth year, you can still eat old things from the produce, eating the old until the ninth year when its produce comes in” {Lev. 25:18-22 NASB}.

The Lord is always faithful. If they will only but trust in Him, even during the sabbath, He will not leave them or forsake them.

I have been meditating on this for some time now because I seem to be in a sabbath of my own. Those of you who know me know that I garden every year as I am working toward being able to grow as much of my own food as possible. I also love flowers and grow them as well. I am one of those who sow her seeds early so that as soon as winter has made its last stand (and a very cold spring where I am) and the threat of frost has vanished, I plant them in the garden as soon as possible (also we have a short growing season).

Well, this year was the first year that I can remember that I have not planted any seeds and did not have a garden. While this may seem irrelevant to some it is a huge disappointment for me. Though I don’t rely on my little farm for my livelihood, Piper’s Farm brings me much joy. I love planting seeds and watching the miracle that it produces in the fruit for it is part of the creation that I love. It was not to be this year. In April, I had major foot surgery so I knew I would not be able to attend to the seeds or get them planted, and I did not want to burden the husband as he already had to pick up the slack for me in so many other areas, so I didn’t plant any. While it was something I needed to lay down, it was still very hard for me. I walk the yard often looking at the place where my garden is usually growing to see only weeds {which are screaming at me as well}.

This is where my sabbath has occupied my mind because it has spiritual implications as well. We are not the ancient Israelites, but there are some spiritual implications concerning the sabbath and the waiting periods that we often find ourselves in. This has certainly been a year of sabbath for me. In April, I found myself in the recovery room after foot surgery with very low oxygen levels. So, long story made a tad shorter, they found a nodule in my lung. The location of the nodule was very problematic and could not easily be reached. I endured two bronchoscopies in two weeks, and they were not able to retrieve a sample size of the tissue large enough to determine a diagnosis. Then a PET scan, then a diagnosis of adenocarcinoma. Then, three weeks ago, they removed the nodule by removing half of my right lung, and thankfully, it is not cancer—the goodness of God displayed. I am recovering, and will be fine, but I feel as though I have lived in a state of recovery for most of this year {also part of why I have been absent from this space}. Though I was still in school working on my Ph.D. in the spring, I have had to postpone school until later in October. This was very hard for me to do; I wrestled with the decision for weeks. I also had to step down from my editing work at my church where I was employed. It feels like everything I am and everything I do is gone. A sabbath rest, though mine is not in obedience, mine seems like I had no choice.

There are seasons where we will feel as though we have been emptied of everything and we have no choice but to trust the Lord in the season of sabbath. I cannot fully convey the frustration in my life right now as I struggle with everything being stripped away. I have to rest in order to recover, I have no choice. I don’t have the strength to do much.

I imagine this is how the Israelites may have felt in that sabbath year. But God is so faithful to us. Just as He was with them and blessed them in the sixth year so that the sabbath year would not be a strain for them, He is with us. He is with me. When we are faithful to be in His Word and walk with Him daily, we are strengthened to walk through these times. The Lord promised us that we will not be alone, He has sent the Comforter to keep us:

I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, so that He may be with you forever; the Helper is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him; but you know Him because He remains with you and will be in you {Jn. 14: 16-17 NASB}.

He will not leave us, and He is faithful to walk through them with us. The Apostle Paul was told that God’s grace was sufficient for him when he cried out to God during one of his struggles {2 Cor. 12:9}, His grace is sufficient to help us do what we cannot do for ourselves.

During this time, I have had to completely deconstruct who I am and what I am doing or should be doing for Him on this earth and have had to rebuild from the foundation up. Though this is a hard thing to walk through, He is faithful in the waiting—in this sabbath. He is working towards my good when I rest in Him. I have no choice but to wait on Him and then He works in me to form me into His image; to make me more Christlike, which is always for my good:

“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified” {Rom. 8: 28-30 NASB}.

So, I will wait. I will take this sabbath rest and trust and wait on Him to bring forth His purpose in my life, because He has given me enough spiritual riches in abundance to endure this sabbath, as frustrating as it can be at times, and to live under His sovereign hand.

 

“If a man dies, will he live again? All the days of my struggle I will wait until my relief comes” {Job. 14:14 NASB}.

Rest in God this beautiful Sabbath weekend.....

Psalms To See Me Through: Psalm 29 The Lord Sits Enthroned Over The Flood

I have felt the tugging at my heart to continue with the Psalms to See Me Through series since I have not written one in while. I was embarrassed when I realized that it has been almost three years since I wrote on the last Psalm!

Well, we find ourselves once again in a new year. 2020 had its challenges, yet there was much to be thankful for in the face of a very difficult year. God proved Himself faithful on every occasion—every trying obstacle and hard place. He is so faithful. He is so good.

For much of 2020, my pastor preached on Psalm 29, specifically verse 10: “The Lord sits enthroned over the flood” (ESV). 2020 saw many floods for many people. I do not know anyone who was not in some way affected by the pandemic whether physically, financially, or who did not suffer a loss. I do not think it is an accident then when I looked to see what the next Psalm was in the series that it was this Psalm.

The ESV Bible titles this Psalm “Ascribe to the Lord Glory.” God should always be the first to give glory to. The NASB titles it “The Voice of the Lord in the Storm.” Both are worthy titles.

Ascribe to the Lord, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness (vv. 1–2).

In this Psalm, David echoes the name of the LORD eighteen times and “the voice of the LORD” seven times. LORD, is the tetragrammaton, which we write Jehovah, Yehovah, Yehveh, Yeveh, Jhuh, Javah, etc. A name so holy that the Jews do not dare to utter it.

“Ascribe” in the Hebrew means to give. God is to be given glory at all times. Who is to give Him glory? The ESV translates heavenly being, the KJV translates mighty ones, the NASB renders it sons of the mighty. It may be speaking to either powerful nobles or mighty celestial beings. The phrase is used elsewhere to denote ‘heavenly beings’ or angels (cf. Genesis 6:2, 4; Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7; Psalms 82:6; 89:6). 

David is well aware that the powerful on the earth tend to forget God and, in their arrogance, give themselves all the credit for their accomplishments. A stern warning for those in power to remember the Name of the Lord and to give Him the glory for everything. Perhaps some kings of old can serve as our teacher:  

“The king began speaking and was saying, ‘Is this not Babylon the great, which I myself have built as a royal residence by the might of my power and for the honor of my majesty?’ While the word was still in the king’s mouth, a voice came from heaven, saying, ‘King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is declared: sovereignty has been removed from you, and you will be driven away from mankind, and your dwelling place will be with the animals of the field. You will be given grass to eat like cattle, and seven periods of time will pass over you until you recognize that the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind and bestows it on whomever He wishes’” (Dan. 4:30-32 NASB).

We all would do good to remember the Lord our God; whatever success we have achieved, whatever crowns we have won, should be cast back at His feet in humility. Those who are in power in the earth or the heavens would do well to praise the God of Heaven, He will not share glory with anyone, “I am the Lord, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another…” (Is. 42:8 NASB).

His Voice; the Voice. How wonderful, powerful, awesome, and majestic is the voice of the Lord.

“The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the Lord, over many waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty. The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon. He makes Lebanon to skip like a calf, and Sirion like a young wild ox. The voice of the Lord flashes forth flames of fire. The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness; the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. The voice of the Lord makes the deer give birth and strips the forests bare, and in his temple all cry, ‘Glory!’” (vv. 3–9 ESV).

All creation cries Glory to Him. All who are in His temple, cry Glory! He deserves nothing less. His voice can be heard above all creation; over all rulers of the earth; over the animals. The earth and heavens shake at the sound of His voice; all creation is shaken. Each mention of His name illustrates the strength and glory of His voice. If the sound of His voice carries this much strength and authority, imagine the Words the Voice is speaking. They should leave us in awestruck wonder. The God of glory thunders. He thunders in the face of every trial, every hard road you travel, every attack you face. Does His voice thunder in your atmosphere or the voice of the trial? Does His voice thunder or does the voice of the sickness? Does the voice of Yahweh thunder in your ear or the financial trial? Do you tremble at the strength and glory of His voice or do you tremble at the circumstance?

“After it, a voice roars; He thunders with His majestic voice, And He does not restrain the lightning when His voice is heard. God thunders wondrously with His voice, doing great things which we do not comprehend” (Job 37:4-5 NASB).  

“The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord sits enthroned as king forever” (v.10)

David most likely had the flood of Noah in mind as this is the only place in the Old Testament other than in Genesis 6:9 where this Hebrew word for flood occurs. Yes, the flood was His divine judgment for the evil in the earth, yet He watched over it all and saved Noah, his family, and seven pairs of clean animals and a pair of every unclean. In a world-wide flood that wiped out everything, God was on His throne and He kept Noah and the animals and brought them all to safety. He hid them in the safety of the Ark during the worst storm and flood the world has ever experienced. He stopped the flood for Noah, and He will stop the flood for you. He is enthroned over the flood of sickness; He is enthroned over the flood of financial trouble; He is enthroned over every circumstance you face; He will not allow you to drown. He is Lord over it all. He is the King forever!

“May the Lord give strength to his people! May the Lord bless his people with peace!” (v. 11).

Do you feel weak? Weak in the face of the trial; weak in the face of sickness or financial trouble? Do you feel week standing in faith when it is all you have done…for what seems like forever? He will give strength to His people. The strength and authority that is in His voice He freely gives to His people. You have strength to stand. You have authority over the flood of trials that you face. He will bless you with peace. Though the power of God can be a terrifying storm for those who rebel against the Lord, God’s people can be confident and sure that His peace belongs to His children. Be confident that He will bless you and know that His strength comes to comfort you; the destructive storm is relegated for the enemy of your soul. 

 

To read all the Psalms in this series click here: Psalms To See Me Through

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Sabbath Sanctuary: Sabbath Thoughts

“Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat—for he grants sleep to those he loves” {Ps. 127: 1-2 NASB}.

“The point the Psalmist is making is that we should not carry our cares and anxieties to bed with us. Beds were made for sleeping, not for worrying.”[1]

“Of all the thoughts of God that are

Borne inward unto souls afar

Along the Psalmist’s music deep

Now tell me if that any is,

For the gift of grace, surpassing this—
He giveth His beloved sleep.” Elizabeth Barrett Browning

“Those whose spirits are stirred by the breath of the Holy Spirit of God go forwards even in sleep.” Brother Lawrence

 “God is my portion and my joy,

His counsels are my light;

He gives me sweet advice by day

And gentle hints by night.” Issac Watts

“O Lord, we have a busy world around us. Eye, ear, and thought will be needed for all our work to be done in the world. Now ere we again enter into it, we would commit eye, ear, and thought to Thee. Do Thou bless them and keep their work Thine, that as through Thy natural laws our hearts beat and our blood flows without any thought of ours for them so our spiritual life may hold on its course at those times when our minds cannot consciously turn to Thee to commit each particular thought o Thy service, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.” Dr. Arnold 

“All experience goes to show that the quality of our night’s rest depends in large measure on the frame of mind in which we go to bed and compose ourselves to sleep. I shall conclude by saying this—and it is something of which I have continually to keep reminding myself: Every man who calls himself a Christian should go to sleep thinking about the love of God as it has visited us in the Person of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” [2]
Rest well this Sabbath.





[1] John Baillie, Christian Devotion (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1962), 100.[2] Ibid., 107.
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Sabbath Sanctuary: Crucible Hill—Living Through A Crucible

I intended to write a Lenten devotion, Crucible Hill to study and reflect on the sacrifice of Jesus leading up to Resurrection Sunday, yet I find myself in a crucible quite unexpected; my attention focused elsewhere {I am still penning Crucible Hill, just for the Lent season next}.

Oxford Dictionary defines crucible as a situation of severe trial, or in which different elements interact, leading to the creation of something new. I find myself in such a trial. 

My view from my husband’s hospital room is the magnificent Rocky Mountains which serve as a reminder of the Majesty and Awesomeness of God.

“I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple” {Is. 6:1 NASB}.

I gaze out over the parking lot and the buildings toward the majestic peaks and it is peaceful, even though I know that the bustling world below continues to spin— unaware of the pain from behind the window.

We have found ourselves in a place we never anticipated. My husband had a seizure for the first time in his fifty-six years on this earth. He was found at church unconscious, laying on the floor {he is the building superintendent at the church we attend}. I was there that day as well and ran to where he lay unconscious. Though his eyes would open intermittently, he was not home; he was completely unresponsive. He was rushed to the emergency room and the CT revealed a brain tumor. A brain tumor. This is something one hears happens to other people; one never imagines that this happens in their own family.

While having the seizure he somehow broke his left ankle. Surgery was imminent—within twenty-four hours. The tumor too, immediate removal. Two surgeries in two days. His left ankle cannot sustain any weight-bearing pressure (he can not use or walk on it) and the right is numb caused by the seizure, tumor, and surgery. The whole tumor could not be removed surgically, now radiation is next every day for six weeks.

Life can change in a day. There were no symptoms, no red flags, nothing indicating this was coming. One day he is fine, the next he is seizing and bed-ridden. Life can change in a moment. He was in a meeting one moment and feeling fine, and ten minutes later, unconscious on the floor. Our whole world turned upside down.

I don’t know how this happened—how we got here to this place. I don’t know why we had no warning and why our world changed so drastically. What I do know is that God is good; true; just; faithful; righteous; gracious; lovingkindness; sovereign; holy; merciful; patient; love; omnipotent; omniscient; omnipresent; omnibenevolent; all-powerful; all-mighty; and immutable—the same yesterday, today and forever {Heb. 13:8}. I know that we are in His strong hand and nothing can snatch us from Him. I know that to know that you have faith in God means that faith is tested—forged in fire to bring forth gold.

“So that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” {1 Pet. 1:7 NASB}

How do you know you have faith if you never have to fight? How do you know God as your healer if you are never sick?

I know that we live in a fallen world where sometimes bad things happen to good people and good things happen to bad people.

“…for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” {Matt. 5:45 NASB}.

I may not understand everything this side of eternity but I can trust in His goodness and mercy which He poured out in abundance in all that transpired that day. The previous week he was on the roof fifty to sixty feet in the air in which he could have fallen from during the seizure or laid there for hours without anyone knowing where he was and without aid, and was also forty feet up in a lift changing light bulbs in the sanctuary. He made it to the top of the flight of stairs before having the seizure instead of half-way which would have incurred a brutal fall. Just an hour before, he drove both of us to church—thankfully it did not happen while driving. Numerous scenarios could have made this more tragic than it was. God is so good; we both felt His protection through and through—and now feel His grace more than ever.

I believe God is a healer. I pray for my husband’s healing every day. I prayed while awaiting the paramedics; I prayed in the car on the way to the ER; I prayed while waiting for the CT scan, MRI, X-rays, and blood tests. I prayed while waiting for surgeons to fix his broken body. I believed God that this was not a tumor but something small and that he would emerge from surgery with nothing on his brain baffling doctors. Though I did not receive the outcome I prayed for I know that whatever is ahead for us God will walk with us through this crucible of faith...The Lord is my Shepherd… God is good regardless of whether I receive the outcome I desire.

We await the pathology on the portion of the tumor the docs were able to remove, whether it is malignant or benign. I am believing that the tumor is not malignant and I stand on God’s healing power. I believe that though his healing is for our good, it is for His glory…to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Crucible; a severe trial…leading to the creation of something new.

Regardless of the path ahead and the news we receive, we are in the grip of His grace and He will strengthen us and do for us what we cannot do for ourselves. I know that my Redeemer lives.


“Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him...” {Job. 15:15 KJV}

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See my series on the Jesus and fulfilled prophecy here
See my series on A Protestant's View on Stations of the Cross for Lent here

Crucible Hill: A Lenten Devotion: That Stake of Wood

I have been writing as of late about Eve for a forthcoming publication and as I study and read Genesis 3: 15, the protoevangelium provokes me to reflect on the cross some thousands of years after Eden.

No theology is genuinely Christian which does not arise from and focus on the cross. – Martin Luther

Lent is now suddenly upon us and though I am not now of a denominational tradition that celebrates the liturgical calendar, I did as a child. I have a deep longing to study and keep many of the traditions for myself, so on today, Ash Wednesday, I am well aware of my shortcomings and even more so, my sin. I reduce to ashes my dried palm from Palm Sunday last as I pray for His forgiveness, thankful that He died for them—for me.  

The cross is beautiful to me. What Christ endured on the cross for my sake is unfathomable, His love is unfathomable; His love, body, and blood poured out for me.

When I survey the wondrous cross On which the Prince of glory died, My richest gain I count but loss, And pour contempt on all my pride. Isaac Watts

Scripture—the blessed Holy Writ—makes clear that the death of Christ was necessary. It was part of God’s divine plan to redeem fallen, lost humanity. What a stiff-necked people we are in our fallenness. The Fall of creation was one of the most tragic occurrences the world has seen. It was a cosmic event of catastrophic proportions for which the remedy was beyond Adam and Eve’s power to repair. Though their sin was beyond their ability to mend God proved faithful in His promise to send the Messiah to restore what was broken.

“ Therefore it was also credited to him as righteousness. Now not for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him, but for our sake also, to whom it will be credited, as those who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification” {Rom. 4:22-25 NASB}.

The cross of Christ is beautiful to the sinner. That is why I have been troubled recently (I posted on social media) by the trend in some circles of Christians who assert that Jesus did not actually die and that the account of His crucifixion was only a metaphor. They further claim that the cross is repulsive and that only a mean and angry God would require the blood of His Son to satisfy His anger for sin. Further still, I can barely stand to write the accusation, they claim that this would be cosmic child abuse for Him to require such a gruesome sacrifice. 

 “So he then handed Him over to them to be crucified” {John 19:16 NASB}.

I wish there had been another way. I wish that Christ did not have to endure such suffering on my behalf. Jesus too, prayed that the cup would pass from Him {Matt. 26:29 NASB}. But He came to do the will of the Father, it was not cosmic child abuse, He was the perfect Lamb of God, taking on the sin of the world, to reconcile God’s beloved creation back to Himself. He did not choose some random person in which to impose the requirement of sin upon, rather He took the payment of such sin on Himself as well.

“Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come (In the scroll of the book it is written of Me) To do Your will, O God.’” After saying above, ‘Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You have not desired, nor have You taken pleasure in them’ (which are offered according to the Law), then He said, ‘Behold, I have come to do Your will.’ He takes away the first in order to establish the second. By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” {Heb. 10:7-10}.

The crucifixion was Jesus’ voluntary act of laying down His life and taking it up again {Jn. 10:18}. No one takes it from Him. He came to do the will of the one who sent Him. He was not taken against His will; He was not martyred; He was not assassinated. He laid down His life. He did really die for our sins. I cannot imagine faithful followers of Jesus (who were martyred and died very brutal, gruesome deaths themselves) defending, suffering, and dying for a metaphorical cross. It is unimaginable. If He did not literally die, He did not literally rise from the dead. If He did not rise, our faith is in vain, and our message is useless, and then it would follow, so is our faith in Him{1 Cor. 15:14}.

“First, as the Lord shall help me (for who shall describe the cross without the help of Him that hung upon it) what did Paul mean by the cross? Did he not include under this term, first, the fact of the cross; secondly, the doctrine of the cross, and thirdly, the cross of the doctrine? I think he meant, first of all, the fact of the cross. Our Lord Jesus Christ did really die upon a gallows, the death of a felon. He was literally put to death upon a tree, accursed in the esteem of men.” Charles Spurgeon, The Cross Our Glory, Sermon No. 1859.

God is Holy. Sin required a sacrifice. Jesus was that perfect one-time sacrifice. These are biblical truths. Where would we all be if not for the cross? How can one look upon it with such contempt? Such venom? Would it have been better for Him to annihilate us that we be separated and suffer apart from Him for eternity? Would it better for Him to allow us to live depraved? God let it not be so! He would not let it be. That is not gruesome, it is beautiful. I pray for those who are veiled from the truth of the cross and are a stumbling block and deceiving others by their teaching. God have mercy on them. Paul spoke about those who claim Christ did not die in his letter to the Corinthians,

“For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And the cleverness of the clever I will set aside.’ Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” {1 Cor. 1:22-25 NASB}.

“We could summarize all of this background to Bonhoeffer’s Christology in one sentence, albeit a complex one: The cross was a stumbling block to the Romans; the cross was a stumbling block to the Nazis; the cross was a stumbling block to moderns; and—unless we are humbled and brought low beneath the cross to see its power and beauty—the cross can be a stumbling block to us.” 

Stephen J. Nichols, Bonhoeffer on the Christian Life: From the Cross, for the World

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See my series on the Jesus and fulfilled prophecy here
See my series on A Protestant's View on Stations of the Cross for Lent here

The Attributes of God: Love

God Is Love 1 John 4:8.

I spent the first part of my morning on the couch watching as one of my heroes of the faith was laid to rest. The legacy of this General will stay with me forever. Though I rejoice that he has received his heavenly reward, my heart broke when he passed. Many spoke and shared touching stories of how this great man of God touched their lives. Tears fell hard as I listened to the daughter who returned home in her fallenness and brokenness to find her father waiting for her with loving arms open wide. The unconditional love of a father. Her father was not God, but he showed her that day who God is and how He loves the broken-hearted. The prodigal son jumps off the page of the Holy Writ and into my heart. 

The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love {1 Jn. 4:8 NASB}.

Scripture tells us three things concerning the nature of God; He is spirit {Jn. 4:24}, He is light {1 Jn. 1:5}, and He is love {1 Jn. 4:8}. God does not simply love us, He is Love. Love is not one of His attributes, but His very nature.[1] Oh if only we had a full grasp on the love of God! The more we experience and understand His love—its character, fullness, blessedness—the more our hearts will be drawn out in love to Him.

I am so thankful for His love. I cannot fathom how He can possibly love me, yet He does. His love is unchanging and it cannot be influenced by anyone or anything. I cannot cause Him to love me more and I can’t do anything to make Him love me less. His love is free, spontaneous, and uncaused. He loves me when I am loveless.

God is eternal which means He has no beginning; His love is eternal. I cannot wrap my finite mind around His love for me—I am but dust. I am undone.

“I have loved you with an everlasting love;Therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness”{Jer. 31: 3 NASB}.

From eternity God set His heart upon His people. Everything about God is infinite. His essence fills heaven and earth. He knows all and sees all. He is all-powerful—nothing is too hard for Him. His love is without limit, it cannot be fathomed, it cannot be measured.

God’s love is one of the grandest themes in all of Scripture.[2] The Bible is God’s story of love for all creatures. The Preacher’s daughter spoke of being comforted in her father’s arms in the midst of her darkness—her brokenness. This is a beautiful picture of our heavenly Father and His love for us. God’s love means that God eternally gives of Himself to others.[3] It is part of His nature to give of Himself in order to bring about good to His people.

His love was evident at creation in the Trinity. Jesus speaks to this truth in John’s gospel in one of the most beautiful prayers ever spoken—His High Priestly Prayer:

“Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world” (Jn. 17:24 NASB emphasis by author). God loved and honored Him from all eternity. The Beloved Disciple wants us to know this truth, “The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand”{3:35 NASB}. The love between the Father and Son also presumably characterizes their relationship with the Holy Spirit even though it is not explicitly mentioned.[4] This eternal love of the Father for the Son and both for the Holy Spirit demonstrates that the Trinity seeks to bring joy and happiness to each other and to us as well. The Trinity’s self-giving love is expressed in God’s relationship to mankind. He loves sinners which is why He sent His Son to redeem everyone who will accept this precious gift of grace.

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” {Jn.3:16 NASB}

“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” {Rom. 5:8 NASB}.

“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me” {Gal. 2:20 NASB}.

Christ loves sinners. He loves all people. He came and died for all mankind—because of His love for us. His love drove Him to the cross. It is unfathomable to me that God set his love on us and that He longs to bring us true joy and happiness. It doesn’t mean that we will have a trouble-free life, but He is working all things for our good {Rom. 8:28}and His love for us is eternal.

God’s love is so amazing and it is even more profound that we can and should return our love to Him:

“And He said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the great and foremost commandment” {Matt. 22:37-38 NASB}.

The way we demonstrate our love for God is by obeying His commandments. Just as God has bestowed His love on us, we can pour out our love on Him by living a life of obedience, living a life of worship and prayer, and by doing so, we bring joy to His heart.

“As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, So your God will rejoice over you” {Is. 62:5 NASB}.

“The Lord your God is in your midst, A victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.” {Zep. 3:17 NASB}.

To read all in this series of the Attributes of God click here

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[1] A.W. Pink, The Attributes Of God (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1975), 77.

[2] John S. Feinberg, No One Like Him (Wheaton: Crossway, 2001), 349.

[3] Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1994), 199.

[4] Ibid.