Thursday, October 29, 2009

A Prayer for the Leaders of Nations

All the kings on earth will give You thanks, Lord,
when they hear what You have promised.
They will sing of the Lord’s ways,
for the Lord’s glory is great.
(Psalm 138:4-5 HCSB)
This is the kingdom of God coming, the will of God being done on earth as it is in heaven. It is my prayer and my expectation.


O God, who commanded light to shine out of darkness, give to the kings of the earth the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. That they may hear what you have promised, rejoice in Your ways and give You thanks. Amen.

(See also When All the Kings of the Earth Shall Hear.)

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

The Algebra of Our Inheritance

O LORD, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup;
You maintain my lot.
The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Yes, I have a good inheritance.
(Psalm 16:5-6)
Here is the algebra of our inheritance. Yes, we have a good inheritance.
  • Jesus is heir of all things (Hebrews 1:2)
  • We are joint-heirs with Christ. (Romans 8:17)
  • We are heirs of all things.

Monday, October 26, 2009

Divine Portrait of Prosperity: Psalm 112

Blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
Who delights greatly in His commandments.
(Psalm 112:1)
“Blessed” speaks of great happiness and bliss. What is the cause of such an exceedingly happy condition? The fear of the Lord, and delighting in His commandments.

The fear of the Lord speaks of living in supreme awe of Him. It is loving what He loves and hating what He hates. It is recognizing that His displeasure is greatly to be avoided but His favor is greatly to be desired. To delight in something is to have a desire for it, to take pleasure in it. Here, it is modified by the word “greatly,” which speaks of exceeding abundance, completeness, and diligence. This delight, desire and pleasure is wholehearted and intense. When we start to understand how awesome God is, how great His love and how marvelous His favor, we begin to take intense pleasure in His ways — and that leads to bliss, as this psalm describes.

What does the fear of the Lord look like in the everyday life of a person who has it?
He is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.
A good man deals graciously and lends;
He will guide his affairs with discretion. (vv. 4-5)

His heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD. (v. 7)

He has dispersed abroad,
He has given to the poor. (v. 9)
  • He has received grace and favor from the Lord, so he shows grace and favor to others.
  • He has experienced compassion and mercy from God, so he knows how to extend compassion and mercy to others.
  • He is not stingy with what is his, but generously lends to others.
  • He shows good judgment in all his dealings. The HCSB has, “conducts his business fairly.” He makes sound business decisions that are equitable and promote what is good.
  • His trust is in the Lord and he lets that settle all the worries and concerns of his heart.
  • He not only lends freely, He gives generously to the poor. The Hebrew for “disperse” literally means to scatter. He understands the paradox of Proverbs 11:24, “There is one who scatters, yet increases more; and there is one who withholds more than is right, but it leads to poverty.”
That’s a short sketch of how the fear of the Lord gets lived out. Now, let’s take a brief look at what the prosperity of such a person looks like.
  • “His descendants will be mighty on earth; the generation of the upright will be blessed’ (v. 2). His descendants will receive a spiritual inheritance that, if they will follow it, will lead them into a life of blessing, abundance and significance.
  • “Wealth and riches will be in his house, and his righteousness endures forever” (v. 3). Because he is making good decisions and doing what is right, which leads to prosperity, prosperity will fill his house. The results of living well will endure for the next generations. As Proverbs 13:22 says, “A good man leaves an inheritance for his children’s children.”
  • “Unto the upright there arises light in the darkness” (v. 4). This does not mean that he will never have to go through dark times (or poor economies), but that when he does, there will light to lead him through it to the other side. The surrounding darkness will not cause him to fear because he is focused on the light that comes from the Lord.
  • “Good will come to a man who lends generously” (v. 5, HCSB). Because he does what is good, goodness comes back to him. It is the principle of sowing and reaping. Jesus put it this way, “Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the measure that you use, it will be measured back to you” (Luke 6:38). This is not just about money, as some think, but about how we deal with each other in general: When we show goodness to others, it will come back around to us.
  • “Surely he will never be shaken; the righteous will be in everlasting remembrance” (v. 6). Living in awe of God brings him into a place of stability. There may be earthquakes, but when the dust clears, he will still be standing. He will have a testimony and the significance of his life will remain.
  • “He will not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord” (v. 7). Bad news, failing economies, and financial disasters will not strike fear in him because his life and prosperity — his blessing — is founded upon God. His focus and trust are in the Lord.
  • “His heart is established; he will not be afraid until he sees his desire upon his enemies” (v. 8; the HCSB has, “In the end he will look in triumph on his foes”). He does not focus his heart on the adversarial circumstances that surround him, but on the Lord. He does not fear when leaders forecast gloom or threaten catastrophe. The peace of his heart is settled on God and nothing can disturb the calm state of his soul.
  • “His righteousness endures forever; his horn will be exalted with honor” (v. 9). His influence and honor will increase and the effect of living God’s way will continue to make him a blessing to others.
  • “The wicked will see it and be grieved; he will gnash his teeth and melt away; the desire of the wicked shall perish” (v. 10). The wicked are those who are at odds with God’s way of doing things. Great blessing will come to those who live in awe of Him and walk in His ways, but for the wicked there is only grief, despair and frustration of purpose. They will fade away, therefore do not let your heart be troubled by them.
The psalm writer gives us just some of what it means to live in awe and delight of God and to know His prosperity. Jesus puts it all very succinctly: “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).

The blessing of a divinely peaceful and prosperous life follows from living in awe of the Lord and walking in His ways.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Divine Portrait of Prosperity: Psalm 144

David sings of the prosperity of His people and asks God to deliver them from the hand of those who speak lying words and act falsely. It is a picture of national prosperity.
That our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth;
That our daughters may be as pillars,
Sculptured in palace style;
That our barns may be full,
Supplying all kinds of produce;
That our sheep may bring forth thousands
And ten thousands in our fields;
That our oxen may be well-laden;
That there be no breaking in or going out;
That there be no outcry in our streets.
Happy are the people who are in such a state;
Happy are the people whose God is the LORD!
(Psalm 144:12-15)
This echoes the blessing of Deuteronomy 28:1-14, the prosperity that follows a people who live in awe of the Divine, listen to His voice and walk in His wisdom. It is a covenant promise initially given to Israel, but God has broadened it to include all nations and peoples — He will not turn away anyone who comes to receive His grace. That is why Jesus came, to rescue, redeem, reconcile and restore what was lost. His reign brings peace, prosperity and protection to those who honor Him.

God desires to bless our country with peace, prosperity and protection, and He will do it if we will turn to Him.

Saturday, October 24, 2009

The Gospel Jesus Preached

Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:14-15)
Jesus came preaching the gospel — the good news about the kingdom of God. What was the message? “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand.” The Greek word for “time” here is not chronos, the word for chronological or sequential time, but kairos, a word that speaks of the rightness or ripeness of a time. It signifies the acute presence of a propitious moment.

The announcement of the gospel Jesus preached is that the time has been fulfilled, the acute moment for the kingdom of God has arrived. That kingdom is now at hand. That is, it is here. It has come upon the scene and is now present among us.

This kingdom is the one God promised long ago to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The one that would reign over all nations and be a blessing to all the families of the earth. The one that would have God’s Anointed — the Messiah, the Christ — as its king. This kingdom had finally arrived — present in the person of King Jesus — and now the world would never be the same again.

John the Baptist came earlier to prepare the way for this King and this kingdom. He brought a baptism of repentance, because this kingdom would be about pardon for and freedom from sins (Mark 1:4). Many in Jerusalem and Judea came to him at the Jordan River and were bathed by him in its waters, confessing their sins (v. 5). John baptized them with water but he declared that the One who would come after him would baptize them with the Holy Spirit (v. 8).

When Jesus came to be baptized of John — not for any sin of His own — the heavens parted as He came up out of the water, the Holy Spirit descended on Him, and the voice of the Father declared, “You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (vv. 9-11). This identified Jesus as the fulfillment of Psalm 2 — the Messiah, Son of God, established as God’s King in Zion.
“Yet I have set My King
On My holy hill of Zion.”
I will declare the decree:
The LORD has said to Me,
“You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You”
(Psalm 2:6-7)
Immediately, Jesus was driven by the Spirit into the wilderness where He was tested for 40 days. When He emerged, He came announcing the presence of the kingdom and called for this response: “Repent, and believe in the gospel.”

The Greek word for “repentance” is metanoia and refers to a change of mind, a change of heart, a change of attitude, a change of will, the way you think and respond. It is a fresh start, departing from an old, dead way in order to embrace a new and living reality.

True repentance must be followed by a fresh faith. There is no point in having a new beginning if you go right back to the same old ways of thinking and acting. Repentance is a change of belief that naturally results in a change of life.

The object of this fresh faith is the gospel, the good news Jesus preached: The kingdom of God is here. The rule and reign of God has come into the world in the person of the King, Jesus the Messiah. And that changes everything!

The kingdom of God has not yet come in all its fullness, though, but it has already begun. Jesus said, “From the days of John the Baptist the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it” (Matthew 11:12 NIV). Luke’s Gospel has it this way: “The Law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it” (Luke 16:16). Ever since those days, the kingdom of God has been forcefully advancing, pressing into the world, and those who are ready to take it by faith are pressing into it.

It has already come; it is not yet in fullness.That sounds like a riddle, and theologians have referred to this as the paradox of already/not yet. What it means is that we are living in the in-between time. Every good story has a beginning, a middle and an end. We are in the middle. Our part in this story is to believe in the kingdom that has begun and will one day be completely revealed on earth.

This in-between time requires constant repentance and constant faith. Every day is a new opportunity to turn from the old way of this present age and embrace the new reality of God’s kingdom breaking into the world. An opportunity to yield to the Spirit of God, given to us at Pentecost to dwell in and empower everyone who receives Jesus as King, and see heaven break forth on earth.

The kingdom of God has come into the world and those who turn and believe King Jesus press into it by faith.

Monday, October 5, 2009

The Gospel of the Nations

Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name, among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ. (Romans 1:5-6)
God’s plan, ever since Adam plunged creation under the curse through rebellion against Him, has always been to redeem the world and its inhabitants. For “the earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein” (Psalm 24:1).

To this end, God chose Abraham and made him a promise: “In you all the nations shall be blessed” (Galatians 3:8; see The Gospel of Abraham). He confirmed this to Abraham’s son, Isaac, and to Isaac’s son, Jacob (see The Gospel of the King).

Through Jacob, He created a nation, Israel, that they might be a priestly people. “You shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exodus 19:6). The purpose of a priest is to act as mediator between God and the people, to represent God to the people and the people to God. The purpose of a priestly nation is to represent God to the nations and the nations to God. God’s covenant with Israel was never just for Israel’s sake, but for the sake of the whole world, all the families of the earth — the nations.
For thus says the Lord of Hosts, “Once more in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea also and the dry land. I will shake all the nations; and they will come with the wealth of all nations, and I will fill this house with glory,” says the Lord of Hosts. “The silver is Mine and the gold is Mine,” declares the Lord of Hosts. “The latter glory of this house will be greater than the former,” says the Lord of Hosts, “and in this place I will give peace,” declares the Lord of Hosts. (Haggai 2:6-9 NASB)
God is bringing in the wealth of the nations to rebuild His temple. The immediate reference in Haggai was to the natural resources of the nations being used to rebuild a physical temple, but there is also a deeper significance. For the Jews of the Second Temple era, it held great eschatological importance, speaking to the final outworking of God’s purpose in the world. The author of Hebrews picks up on this theme:
But now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. (Hebrews 12:26-28)
This is not about a physical temple but an enduring kingdom, the rule and reign of God on the earth, which cannot be shaken. It is no longer just a future hope but a present reality. Though it has not yet been fully realized, it has already begun, for we are now receiving it (present continuous action).

What the prophet Haggai did not understand is now made plain in Jesus Christ. The enduring temple in the kingdom of God is not a physical entity that can be shaken but a spiritual one that cannot. The wealth of the nations is not their natural resources but their people. Peter tells us, “You also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 2:5). This temple is composed of “living stones” from all the nations of the earth—all who receive Jesus the Messiah as King:
And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; for You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth.” (Revelation 5:9-10)

Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth — to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people — saying with a loud voice, “Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water.” (Revelation 14:6-7)
After His resurrection from the dead and before He ascended to His throne at the right hand of the Father, the Lord Jesus appeared to His disciples and said:
All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. (Matthew 28:18-20)
God’s plan to restore the world and set everything right is fulfilled in Jesus the Messiah, who now reigns as King over all. He is calling the nations to embrace His divine kingdom, become part of His living temple, enjoy the glory and goodness of His house and experience the fullness of God’s shalom — peace and wholeness.

Friday, September 11, 2009

The Gospel of the Resurrection

Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you … For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures. (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)
The gospel is the “good news” that Jesus the Messiah died for our sins, was buried and rose again the third day. All this is as God foretold in the Old Testament. It is important to note that, as significant Messiah’s death for us on the cross is to this message, it is utterly incomplete without His resurrection from the dead three days later. As Paul so forcefully observes, “If Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!” (1 Corinthians 15:7).

There is a causal relationship between sin and death: “Through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned” (Romans 5:12). Death came into the world because of sin (treason against God), and the only way death can be overcome is by dealing with sin. So the resurrection of Messiah demonstrates that He has not only conquered death but has broken the power of sin as well.

The Resurrection is much more than that, though. The expectation of the Jews was that there would be a resurrection of the dead at the end of the age in which God would establish the righteous once and for all upon the earth. What they did not understand, though it was there in their Scriptures, was that Messiah would be raised from the dead. A messiah who needed resurrection was for them a contradiction in terms.

So it was a puzzlement, even to the disciples, when Jesus the Messiah, Son of the Living God, as Peter recognized (Matthew 16:16), was nailed to a tree. On that day they had no expectation that He would be resurrected three days later, though Jesus had foretold them of this a number of times. They were as surprised as anyone else to discover that this had indeed come to pass.

It meant that the end of the age had come upon them in an unexpected way, that it had somehow broken into the world ahead of time. And now here was Messiah who, through His faithfulness on the cross, contended with the powers of darkness, sin and death, and emerged victorious over them all, raised up by God the Father and established as righteous King over all.

The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is the guarantee that all who receive Him will likewise be raised again from the dead at the end of the age and established once and for all upon the earth. He is the “firstborn from the dead” (Colossians1:18), the firstfruits of what is to come.
But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming. (1 Corinthians 15:20-23)
The resurrection of Jesus is also the promise that our life between now and that future day when we stand once again upon the earth is not meaningless but significant. What we do now will make a difference then. For the kingdom of God is already breaking into the world (Matthew 11:12; Luke 16:16), the power of the resurrection is already at work in us (Ephesians 1:15-20; 3:20), the darkness is already passing away and the true light is already shining (1 John 2:8). So Paul concludes his resurrection teaching with this strong encouragement: “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58).

The good news of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead is the guarantee that the power of sin and darkness has been defeated, the kingdom of God has broken into the world, the power of God is now at work in and through those who believe, and at the return of the King our bodies shall be raised from the dust and we shall stand once again upon the earth with our Redeemer.

Thursday, September 10, 2009

The Gospel of New Creation

If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (2 Corinthians 5:17)
There is a new creation coming. It is not a another creation or a different creation but a renewal of creation. God never gave up on the first as a failed creation. Adam rebelled in the Garden of Eden and by doing so, as God’s representative king on the earth, plunged all creation under a curse. But God never set it aside. Instead, He made a way to redeem it.

This plan reached its climax in Jesus Christ, God and Man joined together in one person, who is called the Last Adam (1 Corinthians 15:45). At the cross, He defeated the powers of darkness, the devil and all his works (Hebrews 2:14; 1 John 3:8), then was raised by God the Father as the “firstborn from the dead” (Colossians 1:18). It was through the Son of God that the first creation came into existence; it is through the Son also that the renewal of all creation has now begun.

This new creation is not yet complete. We live in between the time of the new beginning and the final fulfillment. Indeed, even creation itself longs for this completion:
For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. (Romans 8:19-22)
The bodily resurrection of Jesus the Messiah from the dead is the guarantee that all creation shall be renewed. For all authority in heaven and earth has been given to Him (Matthew 28:18), and He rules and reigns as Lord of all, not as a divine but disembodied spirit but as the eternal God/Man who is forever embodied in the stuff of creation. When He comes again, the heavens and the earth will be made new (Revelation 21:1) and “we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” (1 John 3:2).

The renewal of creation has already begun in Jesus the Messiah, and those who are in Him, who belong to Him by faith in Him, are already part of it. It is as Paul said, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

The Gospel of Abraham

And the Scriptures, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, “In you all the nations shall be blessed.” (Galatians 3:8)
The gospel is God’s plan to justify the “Gentiles,” the “nations” — the Greek word is the same, ethnoi — to declare them righteous when He comes to judge the world and set things right. It is the good news He preached to Abraham when He promised that He would bless all the nations of the world through him.

The word “justify” means to declare one to be righteous. It is the act of a judge, the decision or finding he makes in a case brought before him. When God justifies you, He finds for you, in your favor, and not against you. It was God’s purpose all along to find for the nations of the earth, and it is happening through Abraham’s seed. 
Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, “and to your seed,” as of many, but as of one, “And to your Seed,” who is Christ. (Galatians 3:16)
This Seed of Abraham is Jesus of Nazareth, descendant of Abraham through Isaac, Jacob, Judah and eventually King David. He is the Messiah who was promised throughout the Old Testament. He was never meant for Israel’s sake alone but as God’s redeeming king for every tribe and tongue on earth.
For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. (Galatians 3:26-29)
The good news God preached to Abraham, to bless all the nations of the earth through him, is fulfilled in the Seed of Abraham, Jesus the Messiah. Through faith in Him, we too are become Abraham’s seed, both to be blessed and to be a blessing.

(See also The Gospel of the King)

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

The Upright in Heart

My defense is of God
Who saves the upright in heart.
(Psalm 7:10)

Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you righteous;
And shout for joy all you upright in heart.
(Psalm 32:11)

Oh, continue Your lovingkindness to those who know You,
And Your righteousness to the upright in heart.
(Psalm 36:10)

The righteous shall be glad in the LORD, and trust in Him.
And all the upright in heart shall glory.
(Psalm 64:10)

But judgment will return to righteousness,
And all the upright in heart will follow it.
(Psalm 94:15)

Light is sown for the righteous,
And gladness for the upright in heart.
(Psalm 97:11)

I will praise You with uprightness of heart,
When I learn your righteous judgments.
(Psalm 119:7)

The Hebrew word for “upright” is yashar and speaks of being straight, level, right, pleasing, just, fitting, proper. To be upright in heart is to be transparent, open before the LORD. David knew much about this. His heart was so opened up to God that he was called “a man after My own heart” (Acts 13:22).

David learned that there is no hiding out from God. He had tried that and it didn’t work — he became sick inside and out (Psalm 32:3-4). It was not until he became honest before God, confessing his sin, that he not only experienced relief but also an unexpected sense of elation, for he discovered once again the graciousness of God (see Surrounded by Faithful Love and Joyful Shouts). He recommends that same kind of transparency of heart before God, because there is gladness, and twirling and shouting for joy to be had (32:11).

To be upright in heart is to know God (Psalm 36:10). Knowing God is not about having information about Him but relationship with Him. It is personal, not perfunctory. The focus is not on duty but on delighting in Him. Paul’s prayer for the Church was that “the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him” (Ephesians 1:17), to know God more and more, deeply and intimately.

To be upright in heart is to trust in the LORD. It is the transparency of faith. We can depend on Him to defend and deliver us (Psalm 7:10), enlighten and guide us (97:11), instruct us in what is right and good (119:7). It is faith in God that actually pleases Him. Not that our deeds are unimportant, but they must come from an open and trusting heart that is turned toward God. “Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6).

For those who know, honor and love the LORD, who diligently seek after Him, who are transparent before Him and confident in Him, the rewards are really quite magnificent. He will spread out His steadfast love and faithfulness to cover them (Psalm 36:10, see The Prevailing Love of God). When He comes to set everything right, they will be around to see it (94:15) and their boast will be all about what He has done (64:10), with ecstatic praise, joyful shouts and wild dancing. These are the upright in heart.

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

The Gospel of God’s Messiah King

Concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. (Romans 1:3-4)
This is the “gospel of God” to which Paul devoted his life, the good news promised by Israel’s prophet.

This good news is about the Son of God, Jesus Christ our Lord.
  • Son of God. In Psalm 2, God speaks of His Son in a very singular way. He is called “Anointed” (Messiah) in verse 2. God says of Him, “Yet I have set My King on My holy hill of Zion” (v. 6) and “You are My Son, today I have begotten You” (v. 7). God gives Him this promise: “Ask of Me and I will give You the nations for Your inheritance and the ends of the earth for Your possession” (v. 8). To the kings of the earth who have heretofore set themselves against the LORD and His Anointed (vv. 1-2), He now gives the invitation: “Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry … Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him (vv. 11-12) (See my articles on Psalm 2).
  • Jesus. This is His name. It literally means “salvation.” Jesus is the Anglicized version of Iesous, which is the Greek translation of Yeshua, the Hebrew word for “salvation.” That is why the angel of the Lord said to Joseph, “You shall call his name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).
  • Christ. This is the Anglicized, Greekified version of the Hebrew Messiah, which means “Anointed One.” It is not Jesus’ last name, as many people seem to think, but a title that signifies that Jesus is the one promised by God, anointed by God to be the deliverer and King of Israel and all the world.
  • Lord. This does not mean “mister” or even simply “master.” Jesus is not one lord among many, He is “Lord of lords” (Revelation 17:14). In the Roman Empire, it was Caesar who was hailed as Lord, ruler over all, and when he died, he was thought to have ascended to heaven to be deified. But Paul turns all that on its head with his declaration that it is Jesus the Messiah who is Lord — King over all.
The good news is that Jesus was born of the seed of David according to the flesh. This statement does not merely establish the true humanity of Jesus, but identifies Him as the fulfillment of all God’s promises from the beginning (see The Gospel of the King). He is the seed of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, of the tribe of Judah and of the house of David. He is the promised Messiah King whom God would set to rule over all.

The good news is that Jesus was declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. This statement establishes that Jesus is indeed the Son of God, anointed to be King over all. The resurrection of Jesus from the dead demonstrates this to be so. The Jews believed there would be a general resurrection of the righteous at the end of the age, but here now was Jesus, Son of God and Son of Man, vindicated by God and shown to be righteous by His resurrection from the dead ahead of time by the power of the Holy Spirit. It signaled that the old age was coming to a close and the age of God’s kingdom was now beginning on earth.

This is the gospel of God Paul came to announce: Jesus is King and God has raised Him from the dead. It is this confession, this agreement in faith, by which we are delivered and restored and brought into proper alignment with God and His kingdom: “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). Blessed are all who put their trust in Him.

Saturday, August 15, 2009

The Gospel of the King

Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. (Romans 1:1-4)
The apostle Paul was all about the gospel — God’s good news for the whole world. He understood himself to be a servant of Yeshua the Messiah, sent forth on His behalf and set apart for the express purpose of proclaiming this unique message.

This gospel comes from God. It was not Paul’s idea, but God’s. Paul was taken quite by surprise by it, blinded by the brightness of its glory — literally knocked to the ground by it (he gives testimony of this dramatic encounter in Acts 22 and 26).

God promised this good news through His prophets in the Hebrew Scriptures. Not just in a passage here or there, but all throughout. The whole movement of the Old Testament finds its fulfillment in this joyful announcement from God that Paul now delivered. We see this, for example:
  • In Genesis 3:15. Immediately after Adam and Eve rebelled, God promised that the seed of the woman would prevail over the seed of the serpent. This is known as the proto-evangelion, the first mention of the gospel.
  • In Genesis 12:1-3. God revealed His plan to make of Abraham (then called Abram) a great nation and promised him, “In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” He confirmed this promise by cutting covenant with Abraham in Genesis 15 and again with the sign of the covenant in Genesis 17.
  • In Genesis 26:2-4, 24. God confirmed this promise to Abraham’s son, Isaac: “In your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
  • In Genesis 28:14. God confirmed the promise to Isaac’s son, Jacob: “In your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
  • In Genesis 49:10. Jacob prophesied over his son, Judah, that from his tribe a king would come who would rule over all.
  • In 2 Samuel 7:12-16. God made covenant with King David, of the tribe of Judah: “I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.”
  • In Jeremiah 31:33-34. God promised to make a new covenant with Israel which would be for everyone: “But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”
  • In Ezekiel 40-47. God gave Ezekiel a message for Israel, the vision of a new temple the Lord would make in His kingdom, to be His dwelling place on earth. From it would flow healing rivers in every direction.
  • In Daniel 7:13-14. God gave Daniel this vision: “One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him. Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed.”
These and many other Scriptures converge on God’s plan of redemption and restoration, and they are all fulfilled in Jesus the Messiah. After His resurrection, Jesus spoke with the Emmaus disciples about all the prophets had spoken. “Beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Him” (Luke 24:27).

God has good news for the world — the gospel of the King — and it is fulfilled in Jesus the Messiah, in whom all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

Friday, August 14, 2009

The Prevailing Love of God

Oh, continue Your lovingkindness to those who know You,
and Your righteousness to the upright in heart.
(Psalm 36:10)
Exalting in the reach of God’s faithful love (vv. 5-6) and the abundant pleasures of that love (vv. 7-9), David now brings his song full circle to address the problem with which he opened up this psalm: wicked men and the evil they do (vv. 1-4). David is now moving from praise to petition: Continue Your lovingkindness to those who know You.

The Hebrew word translated “continue” means to prolong, stretch out, extend or draw. Young’s Literal Translation renders it as “draw out,” which is interesting, considering that the psalm writer describes the faithful love of God as a river and a fountain: Draw out of the fountain of life and the river of delights now to protect us from the wicked.

This love, this protection, belongs to those who know the Lord. To know Yahweh is to have regard for Him and His ways, which is what the wicked in verse 1 lacked. Those who love, honor and trust in the Lord can expect Him to deliver them when evil men come.

The righteousness of God is His justice. This prayer is for God to do justice — to set things right — for those who are upright, those who are doing what is good and right, in contrast to those who are doing what is evil. David now spells out his concern:
Let not the foot of pride come against me,
And let not the hand of the wicked drive me away. (v. 11)
Then, having placed this before the Lord, David has a vision of what he has just asked for — he sees it as a foregone conclusion:
There the workers of iniquity have fallen;
They have been cast down and are not able to rise. (v. 12)
When the faithful love of God arises to do set things right, the wicked and their evil deeds are no match. They go down for the count and are not able to get back up. This lovingkindness belongs to all who know, love and trust Him.

Thursday, August 13, 2009

The Abundant Pleasures of Divine Love

God, Your faithful love is so valuable
That people take refuge in the shadow of Your wings.
(Psalm 36:7 HCSB)
What love God lavishes on His beloved! It is precious and valuable, worth more than anything else in life. It is a refuge for all who come to Him — even for the wicked, if they would turn to Him. His love is not just a temporary shelter from the storm but an abode, a permanent dwelling place, for all who trust in Him. “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I will trust” (Psalm 91:1-2). It is like a costly jewel, and David describes the splendor of its facets for those who know Yahweh:
  • They are abundantly satisfied with the fullness of Your house (v. 8). God flings open the doors of His house and invites us to partake of His table and enjoy His hospitality to our heart’s content. “He brought me to the banqueting house [treasure house, house of wine], and His banner over me is love” (Song of Solomon 2:4).
  • You give them drink from the river of Your pleasures (v. 8). God always intended for us to enjoy His pleasures. The Hebrew for “pleasures” is eden, as in the Garden of Eden. Heaven on earth! How is it that we settle for so much less when He offers us so much more?
  • For with You is the fountain of life (v. 9). God is the source of life. Jesus came that we might “have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows)” (John 10:10 Amplified Bible). It springs up like a fountain from a very deep place, pure and refreshing.
  • In Your light we see light (v. 9). God is the creator of light (Genesis 1:3) and the Father of Lights (James 1:17). Indeed, God is light (1 John 1:5). It is in Him that we see and know the glory of heaven on earth. Apart from Him there is only darkness.
The faithful love of God is not only a refuge and dwelling place for those who trust Him, but the source of satisfying abundance, sublime pleasure, overflowing life and the glory of everything that is good.

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

The Reach of Divine Love

Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens.
(Psalm 36:5 English Standard Version)
In the first stanza of this psalm, David described why the wicked to what they do (see The Heart of Transgression). But suddenly his focus shifts and he begins to sing of the steadfast love of the Lord. The Hebrew word for this love is hesed. It is the covenant love and mercy of God by which He has committed Himself to show kindness to His people. It is variously translated as “mercy,” “lovingkindness,” “faithful love,” and as in the ESV, “steadfast love.” In this psalm, it appears in verses 5, 7 and 10, each time opening a new stanza.

The second stanza describes the height and depth of this love: “LORD, Your faithful love reaches to heaven.” The love of God operates on behalf of those He loves according to His faithfulness, righteousness and judgments:
  • Faithfulness. (Hebrew, emunah), the trustworthiness of God to keep His word, the stability of God to keep His way, the steadiness of God to continue His works. It reaches “to the skies” (v. 5).
  • Righteousness. (Hebrew, tsedaqah), the rightness of God — He will always do with is right. It is “like the highest mountain” — rock solid (v. 6).
  • Judgments. (Hebrew, mishpat), the decisions and verdicts of God—they are always true. They are “like the deepest sea,” a wisdom that is richer, deeper, fuller than we can comprehend (v. 6). It is the justice of God that comes and sets things right.
The last line of verse 6 sums up this stanza: “O LORD, You preserve man and beast.” The Hebrew word for “preserve” is yasha, and speaks of salvation, liberation, deliverance and victory.

The steadfast love, faithfulness, righteousness and justice God has those who belong to Him is higher, deeper, greater than any adversity you will ever face.

Dead Reckoning

dead reckoning
“Reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:11).

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

The Heart of Transgression

Transgression speaks to the wicked deep in his heart;
There is no fear of God before his eyes.
(Psalm 36:1 English Standard Version)
David casts this psalm in four parts. The first (vv. 1-4) is about the motivations of the wicked. The Hebrew for the first line of the first verse is somewhat difficult to translate and there is a bit of variation among the existing Hebrew manuscripts. Consequently, there is a divergence among various translations: The NASB, the Amplified Bible, and the ESV render it like the above. The NIV, the HCSB and the NKJV translate it along this line: “An oracle in my heart concerning the wicked …” (NKJV).

Which ever translation is correct, the truth remains: Transgression is a matter of the heart. Neither God nor His precepts, nor anything external to a man cause make him to sin.
Let no one say when he is temped, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is draw away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. (James 1:13-15)
Nor can satan make a man sin, for no one could be tempted to do evil unless the desire was already present deep in his heart. Why is the desire for evil so deeply embedded in the heart of the wicked? Because he has no fear of God before his eyes.

The fear of God is regard for God and His ways, respect for the one who made heaven and earth. It is the recognition that life and everything good comes from Him, and that we were created to know and fellowship with Him. It is the dread of missing out on God, the source of all life and goodness.

Our eyes were meant to be full of God, to behold the splendor of His glory. But the eyes of the wicked are too full of himself to see anything beyond himself. He flatters himself too much to understood what is good and hate what is evil, much less to identify and turn from his twisted ways (Psalm 36:2).

The mouth of the wicked is full of malicious lies (v. 3). So also his heart, for as Jesus said, it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks (Matthew 12:34). The wicked is indifferent to wisdom and therefore to doing good — the things that lead to stability, success, beauty and bliss (v. 3). Instead, he lies on his bed at night scheming how he might inflict his hate on others and he is intent upon doing what is evil (v. 4). It consumes him.

David begins this psalm very darkly. However, his focus is not on wicked men working evil deeds. They are merely a source of trouble he has identified. He does not allow them to eclipse his view of life. Now, having described the problem, he turns to the solution. The existence of wicked men and evil deeds in the world is a fact of life, at least for now. However, there is a greater truth at hand, which will ultimately prevail: The faithful love of God. That is what the rest of this psalm is about.

The faithful love of God is more powerful than the heart of transgression and the evil deeds of the wicked.

Friday, August 7, 2009

Surrounded by Faithful Love, Joyful Shouts

Therefore let everyone who is faithful pray to You
    at a time that You may be found.
When great floodwaters come,
    they will not reach him.
You are my hiding place;
    You protect me from trouble.
You surround me with joyful shouts of deliverance.
Selah.
(Psalm 32:6-7 HCSB)

In Psalm 32, David expresses the deep happiness — the bliss — of being forgiven by God (v.1). There is no hiding out from God then, and no need to (v. 2). David had tried keeping his sin hidden, but it was tearing him up. Inside, he was brittle and dry, and his strength drained away “as in the summer’s heat (vv. 3-4). Then he turned to the Lord and acknowledged his sin, and to his joy discovered, “You took away the guilt of my sin” (v. 5).

Now he recognized that if God would do that for him, He will do that for anyone who quits hiding and turns to Him in faith. Though there is a time when God will bring forth justice into the world, there is still time for grace and mercy to be found. Then when calamity falls all around, those who are pardoned will remain.

There is a “hiding place,” a covering, a refuge, a secret place of safety. That hiding place is the Lord Himself. Before, David had been hiding from God but now he was learning to hide in God, for the Lord protects and preserves those who turn to Him. He watches over them like a shepherd, holding them near, to keep them in times of danger and guard them when adversaries and oppressors appear.

The Lord surrounds them with “joyful shouts of deliverance.” Not cries of fear. Not wails of despair. Joyful shouts of deliverance, the testimony of those who have seen the storm pass and find themselves still standing. They turned to the Lord and experienced His liberating power at every turn. They did not hide their sin from Him and they do not hide their praise from others — loud shouts and boisterous praise to the One who rescued them.

David did not hide his wrongdoing but confessed it to the Lord, and learned once again that “the one who trusts in the LORD will have faithful love surrounding him” (v. 11). The apostle John put it this way: “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is no in us. If we confess our sins. He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:8-9). “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (v. 7).

When we come out in the open with God, He surrounds us with faithful love and joyful shouts.

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

The Table of Covenant Revelation

Praying in the psalms this morning, as is my habit, this passage became my meditation as I went to the Table of the Lord.
The LORD is good and upright;
therefore He shows sinners the way.
He leads the humble in what is right
and teaches them His way.

All the LORD’s ways [show] faithful love and truth
to those who keep His covenant and decrees.
Because of Your name, LORD,
forgive my sin, for it is great.

Who is the person who fears the LORD?
He will show him the way he should choose.
He will live a good life,
and his descendants will inherit the land.

The secret counsel of the LORD is for those who fear Him,
and He reveals His covenant to them.
My eyes are always on the LORD,
for He will pull my feet out of the net.
(Psalm 25:8-15 HCSB)
First, notice that it is out of His goodness that the Lord shows us His way. Being a sinner does not disqualify anyone from receiving it (or else we would all be in trouble). The real qualification is the humility of faith — believing God. Those who are humble are teachable, but pride and arrogance keep one from being able to receive anything from the Lord.

God entered into covenant with Israel, offering them many wonderful promises and benefits (see Deuteronomy 28:1-14). All who kept that covenant — the way of the Lord — would enjoy those promises and benefits. For God always keeps His word, and when He commits Himself, as He does in covenant, to show His “faithful love” (Hebrew, hesed, steadfast love and mercy — covenant love!), He will move heaven and earth to reveal it. It is out of this great love and mercy that He forgives sin.

Who is the person who “fears the Lord?” To fear the Lord is to live in awe of Him, to love and trust Him with all our hearts. To honor what He honors and hate what He hates, to treasure His favor above all things and avoid His displeasure at all costs, to take pleasure in His word, His will, His ways and His works. (Psalm1is another way of describing this, and its benefits; see Two Paths.)

To those who fear the Lord, He will reveal the path they should choose, the one that will lead to a good life, and their descendants will inherit the earth, the blessing of peace and prosperity in the land. He will reveal His secrets to them and they will see His covenant promises fulfilled on their behalf.

Israel was meant to receive all these blessings and benefits, not only to enjoy for themselves, but to reveal and extend the salvation of God to all the world. The problem, though, was that she kept turning away from God and needed to be delivered from the terrible exile she had brought upon herself.

That was a big problem, but God had a big solution. Very early on in the story, God promised a Messiah, an Anointed King who would come and not only rescue Israel but also gather in all the nations as well to enjoy the pleasures of God. This Messiah was revealed, historically, in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, the only one who ever faithfully fulfilled every obligation of God’s covenant with Israel. By His death on the cross and His resurrection from the grave, He destroyed the works of the devil and defeated every power that stands against humanity — not only for the Jews, but for all the nations of the world. It is not only the taking away of sin but also deliverance from the power of sin, and from every enemy of spirit, soul and body.

It is that victory we find portrayed in the Table of the Lord. Jesus’ body was given and His blood shed on our behalf and for our benefit. In it, the new covenant between God and His people, foretold in the Old Testament (see Jeremiah 31:31-34), was instituted.

At the Table of the Lord, our eyes are always on the Lord Jesus the Messiah, who has pulled our feet out of the net. The secret counsels of God and the new covenant He has instituted with us are revealed in the signs of the body and blood of King Jesus.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Two Paths

Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;

But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
(Psalm 1:1-2)
Psalm 1 describes two different kinds of walks. Each represents a way of life. One way seeks after God, the other does not. The one who seeks after God takes great delight in His law (the Hebrew word is torah and means “teaching,” instruction for living well). It gives him counsel, guides him along a good path and seats him in a place where he is a blessing to others.

The other one follows the advice of people who habitually do evil. It leads him into a path that is harmful both to himself and those around him, and it seats him with those who only know how to mock what is good.

Two radically different ways, two dramatically different outcomes:
He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.

The ungodly are not so,
But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the ungodly shall perish.
(Psalm 1:4-6)
The one who diligently seeks after God, delighting in His ways and meditating continually on His instruction, finds great reward, not only in the life to come but also in this one. His life is well established, abundant and fruitful. He has something to offer for every season of life. He goes from prosperity to prosperity.

Not so for the one who walks in the way that is not God’s. His life becomes dry and dusty, like chaff, and is soon blown away with the prevailing winds. On the day when God comes to stand everything up and set everything straight, there will be no place for the evil man. He will not be found among those who are found doing what is right.

For God has great regard for those who do what is right, who “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness” — God’s rule and reign and His way of doing and being right — and everything necessary for life will be added to them (Matthew 6:33). But for those who follow the counsel of the ungodly, stand in the path of evil and conspire with the mockers of everything good, there is nothing left except a wasted life and a dismal future.

Two radically different paths. Two dramatically different outcomes. In what will you delight?