Psalm for Today: 33:4-22
4-5 For God's Word is solid to the core;
everything he makes is sound inside and out.
He loves it when everything fits,
when his world is in plumb-line true.
Earth is drenched
in God's affectionate satisfaction.
6-7 The skies were made by God's command;
he breathed the word and the stars popped out.
He scooped Sea into his jug,
put Ocean in his keg.
8-9 Earth-creatures, bow before God;
world-dwellers�down on your knees!
Here's why: he spoke and there it was,
in place the moment he said so.
10-12 God takes the wind out of Babel pretense,
he shoots down the world's power-schemes.
God's plan for the world stands up,
all his designs are made to last.
Blessed is the country with God for God;
blessed are the people he's put in his will.
13-15 From high in the skies God looks around,
he sees all Adam's brood.
From where he sits
he overlooks all us earth-dwellers.
He has shaped each person in turn;
now he watches everything we do.
16-17 No king succeeds with a big army alone,
no warrior wins by brute strength.
Horsepower is not the answer;
no one gets by on muscle alone.
18-19 Watch this: God's eye is on those who respect him,
the ones who are looking for his love.
He's ready to come to their rescue in bad times;
in lean times he keeps body and soul together.
20-22 We're depending on God;
he's everything we need.
What's more, our hearts brim with joy
since we've taken for our own his holy name.
Love us, God, with all you've got�
that's what we're depending on. (From The Message)
"From heaven the LORD looks down and sees all mankind. The Psalmist still proceeds with the same doctrine, namely, that human affairs are not tossed here and there fortuitously, but that God secretly guides and directs all that we see taking place. There are, no doubt, evident proofs of it continually before our eyes; but the great majority of men, in their blindness, imagine that all things are under the conduct of a blind fortune."
(Commentary from Heart Aflame: Daily Readings from Calvin on the Psalms)
"The Law of Christ"
Galatians 6:2
Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
"...to follow the Spirit is to create and take part in a community of humility, love, and mutual support." We see "worldly" people doing whatever it takes to get ahead. In contrast, Jesus people should be putting others ahead of themselves.
Paul speaks of burdens that are too heavy for one person to carry. This can represent all kinds of difficulties. Anything from helping to feed a family of a person who has lost his/her job to taking care of an elderly person who has no family around.
In our Western culture, this is becoming increasingly more difficult as we become more isolated.
In chapter 18, God appears to Abraham in the form of three men (trinity here, maybe?). Abraham immediately recognizes them for who they are, calls them Lord, and hurries off to prepare a meal for them. It is at this point that God tells Abraham that Sarah will have a son by the same time next year. The Scriptures are very clear to point out that Sarah wasn't even menstruating anymore! It was physically impossible for her to have children! Sarah laughed, listening at the tent door. She tried to deny it (can you believe Sarah actually tried lying to God??), but God simply said, "Is anything too hard for the LORD?"
What follows in chapter 19 is very disturbing. We are not sure exactly why Sodom and Gomorrorah needed to be destroyed, other than "the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave." (18:20) But chapter 19 gives us a good clue. When the two angels arrived, they found Lot sitting at the gate. He urged them to come to his house for the night. They said they would stay in the square, but Lot literally begged them not to do that. He knew. After they came to his house, it says that the men of Sodom, both young and old, "all the people to the last man," came to his house, demanding for him to send out the two men who had come to town. Basically, (and bluntly) they wanted to rape them. This is one of the most disturbing images in all of the Bible. Oh, wait. It gets even more disturbing, because Lot goes out and offers to give them HIS TWO VIRGIN DAUGHTERS!!! Thanks, Dad???
See what happens when you don't obey God completely? Once again, LOT SHOULD NOT HAVE EVEN BEEN THERE! Ultimately, this is Abraham's fault. And I don't know that he ever even realized this.
The angels spared Lot and his daughters, though, by striking all of the people with blindness so they couldn't even find the door of Lot's house. Then they told Lot to get out of town. Get his family and get out. Lot took them seriously, but his sons-in-law did not.
Even though he knew the place was about to burn, he lingered. The angels had to take him by the hand and drag him out of Sodom. This demonstrates what a desperate hold sin can have on our lives! Lot's wife, as is famously told, looked back on the destruction, and was turned into a pillar of salt.
But wait, this story's not over, yet. The perversion continues as Lot's daughters get him drunk and have sex with him so they can get pregnant.
What a tragic tale this is. And it all could have been avoided if Abraham had simply obeyed God when he was told to "go from your country and your kindred and your father's house."
Oh, and remember in chapter 12 when Abram lied to the Egyptian ruler about Sarai being his sister? Well, he does it again in chapter 20, to Abimelech, king of Gerar. Sigh.
There are several things we can take away from this soap opera. One is that God uses all kinds for his work. Abraham is listed in the "Faith Hall of Fame" of Hebrews 11. He is pretty much immortalized as a giant of faith. But look at him. He lies about his wife to keep them out of trouble, instead of trusting God. He brings his nephew along on his journey even though he was specifically told to leave his kindred behind. But in spite of his faults, he loved God and, ultimately, trusted God. But we see that we don't have to be perfect to serve God. We're all "damaged goods."
Another thing that I see is how important hospitality is. Abraham and Lot both showed hospitality to beings that turned out to be angels (and God, himself!). Somewhere in the New Testament epistles, it says that we should always be willing to entertain strangers, because we never know when it might be an angel.
Lastly, God will go out of his way to protect us. Well, ok. Nothing is really out of God's way, is it? But you know what I mean, I hope. God agreed with Abraham's pleas to not destroy Sodom if he could find ten righteouse people there. TEN! He couldn't even find ten! The angels literally drug Lot out of Sodom (and I sincerely believe they were doing this for Abraham, not for Lot). God will protect us. He will. Even if he has to physically drag us out of circumstances.
Then I pray for strength and wisdom to be more of a "burden-bearer." At the same time, I give thanks to you for the people at South Haltom Community Church (as well as friends across the Internet) who have lifted us up and helped us carry our burdens over the past few weeks! God, you are amazing and your people are awesome! This is what your community is about! This is why we serve together. The love that has been expressed to us recently goes beyond my wildest imagination, and there is no way that I could begin to express my gratitude, both to you and to all of my brothers and sisters! But even in the midst of my own burdens, I must not be so self-absorbed that I can't help another carry his burden. So give me eyes to see and a heart to know when someone needs help with that burden!
Finally, I praise you that you can use an idiot like me in your kingdom. I'm broken. I'm damaged. Yet you use me every week to lead people into your presence to give you praise and worship. I am awestruck by this. And I thank you for your protection. Just last night, I was talking with friends at work about this. Without your hand on my life, I would have been gone from this world years ago. I recognize this and am eternally grateful to you. Oh, how I love you, LORD!! You are my all in all. Jesus, Lamb of God...worthy is your Name!
For God�s help for Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack as he works to safeguard our nation�s food supply and to support America�s farmers and ranchers
And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground�trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
�Genesis 2:9
Holy God, what bounty You provide for your people! You made wonderful trees, fruits, vegetables and plants of all kinds to nourish and sustain us, and you did this with great imagination and variety. How we thank You for the kindness and creativity You show to us in this, O Lord! We praise You for your goodness to us, and we thank You for the great abundance of food we are blessed with in this country, O God.
As Secretary Tom Vilsack now steps up to serve our country by overseeing the important area of agriculture, we pray for great and godly wisdom for him in all he does. Help him and those who serve with him to seek Your guidance and to rely fully on You, and may they daily be diligent in their responsibility to keep our nation�s food supply safe. Give them Your help and grace we ask, in Jesus� name, amen.
Amen.
Grace and peace, friends!