Song of the Drunkards

JESUS FACED A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF OPPOSITION FOR HIS HARD WORDS AND UNFLINCHING DEVOTION TO YAHWEH. NO SURPRISE THEN IF WE FIND OUR NAME FESTOONED IN BARROOM BALLADS (CF. PS 69:12).

Through Many Tribulations

February 26, 2023 in Bible - OT - Deuteronomy, Meditations

Deuteronomy 8:1–5 (NKJV) 

1Every commandment which I command you today you must be careful to observe, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers. 2And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. 3So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. 4Your garments did not wear out on you, nor did your foot swell these forty years. 5You should know in your heart that as a man chastens his son, so the Lord your God chastens you. 

On his first missionary journey, as the Apostle Paul traveled through the various cities where he had planted churches, he encouraged the brethren and reminded them, “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22). That which was true for our fathers in Paul’s day is likewise true for us. In His wisdom, God uses tribulations to accomplish His purposes for His people. 

So why do such tribulations come our way? If we are sons of God, children of God, objects of His love and affection, then why must we enter the kingdom through many tribulations? Our text offers three reasons – for even as we face many tribulations throughout our individual lives and throughout history, so our fathers did; for forty years they wandered in the wilderness, suffering various tribulations. So what are these three reasons?

First, trials and tribulations humble us. God led our fathers through the wilderness, “to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not” (8:2). Nothing reveals the depths of our hearts and the many ways in which we continue to need to grow in grace than trials. We’re sick and what do we do? We, who when healthy are remarkably patient, begin snapping at the kids, are short with our spouse, or grumble and complain against God. So what are we learning about ourselves? We’re learning that we aren’t quite as sanctified as we thought, learning that there is still work for God to do, learning to confess our sin and to acknowledge our continuing need for God’s grace. Trials and tribulations humble us.

Second, trials and tribulations teach us to rely on God’s Word. God tested Israel “that you might know that man does not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord” (8:3). Rod Dreher, in his book Live Not by Lies, recounts that, during the Soviet occupation of Czechoslovakia, Silvester Krcmery faced persecution, imprisonment, and even torture for his faith. Krcmery wrote later in his biography that he came to realize “that the only way he would make it through the ordeal ahead was to rely entirely on faith, not reason. He says that he decided to be ‘like Peter, to close my eyes and throw myself into the sea’” (153). Tribulations force us to rely on God’s promises even though we cannot see the fruit of them at present; they teach us.

Finally, trials and tribulations remind us that we are children of God. “You should know in your heart that as a man chastens his son, so the Lord your God chastens you” (8:5). In times of trial, if you are in Christ, then know in your heart that the trial has not come because the Lord hates you but because He loves you. As a loving Father, the Lord is sending this trial to chasten you that you might learn to remain faithful to Him and to grow in maturity. Trials and tribulations remind us that we are God’s children.

As I wrote in the newsletter this week, today is the first Sunday in Lent. Like Advent, Lent is a time of preparation and anticipation, a time of longing. We await the coming of Easter and the celebration of Christ’s triumph over death. Lent reminds us that, until our own resurrection, we must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God. Lent harkens back to Israel’s 40 years, and to our Lord’s 40 days, in the wilderness. Hence, Lent is a time to remember that times of trial and tribulation are not strange. Paul writes that even our Lord Jesus, “though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered …” (Heb 5:8). So if our Lord Jesus had to learn obedience by suffering, dare we think that we shall be exempt? Let us then “count it all joy when we fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of our faith produces endurance, and let endurance have its perfect work, that we may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing” (Jas 1:2-4).

So reminded that times in the wilderness, times of trial humble us, teach us to rely on God’s Word, and train us as His children, let us acknowledge that we often respond to such trials in unbelief rather than in faith. And as we confess our sin, let us kneel as we are able.

The Diligent Man & the Lazy Man

February 19, 2023 in Bible - OT - Proverbs, Meditations

Proverbs 12:24 

24The hand of the diligent will rule, But the lazy man will be put to forced labor. 

Paul writes in Romans 8:29 that God has predestined His people to be conformed to the image of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. The Proverbs assist us in that process, directing us in the way of wisdom and teaching us what it is to imitate our Lord’s character. Today we are instructed to be diligent not lazy.

Webster defines “diligent” as “steady in application to business; constant in effort or exertion to accomplish what is undertaken; assiduous; attentive; industrious; not idle or negligent…” The man of diligence is not afraid of hard work and exertion. He remembers that God created man to work. We were designed to fill the earth and subdue it and to exercise dominion over it (Gen 1:28). God did not put mankind in the garden so that he would sit back and eat grapes all week; God put mankind in the garden to work. Adam was to take the order of the garden and extend it to the rest of creation. And though the Fall introduced toil into the world, often causing our work to be frustrating or foiled, work itself is good and noble and right, a holy calling. Consequently, the righteous man is diligent. And God’s promise to the diligent man is that “he will rule” – this often proves true in this life and shall certainly prove true in the next. For Christ has died and risen again and given us the hope of a new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwell; hence, “our labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Cor 15:58). 

The lazy man, on the other hand, will be put to forced labor. Unwilling to compel himself to work, he will be compelled to work by others. So who is the lazy man? Let us reverse engineer Webster’s definition of diligence. Lazy means “unsteady in application to business; inconstant in effort or exertion to accomplish what is undertaken; inattentive; idle or negligent…” The lazy man is full of excuses. Solomon writes, “The way of the lazy man is like a hedge of thorns, But the way of the upright is a highway” (Pr 15:19). In other words, whereas the diligent man clears away excuses and accomplishes the task given to him, the lazy man is full of excuses. There is always a reason the work can’t get done, the project can’t get finished, the job can’t be accomplished.

So what of you? Are you diligent or lazy? When you are given a task, does your parent or your boss or your spouse have to remind you to complete it? Children – is your room a pig stie or do you pick it up? Do you do your homework willingly or do you need constant reminders? Are your chores routinely accomplished or just as routinely neglected? Young men – are you wasting an inordinate amount of time on video games or your phone or entertainment rather than gaining skills that you can use to rule a family? Adults – are you redeeming the time because the days are evil? Are you growing in faithfulness? Diligent in your vocation? Devoted to reading the Word of God and deepening your knowledge of God? Or is there always an excuse?

Reminded that we are to be diligent men and women and children who are attentive and industrious, let us acknowledge that we are often lazy, that we often make excuses when we should accept responsibility. And as we confess our sin to the Lord and seek His forgiveness through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, let us kneel as we are able. 

The Prudent Man

February 12, 2023 in Bible - OT - Proverbs, Meditations

Proverbs 12:23 

23A prudent man conceals knowledge, But the heart of fools proclaims foolishness. 

Paul writes in Romans 8:29 that God has predestined His people to be conformed to the image of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. The Proverbs assist us in that process, directing us in the way of wisdom and teaching us what it is to imitate our Lord’s character. Today we are instructed to be prudent not foolish.

Webster defines “prudent” as “cautious; circumspect; practically wise; careful of the consequences of enterprises, measures or actions; cautious not to act when the [outcome] is of doubtful utility, or probably impracticable.” The man of prudence thinks before he speaks or acts. Solomon tells us later that, “The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way, but the folly of fools is deceit” (14:8). In other words, whereas the prudent man considers carefully what the consequences of his actions will be, the fool charges ahead and relies on deceitfulness to make his foolish decisions succeed. And even as the prudent man considers the consequences of his actions, so he weighs dangers appropriately, “A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself” (Pr 22:3a). Hence, Solomon tells us today that “a prudent man conceals knowledge.” He doesn’t reveal all that he knows. He chooses carefully to whom to entrust the knowledge that God has given him, knowing that knowledge is a precious treasure.

Whereas the prudent man doesn’t reveal all that he knows, the fool reveals all that he doesn’t know, “the heart of fools proclaims foolishness.”  The fool speaks glibly and frequently gets himself in trouble. Like Nabal, he curses a David and has to be rescued by the prudence of his wife. Like Esau, he sells his birthright for a pot of stew, believing he’ll be able to deceive his brother Jacob in the end. Like Ananias and Sapphira, he lies to the Holy Spirit and imagines that his lies will never be found out. But “the complacency of fools shall destroy them” (1:32) and “shame shall be the legacy of fools” (3:35). A “prating fool will fall” (10:10) and “die for lack of wisdom” (10:21). “A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the fool’s back” (26:3).

So what of you? Are you a prudent man or are you a fool? Do you think before you act? Do you weigh your words before you speak? That gossip that you spoke to a friend. That insult that you offered your sibling. That curse that you flung at your boss. That slur that you uttered against your co-worker. Do you think before you speak? Indeed, do you weigh carefully if the knowledge you are thinking of sharing needs to be shared? That anxiety that you revealed to your wife, does she need to be burdened with it? That rumor that you heard about your friend, does he need to know it? A prudent man conceals knowledge, but the heart of fools proclaims foolishness.

Reminded that we are to be prudent men and women and children who are circumspect and practically wise, let us acknowledge that we are often foolish, that we often speak when we should be silent, act when we should wait, reveal when we should conceal. And as we confess our sin to the Lord and seek His forgiveness through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, let us kneel as we are able.