Tawa Baptist

Steering Wheel Prayer

Scripture: Luke 18:1-14

Video Link: https://youtu.be/FTbBKTCQdT0

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • The persistent widow
  • The pharisee and the tax collector
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

Corrie Ten Boom asks the question, “Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tyre?”

A steering wheel is what we use to control the car. A steering wheel keeps us on course and headed in the right direction. When you are driving, you never take your hands off the steering wheel.

By contrast, a spare tyre is only ever used in emergencies. The rest of the time it is forgotten baggage.

Prayer is how we steer our life. Are we in conversation with God, daily seeking his will, or do we only ever call on God in emergencies?

As mentioned earlier in the service, we have a focus on prayer this week while we carry the Pou Karakia (the prayer baton). With this in view our sermon today is based on Jesus’ twin parables about prayer, in Luke 18.

We will start with the parable of the persistent widow, before considering the parable of the pharisee and the tax collector. From Luke 18, verse 1, we read…  

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ 4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually wear me out!’” 6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tyre?

The persistent widow

The Chinese pianist and composer, Liu Shikun, was born in 1939, just before the second world war. He began his piano training at the age of three and started performing in public at the age of five.

He placed highly in prestigious international piano competitions in 1956 and 1958, while still a teenager. Liu became one of China’s top concert performers. Sadly, with the cultural revolution in 1966, western music was banned and Liu, along with many other artists, was arrested and sent to prison for eight years.

During his whole time in prison, Liu was denied access to a piano. Soon after his release though, in the 1970’s, he was back on tour. Critics were astonished that after eight years without a piano, Liu’s musicianship was better than ever.

‘How did you do this?’ one critic asked. ‘You had no chance to practise for eight years.’

‘I did practise’, Liu replied. ‘Every day I rehearsed every piece I ever played, note by note, in my mind.’ [1]

It seems Liu never gave up hope. He kept faith that he would one day be released and allowed to play piano again. And his faith was rewarded.

As followers of Jesus, the disciples would soon be mistreated and denied justice. So Jesus gave his disciples the parable of the persistent widow to show them they should always pray and not give up.  

There are two people in Jesus’ parable. The first is a wicked judge who does not fear God and does not care what people think. Most likely this judge was accustomed to taking bribes. He wasn’t concerned with doing what is right; he had no shame. The wicked judge is not like God at all.

The second person is a widow. If the judge is the villain, then the widow is the heroine. In a society which generally devalued women, Jesus makes a woman the hero of his story.   

In first century Jewish culture women did not normally get involved in legal matters. The magistrate’s court was the domain of men. The fact that this widow has to advocate for herself shows she is socially powerless, with no one to come to her rescue.

Although she is most likely too poor to offer the judge any sort of bribe, she is persistent. For her, prayer is the steering wheel. She kept coming to the judge with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’

The widow was in the right. She was not asking for special treatment. She just wanted a fair go. Hers was a reasonable request.

For some time the judge refused, but eventually he gave her justice, not because he cared about her or God, but because he wanted some peace for himself.

Jesus is reasoning from the lesser to the greater. If an unjust, uncaring judge can be persuaded to vindicate the widow, just to get some peace, then how much more will God (who is gracious and compassionate) vindicate the followers of Jesus when we are denied justice.

After Jesus’ death the disciples would find themselves in a similar position to the poor widow and Liu Shikun; treated unjustly and essentially powerless from a social and political point of view.

Prayer is one thing no one can take away from you. Whatever our situation we are to keep our hands on the steering wheel of prayer, just as the widow continued to ask for justice and just as Liu Shikun continued to practice music.

Indeed, prayer is to Christians, what practising the piano is to a concert musician. We must remain faithful in prayer if we are to go the distance.

Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tyre?

Verse 8 says that God’s people will get justice quickly. Justice came relatively quickly for Jesus. It was less than three days between Jesus’ crucifixion and his resurrection from the dead. The resurrection being God’s vindication of Jesus.

From our human perspective though, justice does not always feel quick. More often it feels like a slow train coming. So how are we to understand this verse?

In his commentary on Luke, Bible scholar Darrell Bock offers two thoughts here. Perhaps Jesus meant our vindication comes in the form of protection that God offers his own. Even though God’s people may suffer injustice, they do not perish and that is the sign of their vindication.

Another way to understand verse 8 is to say that our vindication as believers in Christ will come very quickly upon Jesus’ return in glory. [2] In the meantime, however, it may be a long wait.

In relation to unanswered prayer, Fred Craddock asks the question…

‘Is the petitioner being hammered, through long days and nights of prayer, into a vessel that will be able to hold the answer when it comes?’ [3]

Sometimes being made to wait is one of the ways God shapes us. From my own experience of seemingly unanswered prayer, I have learned my place. I am not in charge. I do not call the shots. Jesus is Lord and master and I am his servant.

I might have my hands on the steering wheel, but the Spirit of Jesus is telling me which way to turn.  

How has prayer shaped your soul and spirit?

In all of this we should not lose sight of the main point of the parable. God is greater than any obstacle we may face. He is stronger than any opponent we might confront. More than that, God loves us. He is just and merciful and does not need convincing to do the right thing.  

Jesus encourages the believer to persist in prayer, but if God says ‘no’ to our request or offers a solution other than the one we asked for, the faithful person is expected to respond with, “Your will be done God”.

Accepting God’s will is part of prayer. You don’t take your hands off the wheel every time there’s a bump in the road.  

Jesus finishes the parable with a question: “However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” Jesus is referring to his second coming here.

History is not random or without purpose, rather it moves toward a goal. The future is secured for those who are in Christ. God will vindicate those who put their trust in Jesus.

But will we be found with our hands on the steering wheel of prayer when Jesus returns in glory?

Personally, I think it is a brave thing to call on God for justice. A prayer for justice isn’t just a call for others to get what they deserve. It’s a call for us to get what we deserve as well. I would prefer not to get what I deserve but rather what I need, which is God’s grace – His mercy.

The pharisee and tax collector

Which brings us to Jesus’ second parable of the pharisee and the tax collector. From Luke 18, verse 9 we read…

9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ 14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tyre?

This parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector shares a number of things in common with the parable of the persistent widow. Both parables are about prayer and both are about who God vindicates or accepts.

In the first parable, the widow asks for justice and gets it. In the second parable, the pharisee asks for nothing and gets nothing, while the tax collector asks for mercy and goes home justified before God.    

Verse 9 tells us that Jesus told this parable to some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else.

In the Bible a righteous person is someone who has been given a special relationship of acceptance in the presence of God. This acceptance is a gift, it is unearned. The relationship is then maintained by acting in loyalty to God.

Righteousness, in this sense, is sort of like getting an invitation to a royal wedding. You cannot buy an invitation, you must be asked by the royal couple. But once you have received the invitation you have a special relationship of acceptance in the presence of the royal family. And you maintain that relationship by acting in loyalty to your hosts.

There were some people in Jesus’ day (and indeed in our day as well) who got things around the wrong way. They thought they had earned righteousness (or acceptance with God) by fulfilling a certain ethical code. It is to these people that Jesus directs his parable.

Jesus’ parable contrasts two people who go to the temple to pray. A Pharisee and a tax collector. The temple is a place of worship and prayer. It is also a place of reconciliation, where people go to make their peace with God.  

The Pharisees were a religious sect that focused on the Law of Moses. In their zealousness for the Law, they added a whole lot of their own rules to stop people breaking Moses’ rules. This of course made life more difficult.

Jesus wasn’t picking on the Pharisees here. They weren’t all bad. The Pharisee in this parable represents anyone who looks down on others in self-righteous contempt. So, if we look down on the Pharisee in this parable we are behaving just like him and the parable is meant for us.

Anyway, this pharisee stands apart from others because he thinks he is better than everyone else. And then he prays; except his words are not really a prayer, they are more of an advertisement, a self-promotion.

Prayer isn’t just the words we say. It can be the tears we shed and the groans and sighs from deep within our spirit. Prayer is the soul’s sincere desire. Said another way, prayer is our yearning for God. In prayer we are basically asking God to be God and provide for us and others in accordance with his will. Prayer is an attitude of dependence on God.

But the pharisee in Jesus’ parable does not ask anything of God. He is self-possessed and self-satisfied. This pharisee does not have his hands on the steering wheel of prayer. He is looking at himself in the rear vision mirror. 

The pharisee compares himself to other people who he considers to be bad.

If we must measure ourselves then it should not be against other people but alongside God’s standard.

And what is God’s standard? That we love him and love our neighbour.  

It appears the Pharisee in this parable did not do either, although he did do things that God did not require, like fasting twice a week for example. God does not ask us to do that.

The Pharisee in Jesus’ parable went away without being justified by God because he did not think he needed God.  

But the tax collector approached God with an entirely different attitude.

Tax collectors had a bad reputation in Jesus’ day. They were hated by their own people because they sided with the Romans for personal gain.

They were considered dishonest, taking more than was necessary in order to line their own pockets. Not all tax collectors were like this, but many were. 

In any case, the tax collector in this parable represents anyone who is aware of their need for God and approaches Him with a contrite and broken heart.  

Like the Pharisee, the tax collector also stands apart but not because he thinks he is better than anyone else. The tax collector does not compare himself with others at all. He measures himself alongside God’s standard. He stands at a distance because he knows he has failed miserably to meet God’s law of love.

Unlike the Pharisee, the tax collector’s prayer is not an exercise in self-promotion. The tax collector’s soul sincerely desires God’s grace and so he prays: God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

The tax collector is clinging to the steering wheel of prayer, desperately aware of his need for God. He is deeply grieved by his own sins and wants to have his relationship with God restored and made right again. He is seeking atonement.

For this reason, the tax collector (and not the Pharisee) goes away justified (or accepted) by God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

At some point we have all taken our hands off the steering wheel of prayer.

We have all done things in our lives that we are not proud of, things we know don’t measure up to God’s standard. The good news is that Jesus went to the cross for our atonement. We are justified or made right with God, not by what we have done, but by trusting in what Jesus has done on our behalf.

Conclusion:

In both of today’s parables, the heroes pray for themselves. It’s okay to pray for yourself. But this week, while we carry the Pou Karakia, we are encouraging you to take the steering wheel of prayer for others. Let me finish then with a little story about praying for others…

Two men were travelling by sea when their boat was hit by a storm and wrecked on a deserted island. To increase their chances of being found, they decided to stay on opposite sides of the island looking out for passing ships. But before leaving each other, they agreed to pray to God for help every day.

After relocating to the far side of the island and waking up hungry, the first man prayed saying, “O Lord, let fruit trees and vegetables grow on this side of the island, so I can satisfy my hunger.” God heard his prayer and the next day food bearing plants appeared. It was a miracle.

After eating his fill, he sat down and prayed again, “Lord, I need a house to live in, please give me house.” Soon, a shipping container washed ashore with all the tools and materials needed to build a modest shelter.

When the man realised his prayers were being answered, he thought, why not ask God for a way off this island. So he prayed, “Lord, please give me a boat with a GPS so I can find my way back to the mainland.”

The next day he saw a boat floating in his bay. He boarded the boat and found it abandoned but seaworthy. Having become accustomed to using prayer like a spare tyre, the man decided to leave the island right away. He had lost his sense of spiritual direction.

Just then he heard a voice from heaven, “Will you not take your friend with you?”

The man replied, “My blessings are mine alone since I was the one who prayed for them. His prayers were unanswered so he must not deserve to be saved.”

The voice said, “You are mistaken. Your friend had only one prayer. Without his prayer you would not have received any of my blessings.”

“Tell me”, the man asked, “what did he pray for that I should owe him anything?”

And the voice from heaven replied, “He prayed that all your prayers would be answered.” [4]

May the Lord bless you as you intercede for others this week.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

  1. What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?
  2. When do you pray? Why do you pray? How do you pray? Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tyre?
  3. Why did Jesus give his disciples the parable of the persistent widow? What is the main point of the story?
  4. Have there been times in your life when God seemed slow to answer your prayers? Conversely, have there been times when God was quick to answer your prayers? Either way, what affect did this have on you? How has God shaped your soul and spirit through prayer?
  5. Why did Jesus tell the parable of the pharisee and the tax collector? What is the main point of the story?
  6. What is the heart of prayer? How does the tax collector exemplify genuine prayer?
  7. Compare and contrast the two parables in Luke 18:1-14. How are they similar? How are they different?
  8. Make time this week to pray for others.

[1] Liu Shikun story references: Wikipedia and ‘A Bundle of Laughs’ by J. John and Mark Stibbe, page 142.

[2] Refer Darrell Bock’s NIVAC on Luke, page 455.

[3] Refer Fred Craddock’s Interpretation commentary on Luke, pages 209-210.

[4] (Adapted from J. John and Mark Stibbe’s book, ‘A Bundle of Laughs’, page 159.)

Tawa Baptist

Lady Wisdom

Scripture: Proverbs 8:1-21

Video Link: https://youtu.be/FUjMQQUKeHU

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Wisdom is near
  • Wisdom is righteous
  • Wisdom is valuable
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

‘The sun smiled down on us’

‘The story jumped off the page’

‘The light danced on the surface of the water’

‘The cake called my name’

‘Time marches on’.

These are all examples of personification.

Personification is when writers attribute human characteristics to something non-human. Smiling is a human characteristic. The sun doesn’t really smile. But we know that a smiling sun is a metaphor, a poetic way of saying, it was a warm sunny day but not too hot (like last Thursday).

Likewise, cake can’t literally speak but we know that when someone says, ‘the cake called my name’, what they really mean is the cake looked very appetizing and they couldn’t resist eating it.  

Today we continue our series in the Old Testament book of Proverbs. Proverbs offers practical wisdom for living. It gives handy life hacks for people starting out in the world.

Last week we heard about not taking responsibility for what is not yours so you can take responsibility for what is yours. This week our focus is Proverbs chapter 8. Proverbs 8 is a poem which personifies wisdom as a woman. We might call her Lady Wisdom.

The plan is to unpack the first 21 verses of Proverbs 8 today and look at the rest in a couple of weeks’ time. From verse 1 we read…

Does not wisdom call out? Does not understanding raise her voice? 2 At the highest point along the way, where the paths meet, she takes her stand; 3 beside the gate leading into the city, at the entrance, she cries aloud:

4 “To you, O people, I call out; I raise my voice to all humankind. 5 You who are simple, gain prudence; you who are foolish, set your hearts on it. 6 Listen, for I have trustworthy things to say; I open my lips to speak what is right. 7 My mouth speaks what is true, for my lips detest wickedness. 8 All the words of my mouth are just; none of them is crooked or perverse. 9 To the discerning all of them are right; they are upright to those who have found knowledge. 10 Choose my instruction instead of silver, knowledge rather than choice gold, 11 for wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her. 12 “I, wisdom, dwell together with prudence; I possess knowledge and discretion. 13 To fear the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behaviour and perverse speech. 14 Counsel and sound judgment are mine; I have insight, I have power. 15 By me kings reign and rulers issue decrees that are just; 16 by me princes govern, and nobles—all who rule on earth. 17 I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me. 18 With me are riches and honour, enduring wealth and prosperity. 19 My fruit is better than fine gold; what I yield surpasses choice silver. 20 I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice, 21 bestowing a rich inheritance on those who love me and making their treasuries full.

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s word for us.

In these verses the writer of Proverbs personifies wisdom as a woman. Lady Wisdom is near, Lady Wisdom is righteous and Lady Wisdom is valuable.

Let me retell for you an old Jewish folk story called The Treasure… 

Wisdom is near:

Once there was a man named Isaac who lived in a small fishing village on the edge of the kingdom. Isaac was poor. One night Isaac had a dream and in his dream a voice told him to go to the capital city and under the bridge to the palace he would find hidden treasure.

When Isaac woke in the morning he dismissed the dream, thinking it strange. The next night though he had the dream again. A prudent man by nature, Isaac put the dream out of his mind and carried on with his day.

But when Isaac had the same dream a third time, he decided make the journey to the capital city to see if there was in fact any treasure under the bridge to the palace.

Isaac set out on foot, relying on the kindness of strangers when he could, until finally, after many days, he arrived in the capital city.

As he approached the palace, Isaac noticed there actually was a bridge as he had seen in his dream. But on drawing closer he met a guard.

‘What do you want?’, the guard asked in a surly manner. The man did not bother to ask Isaac’s name or where he came from. So Isaac told the guard how a voice had told him in a dream to go to the capital city where he would find treasure under the bridge to the palace. 

The guard laughed saying, ‘I too had a dream in which a voice told me to go to a small fishing village on the edge of the kingdom, where I would find treasure in the house of a man named Isaac, under his stove. Can you imagine if I had followed my dream?’

Isaac exercised his discretion, thanked the guard and made his way home, relying on the kindness of strangers when he could. After many days he arrived back in the small fishing village.

He lifted the tiles under his stove and found a box full of gold. The treasure he had been looking for had been there all along.

The gold in this story represents wisdom. Wisdom is the real treasure and wisdom is near.

In the opening verses of Proverbs 8 we read that Lady Wisdom is near; close at hand. The highest point along the way (in verse 2) is a place that cannot be missed. Where the paths meet is an intersection or a crossroads. A place of decision making and choosing what way you will take.

And the gate leading into the city (verse 3) is both the entrance of the city and also a place in ancient society where disputes were settled, like a court of law.

All of this is a poetic way of saying that wisdom is not hard to find. You can observe Lady Wisdom in ordinary everyday life. We learn wisdom through our own experience and by observing the people around us. We learn wisdom in community with others.

Lady Wisdom is not some mystical guru sitting on a mountain top in a distant land. She is not hard to reach. No one stands between you and wisdom. Lady Wisdom is right there in front of you, calling out from the street and market place, in broad daylight.

We notice (in verses 1 and 4) that Lady Wisdom raises her voice. It’s not that wisdom has to shout. More the sense that wisdom communicates with a distinctive quality and with substance. 

There are many voices competing for our attention but wisdom has the ring of truth to it. Wisdom makes sense even in the busy-ness and confusion of life. The key is to slow down and listen for wisdom; to pay attention and discern her voice.

We notice too that wisdom is accessible to all humankind. Wisdom isn’t just for old people or rich people or smart people. Wisdom is for the simple, that is for those who are a bit naïve.

Wisdom is also for the foolish. In other words, if you have made some unwise choices in the past then you need not feel condemned to a lifetime of poor choices. If you open your mind and listen to wisdom, you can learn from your mistakes and become wise.

Given that wisdom is available to the simple and the foolish, it naturally follows that wisdom is available to everyone. Wisdom is near and wisdom is righteous.

Wisdom is righteous:

The term ‘righteousness’ essentially means right relationship. To be righteous is to live in right relationship with God and our neighbour. To say it another way, righteousness is relational.

Righteousness does not have to do with the religious rituals we might perform. It’s not about how many times you pray each day or how much money you donate to charitable organisations. Fasting does not make you righteous and neither does living in a cave away from society.

Righteousness has little if anything to do with ascetic practices. Righteousness is all about the way you relate with the people around you and it’s about the way you get things done.

A right relationship is characterized by things like honesty, trust, mutual respect, fairness, justice and wellbeing. And so Lady Wisdom says of herself in verses 6-9…      

I have trustworthy things to say… I speak what is right… All my words are just and upright. (Wisdom’s words are fair and genuine; the real deal.)

More than just saying the right thing though, Lady Wisdom also does the right thing. In verse 20 she says: I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice. Lady Wisdom models what right relationship looks like by her example.

Here’s another way to look at righteousness. Aldous Huxley, the author of the book Brave New World, once said this: ‘But the nature of the universe is such that the ends never justify the means. On the contrary, the means always determine the end.’

The end is the goal or the desired outcome. While the means is the way you go about achieving the goal.

There is a worldly kind of wisdom, a cunning or shrewdness if you like, that is willing and able to sacrifice truth and trust, justice and uprightness in order to achieve a desired outcome.

For example, a medical student might cheat on their exam in order to pass. They may justify the means (cheating) by saying the end (passing) will enable them to help people in need. The problem is, they will probably end up doing more harm than good if they don’t know their stuff all that well. 

That is not the character of Lady Wisdom. True wisdom says, the end does not justify the means. Lady wisdom detests wickedness and crooked speech. She knows the means (how you achieve your goal) generally determines the end. You reap what you sow. 

And this is where the fear of the Lord comes in. In verse 13, Lady Wisdom says:   

To fear the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behaviour and perverse speech.

In one sense, to fear the Lord means being conscious that God sees all that we do and will one day hold us accountable. That being said, the fear of the Lord is not the same as the fear of punishment. If our relationship with God is based on the fear of punishment, then it is not a right relationship. It’s an abusive relationship and we will end up resenting God, rather than loving him.

No. Those who fear the Lord understand that God trusts them and they don’t want to abuse his trust nor take it for granted. To fear the Lord is to respect and reverence our relationship with God because God’s trust is precious to us.

Those who think the end justifies the means do not fear the Lord. They are arrogant. They think they can get away with it.

Perverse speech isn’t about swearing or using bad language so much as lying, not telling the truth, deceiving people with words. Falseness goes hand in hand with evil behaviour.

The religious leaders of Jesus’ day thought the end justified the means. Their speech was perverse. They reasoned it was okay to falsely accuse Jesus and have him killed on the basis that it would preserve their power and position. But Jesus wasn’t interested in their power or position.

We are talking about Lady Wisdom. Wisdom is near and wisdom is righteous. Wisdom shows us how to live in right relationship with God and our neighbour. Righteousness, as a means and an end, is what gives wisdom her value.  

Wisdom is valuable:

From verse 10 we read…

10 Choose my instruction instead of silver, knowledge rather than choice gold, 11 for wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her.

Verses 18 & 19 pick up the same theme, where Lady Wisdom says…

18 With me are riches and honour, enduring wealth and prosperity. 19 My fruit is better than fine gold; what I yield surpasses choice silver.

The point here is that wisdom is more valuable than silver and gold.

Verse 18 is referring to relational wealth and prosperity, more than financial prosperity. The Hebrew word translated into English as prosperity is literally righteousness.

These verses are saying that righteous wisdom will make you secure in your relationships; wisdom will enhance the quality of your relationships.

Of course, when you live in right relationship with others, when you treat others with respect and fairness, when you are honest and trustworthy in your dealings with others, over time, that tends to result in financial security as well. You reap what you sow. The means determines the end.   

In verse 12, Lady Wisdom expounds her value further saying…

12 “I, wisdom, dwell together with prudence; I possess knowledge and discretion.

Prudence is the ability to govern oneself by use of reason. Prudence is the capacity to exercise self-control or self-discipline. Those with prudence demonstrate skill and good judgement in the use of resources.

If you win Lotto but lack prudence you will probably lose your winnings before long. Financial wealth is wasted on those without prudence.

Lady wisdom possesses knowledge with discretion. That’s an interesting combination.

Knowledge concerns facts, accurate information and skill. Knowledge is a necessary component of wisdom.

Discretion is the quality of behaving or speaking in such a way as to avoid causing offence. A discrete person knows when to keep their mouth shut.

Just because you know something, it doesn’t automatically follow that you should share it. Knowledge without discretion can destroy relationships. Wisdom keeps knowledge and discretion together.

In the story I told earlier, Isaac listened to the guard and gained knowledge of where to find the treasure. But Isaac also had the discretion to not tell the guard his name or where he came from.

From verse 14, Lady Wisdom continues speaking of her value…

14 Counsel and sound judgment are mine; I have insight, I have power. 15 By me kings reign and rulers issue decrees that are just;

Insight is the ability to see into a situation. Those with insight see beneath the surface to understand what’s really going on, what’s really driving someone’s behaviour. The wisdom of insight enables kings and rulers to make good decisions and exercise power in a righteous way so that all of society benefits.

King Solomon showed insight and good judgement when two women came to him with one baby, both claiming the baby to be their own. When Solomon ordered the child to be cut in two, the first woman was ambivalent while the second woman begged the king to preserve the child’s life and give him whole to the first woman. Solomon’s wise insight revealed who the true mother was. The woman who begged Solomon to save the child’s life.

Conclusion:

In verse 17, Lady Wisdom says…

I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me.

Wisdom wants to have a right relationship with us, so we may have a right relationship with God and those around us.

We are reminded of the words of Jesus, who more than any other human being, embodies the wisdom of God. In Matthew 7, Jesus says…  

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.

The treasure of wisdom is closer than you think. Grace and peace to you on the journey.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?

  • Where can we find wisdom? How might we open our mind to learn wisdom? Can you think of a time when you learned wisdom from your mistakes? What happened?
  • What is righteousness? How might we know when our relationships are righteous? 
  • Discuss / reflect on the quote by Aldous Huxley: ‘But the nature of the universe is such that the ends never justify the means. On the contrary, the means always determine the end.’ How does this fit with the righteous wisdom of Proverbs 8? 
  • What does it mean to fear the Lord (in the context of Proverbs 8)? How is fear of the Lord different from fear of punishment?
  • Why is wisdom more valuable than gold or silver? Why is it important to keep knowledge and discretion together?
  • What connections can you see between Proverbs 8:1-21 and the teaching of Jesus?
Tawa Baptist

Reach

Scripture: 1st Peter 3:18-22

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Righteousness & Atonement
  • Exaltation & Confidence
  • Conclusion – Humanity

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

If you have ever been fishing with a rod and reel then you will know the importance of not getting your line in a tangle. If you let out the fishing line too quickly the nylon on the reel turns into a birds’ nest. When that happens you just have to slow down and let the line all the way out, until it is untangled, then wind it back up again.

Untangling fishing lines is good practice for brushing knots out of children’s hair and untangling your wife’s necklaces.

This morning we continue our series in first Peter, focusing on chapter 3, verses 18-22. This passage is a bit of birds’ nest. No disrespect to Peter but people throughout the centuries have got themselves into all sorts of knots trying to understand what Peter meant. Even the great reformer, Martin Luther, said he could not understand this passage. What may have been obvious to Peter’s first century audience is simply lost on us. So we approach this reading with humility, being honest about the limits of our knowledge.

From first Peter chapter 3, verses 18-22, we read…     

18 For Christ diedfor sins once for all,the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. 19 through whom alsohe went and made proclamation to the spirits in prison 20 who disobeyed long ago when God waited patientlyin the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were savedthrough water, 21 and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also — not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good consciencetoward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand — with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s word for us.

Just as it is important to avoid getting your fishing line in a tangle, so too we need to keep our thoughts in order when we read Scripture. To save any intellectual birds’ nests, the big idea of today’s message is: nothing is beyond Jesus’ reach. The victory and Lordship of Jesus is comprehensive in its scope, both in this world and in the spiritual realm. So that’s the headline: ‘Nothing is beyond Jesus’ reach.’

With that in mind, there are five things in today’s text that I want to draw your attention to, and they are all about Jesus. These verses speak of the righteousness of Christ, the exaltation of Christ, the atonement of Christ, the confidence we can have in Christ and the humanity of Christ.

Righteousness, Exaltation, Atonement, Confidence and Humanity. R.E.A.C.H. It spells reach. First let’s consider the righteousness of Christ and the atonement of Christ together – because they go hand in hand in Peter’s thought here.

Righteousness & Atonement:

Righteousness has to do with right relationship – acting with justice and kindness in our relationships with others. Loving God and loving our neighbour.

Atonement also has to do with relationship. In very simple terms, the meaning of atonement can be found in the syllables: At-one-ment. If we do something unrighteous (something unjust or unkind) in our relationship with another person, then the relationship is no longer one. It is damaged. Perhaps not broken into a thousand pieces but at least fractured, no longer whole.

For us to be in right relationship with that person again we must make atonement – we must do something to put the relationship right so we are at-one with that person.     

Let me illustrate what I mean. I have here a packet of biscuits from the kids’ Sunday school. This packet is unopened. It is one. It is whole. None of the biscuits are missing. But what if I were to open the packet and eat one or two of the biscuits?

Well, if I did that (and I’m not saying that I have) but if I did, then the packet of biscuits would not be one anymore. I could not, in good conscience, give the Flock Sunday school kids a half-eaten packet of biscuits. What would I need to do to make atonement in that situation do you think?

[Wait] That’s right. I would need to replace the biscuits. Then my relationship with the kids and my relationship with myself (my conscience) would be right again. It would be at-one and whole.   

Of course, replacing a packet of biscuits is an easy thing to atone for. But some things cannot be replaced. If you break someone’s heart or betray their trust or do something that cannot be undone, then it becomes far more difficult to put the relationship right again and atonement feels out of reach. Well, it might be out of reach for us but it is not out of reach for Jesus.  

In verse 18 of chapter 3 Peter writes: For Christ diedfor sins once for all,the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.

This verse is talking about the atonement Jesus made for humanity on the cross. Jesus was completely righteous in all his ways. He alone is the only human being to have lived a sinless life and so he alone is the only one who can atone for the rest of us who have sinned and cannot atone for ourselves.

In the Old Testament Jews would atone for their sins (they would replace the biscuits they had stolen) by sacrificing an animal, one without blemish, one that was whole and healthy. That was a ritual they had to keep repeating. It was like the atonement did not stick. It was only temporary. So righteousness, of a lasting kind, was always out of reach for them.

But Jesus died for sins once for all. The quality of his sacrifice was sufficient to atone for all sins through all time, so there is no need for any more animal sacrifices. Jesus does not just replace the packet of biscuits. He redeems the whole biscuit factory.

Jesus died for sins to bring us to God. You see, we have all broken trust with God. We have all done injury to God’s heart. We have all taken something that cannot be replaced. That’s the bad news. The good news is that Jesus’ death somehow makes us at-one with God again. Jesus’ death and resurrection brings right relationship, with God, within our reach.

Our salvation is not automatic though. While the atonement of Jesus is a permanent fix and while it does bring righteousness within reach, we still have to take hold of it by faith. And this is what Peter is getting at in verse 21 of chapter 3 when he talks about baptism:

…and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also — not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good consciencetoward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ,

Baptism is the ritual of Christian initiation. It is a beginning.  It is how we demonstrate we want to be a Christian. Baptism is a way of publicly saying, ‘I want to take hold of the righteousness that is now within my reach because of Jesus’ death and resurrection.’

Notice that it’s not just Jesus’ death which saves us but his resurrection also. Jesus’ death and resurrection go together. Baptism is a symbolic re-enactment or identification with Jesus’ death and resurrection. When we go down under the water we are saying, ‘my old way of life is now dead to me’. And when we rise up out of the water we are saying, ‘I pledge to live for righteousness.’

Peter wants to make it clear that it is not the ritual of baptism itself that saves us. The water is not magic. It is Jesus’ death & resurrection that saves. Baptism is a way of asking God (on the basis of the atonement Jesus made) to cleanse our conscience and forgive our sins.

Sometimes people put off being baptised because they feel like they are not good enough yet. Baptism is not a badge that says you’ve made it. It is a confession that says you are a sinner (you’ve eaten the biscuits and you can’t replace them) but you want to live for righteousness. So you don’t you have to be perfect in order to be baptised but you do need to be prepared to make a few changes to your lifestyle. Baptism does not mean business as usual.  

Okay, so we are talking about how nothing is out of reach for Jesus and he brings righteousness and atonement within reach for us.

In this morning’s reading Peter also focuses on the exaltation of Christ and the confidence this gives to Christian believers.

Exaltation & Confidence:

We live in a relatively egalitarian society here in New Zealand. One which is quite flat in terms of its social structure. No one likes to stick out too much. In some ways this is good. We enjoy a certain degree of equality; of being on an even footing with others. But the shadow side to this is tall poppy syndrome. Tall poppy syndrome is a phrase which means cutting people down who might succeed or rise above the rest.

New Zealand is not like other countries. We are less inclined to celebrate success and more inclined to criticize those who do well. Which sounds crazy, when you say it like that, but it’s true.

A couple of weeks ago a guy called Jay came and spoke to a group of Wellington Baptist pastors. Jay is the national coordinator for 24-7 youth work in New Zealand and he is also the founder of a movement called E Tū Tāngata.

E Tū Tāngata is a Maori term.  E Tū means stand and Tāngata means people. But it translates as Stand Together. E Tū Tāngata is about people standing up together against tall poppy syndrome. That means valuing ourselves and others. Not putting ourselves or others down.

When speaking to groups of people Jay often asks the question, ‘On a scale of 1 to 10 how would you rate yourself?’ (10 being absolutely amazing and 1 being not great). Most people say they are a 6 or 7, because they live in New Zealand and that’s the right answer in kiwi culture. We want to be just above average but not too far above the rest because then we will get cut down. 

The problem with tall poppy syndrome is that it infects our mind-set. It puts us on a downward mental spiral. Life is hard enough without being hard on ourselves too. We need to be on our own side.       

When the Bible talks about the exaltation of Christ it means the lifting up of Jesus. The exaltation of Christ includes his resurrection from the dead, his ascension to heaven and his enthronement at the right hand of God. Peter spells this out in verse 22 where he says:   

[You are] saved by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand — with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.

Jesus’ exaltation makes him the tallest poppy around and in New Zealand culture that also makes him (and his followers) a target.  

As kiwis we might hear those verses about Jesus’ exaltation and think: Not sure I like that image of Jesus. I liked him better when he was washing feet and being a carpenter and rubbing shoulders with ordinary people. I liked him better when he was more on my level.

The truth is Jesus has always been a 10 and that’s okay. In fact, it is good news, because Jesus being better than us (his being perfect) is what brings righteousness and atonement within reach. God wants to raise us up. He wants us to realise that, in Christ, we are 10’s also.   

You know, tall poppy syndrome makes us blind and deaf to certain things. When we read that verse in the gospels where Jesus talks about loving your neighbour as you love yourself, we might hear, ‘I must love my neighbour and whenever I fail to love my neighbour I’m no good, I’m a 1 or a 2’. Something else to feel stink about.  

But we can be slow to hear the second part of what Jesus is saying there which is love yourself. Love in this context means to seek the well-being of your neighbour and yourself. We cannot sustain love for our neighbour out of an empty well. Loving yourself means taking care of your own needs. Not being self-indulgent but having grace for yourself. Not being too hard on yourself. Not letting your inner critic dictate a mantra of negative self-talk. 

The exaltation of Jesus is something for us to celebrate because it gives us confidence. Who do you want to see exalted? Who do you want to see in charge? Do you want someone who doesn’t know what they are doing? Who makes poor decisions and cannot be trusted? Or do you want someone who is wise and kind and just? Someone who is firm but fair, strong but also compassionate. I think we all want the latter. We want Jesus to be lifted up because he can be trusted. The exaltation of Christ gives us confidence. Confidence to reach for righteousness and peace. Confidence to love our neighbour as we love ourselves.     

Verses 19 and 20 of chapter 3 are among the most knotty in the Bible. This is where the birds’ nest often comes into play. Peter writes:

Jesus was… made alive in the Spirit. 19 through whom alsohe went and made proclamation to the spirits in prison 20 who disobeyed long ago when God waited patientlyin the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were savedthrough water,

Much ink has been spilt by scholars trying to understand these words. While we cannot fully comprehend exactly what Peter is saying here, the general gist seems to be that the exaltation of Christ gives Christian believers confidence.

Say whaaat? Let me explain.    

Peter says that Jesus made proclamation to the spirits in prison who disobeyed in the days of Noah. Who these spirits are and where the prison is exactly is disputed. I won’t confuse you with all the different theories but I will present you with the majority opinion among Bible experts today.

You may remember from the series on Noah, a few months ago, that the people of Noah’s day were so bad that God gave up on them and decided to start again with Noah and his family. It is thought that the spirits Peter refers to were the evil spiritual beings of Noah’s time who, according to Genesis 6, overstepped God’s boundaries by sleeping with human women.

In Jewish tradition these fallen angels were behind a lot of the bad stuff that happened in Noah’s day, so God locked them up in a prison somewhere in the spiritual realm. Jesus went to these spirits in prison to let them know he had conquered sin and death and so he is in charge. Sort of a victory speech.

The message to Peter’s readers is to be confident in their suffering for Christ because Jesus still reigns and rules. He has not surrendered believers to the power of evil forces. Jesus triumphed over all evil by his death & resurrection. By implication those who put their faith in Christ and share in his suffering will also share in his exaltation and reign with him. [1]

Suffering with and for Christ is a reason for confidence, because it is the path to exaltation.

Peter was comparing the fledgling church of the first Century to Noah and those with him in the ark. The Christians of Peter’s day were like Noah and his family; a small minority in a world that was hostile to them. But they could be confident that, like Noah, their future would be secure when the flood of God’s judgement came.

The fact that Jesus is exalted to the highest place means that nothing is out of reach for Jesus. As the psalmist says:

Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
    if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.    

Nothing is out of reach for Jesus.

Conclusion:

The H in our REACH acrostic stands for the humanity of Jesus. Verse 18 tells us Jesus was put to death in the body. This is a reference to Jesus’ humanity. Jesus had a physical body like us. He experienced the weakness of the flesh like we do. He understood hunger and pain and temptation. And he died as all people must. Jesus was fully human. He was not just a heavenly tourist on this earth.

The fact that Jesus is from heaven and is human means that he can bring the kingdom of heaven within reach for us. Jesus offers us his righteousness, his exaltation, his atonement, his confidence and his humanity.

May grace and peace be yours in abundance.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?

  • What is righteousness? What is atonement? How do we make (or find) atonement? Are there things in your life that you long to atone for?
  • How do we take hold of the righteousness and atonement that Christ offers?
  • On a scale of 1 to 10 how would you rate yourself? (10 being absolutely amazing and 1 being not great).  Why is that do you think? Would your private answer be different from your public answer? How so?
  • What is meant by the exaltation of Christ? Why is Jesus’ exaltation good news for us?
  • Why does Peter compare his readers to Noah and his family? In what ways was Noah’s situation parallel with Peter’s first century audience? In what ways is Noah’s situation parallel with ours?
  • What confidence do you take, personally, from Jesus’ exaltation and humanity?

[1] Refer Thomas Schreiner’s commentary on 1st Peter, page 198.

Tawa Baptist

Kings & Priests

Scripture: Psalm 132

 

Title: Kings & Priests

 

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • A place to call home (King David)
  • A call to worship (Priests)
  • Conclusion – Jesus (King & Priest)

 

Introduction:

Once there was a young man smitten with a beautiful girl

–         She was somewhat indifferent to him though, and careless with his feelings in the way pretty girls can afford to be, but this didn’t deter him

–         When the young man heard the girl’s birthday was coming up he told her he would send her a bouquet of flowers, one for each year of her life

–         Later that afternoon he called the local florist and ordered 21 roses, with instructions that they be delivered on the girl’s birthday

 

As the florist was preparing the order he decided, that since the young man was such a good customer, he would put an extra dozen roses in the bouquet, bringing the total to 33

–         The girl didn’t take it so well and fortunately for the young man, he never heard from her again

–         Years later he found someone else better able to reciprocate his love [1]

 

This morning we return to our series on the Songs of Ascents

–         These songs were probably sung by Jewish pilgrims as they made their way to the temple in Jerusalem for various religious festivals

–         They are songs for the journey home to God

 

Our focus today is psalm 132 – It is a kind of a duet in two halves

–         The first half is essentially a prayer asking God to remember King David and his plans to build a house for the Lord

–         While the second half details the Lord’s response to this prayer

–         Like the florist in the story, God answers by giving his people more than they asked for or imagined.

–         Sometimes His ‘more’ may seem like a set back to us – but in the long run it proves better. From the NIV we read…

 

1 Lord, remember David and all his self-denial. 2 He swore an oath to the Lord, he made a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob: 3 “I will not enter my house or go to my bed, 4 I will allow no sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids, 5 till I find a place for the Lord, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob.” 6 We heard of it in Ephrathah, we came upon it in the fields of Jaar:7 “Let us go to his dwelling place, let us worship at his footstool, saying,8 ‘Arise, Lord, and come to your resting place, you and the ark of your might. 9 May your priests be clothed with righteousness; may your faithful people sing for joy.’” 10 For the sake of your servant David, do not reject your anointed one. 11 The Lord swore an oath to David, a sure oath he will not revoke: “One of your own descendants I will place on your throne. 12 If your sons keep my covenant and the statutes I teach them, then their sons will sit on your throne for ever and ever.”13 For the Lord has chosen Zion, he has desired it for his dwelling, saying, 14 “This is my resting place for ever and ever; here I will sit enthroned, for I have desired it. 15 I will bless her with abundant provisions; her poor I will satisfy with food. 16 I will clothe her priests with salvation, and her faithful people will ever sing for joy.17 “Here I will make a horn grow for David and set up a lamp for my anointed one. 18 I will clothe his enemies with shame, but his head will be adorned with a radiant crown.”

 

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate this reading for us

 

A place to call home:

There’s been a lot in the news lately about housing shortages, especially in Auckland but also in other main centres

–         Tawa has seen a bit of development as well

–         For some years now new houses have been going in around the Woodman Drive area

–         More recently a sub-division has been going ahead at Kenepuru

–         And we hear of plans for medium density housing around the Tawa Junction area

–         People are wanting room – a place to call home, space to dwell and rest

–         And for many that involves sacrifice & self denial just to save enough for a deposit

 

Psalm 132 begins with the psalmist remembering David’s self denial before the Lord

 

To remember means more than just re-calling to mind a thought from the past

–         The kind of remembering the psalmist is doing here is tangible and practical – like when someone ‘remembers you in their will’ – they actually do something for you

–         On ANZAC day we remember the self denial and sacrifice of soldiers by taking a day off work and holding dawn services to pay our respects

–         More than this though we don’t take our freedom for granted

–         In NZ when someone reaches the age of 65 the government remembers their years of tax paying and contribution to society by giving them a weekly superannuation payment and a gold card

–         We stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before us – we appreciate the benefits their self denial has brought

 

So when the psalmist says, Lord, remember David and all his self-denial, I think he is letting God know that he values the legacy David has left

–         He doesn’t take David’s self denial for granted

–         It’s kind of a thanksgiving for what David did in the past

 

Verses 2-5 detail David’s vow to find a place for the Lord

–         David plans to deny himself – he won’t rest until he has made room for God

 

What then does it mean to find a place for the Lord?

–         After all, God fills the universe – how can David possibly create a dwelling for God?

–         That would be like me thinking I could dig a hole large enough to contain the oceans of the world

 

David is well aware that God cannot be contained in a house – God will not be domesticated

–         More than likely psalm 132 has the events of 2nd Samuel chapters 6 & 7 in mind when David brought the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem

 

This is a picture of what the Ark of the Covenant might have looked like

–         For Israel the Ark embodied the holy presence & rule of the Lord God

–         It was also a tangible reminder of God’s covenant with Israel as it contained the 10 commandments

 

Since its construction in the wilderness the Ark had been kept in a tent

–         Having the embodiment of God’s presence travelling around in a tent showed the people that God wasn’t tied down to one specific location

–         For many years the Ark had sat in obscurity on someone’s farm until David thought to bring it Jerusalem

–         Then, once David had brought the Ark to the capital, it began to bother him that the Ark was kept under canvas while he lived in a flash palace

–         So when David talks about finding a place for the Lord, he means he wants to provide better accommodation for the Ark – he wants to bring it to Jerusalem and build a temple to house it

 

Interestingly God is referred to (in verse 5) as “the Mighty One of Jacob”

–         Jacob was famous for wrestling with God all night as he returned home after many years away

–         Perhaps there is an association here with David wrestling or struggling in his efforts to find a place for the Lord to dwell

–         Certainly it wasn’t an easy thing bringing the Ark to Jerusalem

–         It took David two attempts and a man died in the process

–         Not only that but David became estranged from one of his wives

 

David also wrestled with God over building a temple to house the Ark

–         David lost sleep over this issue – it kept him up at night, just as the angel of the Lord kept Jacob up all night in a wrestling match

 

I think there is a point of application here for us today

–         In our busy lives God often gets crowded out and like David it requires some self denial and commitment on our part to create room for God

 

Let me illustrate what I mean…

–         One of the consequences of more housing in Tawa is more pressure on infrastructure and roads

–         The intersection on the Main Rd and Surrey St, just outside the church here is a case in point

–         The Council would like to put a roundabout there to help traffic flow

–         And while there are some benefits for the wider community in having a roundabout those benefits come at a cost to the church – in particular its looking likely that we will lose around a dozen car parks give or take

–         The Council have been really good in talking with us about how we can minimise the loss of parks – they have gone out of their way to help us by seeking to free up other parks nearby

–         Obviously we would want to reserve the closest parks for the elderly, for those with young children and for visitors or newcomers

–         But there will be some who may have to deny themselves by parking further away in Oxford St, for example

 

Now the church doesn’t exist for itself – we are here for Jesus and for the world that God loves – so I’m not protesting against the roundabout

–         If it benefits the wider community then perhaps we need to see the loss of parking as part of our mission of being a blessing to the world

 

I’m also aware that having to park a little further away is a relatively minor inconvenience, especially when compared with the events in Manchester this past week

–         But although it’s a relatively small thing it is yet another thing in a long list of things which put distance between the church and society and make it more difficult for people to attend worship services

 

The loss of parks seems to me to be a kind of parable in that it illustrates what’s happening on a larger scale in NZ today

–         Incrementally, over time, God and the church are getting crowded out of our society by all sorts of things, like work & sports and other stuff

–         At the same time there is a growing distance between the church and society: the church often holds values which are at odds with society and we Christians cringe at the way the church is misrepresented in the media

–         Our society is generally less accommodating to God and the church (as we’ve seen with CRE) and so it is becoming harder to be a Christian

–         Therefore we who believe in Jesus need to be more intentional, more committed in making a place in our own lives for God to dwell

–         Like David, it is going to require more self denial on our part, to build a bridge between church and society

 

Returning to psalm 132: Despite David’s good intentions the Lord God did not want David to build a house (or a temple) for Him

–         Instead, the Lord would build a house (as in a royal dynasty) for David

 

In verses 2-5 David makes a vow to God, now in verses 11-12 God makes a vow to David, saying…

–         “One of your own descendants I will place on your throne…”

–         The Lord is referring here to Solomon

–         David would not be the one to build a temple for the Lord, but his son Solomon would

 

God then goes on to make a conditional promise to David…

–         “If your sons keep my covenant… then their sons will sit on your throne forever…”

 

This was a pretty big deal

–         Moses’ sons didn’t become the leaders of Israel after him

–         Nor did Joshua’s or Samuel’s or Saul’s

–         This was new – David had no reason (in history) to think that his descendants would be king after him

–         Here God is giving David far more than he ever asked for or imagined

–         We can’t out give God – He is too generous

 

A call to worship:

When I was about 6 my dad decided to build a swimming pool in our backyard

–         My dad likes a project and he is pretty handy at that sort of thing

–         It was 1976 so the pool was kidney shaped and deep enough to dive into

–         Anyway, dad decided he wouldn’t get a digger in to excavate the hole for the pool but would dig it out himself by hand

 

When we started I thought that with my help we could dig the hole in a day, but I quickly learned I had overestimated my digging ability

–         Despite all my efforts it took me most of the morning to shift half a cubic metre with my little spade

–         In the end my contribution was fairly modest and I had to adjust the timeframe I had in mind for completion of the project

 

We worked on digging that hole for weeks but it was worth it in the end

–         We got so much fun and enjoyment out of that pool

–         Of course it’s the end you need to keep in mind when you are shovelling clay – it’s the end that keeps you going

–         The interesting thing is that when the end is in sight you find a second wind – an extra burst of energy in anticipation of realising your goal

 

For the Jewish pilgrims making their way to Jerusalem to worship the Lord the journey was perhaps a bit like digging out the hole for the pool by hand

–         They didn’t fly there in a plane or drive there in a car or ride on a train

–         They typically walked, sometimes a very long way

–         This wasn’t a journey they could knock off in a day – it might take weeks depending on where they had come from

–         But by keeping the end in mind – thinking about the temple in Jerusalem – they found the strength to keep going

 

Returning to verse 6…

–         Ephrathah and Jaar refer to the region around Bethlehem, David’s hometown – Bethlehem is quite close to Jerusalem, about 9 km’s away

 

Verses 7-9 appear to be a call to worship

–         As the Jewish pilgrim’s walk through the fields of Jaar they know they are getting close, the end is in sight and they get a second wind, so they say: “Let us go to his dwelling place…” that is, to the Lord’s temple

–         “Let us worship at his footstool” – his footstool being the Ark

 

Verse 8 recalls the time of the Exodus from Egypt when Israel wandered in the wilderness for 40 years

–         The Lord God led the people by a pillar of cloud and fire

–         Each time the pillar moved the Israelites would pick up the Ark and say,

–         Arise, Lord, and come to your resting place, you & the ark of your might.

–         They were essentially asking God to bring them home to the Promised Land

 

Verse 13 of psalm 132 tells us the Lord chose Zion for his dwelling – his resting place

–         For the psalmist, in the Old Testament, Zion equated to Jerusalem – basically the main centre from which God ruled

–         For us Christians though Zion isn’t limited to geographic Jerusalem – it is essentially anywhere that God reigns

–         So Zion is a code word for God’s kingdom – the kingdom of heaven

 

Verse 15 tells us that where God reigns (where His kingdom has come) there is abundance and no poverty

–         I will bless her with abundant provisions; her poor I will satisfy with food

–         Verse 15 is looking forward to the realisation of God’s kingdom in its fullness when everyone will have enough

–         We haven’t got there yet, we are still digging the hole, still fighting against hunger and poverty in our time – and so the underlying assumption of the economic system we live under is scarcity

–         But this is not what the end looks like at all – the underlying assumption of God’s kingdom (of Zion) is abundance

–         What was it Jesus said? I have come that you may have abundant life

 

In connection with worshipping at God’s footstool (at the Ark) we have the prayer (in verse 9) that the Lord’s priests be clothed with righteousness;

–         The Lord responds positively to this desire in verse 16 saying…

–         I will clothe her priests with salvation, & her saints will ever sing for joy

 

These two verses are almost identical, except that in one the priests are clothed in righteousness while in the second the priests are clothed in salvation

–         Righteousness means ‘right relationship’ – dealing with people in a way that is fair and kind.

–         While salvation means being given abundant life, as opposed to being destroyed or excluded

–         Salvation comes in many forms: physical healing, forgiveness of sins, peace in our relationships, deliverance from evil, the eradication of poverty, acceptance into God’s family and so on

–         In the Bible righteousness & salvation are not things we achieve by our own efforts – they are gifts from God received by faith – by trusting God

–         Having said that God still likes to involve us in the process

 

When I was digging the hole for the pool with my Dad and my Pop, they pretty much did all the work – my contribution was quite small really and yet I probably got more use and enjoyment out of the pool than they did

–         It’s a bit like that with God’s gifts of righteousness and salvation – God does most (if not all) of the spade work but he still accepts what we bring

 

One of the key roles of the priests was to mediate God’s forgiveness to the people through the sacrificial system

–         The priests were there to help restore righteousness – that is to restore people to right relationship with God and between people

–         Priests that are clothed in righteousness therefore are priests who are able to mediate forgiveness because they themselves have been forgiven and stand in right relationship with God

 

Closely related to their role in mediating God’s forgiveness, the priests also had a role in mediating God’s salvation

–         The priests were a bit like doctors (except without the science)

–         The priests didn’t necessarily heal people but they had the authority to declare someone clean after they had been healed or purified

–         We read about this in the gospels. After Jesus healed some lepers he told them to show themselves to the priest so they could be declared clean and re-join the community

 

The Jewish priests wore special garments in carrying out their priestly duties – but wearing a special costume doesn’t make the priest fit to cleanse people, any more than wearing a surgical gown makes me fit to remove an appendix

 

The people’s prayer was for their priests to be clothed in righteousness

–         But in verse 16 God responds by saying, I can do better than that. I will give you priests who are clothed in salvation – that is, priests who mediate my power to heal and cleanse

 

The other part of the prayer in verse 9 is that God’s faithful people sing for joy

–         Worship should not be a loveless duty

–         Singing for joy is the icing on the cake – it speaks of a life that is overflowing with gratitude for the goodness of God

–         God’s response in verse 16 is that Zion’s faithful people (those who submit to God’s reign) will ever sing for joy

–         Once again God answers his people’s prayer with more than they asked for or imagined – their joy will be forever, without end

–         The grind of digging the hole for the pool may last for weeks but the joy of using it lasts a lifetime

 

Conclusion:

Psalm 132 concludes by looking forward in hope to God’s ‘anointed one’

–         ‘Anointed One’ in Hebrew is Messiah

–         As Christians we believe Jesus is the Messiah

 

We find three images for Jesus the Messiah in verses 17 & 18:

–         Horn, lamp and crown

 

Horn is an image of strength

–         Lamp is an image of clarity (or truth & wisdom)

–         And crown is an image of royal dignity – not just power but holiness too [2]

 

Verse 18 tells us that the Messiah’s head will be adorned with a radiant crown

–         The original Hebrew literally reads, ‘his crown will blossom’ [3]

–         Unlike the glitter of a man-made crown which looks pretty but is still dead, God will adorn Jesus’ head with the crown of life

–         God’s Messiah will be King over life and death

–         The poetry here is pointing forward to Jesus’ resurrection life

 

The poetry is also pointing back to Aaron, the high priest of Israel during Moses’ time

–         You may remember how God caused the wooden staff of Aaron to bud and blossom as a way of accrediting Aaron’s ministry as his priest

 

For Christians the connection is intuitive

–         In and through Jesus, God’s promises are fulfilled

–         Jesus replaces the Ark of the Covenant – he is the embodiment of God’s power & presence

–         Jesus is the ideal priest clothed in righteousness and salvation with power to forgive sins and to bestow abundant life

–         Jesus is David’s greater son who, following his resurrection from the dead, ascended to heaven where he sits enthroned in Zion

–         And Jesus is God’s answer to his people’s prayers – an answer far more generous and far better than we asked for or imagined

–         In short, Jesus is our hope and joy

 

Let us pray…

 

 

[1] Adapted from a story found in the book “The bells! The Bells!” compiled by Mark Stibbe, page 70.

[2] Derek Kidner, Psalms 73-150, page 488.

[3] Ibid.

Tawa Baptist

Strength through trust

Scripture: Psalm 125

Title: Strength through trust

 Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Psalm 125
  • Daniel 6
  • Conclusion

 

Introduction:

Trust is the foundation

–         In the same way that a good foundation gives strength to the building trust gives strength to relationships, to the community and to the individual

 

Today we continue our series on the Songs of Ascents – which we know as Psalms 120 to 134

 

The word ‘Ascent’ has to do with moving upward

–         The temple in Jerusalem was on a hill

–         On their way to religious festivals Jewish pilgrims might sing these songs as they ascended the hill to the temple

 

The 15 Songs of Ascents, then, are about being on a journey – not just a physical journey to Jerusalem but also a spiritual journey, drawing closer to God

–         We are exploring these Songs of Ascents as we journey toward Easter

–         This morning we take a closer look at psalm 125

–         This song is about the strength that comes from trusting God

–         It is the strength of righteousness or integrity

–         The strength to do the right thing under pressure

–         From the New Revised Standard Version we read…

 

1 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,     which cannot be moved, but abides forever. 2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,     so the Lord surrounds his people,     from this time on and forevermore.

3 For the sceptre of wickedness shall not rest     on the land allotted to the righteous, so that the righteous might not stretch out     their hands to do wrong.

4 Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,     and to those who are upright in their hearts. 5 But those who turn aside to their own crooked ways     the Lord will lead away with evildoers.     Peace be upon Israel!

 

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate this song for us

 

At a glance, psalm 125 begins with trust and ends with peace

–         While the terrain in between is righteousness

–         But the road to peace is not smooth and the trust is tested for the righteous must stand strong against the wicked

 

Psalm 125:

In 2004 Viktor Yushchenko stood for the presidency of the Ukraine.

–         As an informal leader of the Ukrainian opposition coalition, he was one of the two main candidates

–         The ruling party at the time vehemently opposed Yushchenko

–         During the election campaign Yushchenko was mysteriously poisoned

–         He almost lost his life and his face was disfigured as a consequence

–         This did not deter him from standing for the presidency though

 

On the day of the election Yushchenko was comfortably in the lead

–         However, the ruling party tampered with the results.

–         The state-run television station reported…

–         “Ladies and gentlemen, we announce that the challenger, Victor Yushchenko, has been decisively defeated.”

 

In the lower right-hand corner of the screen a woman by the name of Natalia Dmitruk was providing a translation service for the deaf community.

–         As the news presenter regurgitated the lies of the regime, Natalia Dmitruk refused to translate them.

–         “I’m addressing all the deaf citizens of Ukraine” she signed.

–         “They are lying and I’m ashamed to translate those lies. Yushchenko is our president.”

 

The deaf community sprang into gear. They text messaged their friends about the fraudulent result

–         As news spread of Dmitruk’s act of defiance increasing numbers of journalists were inspired to tell the truth.

 

Over the coming weeks the “Orange Revolution” occurred as a million people wearing orange made their way to the capital city of Kiev demanding a new election.

–         The government was forced to meet their demands, and a new election was held with Victor Yushchenko becoming president.

 

This is a true story (from recent history) of people who had the strength, the courage and the integrity to stand for what was right, even under pressure

 

Psalm 125 begins with the words…

 

1 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,     which cannot be moved, but abides forever.

Mount Zion is the hill (or the foundation) on which Jerusalem is built

–         It is a symbol of enduring strength

–         Those who trust in the Lord, therefore, have an enduring strength

–         They are able to stand their ground and not be compromised

 

They abide forever

–         Abiding is a lovely word

–         Abiding is about living in peace – not merely existing, but actually living

 

Verse 2 goes on to say…

 

2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,     so the Lord surrounds his people,     from this time on and forevermore.

 

Here the mountains are a symbol of strength and protection

–         The psalmist does not imagine himself surrounded by enemies, or problems or people he can’t trust

–         He doesn’t imagine himself trapped with nowhere to turn

–         He imagines himself surrounded by the Lord God, protected, embraced by grace, free from anxiety

 

What might not be obvious to us is that the mountains surrounding Jerusalem are actually taller than Mount Zion itself [1]

–         So the idea here is that God is bigger, stronger & more exalted than Zion

–         In other words, the foundation (or trust) of God’s people is supported (or guaranteed) by God himself – God is the ground of our being

 

Because God is stronger and greater than I the psalmist’s trust is well founded

–         It is trust in God’s goodness, his righteousness, his faithfulness, which gives us strength to abide

 

After that lovely affirming start, evil raises its ugly head in verse 3, with mention of the wicked…

 

3 For the sceptre of wickedness shall not rest     on the land allotted to the righteous, so that the righteous might not stretch out     their hands to do wrong.

 

A sceptre is a fancy stick with a little crown on the end, like this one on the wall

–         It resembles a mace or a bomby knocker

–         It is a symbol of a ruler’s power and authority to reign

–         A king or queen might carry a sceptre as a sign to show they are in charge

 

Apparently the wicked have been allowed to get into power but God will not allow them to continue to rule over the righteous

–         God doesn’t prevent tyrants from getting into places of authority but he does limit their term

–         Unlike those who trust in the Lord, the wicked do not abide forever

–         Unlike the righteous the wicked don’t have a firm foundation

 

And one reason God limits the reign of the wicked is so that the righteous are not tempted to compromise and do evil themselves

–         It appears the Lord did not allow the sceptre of wickedness to remain over the Ukraine, at least in 2004 and 2005

 

Verse 4 is a prayer to God…

 

4 Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,     and to those who are upright in their hearts.

The psalmist can pray this prayer with confidence because he knows it is what God wants to do anyway

–         He is not so much telling God what to do

–         Rather he is saying, ‘Your will be done Lord’

–         ‘Be yourself and do justly’

 

Two things we note here:

 

Firstly, goodness (in verse 4) is related to trust in the Lord (in verse 1)

–         So there is a relationship between trusting God and being good

–         Those who trust in the Lord are good

–         Or as the apostle Paul would say: ‘Righteousness is by faith’

 

Secondly, goodness is a state of being related to uprightness of heart

–         The heart is a symbol of a person’s inner life

–         God looks on the heart – he sees what we are like on the inside

–         In the Bible the heart is the seat of the will

–         In other words it is the inner sanctum of a person’s soul where decisions are made

–         A person’s words and actions flow down-stream from the heart

–         If our heart is pure then our words and actions will be also

 

So the kind of goodness that is in view here is not a false goodness where people do certain things to make themselves appear good in the eyes of others

–         It’s not painting over rotten timber

–         It’s not pouring concrete without using reinforcing steel

–         It’s not building on a false foundation

–         It is a genuine, authentic kind of goodness, from the inside out

 

When I think of uprightness of heart I am reminded of A.B. DeVilliers

–         In the recent one day series against South Africa Ross Taylor nicked a ball to the keeper (Quintin DeKock)

–         DeKock genuinely thought he had taken the catch cleanly and appealed convincingly

–         Ross Taylor must have felt the ball on the bottom of his bat because he began to walk off the field without contesting the umpire’s decision

 

But before Taylor had left the field the South African captain (DeVilliers) suggested the on-field umpire go upstairs to check with the third umpire

–         DeVilliers used to be a keeper and from where he was standing it looked like the ball might not have carried all the way to the keeper’s gloves

–         A.B. has pretty good eyes and it appears he is upright in heart too

–         The slow motion replay showed the ball had touched the ground just short of DeKock

–         The umpires reversed their decision and Taylor played on

 

I have no idea whether A.B. DeVilliers believes in Jesus or not but I admire his integrity – not claiming the wicket when the catch was doubtful

–         It’s not just skill which makes him one of the best cricketers in the world

 

Having prayed for God to do good to those who are good the psalmist then describes the consequences for those who turn aside to their own crooked ways

–         The Lord will lead them away with evil doers

 

In other words, it doesn’t pay to try and get by with cheating

–         God sees the whole truth and there is no escaping him

 

Fortunately the wicked don’t get the last word. As Derek Kidner notes…

–         “The final words of the psalm have arrived at peace, not by compromise but by the only road that leads to [peace]: the way of righteousness” [2]

 

Daniel 6:

Psalm 125 is about the strength (or integrity) of the righteous

–         It is a strength which comes from trusting God

–         It is a strength to do the right thing – to resist evil, remaining true to who we are & who God is

–         And, ultimately, it is a strength which leads to peace for God’s people

 

The classic Biblical story of the strength (or integrity) of one righteous man is the story of Daniel in the lions’ den

–         Daniel is a type of Christ figure – he points to Jesus

–         Daniel’s strength came from trusting God

–         It was a strength to resist evil and stay true to himself & to the Lord God

–         Through his trust and righteousness Daniel ultimately gained peace

 

Daniel, as many of you know, was a Jewish exile

–         He had been carried away from his homeland, in Israel, to Babylon by king Nebuchadnezzar

 

Daniel served in the Babylonian empire as a civil servant with administrative authority

–         Eventually Darius, the Mede, seized royal power

–         King Darius chose Daniel and two others to supervise the 120 governors of the empire and to look after the king’s interests

 

Daniel soon showed he could do better work than anyone else and Darius (the king) was thinking about putting him in charge of the whole empire

–         This made the other supervisors and governors jealous so they tried to find something wrong with Daniel in order to accuse him to the king and get rid of him

–         But they couldn’t fault Daniel, because he was reliable and did not do anything wrong or dishonest

–         Daniel was righteous and upright in heart, in other words

 

So Daniel’s adversaries tried to set Daniel up

–         They went to king Darius and said, ‘All of us who administer your empire have agreed that your majesty should issue an order and enforce it strictly

–         Give orders that for 30 days no one be permitted to pray to any god or any man except your majesty

–         Anyone who violates this order is to be thrown into a pit filled with lions’

 

In saying this the governors had tricked the king

–         By saying no one could pray to any god or man except the king, they were essentially putting king Darius in the place of God

–         Perhaps Darius hadn’t realised the implications at the time

–         In any case the king signed the order

–         This was a strict order of the Medes and Persians – an order that could not be changed even by the king himself

 

When Daniel learnt that the order had been signed he went home and in an upstairs room with a window open (where anyone could see) he knelt down to pray to the Lord God as he always did, three times a day

–         Trust in God was Daniel’s foundation and prayer was how Daniel remained on the foundation

 

Daniel prayed in direct violation of the king’s order

–         He knew the risk and yet he placed his trust in the Lord his God

–         Daniel was a thoughtful man

–         He knew that not praying to the Lord would be like agreeing that Darius was in the place of God

–         To not pray would be a denial of God – it would be colluding with a lie

–         Daniel couldn’t give into fear of man

–         He would rather face death than serve the purpose of the wicked

 

When Daniel’s enemies saw him praying to God all of them together went to the king to accuse Daniel

 

The king was very upset by this and did his best to find some way to rescue Daniel – not unlike Pontius Pilate who went out of his way to try and free Jesus

–         But there was nothing the king could do

–         Ironically his very power had rendered him powerless

 

Reluctantly king Darius gave the order for Daniel to be arrested and thrown into the pit of lions

–         The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve so loyally, rescue you.”

 

A stone was put over the mouth of the pit and the king placed his royal seal on the stone so that no man could pull Daniel out of the pit

–         Imagine that for a moment

–         Daniel is in a hole in the ground surrounded by wild beasts

–         Once the stone is rolled over the top of the pit it would be completely dark inside – it would be terrifying

 

The stone sealing the pit shut reminds us of Jesus whose body was laid in a tomb with a stone rolled across the entrance and a seal placed on the stone so no one could take Jesus’ body away

 

After Daniel had been thrown into the pit the king returned to the palace and spent a sleepless night without food or entertainment

–         The king denied himself in solidarity with Daniel

 

At dawn the king got up and hurried to the pit

–         Kings in the East don’t normally hurry anywhere – it is undignified

–         And yet Darius was more concerned for Daniel’s well-being than he was his own reputation

 

Once again we are reminded of the women who got up early and rushed to Jesus’ tomb on the first Easter Sunday, only these women weren’t hoping for a miracle like king Darius was – they were simply hoping to care for Jesus’ corpse

 

The king called out anxiously…

–         “Daniel, servant of the living God! Was the God you serve so loyally able to save you from the lions?”

–         Apparently it wasn’t just Daniel who trusted God

–         It appears king Darius had his own faith in the Lord as well, such was the witness of Daniel’s goodness and uprightness of heart

 

Daniel answered…

–         “May your majesty live forever. God sent his angel to shut the mouths of the lions so that they would not hurt me. He did this because he knew that I was innocent and because I have not wronged you, your majesty.”

 

Daniel does not hold anything against Darius – he remains respectful of the king

–         At the same time Daniel gives credit to God – he points out that God has vindicated him by saving him

–         Now the king can set Daniel free without losing face

 

The king was overjoyed and gave orders for Daniel to be lifted out of the pit

–         So they pulled him up and saw that he had not been hurt at all, for he trusted God (verse 23 tells us)

 

At this point we notice a distinction between Daniel and Jesus

–         Unlike Daniel, Jesus had been severely hurt and killed

–         Daniel emerged from the pit of lions without a scratch

–         Jesus, on the other hand, rose from the pit of death still bearing his scars

 

Returning to Daniel’s story, by this stage it was obvious to everyone that the other governors and supervisors had tricked the king

–         Clearly Darius could not trust them and so he acted with swift justice, ordering the men who accused Daniel to be thrown into the very same pit they had prepared for Daniel

–         Before Daniel’s enemies had even reached the bottom, the lions pounced on them and broke all their bones

 

Then king Darius wrote to the people of all nations, races and languages…

 

Greetings! I command that throughout my empire everyone should fear and respect Daniel’s God. He is a living God and he will rule forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed and his power will never come to an end. He saves and rescues; he performs wonders and miracles in heaven and on earth. He saved Daniel from being killed by the lions.

 

In saying this king Darius put things right

–         Not only did Darius submit himself to God, he essentially admitted he was wrong to issue the decree against praying to God in the first place

–         Darius had been humbled by God’s grace

 

Daniel prospered (he enjoyed peace) during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian

–         Daniel was indeed as strong and steadfast as Mount Zion – surrounded by the Lord God

 

Conclusion:

What pressures and temptations do you face – in your work, at home, at school or university?

–         What does doing the right thing mean for you?

 

As I’ve already alluded to Daniel points to Jesus

–         Jesus was truly righteous and good from the inside out

–         He was upright in heart, trusting God (his Father) even to death on a cross

–         And God vindicated Jesus by raising Jesus from the dead to eternal life

 

We too can share in Jesus’ strength, righteousness & peace when we place our trust in him

 

Let us pray…

 

Lord God, help us to trust Jesus

That we will have strength to do what is right in all circumstances

Keep us from temptation and deliver us from evil

And grant us your peace.

In Jesus’ name we pray,

Amen

 

https://soundcloud.com/tawabaptist/12-march-2017-strength-through-trust

 

 

 

[1] Michael Wilcock, Psalms 73-150, page 230

[2] Derek Kidner, Psalms 73-150, page 474.