Journal for Christ: David's astounding request

February 17, 2017

Worship: First by Lauren Daigle; He Shall Reign Forevermore by Chris Tomlin

Before I bring my need
I will bring my heart
Before I lift my cares
I will lift my arms
I wanna know You
I wanna find You
In every season
In every moment
Before I bring my need
I will bring my heart
And seek You

First
I wanna seek You
I wanna seek You
First
I wanna keep You
I wanna keep You
First

More than anything I want, I want You
First

Before I speak a word
Let me hear Your voice
And in the midst of pain
Let me feel Your joy
Ooh, I wanna know You
I wanna find You
In every season
In every moment
Before I speak a word
I will bring my heart
And seek You

First
I wanna seek You
I wanna seek You
First
I wanna keep You
I wanna keep You
First

More than anything I want, I want You
First

You are my treasure and my reward
Let nothing ever come before
You are my treasure and my reward
Let nothing ever come before
I seek You

First *

*Note: Lyrics were edited for brevity

Songwriters
JASON INGRAM, PAUL MABURY, MIA FIELDES, LAUREN DAIGLE, HANK BENTLEY

Published by
Lyrics © Roba Music, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Walt Disney Music Company, ESSENTIAL MUSIC PUBLISHING

Video: https://youtu.be/RbWQV3OiRqA?list=RDMMtIZitK6_IMQ

In the bleak mid-winter, all creation groans
For a world in darkness, frozen like a stone
Light is breaking, in a stable
For a throne

[Chorus]

And He shall reign forevermore, forevermore
And He shall reign forevermore, forevermore
Unto us a child is born
The King of kings and Lord of lords
And He shall reign forevermore, forevermore

If I were a wise man, I would travel far
And if I were a shepherd, I would do my part
But poor as I am
I will give to Him my heart

[Chorus]

Here within a manger lies
The One who made the starry skies
This baby born for sacrifice
Christ, the Messiah
Into our hopes, into our fears
The Savior of the world appears
The promise of eternal years
Christ, the Messiah

He shall reign forevermore, forevermore
He shall reign forevermore, forevermore
He shall reign forevermore, forevermore

[Chorus]

Read more at http://www.songlyrics.com/chris-tomlin/he-shall-reign-forevermore-lyrics/#xJJPMk6yPdglgTiX.99

Lyrics: http://www.songlyrics.com/chris-tomlin/he-shall-reign-forevermore-lyrics/

Video: https://youtu.be/oW_j42kNBFE

Witness:

As I type this entry, everything looks blurry. One of my lenses to my glasses fell out, and I can’t get the screw to tighten back up. I need another set of eyes to see clearly and the right tool to screw it back in. Earlier today as I was driving home from fixing something at my mom’s house I was looking at all the beautiful homes in her neighborhood. In the past, it might have evoked a little envy on my part. A yearning to own one of these nice homes. However, today the Lord spoke to my heart, and I realized that these beautiful homes would pale in the light of my future home He is preparing for me. The beauty of these homes is temporary at best. Even now I noticed some of the houses were already in need of repair. But my eternal home will never need repair. I also thought that even if the Lord were to bless me with being able to purchase one of these homes or if I were to live in the greatest of mansions or palaces it would only be a “foretaste of glory divine” and an infinitely inferior one at that in comparison. All the things we enjoy, whether it be owning a boat or collecting cars or going on vacation are pale reflections of everlasting pleasure we will have in the presence of the Lord (Psalm 16:11). Many people settle for the temporary over the eternal, but the Christian prefers to walk by Faith, not by sight. Ironically, that is the lyrics to a song that was just playing.

By faith our fathers roamed the earth
With the power of His promise in their hearts
Of a holy city built by God’s own hand
A place where peace and justice reign

We will stand as children of the promise
We will fix our eyes on Him our soul’s reward
Till the race is finished and the work is done
We’ll walk by faith and not by sight

(By Faith by Keith & Kristen Getty)

— WORDS AND MUSIC BY KEITH & KRISTYN GETTY & STUART TOWNEND

www.gettymusic.com/by-faith/

Everything may be a bit blurry now with my glasses broken and my imperfect eyesight. One day that will not be the case anymore. Faith will give way to sight. I will be made perfect when I see Him face to face (1 John 3:2). This vapor of a life will give way to eternal life. As the song that just finished said:

I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
A vapor in the wind
Still you hear me when I'm calling
Lord, you catch me when I'm falling
And you've told me who I am
I am yours

(Who Am I by casting Crowns)

Written by Cyrus William Bolooki, Chad Everett Gilbert, Ian R. Grushka, Stephen Lee Klein, Jordan I. Pundik • Copyright © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group

Praise God for quiet drives in the car and even for broken glasses. Times of reflection and analogies from life are answers to my daily cry:

Ps 25:4-5

Show me your ways, O Lord,

teach me your paths;

guide me in your truth and teach me,

for you are God my Savior,

and my hope is in you all day long.

NIV

https://notesfromasouthernkitchen.files.wordpress.com/2014/11/ba.jpg

WORD:

Ps 26:1-8

Vindicate me, O LORD,

for I have led a blameless life;

I have trusted in the Lord

without wavering.

2 Test me, O Lord, and try me,

examine my heart and my mind;

3 for your love is ever before me,

and I walk continually in your truth.

Ps 26:1-8

1 Declare me innocent, O LORD,

for I have acted with integrity;

I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.

2 Put me on trial, LORD, and cross-examine me.

Test my motives and my heart.

3 For I am always aware of your unfailing love,

and I have lived according to your truth.

Ps 26:1-3

Judge me, O LORD; for I have walked in mine integrity: I have trusted also in the LORD; therefore I shall not slide.

2 Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; try my reins and my heart.

3 For thy lovingkindness is before mine eyes: and I have walked in thy truth.

KJV

Ps 26:1-3

Vindicate me, O LORD,

for I have walked in my integrity,

and I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.

2 Prove me, O LORD, and try me;

test my heart and my mind.

3 For your steadfast love is before my eyes,

and I walk in your faithfulness.

ESV

David continues in verse two and three focusing on the internal. He begins by requesting that the LORD would “test” (NIV), “examine” (KJV), or “Prove” him. The NLT in an effort to keep the courtroom motif translate it as “put me on trial.” This may seem to make sense in light of the preceding verse, but David is not using the terminology of a courtroom but of metallurgy.

David strings together three words often found in reference to the testing and proving of metals. Usually, the first word here “bachan” (“test” NIV) is coupled with either the word “nacah”( “try” NIV) or “tsarap” (“prove” NIV), but here we have the trifecta in which all three words are used. (all words in bold are the transliterated spelling found in Strong’s Concordance)

The TWOT says this concerning bachan:

‎This root and its derivatives occur thirty-two times in the OT, chiefly in Job, Ps, and Jer. It often appears in parallel with ‎n¹sâ ‎hs*n` ‎and ‎ƒ¹rap ‎[r^x* ‎, its meaning falling about midway between the two. ‎n¹sâ ‎means "to put to the test, tempt" (in the archaic sense), while ‎ƒ¹rap ‎means "to smelt, refine." ‎b¹µan ‎partakes of both of these in that it denotes examining to determine essential qualities, especially integrity
(from Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Copyright © 1980 by The Moody Bible Institute of Chicago. All rights reserved.Used by permission.)

I find the words nacah and tsarap to be especially fascinating and astounding. David has invited God to test him (bachan). To take a look on the inside and see if his claims to integrity are true. These two words that follow shed further light on how he desired God to do this.

The TWOT says this about these two words:

n¹sâ In most contexts ‎ n¹sâ ‎has the idea of testing or proving the quality of someone or something, often through adversity or hardship… Such testing by God, however, was not without intent. It was to refine the character of man that he might walk more closely in God's ways (Ex 16:4; Deut 8:2; Judg 2:22; 2 Chron 32:31; Ps 26:1-3).
(from Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Copyright © 1980 by The Moody Bible Institute of Chicago. All rights reserved. Used by permission.)

ƒ¹rap The upright man endures Yahweh's faithful testing without despising it. He confidently affirms that the trial has discovered nothing amiss (Ps 17:3). In fact, when he seeks God's protection, he even prays that God will test or refine his innermost thoughts and attitudes so that his petition may indeed be worthy of being answered (Ps 26:2).
(from Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Copyright © 1980 by The Moody Bible Institute of Chicago. All rights reserved. Used by permission.)

David’s request is astounding to me. He is going through adversity. His integrity is being questioned. David feels the accusations are unjust so naturally, he asks God to judge him and declare him innocent of the charges based on his life of integrity and unwavering trust in the LORD. However, he does not want to rest on his own evaluation of himself. So, he invites God to examine him in such a way that further adversity may be needed. At least that is the way I am seeing it at the moment (though Keil & Delitzsch see it differently it would seem).

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges, which sometimes has a more liberal slant on some things, actually has a good summation of what I see here:

God knows him already (Psalm 17:3); and fearlessly he offers himself for a fresh scrutiny. This prayer attests at once the clearness of his conscience, and his desire that if aught of evil remains, it may be purged away. Cp. Psalm 139:23-24. Three words are used to express the thoroughness of the scrutiny. Examine me, as the refiner assays his metal to test its fineness; prove me, by bringing me into circumstances in which the reality of my faith may be demonstrated; try me, as the refiner smelts gold to get rid of any remaining dross. So God ‘proved’ Abraham (Genesis 22:1); and Israel (Deuteronomy 8:2; Deuteronomy 8:16). The purpose of such heart-searching is ‘to give every man according to his ways’ (Jeremiah 17:10).
http://biblehub.com/commentaries/psalms/26-2.htm

I will refer here to Barnes in order that one might the see the intensity of the prayer being made here:

[Examine me, O LORD] The meaning of this verse is, that he asked of God a strict and rigid examination of his case. To express this, the psalmist uses three words - "examine; prove; try." These words are designed to include the modes in which the reality of anything is tested, and they imply together that he wished the most "thorough" investigation to be made; he did not shrink from ANY test. He evidently felt that it was essential to his welfare that the most rigid examination should be made; that the exact truth should be known; that if he was deceived, it was best for himself that he should not be left under the delusion, but that, understanding his own case, he might be led to secure his salvation.
(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database Copyright © 1997, 2003, 2005, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)

We have an idiom that we use to refer to one’s inner fortitude or character. It is the phrase “testing one’s mettle.” Sometimes this is misspelled as “metal” which I understand from research the two words were once used interchangeably long time ago. If I can stretch a pun here, David is in a sense asking God to test his “mettle” (remember these words deal with metallurgy).

This leads to what David requests that God would examine:

“examine my heart and my mind.”

I have looked at these words, and they deserve further study. However, in the end, they can be combined into one thought. God examine my most inward thoughts, feelings, and motives.

Lord,

Examine my mind

So I can see

The thoughts and motives

Inside of me.

Try my heart

I want to be sure

That my affections

Are true and pure.

Remove the dross

That clouds my mind,

Stains my heart,

And makes me blind

To your great love,

So faithful to me.

And open my eyes

Your truth to see.

--Amen

Journal for Christ

Tuesday, July 18, 2017

David's astounding request

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