Journal for Christ: Work… fight hard… with humility in the power of the Lord

January 20, 2017

Worship:

O Church Arise
by Keith Getty & Stuart Townend

O Church Arise and put your armour on
Hear the call of Christ our Captain
For now the weak can say that they are strong
In the strength that God has given
With shield of faith and belt of truth
We’ll stand against the devil’s lies
An army bold whose battle-cry is Love
Reaching out to those in darkness

Our call to war to love the captive soul
But to rage against the captor
And with the sword that makes the wounded whole
We will fight with faith and valour
When faced with trials on every side
We know the outcome is secure
And Christ will have the prize for which He died
An inheritance of nations

Come see the cross where love and mercy meet
As the Son of God is stricken
Then see His foes lie crushed beneath His feet
For the Conqueror has risen
And as the stone is rolled away
And Christ emerges from the grave
This victory march continues till the day
Every eye and heart shall see Him

So Spirit come put strength in every stride
Give grace for every hurdle
That we may run with faith to win the prize
Of a servant good and faithful
As saints of old still line the way
Retelling triumphs of His grace
We hear their calls and hunger for the day
When with Christ we stand in glory

http://www.fundamentallyreformed.com/2006/09/20/o-church-arise/

Video: https://youtu.be/x63cVewXAeg

Witness:

The world rages against us. Our flesh continually sets stumbling blocks before us. Our ancient foe seeks our demise. He wants to quash any semblance of godly rigor on our part.

Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. 1 John 2:15-17Holy Bible, New Living Translation ®, copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. He who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work. No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother. 1 John 3:7-10 NIV

In the midst of this battle the Lord calls His saints to rise and don the Battle Armor, He provides to wage war against the world, the flesh, and the devil.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Eph 6:10-13 NIV

For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Cor 10:3-5 NIV

How does that work out in the lives of His followers? Paul sets the example for us to follow.

We put no stumbling block in anyone's path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything. 2 Cor 6:3-10 NIV

We wield the two-edged sword. With one edge, we free the “captive soul, ” and paradoxically, we make the “wounded whole.” With the other edge, we “rage against the captor.”

In the midst of the battle, we may grow weary. We may be enticed by the world. Our flesh may call us to surrender. And the Devil will constantly wage a propaganda war with our mind. Therefore, we are constantly renewing our mind (Rom. 12:2). Taking our thoughts captive (2 Cor. 10:5). Guarding our heart by means of rejoicing, prayer, and thanksgiving.

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Phil 4:4-7 NIV

And sanctified thinking.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me — put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. Phil 4:8-9 NIV

Notice that peace doesn’t come from mere meditation on that which is good but only when those thoughts are manifested in our lives. Think not that peace and strength and courage will come in the midst of the battle by the mere repetition of a mantra of spiritual truths. No, peace only comes when we put “into practice” the things we have “learned or heard, or seen” in our mentors or have “hidden in our hearts” (Ps. 119:110) or diligently studied (2 Tim. 2:15).

A final thought on this. The road that leads to failure. The one sure-fire way to defeat is to follow the subtle theology of self-effort. The one which is constantly saying, “I am trying.” It is subtle because we often don’t think that we are relying only on ourselves. We give lip service to “God’s power” in our lives. Nowhere in the Bible do we find the phrase “I am trying” in reference to the Christian walk.

Paul warns the Galatians about this attitude:

Let me ask you this one question: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law of Moses? Of course not! You received the Spirit because you believed the message you heard about Christ. How foolish can you be? After starting your Christian lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? Have you experienced so much for nothing? Surely it was not in vain, was it?Gal 3:2-4
Holy Bible, New Living Translation ®, copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

Or as the Message puts it:

Let me put this question to you: How did your new life begin? Was it by working your heads off to please God? Or was it by responding to God's Message to you? Are you going to continue this craziness? For only crazy people would think they could complete by their own efforts what was begun by God. If you weren't smart enough or strong enough to begin it, how do you suppose you could perfect it? Did you go through this whole painful learning process for nothing? It is not yet a total loss, but it certainly will be if you keep this up! Gal 3:2-4(from THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language © 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved.)

So, stop trying and start trusting. Let us follow and put into practice the words of the Apostle Peter:

If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen. 1 Peter 4:11 NIV

Work… fight hard… with humility in the power of the Lord. Paul testified to this power:

For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them — yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 1 Cor 15:9-10 NIV

As I end this section, a song is playing that seems appropriate to end with. Isn’t God awesome!

My Worth Is Not In What I Own

“My worth is not in what I own
Not in the strength of flesh and bone
But in the costly wounds of love
At the cross

My worth is not in skill or name
In win or lose, in pride or shame
But in the blood of Christ that flowed
At the cross

Refrain:
I rejoice in my Redeemer
Greatest Treasure,
Wellspring of my soul
I will trust in Him, no other.
My soul is satisfied in Him alone.

As summer flowers we fade and die
Fame, youth and beauty hurry by
But life eternal calls to us
At the cross

I will not boast in wealth or might
Or human wisdom’s fleeting light
But I will boast in knowing Christ
At the cross

Refrain

Two wonders here that I confess
My worth and my unworthiness
My value fixed - my ransom paid
At the cross

Refrain”

Lyrics: http://www.gettymusic.com/my-worth-is-not-in-what-i-own/

Video: https://youtu.be/vfFrJHuptUQ?list=RDiG9t5_ZNmaw

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

Judge me, vindicate me, declare me innocent, are all good translations of the word David begins his prayer with, in Psalm 26. David cannot find an earthly judge that would do this in the face of his enemies, so he turns to the one true and righteous judge to plead his case. The occasion of this plea is not stated. The antagonists are only described by the words: deceitful, hypocrites, evildoers, wicked, sinners, bloodthirsty.

Here is a sampling of what commentators say about the:

Historical context:

The enemies who were slandering David are described in verses 4-5 and 9-10. They were deceitful, hypocritical, and wicked evildoers, sinners who schemed to rob others and even accepted bribes (Ex 25:8; Amos 5:12), murdering those who stood in their way. David the king was a godly man, but not every judge and official in the government was walking with the Lord. Perhaps all of this occurred at the time when Absalom was trying to seize the throne by spreading lies about his father (see 2 Sam 14-15).

It is probable that David penned this psalm when he was persecuted by Saul and his party, who, to give some colour to their unjust rage, represented him as a very bad man, and falsely accused him of many high crimes and misdemeanors, dressed him up in the skins of wild beasts that they might bait him.

It must belong to the time following the removal of the ark to Mount Zion, and preceding the committal of the great offence.

It is an ingenious surmise that this appeal to heaven was written by David at the time of the assassination of Ishbosheth, by Baanah and Rechab, to protest his innocence of all participation in that treacherous murder; the tenor of the Psalm certainly agrees with the supposed occasion, but it is not possible with such a slender clue to go beyond conjecture.

This psalm appears to be the claim made by a man that he is innocent of unspecified charges of wrongdoing which have been brought against him. There is nothing in the text that enables us to know what he was accused of doing, nor the circumstances in which he refutes the charges; verses 6-8, however, seem to show that a ritual in the Temple was the occasion of the psalm. The psalm opens with a plea to the Lord for vindication, supported by the psalmist's claim of innocence of any wrongdoing (verses 1-5). This is followed by a description of the ritual in the Temple (verses 6-7), after which there is a new plea for vindication (verses 8-11). The psalm ends with a statement of confidence in the Lord (verse 12).

Its purpose or Theme:

This psalm, for the most part, is similar to the preceding. The prophet, oppressed with numerous wrongs, and finding no succor in the world, implores the aid of God, entreating him to undertake the cause of a man unrighteously afflicted, and to assert his innocence. And as his contest was with hypocrites, he appeals to the judgment of God, sharply reproving them for making a false profession of God's name. In the conclusion, as if he had obtained his wish, he promises a sacrifice of praise to God for his deliverance.

Psalm 26 is probably a temple entry psalm—a psalm used by worshipers before entering the temple. Alternatively, it may be an individual lament psalm, in which the psalmist seeks to be vindicated from false accusations (see Psa 17), though he does not mention any affliction or specific enemies

Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ps 26:title–12). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

Psalm 26 is a psalm of lament in which there is a protest of innocence (Ps. 17; 35; 43; 69). The structure of the Psalm is as follows: (1) a prayer for vindication (vv. 1, 2); (2) an assertion of integrity (vv. 3–5); (3) a vow of praise (vv. 6–8); (4) a prayer for discrimination (vv. 9, 10); (5) an assertion of integrity (vv. 11, 12).

Radmacher, E. D., Allen, R. B., & House, H. W. (1997). The Nelson Study Bible: New King James Version (Ps 26). Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers.

That there was conflict between religious groups in Israel is evident from this lament. Some commentators suggest that a pestilence is involved in the background. However that may be, the psalmist's protests regarding his integrity point to a society in which the ungodly have ascendancy. This psalm, although more individual than corporate, could well be used by a pious group in the time of affliction.

Ps 26; 27, and 28 reveal David's love for God's sanctuary (26; 6:1-8:9; 27:4-7; 28:2), which in David's day was the tabernacle on Mt. Zion. God didn't permit David to build the temple (2 Sam 7), but He did give him the plans for the temple and helped him accumulate from the spoils of battle great wealth to provide material for constructing the temple (1 Chron 22; 28:1-29:30). But not all who gathered to worship at the sanctuary were sincere in their walk or their worship, and some of them were openly disobedient and spread lies about the king. It was this situation that led to the writing of this psalm. In it, David makes three requests of the Lord.

The love for the house of God, which is expressed herein, is also the very heart of this Psalm.

Its Structure:

The form of this psalm consists of four petitions accompanied by claims or reasons why God should respond, and ends with a vow or promise to praise God. The structure is rather symmetrical, as can be seen in the following listing:

Petition-Claim (Verse 1)

Petition (2)

Claim (3)

Claim (4)

Claim (5)

Claim (6)

Claim (7)

Claim (8)

Petition (9-10)

Petition-Claim (11)

Vow-Claim (12)

Unity of subject is so distinctly maintained, that there are no sharp divisions. David Dickson has given an admirable summary in these words: — "He appeals to God", the supreme Judge, in the testimony of a good conscience, bearing him witness; first, of his endeavour to walk uprightly as a believer, Ps 26:1-3; secondly, of his keeping himself from the contagion of the evil counsel, sinful causes, and examples of the wicked, Ps 26:4-5; thirdly, of his purpose still to behave himself holily and righteously, out of love to be partaker of the public privileges of the Lord's people in the congregation, Ps 26:6-8 Whereupon he prayeth to be free of the judgment coming upon the wicked, Ps 26:9-10 according as he had purposed to eschew their sins, Ps 26:11 and he closes the prayer with comfort and assurance of being heard, Ps 26:12.

With this brief background survey to the psalm I will enter into the meat of the Psalm in my next entry. I will end this portion with a quote from the venerable commentator Matthew Henry.

Holy David is in this psalm putting himself upon a solemn trial, not by God and his country, but by God and his own conscience, to both which he appeals touching his integrity (ver. 1,2), for the proof of which he alleges, I. His constant regard to God and his grace, ver. 3. II. His rooted antipathy to sin and sinners, ver. 4,5. III. His sincere affection to the ordinances of God, and his care about them, ver. 6-8. Having thus proved his integrity, 1. He deprecates the doom of the wicked, ver. 9,10. 2. He casts himself upon the mercy and grace of God, with a resolution to hold fast his integrity, and his hope in God, ver. 11,12. In singing this psalm we must teach and admonish ourselves, and one another, what we must be and do that we may have the favour of God, and comfort in our own consciences, and comfort ourselves with it, as David does, if we can say that in any measure we have, through grace, answered to these characters. The learned Amyraldus, in his argument of his psalm, suggests that David is here, by the spirit of prophecy, carried out to speak of himself as a type of Christ, of whom what he here says of his spotless innocence, was fully and eminently true, and of him only, and to him we may apply it in singing this psalm. "We are complete in him."

Journal for Christ

Thursday, July 13, 2017

Work… fight hard… with humility in the power of the Lord

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