Psalm 34

Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!

Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!

Oh, fear the LORD, you his saints,

for those who fear him have no lack!

The young lions suffer want and hunger;

but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

Come, O children, listen to me;

I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

What man is there who desires life

and loves many days, that he may see good?

Keep your tongue from evil

and your lips from speaking deceit.

Turn away from evil and do good;

seek peace and pursue it.

(Psalm 34:8-14 ESV)

David writes this Psalm when he escapes the Philistines by pretending to be crazy. Of all times in his life it would seem as if he should not really be rejoicing. He's being chased by Saul. He's a fugitive and people are trying to kill him. His attempt to find safety and rest by trying to go to the Philistines has failed. People have called him a threat, accused him of being disloyal to the throne, and now he's being called crazy.

Oh how fickle I am when things are not going my way. When a snide comment or when I'm unappreciative comment I am not saying from the bottom of my heart, "Praise God from whom all blessings flow." How did David do it? How did he possess this character that would allow him to worship God when it seems as if God's not working?

But here's David, saying,

"I will bless the LORD at all times;

his praise shall continually be in my mouth.

My soul makes its boast in the LORD;

let the humble hear and be glad." Psalm 34:1-2

Two key words I see in David's Psalm- "fear" and "lack".

Fear-

He says to Fear the LORD. Fearing the Lord is not used in the same sense of being scared of something. Rather, it means to be in reverence of, respect, and yes a little trepidation. It's like the sermon I talked about last Sunday. It's like the Grand Canyon. It's beautiful, majestic. But you don't want to be playing too close to the edge. You respect it.

For David, he had an understanding that it isn't about what God can do for him. It was about God's sovereign plan. God is in control. God works all things for the good of those who love Him, to conform them to the image of Christ.

How do we fear? You watch what you say, and you watch what you do.

Watch what you say- what's what it means when you keep your tongue from evil and your lips from deceit. It doesn't mean don't talk, it means to monitor the words that come out of our mouths. How often does Scripture talk about our mouths? "Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks." "A tongue is like a spark that sets a forest ablaze."

Watch what we do- Turn- change your direction from doing evil to "seeking peace and pursuing it." Literally, seek shalom. Peace with your relations, peace with God. But it is not just a personal peace within. Tim Keller has a great sermon on Justice. (Visit This Link) In it he presents the argument that biblically speaking, pursuing social justice in this world is means to pursue the shalom.

Lack-

What is lack? It is missing something. Falling short on what is needed. He calls himself a poor man. He is on the run. Yet he declares that those who fear the Lord, "lack no good thing."

What is this thing that they do not lack? It's definitely not material possessions. David has none at this point. It's not even necessarily the hope that God will take the situation and make it into something good. He has no assurance of that at that particular moment.

So then what are these things that they will not lack? Two things. The first is God himself. He writes that blessed are all who take refuge in Him not because of what God provides, but how the joy and the hope that he has is found in God. It is not just about seeking God's hand, it is about seeking His face. It's not just what God can give, but what God can give in Himself.

There is also another meaning to the word lack in the Bible. Sin. Sin is a falling short, it is a missing the mark. When we pursue sin, we will be missing something. That is the dissatisfaction we experience when we pursue other gods. There is a lack, a shortage. It is the hope in the cross and in the resurrection gives us satisfaction. What we lack and when we fall short, it is the cross that fills the gap. Thus we are able to fear the Lord, and yet have hope that the gap that sin creates, God is able to fill.

Taste and see that the LORD is good.

[26] And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, “Then who can be saved?” [27] Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.”

(Mark 10:26-27 ESV)

The question begs itself here, saved from what?

When this passage is extracted from the context, the disciples questions and Jesus' answer takes on a different nuance. The context of this passage is when Jesus is approached by a "man" who falls to Jesus' feet and asks how he can "inherit" eternal life. Other versions of this story call him a "rich young ruler", or simply a "rich man". Jesus then goes about listing several of the commandments. (Interestingly enough Jesus leaves out the first commandment.) Having then replied that he has "guarded" or "kept" these commandments from his youth, the man pushes Jesus on this point.

Mark's reaction to Jesus is one of love. He then proceeds to tell the young man to give up his possessions to the poor and follow him. The young man walks away "disheartened" (in the ESV) Strong translates the word as: "made sorrowful, affect with sadness, cause grief, throw into sorrow, to grieve, offend, make one uneasy."

Jesus then says how hard it is for one who has riches to enter the kingdom of God. The disciples are amazed. He says it again. "It is easier for a camel to enter the eye of a needle than it is for them to enter the kingdom of God." (several interpretations are offered on the camel and needle- not enough space to address this- basically, it's hard, nigh on impossible.) And the disciples were even more amazed. The disciples had an understanding, having things can really get your heart. But Jesus' promise is really amazing. With man, it is impossible (impotent, without power or strength), but all things are possible with God.

Christ promises compensation both in this life and in the life to come. But it is not a prosperity gospel- it is also mixed in with persecutions (v. 30). The ESV commentary has this to say: "Material possessions can be a dangerous instrument for reinforcing self-sufficiency and independence from God."

QT Reflection on Revelation 7

"Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. they shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."

The picture of heaven here is one which contrasts the language of suffering. hunger, thirst, sun and scorching heat. It is a picture where we are serving constantly in God's presence. Serving God is seen as a joy and a pleasure. The lamb as shepherd imagery is also present. God truly comforts his people.

new class..so far..awesome!

I'm taking a class at the seminary by a Darrell Guder and a Christian Andrews. It's been a pretty cool class so far. One thing that I've been challenged with is the question: what is the function and the purpose of the church?

One phrase that continues to come up is the statement: The church is not meant for itself. It is probably the one organization out there that is not meant as a club to benefit its members. It is meant for those outside of its walls. But it is not merely a civic organization bent on doing good. The only thing that the church has to offer the world is the message that God has come to reconcile the world to himself.

When we reduce our faith to our being saved, we neglect that we are called to be worshippers of God and in being worshippers we are called to be witnesses. We are not saved simply for the sake of being saved, we are saved to be worshippers and witnesses.