Weaknesses
O spirit of God,
Help my infirmities;
When I am pressed down with a load of sorrow,
perplexed and knowing not what to do,
slandered and persecuted,
made to feel the weight of the cross,
help me, I pray thee.
If thou seest in me
any wrong thing encouraged,
any evil desire cherished,
any delight that is not thy delight,
any habit that grieves thee,
any nest of sin in my heart,
then grant me the kiss of they forgiveness,
and teach my feet to walk the way of
thy commandments.
Deliver me from carking care,
and make me a happy, holy person;
Help me to walk the separated life with
firm and brave step,
and to wrestle successfully against weakness;
Teach me to laud, adore and magnify thee,
with the music of heaven,
And make me a perfume of praiseful gratitude
to thee.
I do not crouch at they feet as a slave before a tyrant,
but exult before thee as a son with a father.
Give me power to live as thy child in all my actions,
and to exercise sonship by conquering self.
Preserve me from the intoxication that comes
of prosperity;
Sober me within I am glad with a joy that comes not from thee.
Lead me safely on to the eternal kingdom,
not asking whether the road be rough or smooth.
I request only to see the face of him I love,
to be content with bread to eat,
with rainment to put on,
if I can be brought to thy house in peace.
The Valley of Vision: Puritan Prayers and Devotions, p.188
Thursday, March 24, 2016
Thursday, March 3, 2016
Samson's Challenge
In Judges 15:12 we witness one of the most disgusting circumstances in scripture. Here the 3000 men of Judah render a predetermined verdict which they had no right to make. It was a verdict that was a direct frontal assault on the glory of God.
They assumed that at this point in their struggle against God's enemies, the Philistine barbarians, that the issues of peace, safety, and security had centered on one person, Samson. If Samson can finally be dealt with, then peace can be restored, the status quo can live on.
But no where in the equation is God's will considered. When we think of the unconditional acts of provision that God has made on behalf of these 3000 men of Judah and all the children of Israel, we wonder why they wouldn't be on God's side. After all, Samson is on God's side. (Apparently many modern commentators/pastors don't agree, but assume Samson had "emotional problems." What do you think?)
Indeed, God was placing Samson as a judge over the people of Israel, and yet they believe they are the judges of Samson. They evaluate his behavior, not the other way around. They judge Samson's behavior as wrong, when in fact (even a casual reader should observe) the Philistines are wrong. In dramatic fashion, the 3000 men of Judah bind their hero Samson and hand him over to their enemies and God's enemies, even to the point of doing the Philistine barbarian's dirty work for them. This is disgusting by any measure.
Which side would you choose if you were there? Again we ask, why in the world aren't these men on Samson's side? Because they are directly disobedient to God. They have the appearance of religion but deny it's power. In spite of being the children of Israel, they are terrified of God's power, but they are willing to bow under the power of God's enemies. Which would you choose?
When people want what they think is a nice enough life, and are afraid of stirring anything up, yet they believe that God's will would stir things up, which course of action do you think people will choose?
In my observation, this is why people very, very often equate their own lifestyle with the will of God. They imagine that their particular lifestyle is the life of Christ.
Then, Christianity becomes the same as their own theological presuppositions and lifestyle. When the Bible calls their self-sufficiency into question they reject the message and kill the messenger.
See that Samson's sacrifice prefigures the sacrifice of Christ in some small way, where sinners handed over the Lamb of God so that even their sins could be taken away. Status quo self-sufficiency that discounts the promises of God is nothing short of disobedience. Unbelief is sin- so don't be like the 3000 men of Judah. Avoid Israel's mistakes.
They assumed that at this point in their struggle against God's enemies, the Philistine barbarians, that the issues of peace, safety, and security had centered on one person, Samson. If Samson can finally be dealt with, then peace can be restored, the status quo can live on.
But no where in the equation is God's will considered. When we think of the unconditional acts of provision that God has made on behalf of these 3000 men of Judah and all the children of Israel, we wonder why they wouldn't be on God's side. After all, Samson is on God's side. (Apparently many modern commentators/pastors don't agree, but assume Samson had "emotional problems." What do you think?)
Indeed, God was placing Samson as a judge over the people of Israel, and yet they believe they are the judges of Samson. They evaluate his behavior, not the other way around. They judge Samson's behavior as wrong, when in fact (even a casual reader should observe) the Philistines are wrong. In dramatic fashion, the 3000 men of Judah bind their hero Samson and hand him over to their enemies and God's enemies, even to the point of doing the Philistine barbarian's dirty work for them. This is disgusting by any measure.
Which side would you choose if you were there? Again we ask, why in the world aren't these men on Samson's side? Because they are directly disobedient to God. They have the appearance of religion but deny it's power. In spite of being the children of Israel, they are terrified of God's power, but they are willing to bow under the power of God's enemies. Which would you choose?
When people want what they think is a nice enough life, and are afraid of stirring anything up, yet they believe that God's will would stir things up, which course of action do you think people will choose?
In my observation, this is why people very, very often equate their own lifestyle with the will of God. They imagine that their particular lifestyle is the life of Christ.
Then, Christianity becomes the same as their own theological presuppositions and lifestyle. When the Bible calls their self-sufficiency into question they reject the message and kill the messenger.
See that Samson's sacrifice prefigures the sacrifice of Christ in some small way, where sinners handed over the Lamb of God so that even their sins could be taken away. Status quo self-sufficiency that discounts the promises of God is nothing short of disobedience. Unbelief is sin- so don't be like the 3000 men of Judah. Avoid Israel's mistakes.
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