How Does Satan Steal the Seed on Sunday?

 

New Gospel or No Gospel

Introductory Essay to John Owen’s Death of Death in the Death of Christ by J. I. Packer[1]

 

This introductory essay is worth every moment the reader will take to digest every thought of the late Dr. J.I. Packer.  In these initial paragraphs Dr. Packer sets the stage by comparing two Gospels.  It is not a comparison of heresy versus orthodoxy, because both “Gospels” have the similar content and words.  The difference lies in what and how the “Gospels” are communicated.  In his own words he writes, “The whole perspective and emphasis of gospel preaching has changed.” This new Gospel has been categorized as “attractional”, “user-friendly”, “relevant”, or “therapeutic”.  I have found that you have to attend or observe services of this type rather than try to categorize them.  But in Dr. Packer’s words they are centred upon this “new Gospel”.  Note Packer’s comparison:

 

“. . . Without realising it, we have during the past century bartered that gospel for a substitute product which, though it looks similar enough in points of detail, is as a whole a decidedly different thing. Hence our troubles; for the substitute product does not answer the ends for which the authentic gospel has in past days proved itself so mighty. 

 

The new gospel conspicuously fails to produce deep reverence, deep repentance, deep humility, a spirit of worship, a concern for the church. Why? We would suggest that the reason lies in its own character and content. It fails to make men God-centred in their thoughts and God-fearing in their hearts because this is not primarily what it is trying to do.One way of stating the difference between it and the old gospel is to say that it is too exclusively concerned to be “helpful” to man—to bring peace, comfort, happiness, satisfaction—and too little concerned to glorify God.

 

The old gospel was “helpful,” too—more so, indeed, than is the new—but (so to speak) incidentally, for its first concern was always to give glory to God. It was always and essentially a proclamation of Divine sovereignty in mercy and judgment, a summons to bow down and worship the mighty Lord on whom man depends for all good, both in nature and in grace. Its centre of reference was unambiguously God.

 

But in the new gospel the centre of reference is man. This is just to say that the old gospel was religious in a way that the new gospel is not. Whereas the chief aim of the old was to teach men to worship God, the concern of the new seems limited to making them feel better. The subject of the old gospel was God and His ways with men; the subject of the new is man and the help God gives him . . ..”

 

As I have attended or watched these “new Gospel” churches I sense I have been drawn into a spiritualized Ted-Talk. However, in Pauline thought there is really just one Gospel.  So, this so-called “new Gospel” is actually no Gospel at all.  Attendees leave psychologically and emotionally pumped up devoid of God-centred thoughts, Christ-centred pursuits, or Word-driven behaviours. 

 

 

 

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[1] https://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/sdg/packer_deathintro.html

It’s Really Hard To Find A Barber That Pleases Me.

 

I just have one of those heads-of-hairs!  I just have a hard time getting a haircut I like. (Of course that doesn’t include my do-it-myself cut that is completely wash-and-wear.). I would bore you to death plotting the times and locations of haircuts that I’ve had over the years. As of today I’m back to the same shop that I went to years ago.  

My hair ordeal isn’t a big deal.  In fact its amazing you’ve read this much already.  What is a big deal is when Christians treat the Church like I’ve treated my litany of barber shops. What’s even more fascinating is that given enough time some even end up back in the same “shop” they had sought to be served in, in previous times.  The truth of the matter is that if we go to church to have our needs met and our ideals aligned with we’ll never be satisfied and we’ll move from shop to shop.  But, like every barber knows, the customer is always right.

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 5

Previous articles can be read here:

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 1

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 2

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 3

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 4

Eκκλησία (ekklēsia) is the Greek word translated ‘Church’ in the New Testament. In the New Testament it was a gathering of citizens called out of sin and darkness; and called out from their private, individual lives into gatherings found in a home and eventually into some public place, an assembly. Since it was an outward, visible assembly it could only be local.  

I have argued that the New Testament primarily refers to the Church as local and visible.  I showed that it is described in Revelation 1:12ff as autonomous under the Lordship of Christ. In Part 1 I described a conversation:

“So my brother, you have been attending this Church, for some time.  Have you considered membership,” I ask.  “No, I actually find it unnecessary,” he responds.  Continuing, he states, “When I became a Christian I became part of the universal Body of Christ.  Joining a Church is redundant and unnecessary; besides institutional churches are just man-made organizations.” 

This Doctrine of the Local, Visible Church demands certain implications.  From the conversation above, the first is obvious.

Implication #1. It is foreign to the New Testament and inconsistent to profess faith in Christ and not become a member of a local Church.  It is illogical to claim membership solely in what is scattered and unseen wherein Christ has determined that the local Church makes visible what is indistinguishable.

To those who remain within the numinous unobserved domain of Christendom and not join the local church, the question is laid before you, “Which pastor is charged with the watch-keep over your soul; and which pastor do you grant your respect and obedience (Hebrews 13:17)?”  We could add, “To which body of believers will you show your mutual love and care for?”  Or do you find it more pleasing to float between these embassies of heaven and pick and choose what you want, discarding what you don’t want.

And if one is unconvinced of the Biblical necessity to become a member of a local Church, then to which Church will you seek to affirm your profession of faith and in obedience to our Lord baptize you?   And to which local Church will you partake of the Lord’s Table, confessing your oneness with that Body and yet refuse to commit to it through membership? 

Implication #2.  As we have affirmed the Truth that local, visible Bodies of Christ, called the Church are ordained and sovereignly ruled by our risen Saviour.  And as one readily sees that Pastors, elders and deacons are delegated responsibility to care and watch over these individual outposts of Heaven, we then must readily assume, not only that each Church is independent and self-governing under Christ, but that each assembly will differ in emphasis and matters of conscience.

Certainly cardinal matters of doctrine and faith will be the same no matter the locale of the Church, if it’s a true Church.  In lower tier areas will differ.  This brings me to the specifics of this implication, which is: it ought to be a very serious contravention of a major doctrine that would cause a Church member to break fellowship with their local Church.  To break fellowship over superficial or disputable matters fails to comprehend the uniqueness and the value of the local Church.  When Paul calls Christians to remain loyal, welcoming and in fellowship with other believers who differ on disputable matters, certainly the same must be true of the Church body (Romans 14).

In years past Ruth’s statement to her mother-in-law was often quoted at weddings. “But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the Lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you.”” (Ruth 1:16–17, ESV).  Would it be that Christians would express the same loyalty to one another in the Church? 

These two implications can be summarized in two words: loyal partnership. 

“An examination of the 118 uses of the word ekklesia in the New Testament scriptures shows they refer directly to a local, visible assembly, ie., a group of people coming together to carry out the Lord's work in a specific location in Ephesus, Colossi, Philippi, or meeting in a house such as Philemon. Only Matthew 16:18 refers to the generic or institutional sense of the church all others refer to or were written to a local assembly.”[1]

There’s a somewhat super spirituality and feigned piety to those who show contempt toward the local church in favour of the “true, invisible, universal” Church. God created the world including mankind to show forth His unseen glory and make it visible, to be seen and rejoiced in.  The invisible God would, in the progress of time, become visible in the Person of Jesus Christ.  In the Person of Christ, God dwelt in all fullness, bodily.  God ordained that the universal, invisible Church become visible that in Ephesus, Colossi, and your community and mine, a visible Church might show forth His glory through the Lordship of Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

It is a Bride, you can kiss.  It is real, tangible and observable. The Groom’s goal is to “present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.”^[2]

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[1] https://www.facebook.com/notes/baptist-history-preservation/five-reasons-the-church-is-local-and-visible-and-cannot-be-universal-nor-invisib/1880821965309747/

^[2] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Eph 5:27). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 4

In the previous article I asked you not to miss the glory and the simplicity of visible Church revealed to us in Revelation 1. Christ walks among the churches as Lord and risen Savior. Here on planet earth, in time and space, our Redeemer and Master glorifies the Churches.  As He once tabernacle among the people of the 1^st Century, now the risen King tabernacles among His local visible Churches.

The New Testament is not silent about the glory of the visible, local Church.  Notice how the Scripture attributes such grandeur to this so-called institution that often is denigrated and dismissed.

1. Each local Church was obtained by God with His own blood (Paul addressing the elders of Ephesus in Acts 20:28)
2. Each local Church is self-governing under the lordship of Jesus Christ, regulated by His Word, who walks between the churches (Revelation 1:12ff).  Christ holds the “messengers” to each Church in His right hand (Revelation 1:16).    
3. Each local Church is indwelt by the Third Person of the Trinity making it the Temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16-17) and there are serious consequences to anyone who does violence to this Temple.
4. Each local Church is set apart wholly in Christ (1 Corinthians 1:2).
5. Each local Church is to be led by under-shepherds: Elders and Deacons (Philippians 1:1) who will give account to for the souls of its Members (Hebrews 13:17) and whose members are to show obedience and submission.
6. Each local Church is to be guarded and cared for by its under-shepherds (Acts 20:28-31).
7. Each local Church is comprised of Members from every class and culture; male and female (Galatians 3:28) who are all equal and one in Christ.
8. Each local Church is responsible for what is taught in the Church (e.g., Galatians 1:6; 3:1) and is responsible for the discipline of sinning members (Matthew 18:15ff).
9. Each local Church Member is responsible for the ministry needs of one another (see the 59 “one another’s” in the New Testament.) such that each member is growing in their faith and increasingly loving one another (2 Thessalonians 1:3).
10. Each local Church is an outpost/embassy of Heaven here on earth (i.e., Philippians 1:27).
11. Each local Church is identified as 1) One Body, 2) One Spirit, 3) One Hope, 4) One Lord, 5) One faith, 6) One baptism and 7) One God and Father. (Ephesians 4:1ff).
12. Each local Church is to be examples of imitating Christ and following the Apostolic doctrine with joy in the Holy Spirit (1 Thessalonians 1:6). 
13. The local Church is the “a pillar and buttress of the truth.” (1 Timothy 3:15, ESV), charged with promoting and protecting the Truth.

Each one of these characteristics and responsibilities is applied to the local Church. Chuck Colson wrote, “The life function of [the local church] is to love the God who created it - to care for others out of obedience to Christ, to heal those who hurt, to take away fear, to restore community, to belong to one another, to proclaim the Good News while living it out. The church is the invisible made visible.

With God’s help, let us consider some implications to this in the next article.

 

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 1

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 2

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 3

 

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 3

Imagine the scene in “every place “(1 Corinthians 1:2) where the saints of God “call upon the name of the Lord”.  Gazing out the window in my Church, thirty minutes before the hour of worship, there’s a steadily increasing number of vehicles finding a parking place and a steadily increasing number of people entering the “brick and mortar”.  At the hour of worship, when the Call to Worship is given, imagine each and every worshipper thinking: “We are the Temple of the Holy Spirit”.  As we are gathered we are God’s Temple, God’s ναός (pronounced naos), God’s sanctuary.  The dwelling place of God is with us!  How would that singular thought impact the next 90 minutes?  This place, this “brick and mortar” structure, has, because of the gathering of God’s called out ones, become a “heavenly outpost” an image of the celestial Eden.

John saw this sight in its glory and it’s recorded for us in Revelation 1:12–16 (ESV)

“¹² Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, ¹³ and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest. ¹⁴ The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, ¹⁵ his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. ¹⁶ In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.”

The Holy Spirit helps us interpret this vision. “As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.” (Revelation 1:20, ESV)

This passage deserves more than a glancing interpretation, but for brevity I quote MacArthur who sums it up so well, “Each lampstand represented a church (v. 20), from which the light of life shone. Throughout Scripture, 7 is the number of completeness, so these 7 lampstands are representative of all the churches.”^[1] Here we have represented local, visible Churches, not the “invisible, universal, and mystical” Church.  Here are ordinary believers from known geographic locations.  “Both the congregations and their spiritual leaders are symbolized as light-bearing bodies. Both the congregations and their leaders are of special concern for the risen Lord. He will protect his people in spite of all evil that comes their way.”^[2]

Don’t miss the glory and the simplicity of the picture: individual local, visible Churches gathered together under divinely appointed leaders[3] who exist in the palm of the risen Savior.  And don’t miss the scene that exists amid the Churches.  “Christ walks among the churches as Lord and Shepherd (v. 13), just as God’s cloud of glory descended to dwell in the tabernacle and the temple, which had their lampstands (Ex. 25:31–40; 1 Kin. 7:49).”^[4]

He, moving graciously among the individual churches is this risen Lord exercising His rightful authority over the congregations (See Revelation 2-3). The very fact that the next two chapters include messages to these local, visible Churches, commending and correcting them individually forces us to conclude that delegated authority and local autonomy are necessary attributes of the local Church.

I find Jonathan Leeman very helpful.  I quote:

“Yet a Christian’s heavenly membership in the universal church needs to show up on earth, just like a Christian’s imputed righteousness in Christ should show up in works of righteousness (James 2:14-26) . . . In other words, our membership in Christ’s universal and heavenly body cannot remain an abstract idea. If it is real, it will show up on earth—in real time and space with real people . . . Membership in the universal church must become visible in a local gathering of Christians.”[5]

The schema of the New Testament starts with the foundational Gospel accounts that provide for us the life, ministry and teaching of Christ. How the Gospel gets fleshed out is found in the Acts of the Apostles.  It is there that universal ideas, such as, “I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it”,^[6] the Holy Spirit makes visible through church planting.  The task of the Epistles will be to give correction and direction to these visible churches throughout the known world, “in every place”.  It seems logical that if one is to deny the glory and significance of the local Church in deference to the universal, mystical Body of Christ, he or she must disregard most of our New Testament. God forbid.

In the next article I want us to examine the magnificent and majestic attributes of the local, visible Church “in every place”.

 

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 1

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 2

 

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^[1] MacArthur, J., Jr. (Ed.). (1997). The MacArthur Study Bible (electronic ed., p. 1993). Nashville, TN: Word Pub.

^[2] Easley, K. H. (1998). Revelation (Vol. 12, p. 21). Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

[3] There is a good argument that these representatives may be angels, not human pastors. 

^[4] Whitlock, L. G., Sproul, R. C., Waltke, B. K., & Silva, M. (1995). The Reformation study Bible: bringing the light of the Reformation to Scripture: New King James Version (Re 1:12). Nashville: T. Nelson.

[5] https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/essay/the-church-universal-and-local/

^[6] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Mt 16:18). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 2

 

I wrote in the previous article that the Local Visible Church is the “incarnation” of what is true and glorious: the universal, mystical, holy Church of our Christ, the Lord Jesus.  It is as if everything that is principally true of the transcendent catholic Church throughout the ages has been laser-focused and established in the local Church.  It is as if everything good and praiseworthy of the Body of Christ extending to all nations and peoples throughout all time and has minimized, visualized and actualized in the Local Church.

I am writing to push back against a trend that somehow thinks the universal invisible Body of Christ is somehow more relevant and more spiritually significant than the local visible Body of Christ. I am pushing back against the notion that the organizational, institutional local visible church is a creation of man and less worthy of honour.  There are many places one could start but my own corrective journey started in 1 Corinthians where we read:

“Do you not know that you^P are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you^P are that temple.” (1 Corinthians 3:16–17, ESV)

Now in 1 Corinthians 6:19f, the Scriptures speak of our bodies as temples of the Holy Spirit, but in this text Paul is referring to the local assembly in Corinth.  The “you” in vv16 and 17 are in the plural.  Paul addresses this local church (“To the church of God that is in Corinth . . .” (1 Corinthians 1:2a, ESV)) and to this body of believers he refers to them as the temple of the Holy Spirit, not a part of the temple.  “Here Paul is not saying that each individual Christian is a temple within which God’s Spirit dwells, but rather that the Spirit of God dwells in the Christian community corporately as a community.”^[1]  This does not dismiss the truth that each individual Christian has the Spirit, nor does it minimize the reality that these corporate communities exist all over the world (“To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:” (1 Corinthians 1:2, ESV)).

 Gordon Fee comments:

“His immediate concern is not to assert that the Spirit dwells in each of them, true as that would be for him (6:19), but that the Spirit of God “dwells in your midst” when they have assembled together for worship. That is, Paul is here reflecting on the church as the corporate place of God’s dwelling, who, when gathered in Jesus’ name, experienced the presence and power of the Lord Jesus in their midst.”^[2]

It is interesting to note that as Paul was dealing with leadership issues, unity issues, and moral issues in the Church in Corinth and he was compelled to remind them of the sanctity of their assembly. Their status as a temple as they gathered together in parts of that city was such that dire consequences would occur if they would cause any violence to it.

Just stop and think about it. “When does your “true, universal, invisible” church ordain elders, and where does it ordain them? When does your “true, invisible, universal” church appoint deacons, and where does it appoint them? When does your true, invisible, universal” church authorize the baptism of converts, and where does it do it? When does your “true, invisible, universal” church observe the Lord’s Supper, and where does it observe it? The Bible says that Christians should not forsake the assembling of themselves together. Where does your “true, invisible, universal” church assemble, and how often does it assemble? Which leads in public prayer? Who takes the offering that has been laid aside as God has prospered?”[3]

Any dogma or philosophy that ignores the authority and autonomy of the local church with only Christ as Her Head will end up in error.  That will be the topic of the next article.

 

 

 

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^[1] Thiselton, A. C. (2000). The First Epistle to the Corinthians: a commentary on the Greek text (p. 316). Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans.

^[2] Fee, G. D. (2014). The First Epistle to the Corinthians. (N. B. Stonehouse, F. F. Bruce, G. D. Fee, & J. B. Green, Eds.) (Revised Edition, p. 160). Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

[3] https://www.tribune.org/the-new-testament-church-local-organized-visible-independent-and-complete/

THE BRIDE YOU CAN KISS – Part 1

My wife belongs to the universal sisterhood of women.  They have existed on earth since Creation[1]. They have infinite value before God and should have similar value among all mankind. The sisterhood of women have spanned all ages and nationalities.  I believe in the sisterhood of women.  To this date I am forever grateful that from among this distinct and noteworthy throng of women there emerges into the sphere of my existence one that is visible, tangible, preferable and touchable. I would surmise that not one of the members of the brotherhood of men would be satisfied with a generic, abstract, universal, invisible woman.  The invisible dimension of womanhood can neither provide companionship or counsel; neither intimacy or interest; nor affection or accountability.  Yet let me share with you a fictitious conversation based on a real event.

“So my brother, you have been attending this Church, for some time.  Have you considered membership,” I ask.  “No, I actually find it unnecessary,” he responds.  Continuing, he states, “When I became a Christian I became part of the universal Body of Christ.  Joining a Church is redundant and unnecessary; besides institutional churches are just man-made organizations.” 

This viewpoint is more common than one might think. If not held to by conviction, it is embraced by practice.  An average poll suggests that 50% of Church attendees are not Members of the local Church. I capitalize ‘M’embers in this article because I will argue that it is a unique and essential office.  It is my impression, because of several conversations, that the view of a number of Christians is that the local, visible, tangible, organized Church ranks significantly below desirable, as compared to the spiritual, universal, mystical Church affirmed by the Apostles Creed[2].  There’s only one problem: we can’t hold the mystical Church; we can’t kiss the mystical Church; we can touch the mystical Church.  It is a mystical Bride.  It’s the marriage to a numinous mate devoid of any responsibility or accountability.  It’s a phantom partner that cannot love in real-time nor bear children[3].  The mistaken view of the universal Church that denigrates the local, visible Church is simply a vehicle of autonomy and self-interest wrapped in the spirit of independence and consumerism.  The clothing appears as spirituality on steroids and it hides its abject carnality.

The Article that addresses the Church in the Statement of Faith[4] in my Church starts the paragraph this way: “We believe that the Local Church is the visible, tangible expression of the Body of Christ purposed to display the distinct qualities of a God glorifying community.”  In other words, the Local Visible Church is the “incarnation” of what is true and glorious: the universal, mystical, holy Church of our Christ, the Lord Jesus.  It is as if everything that is principally true of the transcendent catholic Church throughout the ages has been laser-focused and established in the local Church.  It is as if everything good and praiseworthy of the Body of Christ extending to all nations and peoples throughout all time and has minimized, visualized and actualized in the Local Church.

If asked of me, “What is the greatest threat to the Church in the coming years?”  I would answer without hesitation, the deprecation of the doctrine ecclesiology[5].  The specific threat is the treatment of the local church as a potential retailer of spiritual goods where the best deal attracts my patronage, yet no outlet demands my allegiance and association.

My goal in the next few articles is to provide an alternative and superior view of the local Church; a view that is not unlike the assertion that the Apostle Paul to the Elders of the local Church in Ephesus. He elevated their view such as they were to see that “the Holy Spirit has made [them] overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.”^[6]

 

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[1] “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” (Genesis 1:27, ESV)

[2] https://www.crcna.org/welcome/beliefs/creeds/apostles-creed

[3] This point should not be overlooked. Evangelism in the New Testament is a corporate function given to the local church. 

[4] https://cutt.ly/abhaXYX

[5] https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ecclesiology

^[6] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ac 20:28). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

The Road to Thanksgiving (An Exposition of Psalm 116) - Pt.5

This great personal psalm of thanksgiving was used in the congregational liturgy of the Jewish church.  It was part of the Egyptian Hallel.   I have already suggested that the form and structure of the psalm transmitted the core message.  That message was this: When we reflect on the mercies of God it results in a life-changing contemplation of His works and a commitment to live in loyalty to Him.  We see that pattern in the first half of the psalm and it is repeated in the second.  Note:

The Circumstance

¹⁰ I trusted in the Lord when I said, “I am greatly afflicted”; ¹¹ in my alarm I said, “Everyone is a liar.” 

In the midst of the trial, the psalmist still trusted, still believed.  He was able to see through the men that harassed him and saw them for who they are: vain, empty and liars.

The Contemplation

¹² What shall I return to the Lord for all his goodness to me? 

Based upon the goodness of God and His faithfulness, the psalmist then goes into his own thoughts and asks this important question: "What shall I return to the Lord?"   Or, "How can I repay the Lord?" Of course the question is rhetorical and there is no answer.  In fact there should not be an answer.  It is a vain thing to try to pay back God (see Romans 11:35-36),   As we see in verse 17 below, gratitude is often expressed in asking God for more!

At this point we need to be careful.  The psalmist is not suggesting that a committed lifestyle is a means of repaying God for His goodness. To repay grace annuls grace. But there is a pious response that is normal. True gratitude does promote holy living. It's the result of, not in payment for God's goodness.  

The Commitment

¹³ I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord. 

¹⁴ I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people. ¹⁵ Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his faithful servants. 

¹⁶ Truly I am your servant, Lord; I serve you just as my mother did; you have freed me from my chains. 

¹⁷ I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the Lord. 

¹⁸ I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people, ¹⁹ in the courts of the house of the Lord— in your midst, Jerusalem. Praise the Lord.

"As a token of his thanksgiving, the psalmist brings "a thank offering" (v.17) together with a drink offering (cf. Num 28:7), which he calls "the cup of salvation" (v.13). At the time of the thank offering, he called again "on the name of the LORD" (cf. vv.2, 17); but this time, not to ask for deliverance, but to thank the Lord and praise his holy name for his fidelity to his promises." [1] All this adds up to one word: worship!   We say thank you by worshiping. 

In tomorrow's blog we will look more closely at this "commitment" that the psalmist makes.

Father, in Your deliverance You help us see things more clearly.  Your deliverance also gives discernment.  We start to see people for who they really are by seeing You for who You really are. When You hear and respond to our need there is something within our independent, self-sufficient, merit-seeking, pride that wants to pay you back.  How foolish!  We cannot.  Your grace simply brings us to our knees in humble, thankful worship.  Your mercies cause us to value You, honor You, love You more and more.  Your precious promises make You more precious.  Thank you, Father, for Your grace to us this day.  May this day resound in worshipful living and Christ-centered loving.  Amen!

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1. Expositor's Bible Commentary, The, Pradis CD-ROM:Psalms/Exposition of Psalms/BOOK V: Psalms 107-150/Psalm 116: Be at Rest, for the Lord Is Good/VI. Vows of Thanksgiving (116:12-14), Book Version: 4.0.2

NOTE:

A. Part 1 of this article is found HERE.

B. Part 2 of this article is found HERE.

C. Part 3 of this article is found HERE.

D. Part 4 of this article is found HERE.

What is God Seeking?

I could be wrong which some more extensive research will either prove or disprove but I can find only 2 instances in the Bible that indicates God "seeking" anything. "“For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”" (Luke 19:10, NASB95)    A second instance records the words of Jesus to the Samaritan woman, where he says to her, ". . .  the Father seeks to be His worshipers." (John 4:23b, NASB95).  God seeks the lost and seeks worshipers.  Yet they are not mutually independent.  As Dr. John Piper has stated "Missions is not the ultimate goal of the Church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t."   In R. Kent Hughes book: Disciplines of a Godly Man, he rightly concludes, ". . . We must begin with the realization that worship is the number one priority of the Church . . .  God desires worship above all else." 

This being so, the heart of God to seek and to save the lost, is ultimately that He might be worshiped.

Psalm 33:8 (NASB95)
8 Let all the earth fear the Lord; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.