Words for the soul
Brad Barrett blogArchive for February, 2011
Stop being so stubborn!
Psalm 95:6-11 ESV Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! 7 For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as on the day at Massah in the wilderness, 9 when your fathers put me to the test and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work. 10 For forty years I loathed that generation and said, “They are a people who go astray in their heart, and they have not known my ways.” 11 Therefore I swore in my wrath, “They shall not enter my rest.”
This warning of vs. 7-11 against a hard heart comes on the heels of a glorious exaltation and worship of God. This may seem strange at first, but it makes sense: in light of this glorious and awesome God, don’t trifle with him. Don’t walk in unbelief. Love him with all your heart. He is so great and awesome, why would you ever, ever, ever stoop to worship stupid idols or pursue your own sinful passions? Rom 2:4-5 says that we presume or show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing God’s kindness leads us to repentance. We neglect or do not appreciate the kindness and patience the Lord shows to us by waiting patiently, not killing us now. Our stubborn refusal to believe God in the face of his greatness, love and power shows how depraved our hearts really are. The logical, sensible response is faith, yet we remain stubborn. So the Psalm essentially says, “Stop being so stubborn!”
So today, two words: Stop it!
Lord, don’t you care?
On the verge of drowning in a terrific storm on the lake, the disciples cry in terror, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” (Mark 1:38). How often do we say or think, “Lord, don’t you care?” Little doubt that every one of us has at least once said this. The Psalms frequently reveal such thinking. Asaph, for example: “Will the Lord spurn forever, and never again be favorable? Has his steadfast love forever ceased? Are his promises at an end for all time? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he in anger shut up his compassion?” (Psalm 77:7-9).
Yet the Lord gently rebukes us for our unbelief. He who can calm wind and waves with a word is a God of compassion. Yes, he cares. And Asaph in vs. 11 discovers this: “I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your wonders of old.” He reflected on the nature of God and found comfort, answering his own questions.
Today, ponder the deeds of the Lord and find courage and comfort in the storm.
Fear the Lord
Leviticus 10:1-3 ESV Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them. And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord has said, ‘Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.’ ” And Aaron held his peace.
What a frightening and sobering day. May we all fear the Lord because, although the Lord does not do such things every day (and like Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5), he does eventually with all who don’t know him. His judgment will be just and severe.
God’s Compassion
“Jesus in pity touched their eyes, and immediately they recovered their sight and followed him.” Matthew 20:34
Our Lord is remarkable! Why? As great and powerful as he is, I find it shocking that he is so compassionate. For on a human level, what powerful world leader has ever lived who had even a fraction of Jesus’ compassion? In almost every case, powerful rulers have proud, self-centered, conqueror’s hearts, not hearts of tenderness. Like the old quote, “Absolute power corrupts absolutely.” So who is like the Lord our God? He has not an ounce of corruption in him, holding absolute power in the left hand and absolute compassion in the right. Worship him now.
A God of Joy
Do we think of God as being happy? Full of joy? Of Jesus, it is said, “He rejoiced in the Holy Spirit” (Luke 10:21). I would wager (with very good odds) that Jesus was the most joyful person on the planet, in spite of seeing people everywhere filled with pain, stubborn hearts, hateful attitudes, violence…just like we see in our world today. Even in the midst of a broken, shattered world, our God is a God of joy.
And we are called to be the same. The fruit of the Spirit is…guess what…joy (Gal 5:22)! Not anxious or stressed out or glum or surly, but joyful!
Lord, today fill me with you. Fill me up to the brim so that you overflow out of me, even joy.
