Between the Lines

Have you ever read Scripture and wondered, What on earth did I just read?! Maybe it made absolutely no sense or seemed irrelevant. Or maybe it was so familiar you read the words without anything really sinking in. Well, don't think for a moment, God will hide from those who really want to know Him. And Scripture is the best way to do that! So, it's important we pay attention.  

This morning, I began reading Psalm 59. I read a bit of the Psalms every morning before I pray or study His Word, and over the past few weeks, I'd been reading a lot of these same type of psalms, psalms that talk about enemies pursuing and the psalmist calling out to God for justice. I know there are all sorts of applications there for us: the Adversary seeks to receive God's glory by destroying God's people, some will mock us for our faith, there is evil and those who work for evil in our world... But this morning, I asked God to show me something different --Help me see in these verses who You are that I can worship You. And He did!

"Save me from my enemies, my God,
over those who rise against me make me safe.
Save me from the wrongdoers,
and from men of bloodshed rescue me.
For, look, they lie in wait for my life,
the powerful scheme against me
--not for my wrong nor my offense, O LORD.
For no misdeed they rush, aim their bows.
Rise toward me and see!
And You, LORD, God of armies, God of Israel,
awake to make reckoning with all the nations.
Do not pardon all wrongdoing traitors." ~ Psalm 59:2-6 (Alter)

All this talk about enemies and bloodshed, bows and traitors --this is a song, poetry! So, I thought about the ballads and odes of medieval times and the spirituals sung as slaves labored. They told stories, they cried out for vengeance and justice. The songs and poetry of the day expressed their deepest need. Our God gathers His children around Himself and lays His hand on us in blessing and affection; He will not turn us away, even in our fear and pain.

But it's not only dire circumstances that prompted the psalmist; pay attention all this teaches us about the God to whom he lifts his petition:

• Save me...my God: A personal God who saves, who is mighty to save!
• O LORD: Master, Ruler, King
• Rise toward me and see: A Father King that would leave His throne (!!!), rise from it as a parent jumps us to defend or protect their child. What parent, rising to find their child being harassed by a bully or trapped at the top of a tree would not then take action to save their child?
• God of armies: A strong and mighty Commander; thousands and tens of thousands do His bidding, laying down life and limb just to serve Him!
• God of Israel: A covenant God, keeping hesed (His lovingkindness) for thousands of generations.
• all: He is sovereign over all! There is no enemy, no traitor, no evildoer that will not answer before Him. Satan himself is accountable to our God! 

Wow! What a God we worship! But we are liable to miss the point if we read with our focus on ourselves. We should first, ask the Holy Spirit to guide us in our reading and second, bear in mind we worship El Elyon, the Lord Most High. These Spirit-inspired, centuries-old words teach us not just about history and human nature, but most importantly, the God who loves and created each of us for His glory. Our Father reveals Himself to us through His Holy Word, but we must train our hearts to search for Him --sometimes between the lines. May God add His blessing to the reading of His Word.

Photo courtesy Steven Ganski, Jr.

Rescued from All Trouble Allows for Immediate Obedience

I will praise Your name, ADONAI,

because it is good,

because You have rescued me from all trouble,

~ Psalm 54:8, 9 CJSB

You have rescued me from all trouble. Not some trouble. All trouble. Was the psalmist special? Of course he was! He was, most likely, David, King of Israel, a man after God's own heart. But was he more special to God than you or me? The Scriptures tell us, God does not play favorites, and our salvation is not of our own works or merit, but by grace. God loved each person He created enough to send His Son that all might be saved! That being the case, those who come to Him are valued and esteemed equally as sons and daughters. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. (2 Corinthians 5:21) That's all of us who are His! We can't get any more favored than that!

Back to the "all trouble" thing. IF God has rescued the psalmist and, by extension, each of us from all trouble, why do we have such a difficult time immediately obeying when He tells us to do something? I say "us," because I trust I'm not the only one who has been told by God to do something we didn't want to do. Just a few weeks back, I shared with you an encounter I had which did not go as I would have liked. (Feeling Really Uncomfortable -- Thank God!) I believe God gave me an opportunity to do more than I did, and I know He would have strengthened me and blessed me in my obedience. I also know whatever consequences would have come from that situation; it would have been okay. I would have been rescued from "all trouble." Now, perhaps I would have been late picking our youngest up from school. Perhaps I would have gotten sick from this poor man's cold. Perhaps he would have called me a heretic --or someone else might have heard and challenged me. But obedience to God is always an eternal honor. It is always rewarded eternally.

That being said, there is something I did this past week, something God has been prompting me to do for years. It's something that required money we didn't necessarily have. Did I not think God could provide the money necessary? Not at all! But I wasn't sure if God would. I'm being honest here. There are those times I've recklessly spent money He has given me to steward. Dinners we've ordered out simply because I didn't feel like cooking. Books I've purchased when I could have just borrowed them from the library. The condemnation and shame within me whispers, Reckless. Dishonorable. You wicked, lazy servant. And I wonder why God would now honor me by providing what I need to obey Him. Me thinks the shame implanted by legalism runs deep!

This week, when the Holy Spirit reminded me of the task I was given long ago, I did exactly that! And here's why. Number one, shame is not for the children of God. When we hear the voice of shame coming from the pit of a past without a Savior, we need to speak truth against it. This was me without Jesus, but look what He's done! I am a new creation! Number two, I am His child. I don't always pause to listen, I don't always understand, I am sometimes rebellious in my nature. But He loves me, He hears me, He accepts my sacrifice of repentance (not just remorse, but repentance), and we go on. He won't then tell me to do something for Him for the purpose of hanging me out to dry. See, I told you not to spend that money. Number three, we are rescued from all trouble. If the Holy Spirit has prompted me to do it, provision will come. Or it won't. But just like those other expenditures or times I've even unwittingly overdrawn our bank account; it will be okay. In the grand scheme of things, this is a blip; but obedience to our Master is eternal. Number four, obedience is our way forward, our way of acting in accordance with the newness of life in Christ, our way of celebrating His work and praising Him for His rescue --from all trouble. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me! (Philippians 4:13) --including obey immediately.     

Midweek: MacArthur Study Bible, LSB (Premier Collection)

Hang on to your sleigh, Folks, Christmas is just over the next snowbank! And, in preparation for the Gift-Giving Season, I'd like to recommend Thomas Nelson's Premier Collection MacArthur Study Bible, 2nd Edition, due to be released November 12, 2024. The complimentary copy I received is a Legacy Standard Bible translation, adapted from the New American Standard 95 version. Full disclosure, I don't know much about the Legacy Standard Bible version, but I do know that if it is coming from the MacArthur camp, it is thoroughly researched and authenticated. My copy has a premium goatskin leather cover, art-gilded edges, three (!) satin bookmarkers, and comes elegantly wrapped, tucked inside a sturdy box. There are hardcover editions that retail for quite a bit less, but this one is priced at $289; though preorders at Christianbook.com are listed at $189.99.

So, what can you expect when you open this beautiful copy of the Scriptures? Well, it's big! It weighs two pounds, but it is packed with study helps and, as I've mentioned in other reviews, the durable leather cover is less cumbersome than the hardcovers. There are no markings on the front or back covers, so you may find yourself opening this Bible upside down and at the back from time to time. Eight full-color maps compose part of the backmatter, but there are in-text maps as well. Likewise, various charts are contained in the Appendix (Monetary Units, and Weights & Measurements) and in the text as well. Diagrams also add depth and understanding of meanings, themes, teachings, people, and places, as they appear alongside the text. A handy Index of Charts and Maps, located just after the Table of Contents in the front of the book, helping to locate these supplementary resources. There is a brief Introduction to the Bible, Personal notes from John MacArthur, and an explanation of How We Got the Bible. A chart explains the Progress of Revelation, noting the approximate date each book of the Bible was written and its author. An article, How to Study the Bible, is just one of many assets to facilitate better understanding of the Scriptures and why they were written. Another interesting feature, and one I've never seen before, is a Harmony of the Books of Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles. Before actually landing at the beginning of the Book of Genesis, there is a Chronology of Old Testament Patriarchs and Judges, and a Chronology of Old Testament Kings and Prophets. Individual Bible book introductions provide an overview of the background and historical context of the book about to be read. Over 72,000 cross-references and countless study notes accompany the biblical text putting power-packed study at your fingertips. Between the Old and New Testaments are the Introduction to the Intertestamental Period, the Introduction to the New Testament, the Chronology of the New Testament, a Harmony of the Gospels, a chart of Prophecies of the Messiah Fulfilled in Jesus Christ, and a Brief Overview of Christ's Life and Ministry, supplemented by a (somewhat strange) list of the Passovers of Christ's Ministry and a timeline of Christ's Passion Week. At the end of Revelation is a short article on The Character of Genuine Saving Faith. An Overview of Theology follows a one-year reading plan. Two final items for study are an Index to Key Bible Doctrines, and a concordance. That's a lot! 

So, what do I think? This Bible is beautiful! If you are looking for a "premier" or "legacy" type of gift for someone special, this will surely wow! them. If you rock your study "old school," this has everything you could need. However, this is a heavy Bible with an equally heavy price tag: in a world with internet almost everywhere we go, the question needs to be asked, "Do we need all of this in one text?" I think it largely depends on your study needs. As I mentioned before, if it's from John MacArthur, I believe it to be trustworthy while not everything on the internet is. Either way, it is a lovely gift to get and would be a lovely gift to receive!

Worship Should Never Divide Us

I attended mass the other morning. I know, WHAT?! Our youngest was doing the morning prayer and I definitely wanted to support him on this important day. He and I have had some chats about things like why we don't attend a Catholic church and why I don't talk to saints; but immediately upon leaving the church, I began researching some other Catholic doctrines. If he's going to attend Catholic school for the next few years (which seems to be the case), and if he's the type of child who doesn't miss a thing (which is definitely the case), I need to get my ducks in a row when it comes to the whys. And maybe, if possible, attend mass now and then. Religion is a big part of our young man's life. Prior to his coming to be with us, he had been in, at least, one Christian home. He had attended Protestant services and participated in activities run by Protestant organizations. I am certain he was not placed there or with us by chance. And given everything he has been through in his tumultuous life, knowing he was created by an omniscient and loving God, born for a purpose, and redeem to an eternal life, is critical to creating an environment in which he can now thrive. (That's actually true of all of us, no matter how stable our upbringing.)

The various denominations associated with Protestantism have varying degrees of formality. Some perform the oldest of hymns and liturgies, some serve coffee in the foyer and welcome shorts and flip-flops, some allow for open testimony and spontaneous worship, while others carefully vet prophetic speakers and call people by their various titles within the congregation. Styles, nothing more, and certainly not reason for splits and arguments. So, explaining now to our youngest why we worship as we do and ensuring our style is beneficial to his spiritual growth is important. What else is important, is showing a united front. To pontificate on what we believe in contrast to what he is being taught in school could not only make for some embarrassing encounters at parent-teacher conferences, but it extinguishes the opportunity to experience how others worship our Savior. Watching this young man throughout the past year, I have noticed how important structure is to him. It just may be that a more liturgical means of worship does more for his spiritual engagement.

I say all of this because I grew up within a denomination. I went to a school that was structured in the teachings of another denomination. I was even led to believe, from time to time, that one denomination was "better" or "more saved" than another. What a thoroughly anti-Christ perspective! What an abomination within the body of Christ! If there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female, if we are all one in Christ Jesus, (Galatians 3:28); if there is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all (Ephesians 4:4-6); if this is true of all who believe, what are we doing passing judgment on one another? If the fruit of the Holy Spirit is present in an individual, does it matter if they stand or sit, sprinkle or dunk? Likewise, I fear there are too many sitting within good Bible-believing, Gospel-preaching churches who are not truly part of the body; they are not children of God. What bearing does transubstantiation or belief in the rapture have on that issue? Did Jesus ever intend His disciples to be divided over such things?  

To be clear, examine everything you hear from the pulpit. Examine the whys when it comes to traditions and liturgies. Use the Scriptures as your guidepost. Do not be casual about what you believe and why you believe it, and do not be casual about the truth. But when it comes to how folks worship, we need to be very careful how willing we are to be divisive in our assessment. Are we willing to acknowledge the many methods of worship in the body of Christ and discern the hearts of the faithful?