Not One Word

Has anyone told you they would do something – then failed to do it?

We all experience such disappointments time and again. Why?

The person may have lied, making a promise while having no intention of carrying it out.

Or perhaps they were not aware at the time that they could never fulfill the promise. (One of my children, after a discussion at age six of the nature and consequences of sin, stated with wide eyes and complete sincerity, “I will never, ever sin!”)

Alternately, although sincere when stating their intentions, circumstances may have changed:

  • They may change their mind and no longer want to fulfill the promise;
  • They may have forgotten their promise;
  • Or although they remember the promise and want to fulfill it, they may no longer be able to. Perhaps they have lost the money they planned to give you. Or their health has failed so they can’t take you on the promised trip. Or they have died.

Thus, people often fail us. Consequently, we learn to be skeptical about promises others make.

We wrongly also become skeptical about promises God makes.

Scripture gives us plenty of examples of humans failing to live up to their promises – promises made to one another, and promises made to God. But the Bible assures us: God always fulfills every promise.

The book of Joshua underlines this point. The rescued Israelites have promised repeatedly to obey all that God says (Exodus 19:8, 24:3 & 7). Yet they have made and worshiped a golden calf; they have grumbled and complained and have wanted to choose a different leader to bring them back to slavery in Egypt.

What about God? Joshua 21:45 provides a summary:

Not one word of all the good promises that the LORD had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.

Note that the identical Hebrew root underlies “word,” “promises,” and “made.” We get a taste of the way an ancient Israelite would hear this verse by rendering it: “Not one word of all the good words that Yahweh had worded to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.”

Not one! Every word God spoke proved to be true!

And that is still the case. God will fulfill His every promise. For God is not liable to the human weaknesses listed above that lead us to make promises we don’t fulfill. Consider them in turn:

  1. God doesn’t lie.
    1. Numbers 23:19: “God is not man, that he should lie”
    2. 1 Samuel 15:29: “The Glory of Israel will not lie”
    3. 2 Samuel 7:28: “O Lord GOD, you are God, and your words are true”
    4. Titus 1:2: God, who never lies
    5. Hebrews 6:18: It is impossible for God to lie
  2. God doesn’t forget. We often feel as if He does, and Scripture records such feelings among those who are His (see, for example, Lamentations 5:20, Psalm 42:9, Psalm 77:7-9, and Isaiah 49:14). But God tells His people, “You are my servant; O Israel, you will not be forgotten by me” (Isaiah 44:21). Furthermore, He addresses their doubts directly in Isaiah 49: Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me.” “Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you. Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me.”
  3. God doesn’t change His mind.
    1. Numbers 23:19 again: “God is not … a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?”
    2. Romans 11:29: The gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
  4. Nothing can prevent God from fulfilling His promises
    1. Genesis 18:14: “Is anything too hard for the LORD?”
    2. Jeremiah 32:27: “Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me?”
    3. Job 42:2: “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.”
    4. Luke 1:37: “Nothing will be impossible with God.”
    5. Mark 10:27: “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.”
    6. Mark 14:36 “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you.”
  5. Even we cannot prevent God from fulfilling His promises in us and through us

We see this in the Old Testament in the repeated failures of the people of Israel – yet God’s promises still prove true. Not one word of all God’s good words to them fails! We see this similarly in Jesus’ disciples: they fail Him, they desert Him, Peter denies Him – yet He indeed makes them fishers of men, and builds His church through such weak, fallible humans.

 So listen to God’s Words. Every one is true. Every one is sincere. He will fulfill every one.

When you are tempted to think of God as if He were a man, when you are beginning to doubt His promises, reflect on the Scriptures cited above. Consider the context of each. And have confidence: God’s Word is more certain than anything in all creation: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away” (Matthew 24:35).

Billy Graham and Celebrity Christianity

“No one ever spoke the Gospel like Billy Graham!”

So said a guest on WBT Wednesday, as the radio station devoted the entire day to remembrances of the Charlotte-born evangelist.

Praise God for the way He worked through Billy Graham. Praise God that many came to faith through his preaching. Praise God that he built an effective parachurch ministry that continues to spread the Gospel.

But: No one spoke the Gospel like Graham? Ever? How many preachers of the Gospel had that guest heard? How many Christians had he heard tell their story and Jesus’ story? Was Billy Graham better at speaking the Gospel than any of these others? Even if that were the case – how would the guest have known?

Now, let’s give the guest a pass – he exaggerated while rightly honoring a man whom God had used to influence his own life.

But this radio broadcast highlights a danger Christians face today, in the US and around the world: The danger of exalting a person, a speaker, a public figure, and thinking because of crowds or web page hits or books or overall prominence that this person is the One, that this person is the Person my friends and family members need to hear. If only they will listen to this celebrity, they will come to faith.

Churches exhibit the same mindset when they attempt to get to the “next level,” to achieve more prominence in their city or in their country, by hiring a well-known author, a celebrity in their theological circle, as their preacher.

We gravitate to celebrities because of several confusions: Confusing results with faithfulness; confusing prominence with the Holy Spirit’s power; and confusing public ministry with personal ministry.

We serve a sovereign God who orchestrates all that happens for the glory of His Name. He raises up kings and presidents, countries and corporations, pastors and preachers, and brings them down. He may use a weak man with few natural gifts to save thousands, while cutting off the life of a woman of deep faith and incredible potential in her teens. He can do anything with anyone: the One who can turn stones into bread – and even into children of Abraham! (Matthew 4:3) – can use anyone who speaks the Gospel to bring others to faith. Our responsibility is not to bring about results; our responsibility is to be faithful to Him – to live our lives to His glory, offering all we are as a sacrifice to Him, speaking the Gospel and living out the Gospel in our families, neighborhoods, workplaces, and schools. He will bring about the results.

Furthermore, there is no link between prominence and the presence of the Holy Spirit. Every believer in Jesus is indwelt by the Holy Spirit; every believer has a ministry granted by the Holy Spirit; every believer remains in this world to be as Jesus is (1 John 4:17). Remember, the Apostle Paul prays that we all would know “the immeasurable greatness of His power toward us who believe” – indeed, the same resurrection power that raised Jesus from the dead (Ephesians 1:19-20). That power is yours if you are in Christ – just as much as that power was in Billy Graham.

Finally, our celebrity focus downplays private ministry while exalting public ministry. Now, I praise God for preaching! Our Lord has helped me time and again through the public proclamation of His Word, and I hope that He has used my preaching in many of your lives to good effect. But the responsibility of pastors and teachers is to equip all of God’s people for the work of ministry, for the building up of the Body of Christ (Ephesians 4:11-12); the entire Body grows when each part works properly, enabling the entire Body to grow up in love (Ephesians 4:16). That proper working includes much more private ministry than public ministry. The private ministry is just as vital as the public.

So, yes, let us thank God for the life of Billy Graham.

And let us thank God for those pastors and teachers and parents and fellow believers whom God has put in our lives personally, who taught us and loved us and wept with us and counseled us and prayed for us.

And let us thank God for thousands of unknown pastors, teachers, missionaries, and church planters who go out to rough neighborhoods and to despised peoples and to villages with no witness to Jesus – and day after day preach and live out the Gospel.

And let us be faithful to the personal ministries God has given us, as we step out in the power of the Holy Spirit, as we speak the Gospel, as we comfort and counsel, as we offer ourselves to Him as a living, holy, well-pleasing sacrifice.

We are the Body of Christ. Every joint, every capillary is vitally important. May we delight to do His will – and may we thank Him for all the others who also do His will.

Your Way Was Through the Sea

What do you do when the path ahead seems fraught with danger – when there are a zillion ways that all could fall apart, when worries and cares abound? When your eyelids are propped open at night, as you lie in your bed imagining all that could go wrong?

This is the situation of the author of Psalm 77. God seems distant and uncaring; He seems angry, reneging on His promises. Remembering past times of intimacy with God only serves to magnify the sense of alienation the author experiences in the present.

So he asks: Has God’s unfailing love failed? Has He forgotten to be merciful and gracious? Will He never again be kind to me? (Psalm 77:7-9)

But instead of continuing in self-pity, questioning God’s character, in the following verses the psalmist wisely changes course: Instead of focusing on his past subjective experiences of God, he disciplines himself to meditate on the objective revelation of God through history – particularly through the history of His mighty acts on behalf of His people (Psalm 77:10-12).

The psalmist looks first at the big picture: Over the centuries God has proven Himself to be holy and mighty, a Redeemer of His people (Psalm 77:13-15). He then focuses on one specific act – God’s bringing His people through the Red Sea (Psalm 77:16-20). He imagines himself among the Israelites, with the Egyptian army behind them and the impassable waters in front of them. There is no way out. All seems lost. Despite God’s power and might exhibited in the nine plagues, despite the miracle of the death of the firstborn leading Pharaoh to let the people go, now they will all be slaughtered by the army or drowned by the sea.

But then God divides the sea! The waters well up, “a wall to them on their right hand and on their left” (Exodus 14:22). And the people make that long trek across the sea.

Yet as he imagines the event, the psalmist realizes something vitally important – important for him and for all of us facing challenging circumstances – a point we often miss in telling the story of the Exodus: “Your way was through the sea, your path through the great waters” (Psalm 77:19a). God is leading them right into the midst of the sea! They must walk for miles, with the water piled up on both sides. Should that water pour over them, there is not a thing they can do to save themselves. There will be no escape. Is this a deliverance – or the path to their destruction? Clearly God has acted to part the waters – but will He keep the waters parted for the hours it will take them to cross?

Friends, this is characteristic of the way God acts toward His people. The way ahead looks uncertain and frightening. We can imagine thousands of ways all could fall apart, all could go wrong. We pass through the valley of the shadow of death and are tempted to fear all sorts of evil, for we question the power and the goodness of the Shepherd.

When you experience such fear and doubts, follow the example of this psalmist: Remember how God has revealed Himself through the history of His people. Remember that His way is often through the sea; we are to walk right into the midst of the dangers and challenges. Remember that He promises that “through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22). Remember that it is in such circumstances, when we are at our wits’ end, that He is most glorified in saving us. Remember – and then trust the mighty God who never changes, whose unfailing love never fails, who promises that nothing will separate us from the love He has for all of those who are in Christ Jesus.

God Is Faithful To His Promises

“Not one word of all the good promises that the LORD had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass” (Joshua 21:45).

Think of the promises God had made to the house of Israel – including those made before Israel existed!

  • God promised that Abraham’s descendants would inherit the land of Canaan (Genesis 13:14-17).
  • God promised Abraham that He would bring his descendants out of slavery with great possessions (Genesis 15:13-14).
  • Hundreds of years later, God promised that He would use Moses to rescue the people from slavery in Egypt (Exodus 3:7-10).
  • God promised that He would harden Pharaoh’s heart so that he would not let Israel go, even after Moses conducted miracles (Exodus 4:21).
  • Yet God promised eventually Pharaoh would drive the Israelites out of Egypt (Exodus 6:1).
  • God promised that He would not just bring the people out of Egypt, but that He would bring them to Himself (Exodus 6:6-8).
  • God promised plague after plague after plague on the Egyptians – and they all came about (Exodus 7 to 10).
  • God promised that the firstborn in every house in Egypt would die, but not in the houses of the Israelites (Exodus 11:4-7).
  • God promised that the Israelites would walk across the Red Sea on dry land, but the Egyptians would drown (Exodus 14:13-18).
  • God promised that He would provide meat and bread to the people in the desert (Exodus 16:11-12).

We could go on and on. God promised direction in their travels, defeat of enemies, parting of yet more waters – and all came about.

The people had doubted and murmured; the enemies had been strong and powerful. But God fulfilled every promise – despite the enemy, despite the people’s lack of faith.

So, what about you? Do you trust God to fulfill His promises? And do you recognize the greatness of those promises? Here are a few on which to meditate:

  • Jesus will return with power and great glory (Matthew 24:30).
  • He will reign over an eternal Kingdom of righteousness and peace (Isaiah 9:6-7).
  • Jesus will destroy Satan and his minions (Revelation 20:10).
  • God will complete the good work He has begun in you (Philippians 1:6).
  • Indeed, we will be like Him (1 John 3:2).
  • God will bring to Himself through faith in Jesus those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation (Revelation 7:9-10).
  • Throughout this life, He will watch over you and guide you, and then bring you to Himself forever (Psalm 23:6).
  • He will work all things together for your good and His glory (Romans 8:28).
  • God will so work that at the Name of Jesus every knee will bow and every tongue confess that He is Lord, to God’s glory (Philippians 2:10-11).
  • God will wipe every tear from your eyes, having ended death and mourning and crying and pain (Revelation 21:6).
  • God will rejoice over us, His people, with loud singing (Zephaniah 3:17).
  • By the blood of Jesus, you are declared fully righteous; He will remember your sins no more (Romans 3:21-25, Hebrews 10:11-18).

He has sworn by Himself that this is so – and it is impossible for God to lie! So hold fast to the confession of your hope without wavering (Hebrews 6:13-19); stand firm on His level ground, not sliding down into unbelief (Psalm 26); eagerly anticipate the fulfillment of every promise. For He is the faithful God, who keeps His covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commands (Deuteronomy 7:9).

 

Sowing in Tears

How do you respond to suffering?

During our recent trip to India, Karl Dauber and I taught several seminars on a biblical approach to suffering. Participants discussed this case study to help get at the issues:

Ravi came to faith in Jesus a year ago, after having a bad infection in his leg that was getting worse and worse. An evangelist came to his village, and was preaching the Gospel. Ravi, hearing him, mockingly asked, “Can your God heal my leg?” The evangelist replied, “Jesus Christ died and rose again so that you could become God’s child. If He can do that, He can certainly heal your leg.” He then prayed for Ravi – for healing, and for faith in Jesus. Nothing happened immediately – but the next morning, Ravi woke up and his leg was healed. He trusted Jesus, and began to meet with other Christians.

But since then his life has been tough. His parents disowned him and kicked him out of the house. Then, when Ravi began to speak the Gospel to his old friends, a group of them yelled at him, beat him, and drove him away. No one has come to faith through his witness. And now, the infection has returned. Other believers have prayed for healing, but nothing has happened.

Suppose you meet Ravi in his village, and he says, “Nothing good has happened since I started following Jesus. Even the initial healing seems to have gone away. I can’t witness effectively, I’ve been persecuted, I’ve lost my family, I’ve lost my home. What hope do I have? Why is God treating me this way?”

What would you say to Ravi?

Consider Psalm 126 in this context. The psalmist recalls a time when God worked in an amazing fashion to restore the Israelites after a period of defeat and failure – most likely, the return from Babylonian exile. He recalls the joy, the laughter, the amazement at what God had done:

Psalm 126:1-3 When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then they said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.” The LORD has done great things for us; we are glad.

But now the nation once again is in the depths. Now once again all seems lost. Now that past restoration of fortunes seems long ago. So the psalmist cries out:

Psalm 126:4 Restore our fortunes, O LORD, like streams in the Negeb!

“You’ve done it in the past, Lord! You have shown yourself faithful when all seemed lost! Please, Lord, do it again! The streams in the Negeb disappear in the dry season, but roar again when the rains come. Restore our fortunes like that!”

In the midst of his cries, in the midst of his pain, the psalmist, reflecting on the character of God revealed in the past, states His confidence in God’s future grace. Using a farming image, he pictures his nation’s current state as planting seeds in the midst of sorrow:

Psalm 126:5-6 Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy! He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.

Note: They don’t wallow in their pain and do nothing. They are planting, even though they are hurting.

A farmer can make a thousand excuses for not planting:

  • The rains probably won’t come anyway.
  • Too much rain will fall and wash away the seed.
  • The seed probably is no good.
  • The insects likely will come and destroy the crop.
  • Raiders will come and steal the harvest.

So why go through with the hard work of preparing the field and planting? It seems like that hard work won’t yield any benefits anyway.

But the psalmist exhorts us: Put away the excuses. In your tears, sow. In your sorrow, step out in the work of the Lord. While you are hurting, minister to others. When God seems distant, act as if He seems close. And when you do so –  when you are faithful and trust in His faithfulness in the midst of pain – there will be a harvest. Indeed, there will be an abundant, joyful harvest. It may well look different from past harvests; it may well include pain as long as you are in this fallen world. But that sowing in tears will lead to reaping with shouts of joy. For God has promised.

So remember God’s promises. Ask for God’s grace to trust in those promises. And step out in faith to serve in your tears. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). Lift your eyes to Him – and in your serving, you will be blessed.

Remember!

As we celebrated last weekend God’s faithfulness over the first decade of Desiring God Community Church, we remembered ways He has touched us, ways He has refined us, ways He has guided us, and ways He has corrected us. We remembered all this – and reminded one another of the character of God, the way He has displayed that character here in Charlotte.

As a follow up, here are numerous verses from across the Bible that speak of remembering. I’ve divided these Scriptures into seven categories to help us apply them to our lives. I encourage you to meditate on these verses, to look up context for many – and then: remember!

 

Remember: God’s character

Deuteronomy 8:18 You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day.

Nehemiah 4:14 And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”

Psalm 42:6 My soul is cast down within me; therefore I remember you from the land of Jordan and of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.

Psalm 78:35 They remembered that God was their rock, the Most High God their redeemer.

Psalm 102:12 But you, O LORD, are enthroned forever; you are remembered throughout all generations.

Psalm 119:55 I remember your name in the night, O LORD, and keep your law.

Isaiah 26:8 In the path of your judgments, O LORD, we wait for you; your name and remembrance are the desire of our soul.

Isaiah 26:13 O LORD our God, other lords besides you have ruled over us, but your name alone we bring to remembrance.

Isaiah 46:8 “Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, 9 remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me,

Jonah 2:7 When my life was fainting away, I remembered the LORD, and my prayer came to you, into your holy temple.

Mark 8:18 Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember?

 

Remember: God’s faithfulness in the past

Exodus 13:3 Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the LORD brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten.

Deuteronomy 5:15 You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the LORD your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

Deuteronomy 7:18 you shall not be afraid of them but you shall remember what the LORD your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt,

Deuteronomy 8:2 And you shall remember the whole way that the LORD your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not.

Deuteronomy 15:15 You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this today.

Judges 8:34 And the people of Israel did not remember the LORD their God, who had delivered them from the hand of all their enemies on every side,

1 Chronicles 16:12 Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles and the judgments he uttered,

Psalm 77:11 I will remember the deeds of the LORD; yes, I will remember your wonders of old.

Psalm 105:5 Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered,

Psalm 106:7 Our fathers, when they were in Egypt, did not consider your wondrous works; they did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love, but rebelled by the sea, at the Red Sea.

Psalm 111:4 He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and merciful.

Psalm 143:5 I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands.

Micah 6:5 O my people, remember what Balak king of Moab devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him, and what happened from Shittim to Gilgal, that you may know the saving acts of the LORD.”

 

Remember: God’s commandments

Numbers 15:39-40 And it shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the LORD, to do them, not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, which you are inclined to whore after. So you shall remember and do all my commandments, and be holy to your God.

Malachi 4:4 “Remember the law of my servant Moses, the statutes and rules that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel.

John 14:26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

2 Peter 3:2 that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles,

Revelation 3:3 Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you.

 

Remember: Our own past state, our disobedience and helplessness

Deuteronomy 9:7 Remember and do not forget how you provoked the LORD your God to wrath in the wilderness. From the day you came out of the land of Egypt until you came to this place, you have been rebellious against the LORD.

Ezekiel 6:9 then those of you who escape will remember me among the nations where they are carried captive, how I have been broken over their whoring heart that has departed from me and over their eyes that go whoring after their idols. And they will be loathsome in their own sight for the evils that they have committed, for all their abominations.

Ezekiel 20:43 And there you shall remember your ways and all your deeds with which you have defiled yourselves, and you shall loathe yourselves for all the evils that you have committed.

Matthew 26:75 And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.

Ephesians 2:11-12 Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands–remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.

 

Remember: The Lord’s Judgment

Deuteronomy 24:9 Remember what the LORD your God did to Miriam on the way as you came out of Egypt.

Luke 17:32 Remember Lot’s wife.

Revelation 2:5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.

 

Remember: God’s promises and His plan of redemption

Joshua 1:13 “Remember the word that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, saying, ‘The LORD your God is providing you a place of rest and will give you this land.’

1 Chronicles 16:15 Remember his covenant forever, the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations,

Zechariah 10:9 Though I scattered them among the nations, yet in far countries they shall remember me, and with their children they shall live and return.

Luke 22:19 And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”

Luke 24:6-8 He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” And they remembered his words,

John 2:22 When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.

John 12:16 His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.

John 15:20 Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.

Acts 11:16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’

1 Corinthians 11:24-25 and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

2 Timothy 2:8 Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel,

 

Remember: Other believers, with thankfulness and with prayers for their assistance

Philippians 1:3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you,

Colossians 4:18 I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. Remember my chains. Grace be with you.

1 Thessalonians 1:3 remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Thessalonians 2:9 For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God.

1 Thessalonians 3:6 But now that Timothy has come to us from you, and has brought us the good news of your faith and love and reported that you always remember us kindly and long to see us, as we long to see you–

2 Timothy 1:3-4 I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy.

Philemon 1:4 I thank my God always when I remember you in my prayers,

Hebrews 13:3 Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body.

Hebrews 13:7 Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.

Hope in God and Argument with God

Is Christian hope wishful thinking, a fantasy, a pollyannish belief that against all evidence things will turn out well for me?

As we have recently considered (first, second, and third blog posts), Christian confidence rests not on our desires, nor on our intellectual investigations, nor even on our beliefs, but on God’s Word, the revelation that He has spoken, telling us truths we could never discover on our own. We are dependent on Him, and thereby on His revelation, given to us in His Word.

So how do we react when all around us is falling apart?

Such was Job’s situation. In a short time, he lost his wealth, his children, and his health. And his friends – supposedly come to comfort him – just made matters worse.

Job 13:15 summarizes his reaction:

Though he slay me, I will hope in Him; yet I will argue my ways to His face.

Job has a rock solid faith in God’s goodness, in His promises, in His faithfulness to every word He has proclaimed. David expressed the same hope when he was attacked by men:

My hope is from him.  He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken.  On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God.  Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. (Psalm 62:5b-8)

Yet this hope is consistent with more pain coming upon him in the future. Note that Job acknowledges that he might well die from this affliction. His hope does not consist of a naïve belief that the worst is over. Rather, he says that even if the worst is not over – even if God slays him – he will continue to hope in Him. He does not know the outcome of his suffering; nevertheless, his hope in God does not waver.

Consider now the second half of the verse: In addition to his solid hope in God, Job states, “I will argue my ways to his face.” Indeed, a large portion of the rest of the book consists of Job addressing God directly, asking Him to come and let Job argue his case before Him (see, for example, Job 23:4-7).

Once we have read to the end of the book, we might think such arguments from Job are wrong. For when God does appear, Job is unable to argue. Confronted with God Himself, he sees that he has no case. God overwhelms him with His majesty, power, and authority. So Job is left to say,

I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted. . . . I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. . . .  I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:2,3,5,6)

Nevertheless, I suggest that Job’s arguing with God earlier in the book is not wrong, in and of itself. Indeed, Job 13:15 well summarizes the condition of limited, hurting humanity before Him. He is far beyond our ability to understand; He will often act in ways that seem to us inconsistent with His revelation of His character. When He does so, it is right and good for us to cry out in our pain, to express our lack of understanding, to lay before Him the seeming inconsistency of His revelation and what we see around us.

We see men and women of God cry out like this time and again in Scripture. Examples include Psalms 39, 42, 77, and 88, Jeremiah 20, Habakkuk 1, 2 Corinthians 1, and the entire book of Lamentations. Let’s look briefly at selections from chapter 3 of that last book.

Lamentations was written after the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 BC. During a long siege, the city suffered starvation, leading even to cannibalism. Then there was great slaughter when the Judean army tried to escape the siege and the Babylonians swept into the city. The author writes:

He has filled me with bitterness; he has sated me with wormwood.  He has made my teeth grind on gravel, and made me cower in ashes; my soul is bereft of peace; I have forgotten what happiness is; so I say, “My endurance has perished; so has my hope from the LORD.”  Remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood and the gall!  My soul continually remembers it and is bowed down within me. (Lamentations 3:15-20)

The author seems now to be without hope. God Himself is sovereign – the author knows this, and so sees God as the source of his bitterness. He can’t get the images of horror out of his mind.

Yet keep reading:

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.  “The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.  It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth. Let him sit alone in silence when it is laid on him;  let him put his mouth in the dust– there may yet be hope;  let him give his cheek to the one who strikes, and let him be filled with insults.  For the Lord will not cast off forever,  but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; for he does not willingly afflict or grieve the children of men. (Lamentations 3:22-33)

In the midst of the horror, in the midst of the grief which the sovereign Lord has caused (v32), the author reflects on the revealed character of God – the revelation over the centuries of God speaking and acting: the revelation of God at work in the Garden of Eden and at Mt Sinai; the revelation through David and Solomon, through Elijah and Elisha, through Micah and Isaiah. The author’s hope has perished (v18); yet he will hope in Him (v24).  This hope springs not from a Buddhist-like belief that the sorrow he has seen is an illusion, nor from a naive optimism that things have a way of working out for the good, but because “the LORD is my portion.” That is, the author continues to hope in God – as Job continues to hope in God even while he argues with Him – because God has promised an inheritance – He Himself. And He is worth more than all the world has to offer.

With that in mind, consider Job’s arguments with God – and your own arguments. If God Himself is our portion, our inheritance, which, as Peter tells us, is “imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:4), then our inheritance is in and of itself to know Him. So as we struggle to know Him in this life, to understand His ways, we should come to Him with questions, with seeming inconsistencies, with our struggles. We should come humbly, yes; we must come submissively, by all means; we must come knowing, like Job, that in the end we will see God and shut our mouths.  At this moment, in this life, in this age, we see “as in a mirror dimly;’ it is good and right to bring Him our questions and our struggles to understand. But He has told us that the time is coming when we will “see face to face” (1 Corinthians 13:12). And we will know Him, and have Him as our inheritance.

So may we all say with Job, “Though he slay me, I will hope in Him; yet I will argue my ways to his face.”

Moe Bergeron, DGCC, Faithfulness, and the Kingdom

Don’t miss this excellent video from Desiring God about the beginning of the DG internet ministry. The video features my friend Moe Bergeron, a bi-vocational pastor in New England. It is not far-fetched to say that were it not for Moe, there would be no Desiring God Community Church in Charlotte.

Moe began posting Pipers Notes on the fledgling internet in 1995. Very shortly thereafter I found the site via some early search engine. I had never read anything by John Piper before. My brother-in-law Ed, however, had been extolling Piper so I recognized the name. I found his sermons exceptionally helpful, and returned regularly to see if Piper had preached on passages I was about to tackle.

At the time, Moe organized the sermons only by date. There was no index by Scripture passage, limiting its usefulness to me. So I contacted Moe and asked him if someone was working on such an index. He said a few folks had approached him indicating they might produce one, but no one had actually done it. I completed it over the next couple of weeks. Moe was surprised and delighted. He and I continued a correspondence, and we met a few times in the late 90s at conferences in New England. We immediately clicked, finding a real kinship in the God-centered Gospel.

Then, in 2000, after becoming certain that our Lord was calling me into full-time ministry, I wrote Bethlehem Baptist, asking if I might spend 3 months at the church in preparation. No one at Bethlehem knew me; nevertheless, they said yes. I later learned that it was my work on the Pipers Notes Scripture index that proved I was not just some random person trying to get close to an increasingly well-known preacher, but already was part of this God-centered movement.

So I thank God for Moe Bergeron, his vision for free resources on the internet, his boldness in approaching Piper, and his faithfulness to his calling. And I stand amazed at our sovereign God who weaves our lives together into the tapestry of His Kingdom for the glory of His Name.

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