Tag: difficulty

Our Help Is In the Name of the Lord (Psalm 124)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment

If it had not been the Lord who was on our side
    —let Israel now say—
if it had not been the Lord who was on our side,
    when our enemies attacked us,
then they would have swallowed us up alive,
    when their anger was kindled against us;
then the flood would have swept us away;
    the torrent would have gone over us;
then over us would have gone
    the raging waters.

Blessed be the Lord,
    who has not given us
    as prey to their teeth.
We have escaped like a bird
    from the snare of the hunters;
the snare is broken,
    and we have escaped.

Our help is in the name of the Lord,
    who made heaven and earth. (New Revised Standard Version)

Today’s Psalm reminds believers of God’s deliverance in the past, so that we will not forget it in the present. If it were not for God, we would be toast. If not for God, none of us would be here; we’d be swallowed up by injustice and death.

Left on our own, and to our own devices, we don’t stand a chance against the oppressive flood of sinful sewage. But with God, there is hope; with God there is deliverance.

The ancient Israelites – and all the Jewish people throughout history – know a great deal of what it feels like to be overwhelmed by their enemies. Antisemitism is nothing new. Unfortunately, it has been around as long as Jews have existed. If some groups had their way, Israel would be wiped off the map.

The psalmist reminds Israel, as well as all of God’s people, of what the Lord has done in the past. Exhibit A of divine deliverance is the Exodus event and passing through the Red Sea to safety. The mighty Egyptians were no match for the God of Israel.

Each year, ever since that seminal deliverance from Israel’s enemies, Jews celebrate Passover, remembering and rehearsing this event of deliverance from the hand of Pharaoh. As pilgrims made their way to Jerusalem for the great Passover feast, they would sing Psalm 124, along with the other Songs of Ascent, giving praise to God for being attentive to their plight of slavery and oppression.

It is more than appropriate to give thanks and bless the Lord for the divine work of deliverance from enemies. God’s people are freed. For the Christian, God in Christ has delivered us from sin, death, and hell; and has made us joint heirs with Jesus.

When this perishable body puts on imperishability and this mortal body puts on immortality, then the saying that is written will be fulfilled:

“Death has been swallowed up in victory.”
“Where, O death, is your victory?
    Where, O death, is your sting?”

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my beloved brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord because you know that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. (1 Corinthians 15:54-58, NRSV)

Recalling what God has done for us is a powerful part of the believer’s identity. The very Maker of heaven and earth, the Lord God almighty, is our help. It is God who prevails against those who seek to destroy and do harm. The Lord is the One who conquers enemies and makes things right.

The believer puts no trust in the power of weapons or in being the strongest. God is acknowledged as the true Deliverer from even the most formidable of foes, despite any power of the unjust.

In Christianity, Christ’s redemptive events of cross and resurrection has triumphed and won the victory over the powerful enemies of death, destruction, and the devil. Praising and singing to God is helpful and needed.

We all need help – not just sometimes but all the time. If we feel as if things are going pretty well for us, that only means we have just come out of a difficult time, or that we are about to undergo some enemy vitriol.

I wish we didn’t have to contend with selfish boneheads who only think of themselves all the time. But we do. And I wish we never needed to go through such hard times that grind us into the ground. Yet it happens.

However, we are not alone. We have a Champion, an Advocate, and One who has gone before us as the Pioneer of our salvation.

He has raised up a mighty savior for us
    in the house of his child David,
as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
    that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us. (Luke 1:69-71, NRSV)

Jesus did for us what we could do for ourselves. He willingly and deliberately let all evil exhaust itself on him, so that there is no enemy left to condemn us.

Enemies may still be around, but they are toothless. We may yet be like birds vulnerable to a trap, but the snare has been broken. All our enemies are powerless. We are free. Thanks be to God!

Our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth. Amen.

‘Tis the Season For Praise (Psalm 148)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
By Stushie Art

Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord from the heavens;
    praise him in the heights!
Praise him, all his angels;
    praise him, all his host!

Praise him, sun and moon;
    praise him, all you shining stars!
Praise him, you highest heavens
    and you waters above the heavens!

Let them praise the name of the Lord,
    for he commanded and they were created.
He established them forever and ever;
    he fixed their bounds, which cannot be passed.

Praise the Lord from the earth,
    you sea monsters and all deeps,
fire and hail, snow and frost,
    stormy wind fulfilling his command!

Mountains and all hills,
    fruit trees and all cedars!
Wild animals and all cattle,
    creeping things and flying birds!

Kings of the earth and all peoples,
    princes and all rulers of the earth!
Young men and women alike,
    old and young together!

Let them praise the name of the Lord,
    for his name alone is exalted;
    his glory is above earth and heaven.
He has raised up a horn for his people,
    praise for all his faithful,
    for the people of Israel who are close to him.
Praise the Lord! (New Revised Standard Version)

By Bible Art

God is sovereign – which means that the Lord has complete power, dominion, and authority over everything that exists. God has supremacy because the Lord is the Creator God, the One who brought all things into existence.

Ideally, God and all creation exist harmoniously together. People coexist with God and recognize the Lord’s sovereignty through offering praise, adoration, and thanksgiving to the Lord.

That is what today’s psalm calls us to do, especially in this season of Christmastide. Christians are to offer their praise to God, despite whatever circumstances may be happening in their lives, and around them.

The psalmist was not telling people to simply forget their sorrows. He was exhorting everyone, including all creation, to praise the Lord in the middle of their distress.

When Christ was born, circumstances were not good for the Jews in Judea. Roman occupation had a firm authoritative hold upon them. Throughout their history, Jews have been often marginalized and oppressed. They know what suffering is.

Even though Christianity is a sizable world religion, Christians in many parts of the world today experience ostracization and discrimination. Christians everywhere are not immune to world events with situations like dictators, disasters, and diseases.

Yet, there is always an opportunity for praise to God. And the psalmist summons the faithful to do so. Praise and adoration of God shape us and form us spiritually, so that, even if we do not feel like doing it, the very act of offering the praise trains our spirits to bend in a good direction.

We could simply give-in to the status quo of things through constant complaining; or keep offering our woes. But that doesn’t negate the importance of praise.

Today we have the opportunity (and responsibility) to praise God for the incarnation of Christ. To remember that God loved us enough to become one of us. To adore the Christ child, and choose to give thanks, even though there might be oppression all around us.

We can celebrate, along with all creation, the nature of God and the Lord’s good purposes for humanity and all the earth. Adverse situations may stop us from many things we want to do, yet no circumstance can ever prevent us from praising God for divine attributes and divine sovereignty.

All of creation praises God by being exactly what God created it to be. A tree doesn’t try and be a star in the sky. It simply takes root and grows, branching out and becoming a haven for many creatures. Squirrels do what squirrels do, just like flowers, rocks, wind and weather do what they do.

It’s us people who tend to go rogue and try to be something or someone we’re not.

We can best praise God by living as God created us to live. We were designed to live in a divine/human cooperation of caring for all creation. We best exist alongside God by being good stewards of all that God has given to us – including the earth, our families and neighborhoods, and especially ourselves.

Praise is the job description of everything which exists. We will do that well as we honor our mandate to care, and not to harm; to serve others, and not be self-serving.

All things are connected on this planet. The ecosystems of the earth, and the economies of people, are all meant to live in harmony with each other, so that all of creation is blessed.

You and I have a sacred trust of relating well with each other, and everything around us.

The human condition is one of ongoing ups and downs. We experience a full range of tragedy, division, and hardship; along with joy, wonder, and happiness. In all things, no matter what, we are called to praise the Lord.

Each of us needs to find that place and that way of orienting and reorienting ourselves to what is important and why we are here.

For me, that happens whenever I hug my dear wife. Sometimes, I even go out in my backyard and hug my oak tree. The very act of hugging helps ground me to what is here and real, what is important and necessary.

If we can but touch one another, not just literally, but with well-placed words and helpful actions, then we can recall why harmony with all things is so important.

I’m in no way saying this is easy. It isn’t. There are many days when either the world seems as if it is a big collective ball of grumpy; or you yourself can hardly do the barest of responsibilities.

Yet, we can still find a way to praise, to be grateful, to offer what little care there may be to give.

Because it’s not so much about the amount of what we do, but rather how we are able to do it. A smidge of something done with love is infinitely better than lots of accomplishment without any care behind it.

The holidays are some of the hardest days for some folks. Christmas and the New Year are associated with grief for various reasons. It can bring isolation, not connection. The last thing such a person may want to do is praise the Lord, especially with a community of folks. And yet, that may just be the best activity.

There is no one-dimensional way of praising God; our offerings to the Lord can be multi-faceted. It can be achieved according to what we have to offer, and why we are offering it. It will not look the same for everyone.

Whatever you really need to do for an offering of praise this year, then do it. It’s okay if it’s a bit avant-garde, or off the beaten path. You are, after all, talking to a guy who hugs trees, for God’s sake.

Maybe this is the time to re-establish an old tradition that has fallen by the wayside. It could be the right opportunity to pick up that old musical instrument or to stretch your voice in singing again.

The exhortation we have from the psalmist is to praise. How you go about it, is up to you, my friend.

May almighty God, who sent his Son to take our nature upon him, encourage you in this holy season, scatter the darkness of sin, and brighten your heart with the light of his holiness. And may the blessing of God – Father, Son, and Spirit – be upon you and remain with you forever. Amen.

Visible Signs of Invisible Realities (Hebrews 9:15-24)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment

For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.

In the case of a will, it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it, because a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes effect while the one who made it is living. This is why even the first covenant was not put into effect without blood. When Moses had proclaimed every command of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves, together with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people. He said, “This is the blood of the covenant, which God has commanded you to keep.” In the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and everything used in its ceremonies. In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

It was necessary, then, for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made with human hands that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence. (Hebrews 9:15-24)

The Hebrew Christians were tired. They had faced adverse circumstances, unjust imprisonments, persecution, prejudice, confiscation of their property, and public ridicule.

Most of all, they encountered rejection from their Jewish families of origin. There was precious little support for them, outside of their group.

The suffering went on long enough that the Christians began to experience a weakening of faith. In their distress, they started considering whether to return to Judaism, and renege on their commitment to Christ.

The author of Hebrews saw the struggle and spoke up, encouraging and exhorting the believers to keep going, to exercise faith and perseverance in the face of their ongoing troubles.

The author’s overall message to the discouraged believers was that Jesus Christ is superior over everything and everyone. Christ is better than the angels, Moses, and Aaron. Jesus is the ultimate high priest who offered himself as a sacrifice, once for all.

By means of the cross, Jesus became the mediator of a new and better covenant. There is, therefore, no more need of another high priest. Christ now occupies that office permanently.

Jesus Christ Points us to God, by Elizabeth Wang

Christ’s death was efficacious for all. The sacrificial system with all of the officiating Levitical priests was the old order of things, meant to point us to Christ.

Offering sacrifices day after day, and engaging in prescribed liturgical rituals in order to access God, are no longer necessary. Perpetual anxiety exists wherever people keep wondering if they have done enough to satisfy their guilt and/or responsibility.

The answer of Christianity is yes, the work is finished; Jesus completed it, once and for all.

There is no longer anything that can distress us. Sin, death, and hell have been conquered through the death of Christ. His singular sacrifice has achieved victory over the sinful powers, and reconciliation and peace with God.

Blessed is the one
    whose sin the Lord does not count against them
    and in whose spirit is no deceit. (Psalm 32:2, NIV)

The covenant code’s sacrificial system was never designed to be a permanent way of doing things. All of the implements used in that system were symbols pointing to the real deal. They were a temporary means of leading people to Christ, who is the once for all sacrifice to end all sacrifices, the one who truly takes away our guilt and shame forever.

The picture is of Christ, as our high priest, who sprinkled us with his own blood and made us clean – not only today or for some temporary period of time – but for all time. We are not only made clean; we are made clean forever by the blood of Christ.

Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
    wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. (Psalm 51:7, NIV)

The historical person of Jesus – his life, ministry, crucifixion, death, resurrection, ascension and glorification – was a visible image showing us the great importance of invisible realities.

The Ark of the Covenant was a visible sign of God’s invisible presence, and the need for a restoration of the divine/human connection.

The temple, the worship implements, and the whole sacrificial system was a visible sign of God’s invisible holiness, and the need for purity of heart amongst the people.

Jesus was a real person with a real body and real human needs, a visible reality which showed us the invisible God, and what God truly deems as right and good.

It is Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Son of Humanity, in whom we have redemption the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God. (Colossians 1:14-15)

Christ is our Mediator, bridging the gap between heaven and earth.

Christ is our Savior, delivering us from our guilt and shame, our worry and anxiety, and our old enemy, death itself.

Christ is our Advocate, stepping in and acting on our behalf, and sending the Holy Spirit to be his continuing presence on this earth.

Christ is our champion, the pioneer of our salvation, securing redemption for us through his singular death.

Christ is our Intercessor, who even now lives to intercede for us, as we strive and struggle to live in humility, justice, and righteousness, as peacemakers in this world.

What this all means, from the vantage of Christianity, is that we need Jesus.

Without Christ, there is no hope. With Christ, all things are possible.

Jesus is the answer to every question, because Jesus is the center of all things. He is the fertile soil from which all of life sprouts; the first-fruit which provides life; and the continuing sustenance which saves us from a disconnected, fragmented, discouraging existence.

Along with the ancient Hebrew Christians, let us be encouraged with Christ, who is truly our everything.

Accept, O Lord, our thanks and praise for all that you have done for us. We thank you for the disappointments and failures that lead us to acknowledge our dependence on you alone.

Above all, we thank you for your Son Jesus Christ; for the truth of his Word, and the example of his life; for his steadfast obedience, by which he overcame temptation; for his dying, through which he overcame death; and for his rising to life again, in which we are raised to the life of your kingdom.

Grant us the gift of your Spirit; that we may know you and make you known; and through your Spirit, at all times and in all places, may give thanks to you in all things. Amen.

I Concede (Job 42:1-6, 10-17)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
By Bible Art

Then Job answered the Lord:

“I know that you can do all things
    and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
    things too wonderful for me that I did not know.
‘Hear, and I will speak;
    I will question you, and you declare to me.’
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.”

…And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job when he had prayed for his friends, and the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. 

Then all his brothers and sisters came to him, and all who had known him before, and they ate bread with him in his house; they showed him sympathy and comforted him for all the evil that the Lord had brought upon him; and each of them gave him a piece of money and a gold ring. 

The Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning, and he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand donkeys. He also had seven sons and three daughters. He named the first Jemimah, the second Keziah, and the third Keren-happuch. In all the land there were no women so beautiful as Job’s daughters, and their father gave them an inheritance along with their brothers. 

After this Job lived one hundred and forty years and saw his children and his children’s children, four generations. And Job died, old and full of days. (New Revised Standard Version)

Job is restored, by William Blake (1757-1827)

Job was in awful suffering. He contended with God about it. Job’s friends contended with Job. In the end, God never gave a humanly suitable answer to the problem of suffering. Namely, because we cannot understand the answer, even if it is provided.

Indeed, the gap between God and humanity is quite pronounced. God is the Creator. We are creatures. Yet, God did vindicate Job.

That’s right God affirmed Job – and not Job’s companions. Even though Job did what many a believer in God today believes is wrong, perhaps even sacrilegious or sinful.

Job argued, confronted, grappled with, and even opposed God for the terrible troubles he faced in losing his family, his wealth, and his health. He fully engaged God.

Job’s friends, however, did no such thing. Instead, they argued, confronted, grappled with, and even opposed their friend Job. They fully avoided God.

In the end, Job conceded that he himself knows nothing. Yet, there is still the hint of complaint within him. This is good. Job did not stop engaging God. He remained faithful and devoted.

Let us never believe that faithfulness and devotion to God involves putting up a false front and nice polite piety. Prayer, in truth, is a hard wrestling with God, a struggling and working through all the difficulties of this unfair life.

God is not the least offended by our full, real, and raw engagement of him. But God is offended by avoiding such engagement altogether.

All of us, in reality, speak mostly in ignorance. We talk about things we don’t really understand. The only thing we can be 100% truthful about, however, is ourselves – about how we are really doing, feeling, experiencing, believing, struggling with, etc.

I myself am the true expert on me – and you, the expert on you. And this truth I can bring to God anytime, anywhere. The Book of Job affirms to me that this is the sort of devotion and sacrifice which the Lord is pleased with.

Job gained some knowledge and understanding through personally encountering God. The Lord God almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, actually spoke to Job in a direct revelation of the Divine presence.

This is an affirmation of Job’s integrity. But the godless, disintegrated, and fragmented person cannot see God or expect a personal audience with God.

Through all that Job had been through, he held to his integrity, and held onto God, both at the same time. In the end, he still did not understand why he had to go through such horrible suffering.

English translations of the Hebrew text don’t do it justice. There is always something lost in translation of any language to another. And it seems what is lost here is that Job was perhaps still protesting at the end. Yet, it comes across in English as Job despising and abhorring himself, as if he had done something very wrong.

“I despise myself,” misses the mark. Without getting into some deep grammatical Hebrew waters, I wonder if the phrase might better be rendered, “I protest.” What is meant to be conveyed is that Job still acknowledges what he originally held onto. Namely, that he has done nothing wrong, did not deserve what he went through, yet has never rejected God, nor lost faith in God.

Job did not need to repent of some secret sin, as his friends supposed. Job repenting does not mean because of sin; Job’s repentance was a change of position from mourner and complainer, to accepting the situation as it is, without answers.

So, this brings us back to the beginning of the book. God is God. There are celestial forces and operations in play we know nothing about. Humans are not God. Humans are never going to get most of what is happening in this world. And humans will inevitably experience hard and bad things – and not know why.

No answers given. No change of situation (yet). But Job changed. He changed his mind about how to live with what he was experiencing. He relinquished his complaint, and decided to keep living, even though he did not get answers.

Honestly, this response of Job is more consistent with my own experience of awful suffering, and more faithful to the text of Scripture. Much like Jacob wrestling with the angel, Job had to finally concede and relent, and continue on his life journey, come what may.

Following Job’s intercession for his friends, God restored Job to wealth and family. A significant piece of this restoration was Job’s wider community of friends and family who gathered around him, giving Job the consolation and comfort that the three “friends” in the book did not provide.

The community cared for Job, not through nice theological phrases, but with genuine fellowship. They shared together around the table, the community giving both a meal and contributing monetary gifts for Job’s needs.

The Book of Job ends, perhaps with as many, or more, questions than when it started. Answers, however, are not the point.

Rather, Job’s incredible and awful experience of suffering and redemption becomes an invitation for you and me to have a more expansive view of what a relationship with the living God truly looks like.

May God bless you with discomfort
At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships,
So that you may live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger
At injustice, oppression and exploitation of people,
So that you may work for justice, freedom and peace.

May God bless you with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger, and war,
So that you may reach out your hand to comfort them
And turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless you with enough foolishness
To believe that you can make a difference in the world,
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done
To bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor. Amen.