The Proper Context of Revelation 17:4

 I usually do a pretty good job avoiding politcal social media posts. Well, overall "pretty good" is the key. Usually my fingers just keep scrolling up, even when my brain starts typing out a theoretical response to what I see as oftentimes just plain silliness. 

And then there are the times like today, where I just can't avoid it. So, instead of replying on someone's post and getting in a long drawn-out Facebook debate that will have no real impact and not make any real difference, I have chosen to use my own blog as a space to set my thoughts in line.

Here is the image that has gotten to me today:

Not so much the image has gotten to me, as this is our US Vice-President being sworn into ofice on Jan 20, 2021 on 2 Bibles (obviously cropped out of this picture), but rather the irresponsible use of Scripture taken out of context and set to do harm against others is what has really gotten to me. 

While I avoid the political debates, I will gladly engage in a hermeneutical excursus of Scripture. This isn't about Democrat or Republican, this is about the reverence and authority of God's Word that should be rightly handled in such a way as to edify the people of God and lead us into holy living through sanctification (i.e. what Kenneth Collins calls "holy love").

So, let's look at this verse, shall we?

The King James Version translates this as "And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:"

The New International Version says, "The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries."

Since this is a New Testament verse, it's a good idea for those responsible teachers of Scripture to at least see this as well:

καὶ ἡ γυνὴ ἦν περιβεβλημένη πορφυροῦν καὶ κόκκινον, καὶ κεχρυσωμένη χρυσίῳ καὶ λίθῳ τιμίῳ καὶ μαργαρίταις, ἔχουσα ποτήριον χρυσοῦν ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτῆς γέμον βδελυγμάτων καὶ τὰ ἀκάθαρτα τῆς πορνείας αὐτῆς,

In Revelation chapter 17 one of the seven angels comes to show John the "punishment of the great prostitute" (17:1b)

Who is this prostitute mentioned here?

As the angel explains to John the meaning of this vision we see that the beast upon which this woman rides is the Roman empire, called Babylon the Great (see chapter 13). And this woman is sitting upon this beast.

And then this verse ends chapter 17, 

"The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth". 

"καὶ ἡ γυνὴ ἣν εἶδες ἔστιν ἡ πόλις ἡ μεγάλη ἡ ἔχουσα βασιλείαν ἐπὶ τῶν βασιλέων τῆς γῆς.”

πόλις = city

The word πόλις (pronounced polis) is the Greek word translated as a city where one lives or the inhabitants of a city (Strongs Concordance).

The woman (i.e. "prostitute") is NOT Kamala Harris. It is a metaphorical image of Rome. 

And for my Democratic friends who have posted that former President Donald Trump is the anti Christ, that is not biblically accurate either. I will be happy to post on that as well. 

Let's do better, and let's love one another as we anticipate the primary goal of the book of Revelation, and the culmination of our human existence:

Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,”for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 

I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.  

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” (Revelation 21:1-5)

Amen. Come Lord Jesus. (Revelation 21:20b)

The God who calls back (Notes from sermon on 1 Samuel 3:1-10)

 

Have you ever missed an important phone call? I know that if you’re under the age of 25 the answer to that is probably no, because you’ve always had one with you. But back in the old days, back when you had to be home to talk on the phone, back when you had to make sure nobody else was on the phone if you were expecting that important call, did you ever miss one?

 When I was younger we didn’t have Nerf Guns and thousands of nerf bullets, so me and my friends didn’t have Nerf wars. We did have BB gun wars though, which was kinda the same thing, we just used the whole neighborhood and you had to wear 4 shirts cause those little things hurt more than a nerf bullet. For a while this was a weekly war, in Town Acres subdivision. I would spend the night with Tyler, and we would make our battle plans and wait on the calls from the other teams to pick our time and set our rules. (Although the first rule of BB gun war is kinda like the first rule of Fight Club; there are no rules.)

Tyler had an older sister who was always on the phone when we were waiting on our call. And even though there was call waiting, that little beep=beep when another call was coming in, she would never switch over and check.

I remember pacing through the kitchen as this much older teenage girl would try to ignore these little boys wearing a half dozen t-shirts and sunglasses, you had to protect your eyes! Before Cory Heart ever sang it we were wearing our sunglasses at night in BB Gun War. And so we would usually have to result to something tacky, like telling her we found her diary and we were gonna read it, or telling her that her dad found the oregano in her bedroom and wanted to know what she was cooking.

Anything, so we didn’t miss the call.

 We have a whole story of Samuel’s life recorded for us in the Bible. His birth is described as miraculous, an unexpected only child for his mother and father, Hannah and Elkanah. Hannah had prayed for this son, and then she dedicated him back to God since he was given to her as a gift from God to begin with. 

And so Hannah took her young son Samuel to the tabernacle where the Priest lived, Eli. And Samuel was trained to maintain the house of God, keeping the candles lit, keeping the show bread in place, keeping the brass polished and the ark of the covenant secured.

But one night something happens when Samuel is about 12 years old.

God called.

Not by phone, but by speaking to Samuel. Maybe it’s in a dream where the boy hears the voice first. We have talked before of the ways in which God has come to people in dreams to speak to them. Maybe it is just in the still of the night, to borrow another song lyric, when other voices have stopped and other duties had been completed.

Let’s hear from the Lord now as we turn to His Word.

 Meanwhile, the boy Samuel served the Lord by assisting Eli. Now in those days messages from the Lord were very rare, and visions were quite uncommon.

2One night Eli, who was almost blind by now, had gone to bed. 3The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was sleeping in the Tabernacle near the Ark of God. 4Suddenly the Lord called out, “Samuel!”

“Yes?” Samuel replied. “What is it?” 5He got up and ran to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?”

“I didn’t call you,” Eli replied. “Go back to bed.” So he did.

6Then the Lord called out again, “Samuel!”

Again Samuel got up and went to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?”

“I didn’t call you, my son,” Eli said. “Go back to bed.”

7Samuel did not yet know the Lord because he had never had a message from the Lord before. 8So the Lord called a third time, and once more Samuel got up and went to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?”

Then Eli realized it was the Lord who was calling the boy. 9So he said to Samuel, “Go and lie down again, and if someone calls again, say, ‘Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went back to bed.

10And the Lord came and called as before, “Samuel! Samuel!”

And Samuel replied, “Speak, your servant is listening.”

The book of Judges, which is the period right before 1 Samuel, is a roller coaster ride of spiritual discipline. Up and down and up and down. Following God and then following whoever else. Turning back to God and then falling away from God again. Repenting and sinning and sacrifices and war. Back and forth.

 I wonder if that is not a reflection of some of our spiritual lives today? A yo-yo kind of relationship with God will not allow us to hear a Word from the Lord, or see a vision of what God’s Kingdom desires on earth, as it is in heaven.

 Eli’s eyes were becoming weak, because he was getting older. But maybe there is a little theological hint in here too. I get it that as we get older our eyesight isn’t as good as it used to be. There is only so far out here that I can hold things now, my arms aren’t long enough to help my eyesight anymore. And although with age our physical eyesight might weaken, with age the wisdom and discernment of our spiritual sight should be more keen if we have been spending time with God.

 Eli is not only getting older, but Eli is missing what is happening around him. The nation is falling to pieces spiritually, his own two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, have been stealing sacrifices that people bring in, they’ve had prostitutes into the tent having sex right outside where the ark of the covenant is kept.

 It’s no wonder that the word of the Lord was rare in those days, it’s because even the ones who should be hearing from the Lord, the wise priest, the spiritual leaders of the nation, the ones with experience and discernment, they are not seeing clearly.

 They are weak.  And so God is going to bring His word to a young acolyte, just a boy whose been keeping the candles lit, rather than the old guard who has gotten complacent and is going blind. God is going to do a new thing and speak his word to someone who will actually listen.

APPLICATION: How’s your eyesight?

Are you seeing clearly a direction that God has for your life and for his world? Are you seeing others, really seeing them, and loving them, really loving them? Not to change them, but to simply love because that is what Jesus commanded you to do?

I was reading a book on the Gospel of John by Adam Hamilton and he said that if we are living in the light, and seeing clearly, then we will make all of our difficult decisions by asking one question, “What is the most loving thing to do in this moment?”

We see the world through the lens of the Gospel when we stay connected to the Words of God and allow this light and love to be our vision.

And so God called Samuel, but Samuel thought it was Eli.

 Back when Heather and I were first dating I had a hard time figuring out if it was Heather or Angie on the phone. They not only looked just a little bit alike when I first met them, they also sounded alike on the phone.

But that was only at first.

Once I got to know Heather, nobody else looked anything like her.

Once I knew Heather better nobody else sounded anything like her.

 But I had to spend time with her to know who she was. I had to spend time listening to her to know her voice. And in that spending time is when I fell in love. 

It’s the same in our relationship with God. It is God calling you, literally courting you, to invite you into a relationship with Him through Jesus death and resurrection which sanctified you, and now through the Holy Spirit living INTO you, guiding you, and speaking to you on behalf of the Father.

In John 10 Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd. And the sheep follow because they know the shepherd’s voice.”

But Samuel doesn’t know the difference in the voices yet.

When I hear Heather’s voice, I know it’s Heather’s voice, because I have spent decades listening to this voice and the words of love and affirmation that she has spoken.

To know the voice of who is calling, you have had to listen to the voice of who is calling.

 

Now, I know that when we get older sometimes our hearing starts to go a little bit too. And that’s natural for our physical hearing, but I believe this is just like the eyesight thing. As we get older our spiritual hearing should be better, we should hear God speaking to us with more clarity and regularity if we have spent decades listening to Him.

Verse 7-Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord. The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.

Samuel had literally been living in the house of God. Samuel was sleeping in the same place as the ark of the covenant, the place we are told that the glory of God, called the Shekinah, dwelt on the mercy seat of this chest, in between the outstretched wings of the cheribum on top.

But see, there is a difference between the rituals of religion and a relationship with God.

There is a difference between believing IN God, and knowing God.

There is a difference between KNOWING what God has said, and HEARING what God is saying.

Even if God’s message is hard to hear. Because the message to Samuel was.

I’m not gonna get into WHAT God said to Samuel today, you can read that later this week.

But I do want to focus on HOW God called Samuel.

God calls Samuel, not once, not twice, but three times and Samuel missed the call every single time!

Aren’t you thankful that God calls you back!

Maybe you’ve missed some important calls in your life, but you don’t have to miss this call. God will keep on calling.

God will call you more often than the guy is calling about your expired car warranty.

God will not give up on you because today you are the one that God is seeking. You are the one that God is calling.

You are the one that God loves, that Jesus died for, and that the Holy Spirit is ready to descend INTO.

You are the beloved, You are the one whom God is pleased with.

And today I believe that God is calling YOUR name.

Verse 4, Verse 6, Verse 8 God is calling him by name, “Samuel!” But Samuel doesn’t know the voice, and thinks it’s Eli.

Or maybe, Samuel isn’t really expecting to hear from God. He’s just a boy. He’s never heard God speak before. The word of God has been rare in those days.

Maybe he just didn’t expect this.

Do you?

Do you expect to hear from God? Today?

I mean I know that there are certain times where we actively seek God. When we need an urgent prayer request answered, when we need direction for a decision, when we hit another crisis in our lives and we need God to get us out.

Or maybe even in the morning during our devotion and prayer over a cup of coffee, maybe then we might expect to hear a little something-somethin from God.

We expect miracles in those moments, but what about every other moment of our days?

Are we expecting to hear God speak when God speaks, or do we expect to hear God answer, when we ask?

Do we want God available when we summons him, or are we anticipating God to surprise us?

Samuel wasn’t expecting this, and neither was Eli.

Because Eli’s sight was going. He was living more in the darkness than he was living in the light.

But back in verse 3 also says that even though Eli could barely see that “the lamp of God had not yet gone out”. 

Yes it’s looking dark. Yes, the eyesight of many who should be seeing is dim. Yes the darkness seems to be covering the people and the nations are walking in deep darkness. But the light isn’t out yet.

There is a flicker on the flame. No matter how dark it gets.

The gospel of John begins that “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” and “the true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world” (JOHN 1:5, 9).

That’s Jesus.

And it’s been dark for Eli, but the lamp of God has not gone out, and God is getting ready to speak a new word.

Maybe it’s been dark for you lately. Maybe your eyesight has dimmed and you just can’t see a vision of what God has in store for you. Maybe you haven’t been clearly hearing what God has to say to you. And that can be a concerning time in our lives, especially if we know the shepherd’s voice and the eyes of our heart have been opened to see the realities of the Kingdom of heaven. 

But I just want to encourage you if you have been in a dark time lately that the lamp of the Lord has not gone out on you yet. Even though it’s dark there is still a flame flickering.

Maybe you need to sit with a lit candle to remind you that the light is here. Maybe you need a reminder that the light of Christ has come INTO you so that you can shine His light THROUGH you and OUT of you.

Maybe the darker it has been getting around you is more of an invitation for the light in you to shine just a little bit brighter.

And maybe that doesn’t mean you need to do more, or pray more, or read more, or serve more. Maybe that means you need to be in the right position to hear your call.

See, Eli said “Just go back to bed, boy.”

God was calling Samuel, and Eli didn’t even know it. Because he wasn’t expecting it, especially with a 12 year old acolyte. Sometimes, maybe God calls the ones that we don’t expect.

God has been calling women throughout creation, Deborah, Ruth, Esther, Junia, Mary. But at some point the Church thought God said that women could not be called to pastoral ministry, based on an inaccurate reading of Scripture, I believe. And so it wasn’t until 1880 that Anna Howard Shaw was ordained as the first female Methodist clergy.

I sensed a call on my life when I was around 12 years old at a Baptist church revival but I was told by the preacher that I was not the one he was thinking about and to go back and sit down.

And it was just 4 years ago, that the first African American woman, the Rev. Sharma Lewis, was elected bishop in the SE Jurisdiction of our UMC. Bishop Lewis is serving in VA now.

I wonder if God is still calling those who we don’t expect.

But after the 3^rd time Eli gets it.

V9 “So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if he calls you say, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening”

Three times Samuel has said, “Here I am”. 3 times Samuel has gotten up. And 3 times Samuel has moved to another place. 3 times Samuel has sought the voice in another person.

 

The 4^th time Samuel doesn’t say, Here I am. Isaiah said to the Lord, “Here I am, send me.” God isn’t going to send Samuel anywhere, so Samuel says, Speak, Lord. And then he listens.

 

But did you notice what he was doing?

V9- So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

He went back to bed, probably went back to sleep.

But he got positioned in his proper place. Maybe you’re not hearing from God because you’re not in the right place.

Samuel isn’t pouring over his prayer beads, he isn’t tearing the Torah, he isn’t wringing his hands because God called 3 times and he missed it.

He just gets back in his place.

Because if God has called you, He’s gonna call you back.

Maybe today you need the reminder to simply stay in your proper place and wait on a word from the Lord.

Maybe the call comes when we are at rest. When our minds are at ease and the peace of Christ that transcends all understanding is guarding our hearts and our minds in Jesus, our Lord. 

But when Samuel heard a word from the Lord his life got harder. Because the message was hard. It was still wrapped in God’s love, just like the message at Jesus’ baptism, but it was a message for a young leader that the old leaders weren’t in line with God’s plan, and a change was coming.

This year Jan 18 is the day our country celebrates in remembrance the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. Each year during this week I go back and read some of the book, “Why We Can’t Wait”

Dr King came from a family of preachers. His father, grandfather, great-grandfather, brother, and uncle were all preachers. And when he became the pastor at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama he was only 27 years old. Full of ideas and motivating sermons to preach Christ and lead people to Jesus.

But then December 1, 1955 a 42-year old black woman named Rosa refused to go to the back of a bus, and Dr. King emerged as the pivotal leader of the Civil Rights movement.

It didn’t take long for the threats and hate and violence to come from the white people in Birmingham, and across the country toward Dr. King and his family.

 

And in some places, even today, that still hasn’t ended.

 

A founding principle of Methodism in England was the abolition of the slave trade, and yet in 1955 there were Methodists divided on both sides of this issue. It wasn’t a new battle, in 1844 the Methodist Church split into the MECS and the MECN over if it was OK to own slaves or not. And we are still divided over who God would call, and if the Church will recognize and validate that call and their response.

Over the course of his pastoral career Dr. King was arrested and put in jail 29 times for peacefully trying to get all people to see that all people are created in the image of God and that Jesus died for all these people, red, yellow, black and white. All precious in His sight.

Early on in this war the Kings had gotten a call about midnight, nothing new with this one either. Just another white man with this message, “We’re tired of you, and if you aren’t out of this town in three days, we’re going to blow your brains out and blow up your house.”

Dr. King prayed aloud that night. He wrote that he heard a voice calling him by name.

Sound familiar?

And the voice said “stand up for righteousness, justice, and truth; and the Lord will be with you”.

His life from that moment on is a testimony to his response to that prayer. But it wasn’t easy. In fact, it was much, much harder.

But so was Samuel’s. So was Jonah’s. So was Moses. So was Peter, and Paul, and John.

And so was mine. And perhaps, so has been yours.

Harder, in some ways, yes. But worth it!!

Worth it because this is real life, an abundant grace filled life of love that seeks justice, loves mercy, and walks humbly with our God.

A life of feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick because in them we see a glimpse of Christ.

A life of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world and baptizing them in the name of  The Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit.

What would we hear if we really listened for God’s voice?

Today I invite you into a time of silent prayer and reflection. Use these next 5 minutes and say, “Speak Lord, your servant is listening”.

 

And then be still and listen.  

Monday Morning in the Psalms- January 18, 2021

 

Psalm 86

A Prayer for God's Continued Mercy

86 1  Hear me, Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy. 2  Guard my life, for I am faithful to you; save your servant who trusts in you. You are my God; 3  have mercy on me, Lord, for I call to you all day long. 4  Bring joy to your servant, Lord, for I put my trust in you. 5  You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you. 6  Hear my prayer, Lord; listen to my cry for mercy. 7  When I am in distress, I call to you, because you answer me.

8  Among the gods there is none like you, Lord; no deeds can compare with yours. 9  All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, Lord; they will bring glory to your name. 10  For you are great and do marvelous deeds; you alone are God. 11  Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. 12  I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever. 13  For great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths, from the realm of the dead. 14  Arrogant foes are attacking me, O God; ruthless people are trying to kill me- they have no regard for you. 15  But you, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness. 16  Turn to me and have mercy on me; show your strength in behalf of your servant; save me, because I serve you just as my mother did. 17  Give me a sign of your goodness, that my enemies may see it and be put to shame, for you, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.

I started out 2021 preaching an Epiphany series called, "God is speaking", each week looking at passages of Scripture where God spoke in a unique way, and then looking to where God is speaking in our lives today. To do this, we have to listen to God.

This Psalm, while having to do with a word from God, is asking to listen to us. 

Psalm 86 is in book 2 of the book of Psalms (remember that the 150 Psalms are divided into 5 "books"), and is the only Psalm in book 2 written by David. And while we call the Book of Psalms the "prayer book of the Bible", this Psalm in particular is a beautiful psalm of prayer and petition. 

"Hear me, Lord" the psalm begins. Some translations say, "Incline your ear, O Lord".  I have a leather recliner in my living room. It was given to me by the previous pastor who lived in this parsonage. It's probably one of the most comfortable recliners I have ever sat in. But you don't really get the full effect by sitting in it, you need to recline in it. You probably are familiar with what it means to recline. 

But in the first verse the psalmist is petitioning God to incline. To incline means to lean in. A few years ago Bishop Richard Looney (who, by the way, gave me teh recliner), led the morning Bible studies at Annual Conference at Lake Junaluska. One morning we took this phrase and talked it about for a good 15 minutes. What does it mean to incline? When we incline we are moving physically closer to the person to whom we are inclining towards. When we incline we are probably making eye contact, more connected to the person we are inclining towards. 

And so to begin this prayer, David is asking God to come closer. Literally to incline to me, or come down here. 

When my children were younger and they had something important to tell me, they would often want me to "come down here". To be more on thier level, to see the thing as they saw it, and to be sure that I was hearing the important thing they wanted to say. 

Prayer is like that. We are asking God to incline towards us, to literally "come down here" because this is really important to me, Lord.

But not only does David ask God to incline, David also asks God to answer. In fact, I believe that David is actually expecting an answer. Do you? 

Take a look through the requests of this prayer:

• hear me 
• answer me
• guard me
• have mercy on me
• bring joy to me
• hear me
• listen to me
• answer me
• teach me
• give me an undivived heart
• turn to me
• have mercy on me
• save me
• give me a sign

David makes bold requests, he never shys away from asking God for exactly what he needs because he knows that God is capabale, that God is able, and that God is ready to give.

This week I encourage you to lose yourself and find yourself in Psalm 86. 

What thoughts do you have on this Psalm? How is God speaking to you today through these verses? What word from the Lord is being spoken to your heart? What prayers do you need God to incline towards you to hear today?

Feel free to comment below and use this week's post as a forum to engage more deeply with this psalm.

Monday morning in the Psalms - January 11, 2021

 The lectionary reading from the Psalter for next Sunday (Jan 17, 2021) is this:

Psalm 139

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.

1 You have searched me, Lord,
    and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
    you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going out and my lying down;
    you are familiar with all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my tongue
    you, Lord, know it completely.
5 You hem me in behind and before,
    and you lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
    too lofty for me to attain.

7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
    Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
    if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
    if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
    your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
    and the light become night around me,”
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
    the night will shine like the day,
    for darkness is as light to you.

13 For you created my inmost being;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    your works are wonderful,
    I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you
    when I was made in the secret place,
    when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my unformed body;
    all the days ordained for me were written in your book
    before one of them came to be.
17 How precious to me are your thoughts,[a] God!
    How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them,
    they would outnumber the grains of sand—
    when I awake, I am still with you.

19 If only you, God, would slay the wicked!
    Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty!
20 They speak of you with evil intent;
    your adversaries misuse your name.
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, Lord,
    and abhor those who are in rebellion against you?
22 I have nothing but hatred for them;
    I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, God, and know my heart;
    test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me,
    and lead me in the way everlasting.

Devotional Thoughts

When I was younger my mom and I listened to A LOT of Elvis Presley. And so maybe that's why there are certain things that when I hear them, it reminds me of the King of Rock n' Roll. This Psalm does that to me as well. 

King David, after acknowledging the omniscience of God (that God knows all things), asks a very direct (and perhaps slightly redundant question). 

"Where can I go that God is not?" (Verses 7-12)

As I ponder David's question, I hear Elvis asking it his way, "Where could I go but to the Lord?"

Take a listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_s23-_uK4w

And then, as David describes the omnipresence of God, he moves into a full on praise of who God is. 

I invite you to reflect on this Psalm throughout the coming week and the beautiful imagery that it gives us such as:

• "You have searched me and know me, O God"
• "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made"
• "How precious to me are your thoughts, God!"

These alone could be a lifetime of prayers for us, and yet the last 2 verses of the Psalm are to me perhaps the most striking of all. 

• Search me
• Test me
• See

Pastor and author Craig Groeschel uses verse 23 as a starting point in his book, Dangerous Prayers.

And I believe this is just that, a dangerous prayer, not meant to be prayed unless you mean it.

Asking God, who knows everything, who can uncover anything, and who shines His light on all things, to search me completely in my heart? All of my personal skeletens that I want to keep in the closet? All of my imperfections that I try to gloss over and known sins that I have buried?

Yes. 

That is want David wants God to search for. Not because God doesn't already know it there (he's covered the omniscient thing already), but because David is ready for God to show it to him. 

But David keeps on praying!

Now, test me and know my anxious thoughts. 

If we are honest, many of us have many anxious thoughts. Perhaps more in the past year than we ever have. And yet in John 14 Jesus told us, "Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not be afraid."

Where are your anxious thoughts today? How has a spirit of anxiety gripped you during this season of our lives? Are you ready to let Jesus in here?

Yes.

And finally, David asks God to see if there is anything offensive in him, and to lead him into an eternal path (the "way everlasting" referring to an eternal journey with God). 

Is there anything offensive in me today. 

YES! 

And so I wonder if these last 2 verses might be a wonderful way to settle into hearing what God desires to speak into our life this week?

I would love to hear your thoughts, and where God is leading you. Feel free to comment below, or email at mvaughn114@gmail.com

I hope to get some thoughts here on the Psalms every Monday, so Subscribe to the blog and get an email notification every time there is something new. 

Blessings on your Monday, and I pray you carry Psalm 139 with you wherever you go. 

After all, "Where can we go but to the Lord?"

Why do you want to be back in Church?

 "I just wish we could be back in church!"

How many times have you said that over the past 10 months? I know that I have many times! And yet, of course, we know that the building is not the church. Now more than ever we know that. We know that we as the people of God are the Church of God, the living stones of the temple of God with God's own Spirit dwelling in us.

For the churches that I pastor, we stopped in person worship last March, then were back together again for outside worship over the summer, then stopped in person worship again, then were back together for in person worship inside, then stopped again when Heather and I were quarantined, then back, and then stopped. Whew! It's like we never knew week to week what we would be doing. You can probably identify with that as well, right?

And so we lamented, "I just wish we could be back in church!"

And I agree. 

But today I wonder...why?

That might sound like a strange (or loaded) question, but I am serious. 

Why do you want to be "back in church"?

This week I picked up an 86 year-old church member and drove him to the church building so that he could go in and pray. He used to be in the building 3-4 times a week, watering flowers, checking on the building to ensure nothing needed to be fixed, and sitting in prayer. Now he is unable physically to go on his own as he is on oxygen constantly, so I picked him (and his O2 tank) up and we drove to Telford UMC.

We sat in the dimly lit santuary withour any other light except for the hazy streams coming through the stained glass. We talked for a moment about the beauty of the place, and the serenity and peace that he felt while here. We prayed and I anointed him with oil. 

And then he told me that he only had a little more than 20 minutes left in his oxygen tank, and asked me if I had any work I needed to do in the office. 

He is rarely subtle, but I picked up on his need, and I left alone to pray for the next 20 minutues. 

I believe that he appreciated the time he spent with me. I believe that he genuinely appreciated praying with me. And I believe that he was blessed by the oil we shared. 

And yet there was something more that he needed. 

He just wanted to be back in Church, just like we all have been saying. And yet as I stood behind this man as he prayed, I wonder if we share the same reasons for our want.

Why do you want to be back in Church? 

Is it that you miss being around others, in particular your church member family? This is not a bad reason at all! 

Christian fellowship is vitally important to who we are as disciples, and integrated into the very fabric of what being a cohesive "body" is about. In fact, Hebrews 10:25 reminds us to "not give up meeting together". Part of this is because we need one another to "spur (us) on toward love and good deeds" (Hebrews 10:24), but also because we were created to be in community. 

And we have been, even in our distance. Thanks be to God for this wonderful age that we live in where we have been able to remain connected in some ways, even when we have been physically apart. 

Or maybe your reason for wanting to be back in Church is to be reconnected with a mission or ministry that your Church has been involved in that has been altered over the past year. That is not a bad reason at all! 

In both Churches I serve, there are ministries that have been forced to stop due to this pandemic. But, there are new ministries that have emerged, as well. 

We have a desire to serve others, that is at the core of who we are also. We strive to love by living out the words of Jesus that, "I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me" (Matthew 25:35-36).

Or maybe your reason for wanting to be back in Church is to sing. And that is not a bad reason at all!

I think back on all the conversations that I have with church members over the years about singing and music in worship, and how many times these conversations centered around what they "liked" in worship, i.e., Contemporary and praise bands or Traditional with a robed choir, or some blend in between. I wonder if when we are able to once again safely gather inside a building for worship and sing together if we will still care so much about that, or if we will simply be so grateful to stand with others and sing praises that we won't care if we are accompanied by an organ or a band. 

The book of Psalms, the prayer book of the Bible, says much about singing. In fact, the beginning of the 105th chapter tells us to "Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of his wonderful acts. Glory in his holy name, let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!" (Psalm 105:2-3). I have heard it said that to sing is to pray twice. I love that image. We were in years past known as the "Singing Methodists". What a beautiful accolade! When we are so full of joy we sing. When we are struggling in despair and pain we sing. When we gather together we sing. I picture the Sulphur Springs Camp Meeting worship services as I think of this singing. Hundreds of people of all ages, gathered outside on wooden pews, singing praises that fill the air, echo through a community, and bless the heart of God. 

And yet we can still sing. We can sing as we make our morning coffee, we can sing as we drive to work, we can sing in our hearts as we "give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever!" (Psalm 106:1). My bathroom is filled with singing every morning as my wife gets ready for her day. I have seen some amazing and uplifting videos where people sing in thier own homes, and then their songs are integrated with others from around the world singing the same song. Songs sung by different people, in different places, at different times, sometimes even in different languages, but brought together digitally in one voice of praise. (Thank you to our global United Methodist Church for the connections we have with this "UMC Virtual Christmas Choir").

Or maybe your reason for wanting to be back in Church is to hear a rousing sermon by the preacher you love. And that is not a bad reason at all! 

Bishop Richard Looney served at Telford UMC from 2009-2012

Craig Zirkle heard his call into pastoral ministry at Telford and is currently serving a charge in the Three Rivers District

One of the things I miss the most is preaching about the love and grace of God to a gathered together in-person group of people, and interacting with them through the dialogue of the sermon and Scripture. 

And yet we all have access to a wealth of sermons from books and the internet to TV. And while none of them can replace hearing "your" pastor speak directly to you (because she/he is the one who knows you and what you are going through and how the Scriptures directly relate to where you find yourselves), there is a good word in there to hear. 

And hopefully your pastor had been already teaching and preaching in a way to prepare you to hear words from others, and rightfully discern what is true and what is right, taking what you need and leaving what you don't.

As I write these words I would also say that I am teaching more now than I ever have. From Sunday morning worship services, to Facebook Live Bible study that is co-led with my wife, to a virtual Children's Sunday School and an upcoming Youth ZOOM group, the opportunities to engage have grown as opportunities to by physically with one another have been altered.  

So, why do you want to be "back in Church?"

While all of the reasons listed above, and probably more (yes, like potlucks!) are valid reasons that we can all identify with, I wonder if the real reason for us is that for perhaps for many years, this has been a place for us to feel the presence of God in a unique way. Yes, of course, God is always with us. There is no where that we can go that God is not (Psalm 139), and the Spirit of the living God dwells within us. 

But there are some places where we feel more, well, connected. And I wonder if the sanctuary, this "safe place", is one of these distintively special and holy places. 

I wonder if our reason for really wanting to be back in Church is as pure as the man I took to pray. 

A holy want and desire to simply sit in the presence of his Lord, to feel a sense of peace in a world that has been anything but peaceful in many ways as of late, to be in a place free of distractions and noises and competing voices so that the small, still, loving and accepting voice of the Holy Spirit could be heard, and discerned. 

After our 20 minutes were up I took him home. Then I went back to the sanctuary and sat in the darkening quiet space myself. And I realized in that moment why I want to be back in Church.