Sanam Doctrinam

Hello to all. So I wonder if I should seriously turn this over to Toddy, since in reality, he is the only one who blogs here anymore. My schedule has just become to hectic. A note for those who might listen to my sermon series. Some of the messages in “Jason’s Sermons” will actually be interns of mine. In the Summer we bring on interns and sometimes they preach, and it all goes to the same “sermon area” of our website. So if you click on a sermon and it doesn’t sound like me, then it probably isn’t.

Cheers!

The rich and the poor have a common bond,
The LORD is the maker of them all.

Proverbs 22:2

It occurs to me again and again that the things that impress me do not impress God. Jesus said this very thing in Luke 16:15 when he said, “that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.” The realm of heaven has a dramatically different value system than that of earth. And, I might add, every one of us is in constant danger of contamination by the value system of the world.

When we size people up, what impresses us? (May I ask you to do a bit of self-evaluation at this point?) I can speak from my heart when I say that the things that impress me about people are their wealth, their influence, their intelligence, and their skill. It’s deeply convicting to me when I consider that none of these are the things that God places value on in His Word.

I have sought to make Jeremiah 9:23-24 an anchor in my life: “Thus says the LORD, ‘Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things,’ declares the LORD.”

Jeremiah tells us that what matters in heaven is not what we possess, but rather the intimacy we’ve cultivated with our Creator. It strikes me that what God values is not what we’ve been given by Him, but rather how we use it.

If I can redirect our attention to today’s proverb, we’ll see Solomon points out that despite the radical apparent differences between the homeless person at the downtown rescue mission and a Fortune 500 CEO, they possess a tremendous commonality before God.

I think today’s proverb is an example of one that implies more than it says. The point of the proverb as I see it is not simply that rich and poor people are both created by God, which might seem rather obvious, but rather that people, regardless of their station in life, have what they have only on the basis of grace. Apart from the Lord creating them, preserving them, and blessing them with what they have, all people would have nothing, and what’s more, would cease to exist (see Job 34:14-15).

Perhaps Proverbs 22:2 is, more than anything, a wake up call for us to emerge from the comfort in our world’s values and to return to what really matters. Regardless of our station in life, we are where we are only because of God’s grace.

It falls to us to reorient to our Lord’s value system as we come to know Him.

The horse is prepared for the day of battle,
But victory belongs to the LORD.

Proverbs 21:31

“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” That’s good counsel. We have to make plans in order to chart our course to our goals. A plan can be as simple as a list of stores we need to visit as we run an errand, or as complex as a blueprint for a commercial building.

In a previous Monday Musing, I’ve discussed the importance of planning in pencil—of recognizing that things may not go according to our plan.

Today’s proverb tells us about the final arbiter when it comes to our plans. In so doing, it tells us about the One to whom we must look for success in our every endeavor.

Solomon appealed to military imagery when he spoke about Yahweh of Armies and His sovereign control of the outcome of human planning. He starts his proverb by speaking of the horse. The horse was the armored Humvee of the ancient world. For a soldier to have a horse ready for battle would have been considered the highest level of preparedness.

While a soldier may make every possible preparation for battle, Solomon says that God is ultimately the One who holds the power to decide the outcome.

Proverbs 21:31 reminds me of the story of Ahab in 1 Kings 22. Ahab took every precaution to ensure his safety in battle. Besides being in a chariot, he disguised himself so he could not be recognized as king. Nevertheless, the text says “at random” a soldier shot an arrow that found its way to Ahab, resulting in his death. Ahab planned carefully. God did not grant him victory.

All this points to an oft-neglected but perfectly vital truth: We are totally dependent upon God for everything. In Psalm 127, Solomon wrote some words that closely mirror what he wrote in today’s proverb: “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman keeps awake in vain.”

Builders and watchmen engage in exercises of futility while doing their job, if God does not will their success.

Do we recognize the truth of our proverb today? Perhaps we are floating through life, ascribing our success and accomplishments to our own abilities, strength, or intelligence. Solomon says that these are not the things that ultimately matter. God is He who reigns and rules and is the ultimate Provider of success.

Perhaps it would be well for us to take a moment now, and acknowledge God as the Giver of any success or blessing we have enjoyed. Preparation is good, but uncoupled from the provision of God, it will never bring us success.

The king’s heart is like channels of water in the hand of the LORD;
He turns it wherever He wishes.

Proverbs 21:1

Considering all the hassles of public office, we might expect these positions to be unsought. Who would want to experience the criticism, disappointments, and stress that being in a position in government brings? There is one thing that allures people to public office, however: power. People seek such positions because of the influence that comes with them. Public office seekers may be power-hungry, or may simply want to have a maximal influence on society, and they feel this will come through elected positions. Whatever the case, it’s undeniable that a measure of authority is intrinsic to public office.

If it is true today that elected officials possess power in their political offices, it was most certainly true of Middle Eastern monarchies. Kings were not elected; they came to power through lineage, assassination, or political maneuvering. Once king, their power was absolute. They were the autocrats of the world, and everyone knew it.

What’s interesting about today’s proverb is that Solomon says these kings of old did not have unlimited power. There was yet another ruler above them: Yahweh, the King over all the earth.
The ancient prophet Jeremiah knew this when he wrote, “But the LORD is the true God; He is the living God and the everlasting King. At His wrath the earth quakes, and the nations cannot endure His indignation.” His authority is over all (Ephesians 4:6). He reigns and rules and no one can restrain Him or ask Him what He is doing (Daniel 4:35).

They way Solomon describes God in this verse may seem a bit foreign to us. He says that Yahweh directs the king’s heart like channels of water. The picture here is that of a garden or field that is watered by canals whose flow is regulated by gardeners. The gardeners directed the flow of water to the areas where the ground needed it.

God, Solomon says, directs the king’s heart—His will—wherever He wants. The king and all his subjects may think that his power is absolute, but it’s not.

How does this apply to us? The great significance for us here is that government officials, no matter how powerful and imposing, are never beyond the reach of God’s arm. And God’s arm is never beyond the reach of our prayers. We are told to pray for those in positions of power for the purpose that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in righteousness (1 Timothy 2:1-2).

We can at times feel like pawns in the hands of those who are in authority over us and who make decisions for us. We’re not. God reigns and rules over all. If we know Him through faith in His Son, we have access to the true King. No one can thwart or resist Him, even the most powerful of earthly rulers. Mary Queen of Scots is reputed to have said, “I fear the prayers of John Knox more than all the assembled armies of Europe.” If she was sincere when she said this, her fear was justified. We serve a God in whose hand the hearts of the greatest human rulers are but channels of water.

Hey everyone. We had a great time in Central London today. It really was a full day. From start to finish it was 12 hours. We took the “tube” to everywhere we went, thinking back on it, it was like a really strange marathon! Jumping from one train to another with 12 people, whew, it wore us out!

I will let your loved ones share with you, their expereiences, but for now, I leave you and audio file of a conversation between myself and Tommy. Click here and enjoy.