God’s law

Shaking and Quaking

Posted on by Betsy

Last week I sat in the living room listening to a two-year old and his grandfather as they were playing. Using magnetic pieces of plastic and a lot of imagination, they were building things. A structure was built and then the two-year old would yell, “Layne runned over it!” and suddenly the structure they had put together was demolished. Then the process would start over again. With Godzilla-like power, buildings fell under his tiny but mighty foot, and the grandfather laughed and laughed.

Our Psalm today talks about the power of God in similar terms. God is strong. The Lord is great. The nations shake and the earth quakes in his presence:

Psalm 99 (Common English Bible)

The Lord rules—
    the nations shake!
    He sits enthroned on the winged heavenly creatures—
    the earth quakes!
2 The Lord is great in Zion;
    he is exalted over all the nations.
3 Let them thank your great and awesome name.
    He is holy!

4 Strong king who loves justice,
    you are the one who established what is fair.
    You worked justice and righteousness in Jacob.

We see a different aspect of God’s power now, as the psalmist extols God’s love for justice and righteousness. These are qualities of strength that we need in our leaders. God is our strong king, and no human power can compare.

5 Magnify the Lord, our God!
    Bow low at his footstool!
    He is holy!
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
    Samuel too among those who called on his name.
They cried out to the Lord, and he himself answered them—
7     he spoke to them from a pillar of cloud.
They kept the laws and the rules God gave to them.

In recalling the leaders of the past, the psalmist points to the covenant relationship of a God who rules through designated people. The laws and rules of God allow the covenant relationship to flourish when both sides adhere to God’s will and God’s rule. You can see the admiration the psalmist has for a God who speaks to his people from a pillar of cloud and answers them when the cry out to him.

8 Lord our God, you answered them.
    To them you were a God who forgives
    but also the one who avenged their wrong deeds.

Are you crying out to God today? Do you need the benefit of his power, the gentleness of his forgiveness, the satisfaction of his vengeance, and the swift relief of his answer? Our psalm today reminds us to cry out to him, and he will answer. When we submit our situation to our mighty God, he comes to our aid. It is time to bow low before him.
9 Magnify the Lord our God!
    Bow low at his holy mountain
    because the Lord our God is holy!

Magnify! by Michelle Robertson

Gladdened Hearts

Posted on by Betsy

You may recognize the phrase ”May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, Lord.” Perhaps you have heard a pastor pray this out loud just before s/he begins a sermon. When you hear this, you are actually hearing a quote from a Psalm. Personally, I don’t pray this before I preach … I silently pray, ”HELP ME, JESUS!” before I stand up. That is all I can muster in that moment of sheer panic. Luckily for me, Jesus is always nearby. Mind you, I still have preached some real clunkers, but I have yet to faint or throw up, so I call that a win.

Psalm 19 is a beautiful way for us to begin this week. The language is lush with images of heaven, sky, night, sun, and gladdened hearts.

Our hearts should be gladdened whenever we read Scripture! God calls us to meet him in his holy word and we always experience his presence there. Even when the word is harsh and convicting, we still feel the comfort of knowing that he heals the repentant heart and forgives all our sins when we respond in obedience to his Spirit.

Read this and imagine the words coming to life in your imagination. Then read it again for meaning and understanding. God’s law is as sweet as a honeycomb and his creation sings of his glory! Let us partake.

Psalm 19 (Common English Bible)

Heaven is declaring God’s glory;
    the sky is proclaiming his handiwork.
2 One day gushes the news to the next,
    and one night informs another what needs to be known.
3 Of course, there’s no speech, no words—
        their voices can’t be heard—
4     but their sound extends throughout the world;
        their words reach the ends of the earth.

God has made a tent in heaven for the sun.
5 The sun is like a groom
    coming out of his honeymoon suite;
    like a warrior, it thrills at running its course.
6 It rises in one end of the sky;
    its circuit is complete at the other.
        Nothing escapes its heat.

7 The Lord’s Instruction is perfect,
    reviving one’s very being.
The Lord’s laws are faithful,
    making naive people wise.
8 The Lord’s regulations are right,
    gladdening the heart.
The Lord’s commands are pure,
    giving light to the eyes.
9 Honoring the Lord is correct,
    lasting forever.
The Lord’s judgments are true.
    All of these are righteous!
10 They are more desirable than gold—
        than tons of pure gold!
    They are sweeter than honey—
        even dripping off the honeycomb!
11 No doubt about it:
    your servant is enlightened by them;
    there is great reward in keeping them.
12 But can anyone know
    what they’ve accidentally done wrong?
    Clear me of any unknown sin
13         and save your servant from willful sins.
        Don’t let them rule me.
Then I’ll be completely blameless;
    I’ll be innocent of great wrongdoing.

14 Let the words of my mouth
    and the meditations of my heart
    be pleasing to you,
    Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

May your rock and your redeemer be in the forefront of everything you see, do, and say today.

The Sun is Like a Warrior by Michelle Robertson

Dress the Part

Posted on by Betsy

Back in the day, airline employees and their families were required to wear “first-class appropriate” attire in order to fly free on an empty seat on the plane. This was an attempt to have non-revenue passengers blend in with those who paid thousands of dollars for their seats, especially in the event that first class seats were open. It made sense for a while….right up until the point that revenue first class passengers began to wear pajama pants with oversized sweatshirts on the plane. It took awhile, but the airlines eventually relaxed their non-rev travel dress requirements. Until that happened, you could instantly spot the airline families…we were the ones who were blatantly over-dressed for the trip.

This policy was taken very seriously when it was in place. Women had to wear panty hose with skirts and dresses, or wear dress pants. Denim of any kind was verboten, and wearing it was a quick way to be denied boarding.

I remember a trip where I had carefully selected a belted shirt-waist dress in a light blue chambray, and wore the required panty hose and dress shoes. The gate agent came over and told me that there was a first class seat open, but he could not seat me there because of my denim dress. I held out my sleeve as proof and explained that chambray was a men’s dress shirt fabric and not denim, but he would not budge. I can promise you that I never traveled in that dress again.

When the standards are high, you need to pay attention and follow the rules.

Psalm 15 is a writing that pulls no punches when it describes the rules and standards for those who will be allowed to live in God’s tent on the holy mountain, or risk being denied boarding. Take a look, but I’ll warn you….it’s a little scary:

Psalm 15 (Common English Bible)

Who can live in your tent, Lord?
    Who can dwell on your holy mountain?
2 The person who
    lives free of blame,
    does what is right,
        and speaks the truth sincerely;
3     who does no damage with their talk,
    does no harm to a friend,
    doesn’t insult a neighbor;

This list of appropriate behaviors is admirable, worthy, and very daunting. It is a reminder to us every day to strive to do better in our actions. We, who are the people of God, should be known in our community as those who adhere to a certain way of life that includes speaking truth sincerely and never hurting our friends and neighbors with our talk. God expects us to do what it right.

We continue:

4     someone who despises
        those who act wickedly,
        but who honors those
        who honor the Lord;
    someone who keeps their promise even when it hurts;
5     someone who doesn’t lend money with interest,
    who won’t accept a bribe against any innocent person.

Keeping this list in the forefront of our minds as we begin each day is helpful in remembering what is pleasing to the Lord. If we are faithful to his call to be upright and free from blame, our feet will not stray from his path.

Whoever does these things will never stumble.

It bears mentioning that this psalm is not a prescription for “works righteousness,” where people mistakenly believe that you can earn your way into heaven. No indeed, we can only approach the holy mountain because of the unmerited love of God and the shed blood of the atonement by Jesus. It is only by grace that we are saved, and not by any actions we might do.

So why the list?

To keep you on the straight and narrow so that you remember both God’s standards and God’s promises, and more importantly, so that you won’t stumble on your way up the holy mountain and cause others who are watching you to stumble in their faith as well.

So keep on climbing. Keep on bearing witness to the Good News. Make the changes in your attitudes or actions that this Psalm has brought to your attention. Make sure you are dressing the part of a follower of Christ. Your first-class seat is open….welcome aboard!

Ready to Board by Katie Bartoo

Gladdening the Heart

Posted on by Betsy

What rules did you have to obey as a kid? Every family establishes its own set of house rules so that order is maintained and fairness is achieved. In my house, there were rules around homework, bedtime, respect for one another, taking turns, and not chewing with your mouth open. That last one was so strongly enforced that, as an adult, I have had to walk away from people who chew with their mouths open. There is some remnant of a childhood aversion in my spirit that makes me not be able to tolerate the breaking of this particular rule, as though a punishment is going to come down from heaven and I don’t want to be any part of that.

Plus, it’s gross!

We appreciate the safety net that society’s rules and regulations place around us. Don’t speed. Don’t run though red lights. Place your trash cans on the curb on certain days. No swimming without lifeguards. Rules are good for us.

In today’s Psalm, David celebrates the laws and instructions that God has laid down for his people. David knows firsthand the chaos and devastation that come when you break the rules, as he personally violated all of the Ten Commandments and experienced the misery of living outside of God’s safety and provision.

Psalm 19 (Common English Bible)

The Lord’s Instruction is perfect,
    reviving one’s very being.
The Lord’s laws are faithful,
    making naive people wise.
8 The Lord’s regulations are right,
    gladdening the heart.
The Lord’s commands are pure,
    giving light to the eyes.
9 Honoring the Lord is correct,
    lasting forever.
The Lord’s judgments are true.
    All of these are righteous!
10 They are more desirable than gold—
        than tons of pure gold!
    They are sweeter than honey—
        even dripping off the honeycomb!

David’s love of the law almost goes overboard here. He declares that the law is more desirable than tons of gold and sweeter than honey dripping off the honeycomb. As we say, there is nothing stronger than the testimony of a reformed sinner! He has seen both sides of the law and knows that staying on the right side of it is far preferable to the punishment that comes from breaking it. Remember, he lost a son because of his sin.

11 No doubt about it:
    your servant is enlightened by them;
    there is great reward in keeping them.
12 But can anyone know
    what they’ve accidentally done wrong?
    Clear me of any unknown sin
13         and save your servant from willful sins.
        Don’t let them rule me.
Then I’ll be completely blameless;
    I’ll be innocent of great wrongdoing.

David’s plea to be cleared of any unknown sin is a reminder to us today to be diligent in reading God’s instruction for our lives. During Lent, we are called to immerse ourselves in scripture everyday. This is a call that will last past Easter and should be the “rule of law” for every day of our lives.

So good for you…you have read scripture today! Like David, we are enlightened by studying God’s commands. Our hearts are gladdened when we read and obey.

Gladdened Hearts by Jessica Spiegelblatt