God’s Righteous

30 May 2001

And, being assembled together with them, He commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me, for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” Therefore when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And He said to them, “It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power, when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you have seen Him go into heaven. (Acts 4:4-11)

Therefore understand today that the Lord your God is He who goes over before you as a consuming fire. He will destroy them and bring them down before you; so you shall drive them out and destroy them quickly, as the Lord has said to you.

“Do not think in your heart, after the Lord your God has cast them out before you, saying, 'Because of my righteousness the Lord has brought me in to possess this land'; but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving them out from before you. It is not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart that you go in to possess their land, but because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God drives them out from before you, and that He may fulfill the word which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Therefore understand that the Lord your God is not giving you this good land to possess because of your righteousness, for you are a stiff-necked people.

“Remember. Do not forget how you provoked the Lord your God to wrath in the wilderness. From the day that you departed from the land of Egypt until you came to this place, you have been rebellious against the Lord. Also in Horeb you provoked the Lord to wrath, so that the Lord was angry enough with you to have destroyed you. (Deuteronomy 9: 3-8)

FROM DEPTHS OF WOE I RAISE TO THEE

Link available at: http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/f/r/fromdepw.htm

“Out of the depths I cry to Thee, O Lord.” Psalm 130:1

Words: Martin Luther, 1523 (Aus tiefer Noth schrei ich zu dir); composite translation.

Music: “Aus Tiefer Not”; melody by Martin Luther, 1524, arranged in Gesangbüchlein, by Johann Walter, 1524; Alternate tune: “Allein Gott in der Höh’ Sei Ehr’,” Deutsch Evangelisch Messze, 1539

From depths of woe I raise to Thee

The voice of lamentation;

Lord, turn a gracious ear to me

And hear my supplication;

If Thou iniquities dost mark,

Our secret sins and misdeeds dark,

O who shall stand before Thee?

To wash away the crimson stain,

Grace, grace alone availeth;

Our works, alas! are all in vain;

In much the best life faileth:

No man can glory in Thy sight,

All must alike confess Thy might,

And live alone by mercy.

Therefore my trust is in the Lord,

And not in mine own merit;

On Him my soul shall rest, His Word

Upholds my fainting spirit:

His promised mercy is my fort,

My comfort, and my sweet support;

I wait for it with patience.

What though I wait the livelong night,

And till the dawn appeareth,

My heart still trusteth in His might;

It doubteth not nor feareth:

Do thus, O ye of Israel’s seed,

Ye of the Spirit born indeed;

And wait till God appeareth.

Though great our sins and sore our woes,

His grace much more aboundeth;

His helping love no limit knows,

Our utmost need it soundeth.

Our Shepherd good and true is He,

Who will at last His Israel free.

From all their sin and sorrow.

When I was in college I was always fascinated, when studying natural ecology, how quickly one would move beyond the available literature and find oneself learning things that know one else had ever discovered. In that way however, if one was not careful, you could loose the vision of the forest as you became immersed in the complexities of the trees.

To a certain extent the gospel is that type of undertaking. One must view and accept it as a little child, but from that starting point, one can begin an understanding of the depth of God’s love that uniquely moves beyond the ability of language to convey. Contrary to the study of creation however, the gospel and the specific revelation of the redeeming work of Jesus Christ, is a sovereign calling by God’s grace, and not something we begin or carry out on our own. But in it’s depth,we each find and have a part to play, unique as each individual personality. We have freedom to move beyond the view of the church triumphant and get lost in the application of individual revelation and its disease, losing our view again of the magnificent forest that surrounds us.

This week’s article was my attempt to again focus upon that wonderful gift of grace, which we must accept by faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. For as Luther says at the end of his song, “Our Shepherd good and true is He, Who will at last His Israel free. From all their sin and sorrow.”

Seeds for Prayer

The events of the last few weeks, should have been a time of amusement, as many petty things seemed to just fall apart. Perhaps, the most amusing should be a story about an electric toothbrush. But as of this writing that story is still unfolding. I, however have not always looked at events with humor, but many times of frustration and ridicule. In handling these simple things perhaps I could give myself a C-. Not such a good grade, that I reckoned I would receive. In that light I have been conscious not to ask for something more challenging. But in these petty minute things I have again been forced to understand the need for the cross and its cleansing power. What a marvelous gift, that we have been given to share with a lost and dying world, and a church that has many times got lost in the forest of legalistic works and dogma. Let us all thank God for His finished work and the rest we so often forfeit.

In the simplicity of these events, and to proceed further toward completing our move, there is still a need for seed capital and other liquidity as the Lord should provide, as well as persons to bring it all about. I still do not understand what more I can do other than continue to write this weekly letter. May you find it a blessing and continue to intercede for the Lord’s provision.