The Power of Patterns

I read an article recently on the ways that "privilege", in particular, "white privilege" shapes the world. The author cited examples and made her case that something as simple as the color of our skin can impact the quality of the opportunities that come our way, and ultimately the outcomes that we experience.

While she made a good point, I think she failed to demonstrate that skin color is only one of hundreds, if not thousands, of things that impact the way we get along in the world. In fact, our skin color may not be anywhere near the most important.

I have been thinking about another set of factors that have a large impact on our overall quality of life (however you choose to define 'quality'). These factors are the "patterns" or "habits" that become part of our daily, weekly and life-long approach to doing life.

Take, for example, the pattern of weekly church attendance and the decision to largely disengage from the regular weekly activities of work and entertainment for a single day. I'm talking about Sundays, or what some would refer to as a "Sabbath rest." I think it is fair to say that this pattern has been largely abandoned today, even among Christians. I say that not to scold or condemn, but only to point out that your actual approach to the week and to life will be significantly different if you choose to set Sunday apart for worship and for rest. Your Monday-Saturday will probably look different if you make a conscious decision to take Sunday off and devote much of the day to worship-gatherings and spiritual care for your body and soul.

My point in bringing up this particular pattern is that, in my experience, there is a substantially different quality of life enjoyed by those (no matter what their skin color, race, economic or social status is) who have put this pattern into practice. It is not that they don't have troubles. But there is a notable difference in, shall we say, the sort of "drama" that accompanies the lives of others that I either work with or know. Maybe it is an accountability thing. That could certainly be a part of the wisdom that God Himself determined would be good for mankind.

This pattern of a weekly day of rest ends up doing all sorts of things to the rest of our lives. It impacts, to some degree, the friends we keep. It impacts how we work on the other days. It influences the types of activities that we give our hearts to (will they intrude, regularly, into our day of rest?). It certainly forces us (in the best sense of that word) to take both a mental and physical break with such regularity that I wonder about the positive health implications that are enjoyed. I think there are arguably benefits that flow to families, children and marriages from this pattern of rest.

So, while the color of our skin may have some impact on the way in which we experience society and opportunities, I think it is unfair to ignore the impact of other things, like patterns of behavior and activity, which also influence our life. Our approach to Sunday is just one of those.

Of course, most readers will know that this pattern has its roots in the Bible. It appears to be something that God put in place from the very beginning, using His own example of a 6-day Creation to set the pattern for mankind to follow in our daily lives. The was re-affirmed in the 10 Commandments. Sanctified by the example of Jesus Himself in the Gospels. Followed by the early church, with the noticeable change of that "rest" day to Sunday, in honor of Christ's resurrection.

I wonder what other patterns impact the quality of the life we live. What daily habits influence our outcomes, or at least enable us to react to circumstances with maturity, grace and patience? It is tempting to think that things outside our control (like skin color or birth place) are the real reason for the quality of our lives. I suppose it is equally tempting to totally ignore those factors too. But I think we would do well to spend more time thinking about the things we can do, and have had consistent results, in the lives of those who do them. A pattern of Sunday rest and worship is just one of those things. But it may be worth thinking about.

The Beauty of Endurance

"But they who endure to the end shall be saved." Matthew 24:13


Endurance delights God. Christ specifically praises the Ephesian church in Revelation 2:3 saying "you have persevered and have patience...and have not become weary."

Endurance is not so beautiful to us. It is often painful. It isn't pretty. It isn't flashy.

Endurance has been called "long obedience in the same direction." Endurance means continuing in the faith even when, especially when, that faith is not popular with our culture.

John Bunyan in his classic Pilgrim's Progress wrote of those who enjoy religion, faith, church, prayers...only when they provided an advantage. He introduced Mr. By-ends who would profess his faith only when such actions were acceptable to those around. Mr. By-ends compares himself to others by saying "They are for Religion when in rags and contempt; but I am for him when he walks in his golden slippers, in the sunshine, and with applause."

Endurance means faith in Christ when such faith is viewed culturally "in rags and contempt."

I like what John Piper had to say about endurance, particularly about endurance within the church even when you are not in the limelight.

"Absolutely indispensable in the ongoing life of the church of God is the power to keep going month after month, year after year, even decade after decade in the path of obedience. And for many of us that will mean long-haul endurance in a particular ministry in spite of emotional and relational and spiritual and financial obstacles, even when the encouragements of the limelight and the attention and the glory and the admiration are gone, and we feel like the joys of life are passing us by.”

Churches can go through seasons of blessed growth. Things are exciting. Revival is grand. People are coming to faith, being baptized, following the Lord. Every meeting seems to have the aroma of joy and the Spirit's power. Thank the Lord for such times.

But endurance means continuing in faithfulness even when the numbers are declining. Interest is lagging. The excitement has died down. What happens then?

Endurance.

Christ delights as much in the enduring, though despised, church as He does over the church enjoying the blessings of growth, hearty fellowship and fruitful ministry. In fact, I think it pleases Him even more to see His children endure under seasons of affliction than it does when they obey in times of abundance. Paul calls the Lord in Romans 15:5 "The God of endurance...".

C.H. Spurgeon said "Faith healing is grand, but faith enduring is grander."

What about you and me?

Are we prepared to endure even when faith is unpopular? Will I keep going to church even if my particular ministry gets no attention? Do I have to be in the limelight to endure? Will I keep praying even when my prayers "appear" to go unanswered?

Endurance is the sweetest smelling flower of grace in the believer's garden. It is planted by God Himself. He waters it with grace. Christ loves endurance. He modeled it for us. "Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted."

Statistics suggest that suicide is a growing matter for concern. And it is. But I wonder if what we are seeing in the natural world is simply mimicking what has already occurred in the religious world. People are committing spiritual suicide by leaving the faith, quitting on Christ, giving themselves up to the world. The natural effects may be flowing from spiritual causes.

When you are tired, and feel like giving up, remember the beauty of endurance. Christ sees it differently than we do. From our side it looks rough, difficult, hard. It is. But from Christ's view in heaven endurance is a glorious thing. And what he promised to Paul, He promises to you: "My grace is sufficient, for My strength is made perfect in weakness."

A Word to Preachers

Though some might not call me an old man, I am surely no longer a young man. As such, I've learned some things. And one of the things that I have found true thus far in my Christian walk is the need in my soul for preaching. My innermost being needs it. My mind, soul and body needs to be preached to. My spiritual life is so very often fueled by the power of sermons. 

Conversations are pleasant. Reading is a treat. I'm grateful for the various channels of communication we have access to through television, radio, newspapers, email and the internet. But the one thing my soul desperately needs and cannot flourish without is preaching. A well-delivered sermon will pierce my heart in a way that no human book has ever done. Songs and music are pleasant. God bless the hymnists and accompanists that lift my spirit. But give me a man in the pulpit with a Bible in his hand, the Word of God on his lips, and a sermon flowing from his heart, and I shall be satisfied to set aside every other means ordained by God for the perfection of my soul. 

Oh I thank the Lord for the many means of grace He provides. Let no one mistake that I mean to discount the reading of the Word, public worship, the priority of prayer, the partaking of the sacraments, the usefulness of fasting, the blessedness of fellowship, the joy of singing and the many ways employed by the Spirit of God to shape us into the image of Christ. But I must acknowledge a special, God-ordained priority to preaching. 

Preaching has always been God's way. Noah, that ancient builder of the Ark, is not called a "craftsman" or "carpenter" but a "preacher of righteousness (2 Peter 2:5)." The prophets of old did many miracles, but preaching "Thus says the Lord" was the greatest part of their holy work. Even David, the sweet Psalmist of Israel, says "I have preached righteousness in the great congregation (Psalm 40:9)." When John the Baptist came on the scene, he came preaching. "And he preached, 'There comes One mightier than I, after me (Mark 1:7)." The apostles were told to go into all the world "and preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15)." Christ Himself declared the reason for His coming into the world and described it this way: "I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent (Luke 4:43)."  This is no mere personal preference I am promoting. It is the Bible, not me, that says "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace (Romans 10:15, Is 52:7)."  

Because all this is true, I wish to speak a very brief word to those who have been called to be preachers. I hope that a word from the pew will not be mistaken as presumptuous, wearisome, or rude. I dare say that a good chef will care about the appetite of the diner, though that diner be untrained in the culinary arts. A sheep may not know everything about the work of a shepherd, but it knows when it is being sheared. Though I do not know all the depths of the struggles of the preacher's life, I know when a sermon has blessed my soul, and when it has not. 

With that in mind, I humbly make the following requests of all preachers today. 

First, I implore preachers to come with a text of Scripture. Let me know what portion of God's holy Word you are serving me today. Show me where it is, read it to my ears, define for me the borders of your message. No man can preach the whole Bible in a sermon. Pick a text. As the Promised Land was carefully carved out for the 12 tribes, with exact dimensions and limits, so you must show me the Scriptural territory you intend to divide to my soul today. Don't tell me you have a topic, if you do not have a text. I frankly do not care much about the message on your heart if it is not based on a passage in the Word. The creative titles you give to your sermon series would probably be better served by the book, chapter and verses you plan to expound. Preach THE Word. 

Second, I insist you speak to me with the authority that is appropriate of a herald of the King. If you hope to be listened to like a prince, do not stand before me as a court jester. Unto you has been granted the privilege and power to proclaim the Word of the Lord. You are an ambassador of Christ sent to me with news from my Master. Proclaim it! Away with your whispering of the truth, your casual chats, your comical show. Stand before me as a messenger of the Lord of hosts. The authority of His Word matters to my heart. Does it matter to you? I come ready to hear what my Savior says, what the Holy Spirit wrote, what the Father wants me to know. The eternal Trinity has stooped to speak to my soul through preaching, do not dare disrespect His dignity by your flippancy. You, preacher, have nothing to be proud of. But you have plenty of reason to be bold.  Handle your text with the reverence and respect due such holy words. Show me that you are prepared to submit to whatever your text says, because it is the very Word of God, and I will submit with you most gladly.

Third, I demand you to be clear with me. Let me say it again: be clear! Preach the point of your text, and get to it as quickly as possible. Life is too short, eternity too long, and my soul too needy to waste 30 minutes on your jibber-jabber. Let me know what the Lord is saying. Convince me that you have understood the Scripture and are about to explain it to me. Leave your messy study notes in your office. Your sermon must be an arrow: straight and sharp. Get to it. If you bumble your way through the passage your hearer's hearts won't be blessed, but by a miracle. Don't just walk me through the text. Preach it. Have a point and make it. If your hearer does not walk away having better understood the Scripture as a result of your sermon then you have not preached, you have only talked. Preach the Word clearly. This is the hard work you have been called to. Do it. Study, pray, weep, and think hard to know the meaning of your passage. Make it plain to me. Help me to understand. Use illustrations or quotes appropriately to nail the meaning in my mind. Do not assume my brain and heart are ready in an instant to understand what took you hours and days to discover. Preaching sloppy sermons is easy. Preaching pointedly is hard. I beg you from the bottom of my soul: do that difficult work.

My dear preacher friend, you have been called to the most noble work in this world. The rest of us may do good work, important work, appointed work...but you alone are doing lasting work. Heaven and hell will forever display the results of your holy employment. Christ alone will have the glory. And every man must answer in eternity for their own response to your gospel. But you have been set aside as a special instrument to preach to immortal beings about the only thing that truly matters in life. May the weight of this responsibility drive you more and more to Christ who is more than able to hold you up. Preacher, you are a gift from Christ to His church. I am sorry if you are not told that often enough. I commend you to the Lord and desire only that you stir up that gift that is in you to the salvation of many souls. 

To God be the Glory. 

A Sabbath Day's Journey...

"Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey" Acts 1:12


"They" were the apostles, and they had just witnessed the ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ on the Mount of Olives. What should they do now? Jesus told them. He commanded them "not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father," that is, the Holy Spirit. Christ's body had left, but His word and authority remained. They obeyed their departed Savior's instruction. They returned from Mount Olivet to Jerusalem.

Then comes this strange little tidbit of information. Luke tells us that from Olivet to Jerusalem was  "a Sabbath day's journey." What does that mean, and why include it here?

What it means is impossible to know from the Bible alone, as this is the only place this phrase occurs in Scripture. But Jewish historians have confirmed from other sources that the distance is precisely 2,000 cubits, or just over half a mile.

At some point in Jewish history it appears to have become acceptable to travel this short distance on the Sabbath, but no further. Thus the distance is termed "a Sabbath day's journey." Maybe it was an attempt to further clarify the meaning of Exodus 16:29 where Moses commanded the wandering Israelites saying "let no man go out of his place on the seventh day." The context there was the gathering of manna. But maybe to accommodate the walk to the tabernacle for worship, a distance of 2,000 cubits would have to be permitted. Anything beyond that was apparently "work," and forbidden by the 4th commandment.

So maybe this "Sabbath day's journey" is a leftover expression from the OT era, important to a manna-gathering, tabernacle-visiting people but no one else.

But if so...why would Luke, and more importantly the Holy Spirit Himself, preserve this curious phrase for NT readers like ourselves if it was to become irrelevant to our modern situation?

Maybe because the phrase is not irrelevant at all. Maybe it is more important now and to our generation than ever before.

Think about it. The "Sabbath day's journey" was an attempt to limit the intrusion of busyness into a day designed for God's people to rest. We need this reminder too. The concept of a weekly day of rest was God's idea from creation. Jews practiced this on the seventh day. Today Christians celebrate this on Sunday. But the ordinance comes from creation, and found expression in the very moral law of God alongside other perpetual commands concerning things like idolatry, adultery and murder.

Are we not living in a culture that offers us 24/7 opportunities for a hurried, busy, constantly-going lifestyle? And has not the church bought into this mentality by virtually abandoning any notion of a "Lord's day" in our preaching and teaching to modern Christians? We have adopted the mindset that as long as you can make it to church (most of the time), the rest of the day is yours. Shop, play, work, exercise, entertain...whatever you want. The concept of a restful day to care mostly for the needs of our souls has vanished.

We don't want to become legalists. The scribes and Pharisees apparently took this notion of a "Sabbath day's journey" and found ways to extend their travel by randomly assigning any spot, such as a tree, as their "new home" and could thus travel an additional 2,000 cubits further to get to wherever they wanted to go. This is hypocrisy, not piety. They entirely missed the spirit of the rule. What was designed as a practical way to encourage a peaceful, restful, God-centered day, they took as nothing but a burden, and looked for loopholes to get around it.

What is our "Sabbath day's journey?" What are the practical restrictions we have prayerfully placed in our lives to promote the Lord's Day as a day of resting in Christ, both physically and spiritually? Maybe not doing routine housework and yard work on Sunday is a good one. What about committing to both a morning and evening worship service, to protect the day from other intruding obligations? What about refraining, as much as possible, from activities which require other people to work for the sake of our entertainment or refreshment? What about asking the boss to have Sunday's off?

Again, I don't think we become legalists simply by seeking practical ways to promote piety and the keeping of the 4th commandment. Modern conveniences and technology such as cars allow us to travel greater distances without the day become excessively busy or exhausting. But they can also easily become a convenient way to avoid the rest which the Lord has wisely prescribed for our body and soul.

Our culture wants us to bear the yoke of perpetual activity. We feel the need to be constantly "moving and doing" or our lives are simply not worth living. The horror of inactivity is implied by advertisers and social media which tell us if we are not constantly doing something worth sharing...we are unimportant and insignificant as human beings. Oh how much better is the yoke of Christ, who said "my burden is easy" and in Him "you will find rest for your souls."

Shall We Indeed Accept Good from God...

"Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?" Job 2:10

The hand of faith accepts what God gives, be it good or bad. The eye of faith looks mostly upon the Giver and not the gift. Our comfort is not in our lot but in our Lord.

Notice...

Note that Job not merely "experienced" adversity, but "accepted" it. To accept adversity is an act of faith. Many experience trials, but do not accept them. The Christian must give lodging to every affliction sent by the Lord as he would his closest friend who needs a room.

Note also that Job did not "enjoy" adversity, but "accepted" it. Job was no lover of pain. He did not pretend it pleased his flesh, but he nevertheless receives it willingly into his heart. Christ Himself felt the agonies of the cross, but accepted the thorns and nails. So every Christian must accept every affliction given by God, though the pain is deeply felt.

But how? How does one accept adversity in this way?

1) See God's hand in it For Job, this was all "from God." It was not fate, or chance, or luck. It was not man's doing ultimately. Every affliction of God's people is by His design. His hand has measured it out. His arm delivered it. His mind planned it. Every attribute of the Triune God was employed in the creation of this affliction: His sovereignty, omniscience, holiness, justice and love. Our trials live on earth, but they were born in heaven.

2) See God's heart in it. Every affliction is intended for our good. Every trial flows from His love. Behind a frowning Providence He hides a smiling face. When He gives weeping for a night, He plans joy for the morning. His tender affection accompanies even the toughest affliction.

Oh my soul. Look up. He who has given us His Son, will He not also give us all things? Can the Lord ever forget those for whom His Son gave His life and died? Accept this affliction from Him. Receive it. Make room for it. Even welcome it as He truly intends it for our good, and not for evil.