[ 13th May 2012 ] Blog from the Pastor ...
When I first read Psalm 132 many, many years ago I remember that it had an electrifying effect on me. Even now, when I read the words contained in verses 1-5 it stirs my spirit. Just take a look at these words:-
He swore an
oath to the Lord and made a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob:
I will
not enter my house or go to my bed –
I will allow no sleep to my
eyes, no slumber to my eyelids, till I find a place for the Lord, a
dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob.
David made a vow to put God first and to build God’s kingdom. He made a vow to do whatever it takes to build God’s house, even forsaking sleep and rest. Now I believe that it is because He put God first that he was able to endure every hardship that came his way. He was looking towards something much higher and something much better.
In these days as we commit ourselves to build God’s house we must understand that our commitment cannot be a whim. It must have some solid resolve behind it like David, because without that we will never endure. I think that it was Peter Godward who said to us recently that if we are not experiencing attacks from the devil then there is something wrong with our Christianity. When we actively work towards building God’s kingdom our efforts will attract strong opposition from the enemy. Therefore, we should expect hardships and prepare ourselves so that we can endure them all.
What do you do to make sure that you will endure and not give way to despair, depression and defeat? There are a few things that keep my feet on the ground and my resolve intact. The greatest of these is the knowledge of my salvation.
I constantly remind myself that I am saved by grace through faith. In plain language, I remind myself that I have been saved by the blood of Jesus even though there is absolutely no possibility whatsoever of me ever having done anything worthy to deserve His salvation. I retain a deep conviction in my spirit regarding sin because I know that sin still lives in me (Romans 7:17). It causes me to shudder now that I am fully aware of how utterly abhorrent sin is to God. I know that without Jesus I am fully exposed to the fearsome wrath of God, and there is nothing that I can do or say that would ever come anywhere close to affording me any protection at all. That does not mean that I live in fear, guilt and shame. I try to live in humility under the covering of the righteousness of my Lord Jesus, and I know that under that covering I am saved!
The closer that we get to God the greater our conviction will be about sin. That is why we should make it a daily practice to keep God front and centre in everything that we do. The purpose is not to fill us with guilt and shame but to give us zero tolerance for sin. Closeness to God will result in a hatred for sin because we realise just how much damage sin does to our lives. That revelation cannot fail to awaken within us a revulsion for everything that is sinful. With the power of the Holy Spirit we can overcome sin. With the fear of God we can resist sin. With the Word of God we can be fully assured that one day we shall be permanently free of every trace of sin.
One of the truly wonderful things about salvation is that it liberates us to fully acknowledge our failings without fear. Salvation removes the pressure that so many suffer from – the pressure to constantly justify oneself. How frequently I have heard people point to the ‘good’ things that they do with the question, “Surely God would not condemn me for these things?” It is true!!! God does not condemn us for the right things that we do, we stand condemned because of sin in our lives! We must never fall into the trap of hiding behind ‘good works’. Instead, we should always be prepared to fully acknowledge our sin, and recognise how desperately we need Jesus as our Saviour.
What a relief it was for me when I first found Jesus to discover that I did not have to try to earn His approval. What a relief it was for me to know that despite knowing everything about me He still forgave me. What a huge relief it was for me to know that I did not have to try to hide the ‘ugly’ side of me from Him for fear that He would reject me. I was able to relax completely knowing that Jesus’ love for me would never fail. My heart filled with joy!
Such thoughts constitute the helmet of salvation. Salvation is described by Paul as a helmet because it protects our thought life. Are you hard pressed? Think on your salvation. Are you depressed and feeling down? Think on your salvation. Have you ‘blown it’ it this week? Think on your salvation, ask for God’s forgiveness, and experience his release in your spirit. Are you tired, sick, harassed, lonely, fed up, discouraged, disillusioned or generally feeling battered by life. THINK ON YOUR SALVATION! Ask God for a deeper revelation of the debt that has been paid for you. Such revelation will sweep away any such feelings of despair like a great Tsunami of the Holy Spirit. In the midst of defeat, after committing adultery with Bathsheba, David cried out to God in Psalm 51:-
“Restore to
me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain
me.” Ps 51:12
It will not surprise you if I told you that many times in my Christian walk I have lost the joy of my salvation. As I look back this has always been because I have allowed my focus to switch to the things of this world. There are many things that can bring stress into our lives and they can so easily take our focus off of God. We can so easily forget the enormity of what Jesus did for us at the cross and feel like giving up. We say it many times but the truth is that that is just what the devil wants!!! It is his aim and his goal to get each one of us to give up on our efforts to build God’s house.
David made a vow. It was not easy for him to keep that vow. He endured many hardships as a result of that vow, but the key point is that he did ENDURE. Let me encourage you today to protect yourself against despair by strengthening your mind with a daily reminder of your salvation. With that thought kept alive and strong in your mind you can put to flight every suggestion from the enemy to give up. Try it! It works. That is why it is written in God’s word. Put on the helmet of salvation and you will win the battle of the mind, and you will endure in your faith.
You know that many (if not all) of us lose sleep over all kinds of things that are going on in our lives. There are so many things that break into our lives to rob us of our peace and rest. I know only too well that it is difficult to put things out of your mind when your head hits the pillow, and regrettably I have lost my fair share of sleep worrying about things instead of sleeping. It is very tiring when that happens and loss of sleep can only make things worse, not better. Worry never solves anything!
In contrast, Psalm 132 tells us that David deliberably chose to go without sleep in order that he might labour for the Lord. What a great example for us. If we are going to lose sleep let us make sure that our loss of sleep brings something profitable, and what could be more profitable than labouring for the Lord. It reminds me of something I saw once about the revival that occurred many years ago in the Hebrides. Prior to the revival the folks living on the islands took to prayer, and their burden to pray was such that ‘their need to pray overtook their need to sleep’. Sounds like a great example of what David experienced.
Sometimes, of course, we do need to rest to avoid burnout. So, when are bodies are saying to us that it is time to rest, let’s make sure that we rest. I was struck by an incident that I read once about the Duke of Wellington. On the eve of the battle of Waterloo when he would have to face Napoleon’s armies the Duke’s officers came to him in the evening and asked him “What are your plans now?” He replied, “I plan to sleep gentlemen” and he promptly did just that. We can learn from that too. We may have some major battles to face in the morning, but we can face them much better if we allow the peace of God to rule in our hearts, flowing from the knowledge that our salvation is secure (the great battle is already won), and letting our lives to be dominated by faith instead of fear and worry.
Think on your salvation – it makes all the difference!Dean.
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