When the wicked look for God, He will be far from them. On the other hand, God hears the prayers of the righteous, even when they are for the wicked. This reminds me that I need to pray especially for the wicked, they are the ones who need it the most.
This psalm (Psalm 119) is a long psalm. The first couple times I blogged on it I did not realize that there was a theme that runs through this whole psalm. Even then I lost track of the theme by the time I got to the end (I cover Psalm 119 over a period of several days). I am going to try to keep track of the theme this year.
And what is that theme? The importance, value, and results of listening to, and following, God’s commands. In the first stanza the psalmist tells us that following God’s instruction will bring us joy. Following his further advice, I will not compromise with evil, I will only walk on the paths to which God directs me. I will call on the Lord to direct my actions so that they reflect God’s decrees.
In the second stanza the psalmist tells us that the key to staying pure is obeying God’s word. He goes on to remind us of the value of memorizing Scripture and repeating it to ourselves and others. I am convicted that I should commit more Scripture to memory when I read this stanza of this psalm.
Peter did not want to allow Jesus to wash his feet because he felt that it was he who should be subservient to Jesus. When Jesus told him that he would not belong to Jesus unless he allowed Him to wash him, Peter wanted Jesus to wash all of him. But that was not what was needed.
Mennonites have traditionally practiced footwashing because it reflects a core understanding about Scripture for them. Jesus calls us as Christians to serve others, but the reciprocal nature of feetwashing reminds us that we should also allow others to serve us. It is not for us to demand that others serve us. However, when others desire to serve us we should allow them to do so.
This passage shows us the how Joab, David’s nephew, managed to protect his position as commander of David’s (and thus Israel’s) armies. In previous accounts we saw how David always sought God’s direction before acting. Here we see that Joab acted with the same sort of political expediency which led to Saul’s downfall.
We can be confident that, no matter what appearance they put up, the wicked do not have God on their side. Indeed, they are far from God. While the righteous need only whisper their prayers for God to hear and respond.
This proverb contains an important point, although it expresses only one side of it. People around us will reflect the mood which we express and we will tend to reflect the mood which they express. If we strive to present a warm, sunny demeanor those around us will be more cheerful. This will make us more cheerful. We can take it one step further. If we focus on good news rather than bad, we will be healthier, as will those with whom we share such news. Focus on the positive and you will be happier and healthier, as will those with whom you interact.
Every year when I read this psalm (in particular this section of it), I am inspired to continue this blog. It reminds me of the importance of studying the Scripture everyday (and this blog is what gives me the motivation to do that). Verse 5 reflects my desire:
Oh, that my actions would consistently
reflect your decrees!
While verse 7 tells us how we can truly express our thanks to God:
As I learn your righteous regulations,
I will thank you by living as I should!
Verse 11 tells us the first step in accomplishing these two things:
I have hidden your word in my heart,
that I might not sin against you.
I want to quote more of it, instead, I will encourage you to follow the link (or open your own Bible) and read the entire passage.
There are two important lessons in the account of Jesus washing the disciples feet. The first is that we should be willing to serve those around us, especially our fellow believers. Since Jesus, who is our Lord (the one whom we acknowledge as having authority to command us), served His disciples (the ones in that room with Him are proxies for the rest of us) by washing their feet, we too should serve our fellow believers to the point of accepting tasks which others might consider demeaning.
The second lesson comes from the interaction between Jesus and Peter in this account. Peter initially refuses to allow Jesus to serve him. Jesus tells Peter that if he does not accept Jesus’ service to him, he, Peter, can have no part of Jesus. If we wish to be part of the Body of Christ, the Church, we must allow others to serve our needs. As I said, the lesson here is two-fold. We must serve our brothers and sisters in Christ. But we must also allow them to serve us. If we do not do both we are not part of the Body of Christ.
We have here an account of the civil war in Israel between David and Saul’s last remaining son, Ishbosheth. The battles were inconclusive, although David’s armies had the better of them. There was a stalemate between the two sides until Ishbosheth offended Abner, who commanded his armies. Abner then defected to David, only to be killed by Joab in revenge for killing Joab’s brother during one of the battles (and perhaps to defend Joab’s position as commander of David’s armies). All in all this passage tells us how important it is to maintain good relations with your subordinates. Ishbosheth lost his kingdom because he offended his subordinate, Abner. David was realized that he could not discipline Joab for killing Abner because he needed Joab’s support.
I have been using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study for almost a year. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I started writing this blog because the only way I can get myself to read the Bible everyday is to pretend that I am teaching someone about what it says to me. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them. I hope that the Spirit is moving in others through these posts as the Spirit has definitely been convicting me.
Today’s passage recounts the war between David’s forces and those that remained loyal to the house of Saul. Reading the passage suggests that the only reason that any forces remained loyal to Saul’s son Ishbosheth was because of Abner (who had been commander of Saul’s army). At one point Joab, the commander of David’s army, led his forces out to battle Abner and his forces. When battle was entered, Joab’s forces were victorious and Abner’s forces retreated. Joab’s forces pursued them. In particular, Joab’s brother, Asahel, pursued Abner. Abner could not get away from Asahel and tried to convince him to go after someone else. Finally, when Asahel refused to turn aside, Abner killed him. Shortly after sunset, some of Abner’s troops took a stand on a hill, as Joab and his forces caught up to them Abner called out and convinced Joab to stop the pursuit. Both forces returned to their respective homes.
As time went on Abner became more powerful. Ishbosheth reprimanded Abner for sleeping with one of Saul’s concubines. Abner flew into a rage and threatened to turn Ishbosheth’s kingdom over to David. Ishbosheth was intimidated by Abner’s outburst, but Abner nevertheless began preparations to carry out his threat. Abner contacted David to start negotiations for him to become king of all of Israel. As part of these negotiations, David demanded the return of Micah, Saul’s daughter. Interestingly, it is Ishbosheth who returns Micah to David. After this Abner met with the elders of Israel, including Benjamin, the tribe of Saul’s family, and got them to agree to make David their king. Abner then went to David and offered to gather the people of Israel in an assembly to make David king. David threw a feast for Abner and sent him on his way.
Just after Abner left, Joab returned from a raid with a great deal of plunder. Joab was furious that David was treating with Abner and told David that Abner had merely come to spy on him. Joab then sent messengers after Abner to get him to come back. When Abner returned, Joab took him aside as if to speak privately. As soon as they were alone, Joab killed Abner in order to avenge his brother. When David learned that Joab had killed Abner, he was furious. David ordered Joab and all of those with him to mourn for Abner. On the day of Abner’s funeral (probably the following day), David fasted for the entire day despite being urged by his servants to eat. This convinced the people that David had no part in Abner’s death. David spoke to some of his men and praised Abner, lamenting his death. In addition, David expressed that he lacked the power to punish Joab and his remaining brother, Abishai.
In today’s passage, John describes Jesus washing His disciples feet. When He came to Peter, Peter at first refused to allow Jesus to wash His feet. Jesus told Peter that if he did not allow Jesus to wash him, he would have no part of Jesus. Peter’s response was “Then wash all of me.” Jesus then told Peter that those who had bathed were clean and did not need to be washed. Jesus then returned to His seat and asked if they understood what He had done. He then went on to explain that since He, their Teacher, had washed their feet, they should wash each other’s feet.
There are two lessons here that I think are important. The first is the obvious one. If Jesus bent down and did the lowly, servile task of washing His disciples’ feet, there is no task that is beneath us in serving our fellow-man. The second one is a lesson I have seen elsewhere, but I never noticed it here before today. When Jesus told Peter that He had to accept Jesus serving him by washing his feet, He was sending all of us a lesson. We need to let others serve us by doing things similar for us. Not letting others do for us, is as much against what Jesus taught as never doing anything to serve others. Some people are too proud to bend down and “wash someone’s feet”. But others are too proud to let someone else “wash their feet.” The latter is no more behaving as a follower of Christ than the former.
The psalm today reminds us that the route to happiness and joy is following God’s commands and seeking Him. As I read today’s portion of this psalm, there are two phrases that stand out for me. The first is a plea to God for His assistance, a plea that God is always glad to answer:
Oh, that my actions would consistently
reflect your decrees!
The second phrase is a promise that I strive to fulfill:
I have hidden your word in my heart,
that I might not sin against you.
I have worked at this latter from time to time with mixed success, but I will continue to strive to commit God’s words to my memory so that God can bring them to my mind when the time calls for them.
Geranium starting to bloom
God is always far away from the wicked. This statement is a tautology. The wicked revel in doing evil and evil is the absence of good. Since God is the embodiment of good, by definition, the wicked must be far from Him. The second part is not so obvious. God will hear the prayer of those who strive for His righteousness, no matter how far away He seems.
The second of today’s proverbs reminds us to always keep a cheerful demeanor even when we are feeling down because by doing so, we can lift the spirits of others (and who knows, their renewed spirits may lift our own).
I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or my understanding of them, please leave comments.
The war between those loyal to the house of Saul and those loyal to David began with a battle of champions where twelve men were chosen to represent each side. All twelve pairs killed each other. The following day the two armies engaged. David’s army was victorious. As Abner, the commander of the house of Saul’s army, is retreating he is pursued by Asahel, the brother of Joab, commander of David’s army. Abner tells Asahel to turn aside and go against a lesser man because he does not want to kill Joab’s brother. Asahel refuses and Abner kills him. At nightfall, Abner is able to regroup his men. When Joab and his men overtake them, Abner proposes a truce and Joab accepts. Abner then withdraws with his army. The war continues for some time with the house of Saul becoming weaker and David’s forces becoming stronger. Then Ishbosheth, Saul’s son whom Abner had made king, offends Abner. In response, Abner goes over to David. Abner meets with David and agrees to call an assembly of the leaders of Israel to declare David king over all Israel. When Abner leaves David to arrange the assembly, Joab intercepts him and kills him for Abner killing Joab’s brother at the start of the war. David mourned for Abner and expressed his inability to control Joab and his remaining brother. As I studied this looking for lessons, I learned an interesting thing that I have never picked up on before. Joab is David’s nephew, which further explains David’s inability/failure to do anything about Joab acting against David’s instructions on multiple occasions.
Today we have the account of Jesus washing the disciples feet. Many people point out that this is an example that we should serve those around us, even those we consider “beneath us.” This is absolutely true. However, I noticed something in this passage that I had never seen before. Jesus tells Peter that he must allow Jesus to wash his feet or he will not belong to Jesus. I see this as instruction that we must allow others to do for us. Yes, we should willingly serve others, but we must also graciously allow others to serve us. Elsewhere, Jesus says that in the Kingdom of heaven those who serve are greater than those who are served. This passage is both a message that we should serve others since Jesus served His disciples by washing their feet and a message that we should allow others to serve us. This passage is a message against the two ways that people set themselves up as better than others. The first, and the one that is most obvious, is when we expect others to meet our needs and refuse to lower ourselves to meet the needs of others. The second is more subtle, it is when we are always willing to do for others and actively try to help those whose needs are greater than our own, but never allow others to help us. Jesus is telling us with His rebuke of Peter that the latter is just as bad as the former.
Jesus tells the disciples that one of them will betray Him. The interesting thing here is that, even after Jesus gives one of the disciples a sign as to who it will be, none of them understand what is going on. A lesson I take from this is that we should never accept without further thought that someone will act in a godly and trustworthy manner. I know that on several occasions I have dismissed behaviors that should have been warning signs because I thought that someone was a godly person. On at least one of those occasions perhaps, if I had called them on it, they would have turned from the path of sin they were following. This is a difficult subject for me to get my thoughts expressed because I believe that we should give people the benefit of the doubt in most cases. I think my real concern here is where we get led into sin when we allow another, whom we have previously judged to be godly, to influence us to actions we would otherwise consider wrong and avoid. Even this does not accurately express the idea I am trying to get across. Usually when I find myself expressing an idea so poorly, I do not post my thoughts at all, but today I am going to leave this up in the hope that someone else will read it and leave a comment that better illustrates the lesson I think I see here.
The path to joy is through integrity. If we live our lives with integrity and refuse to compromise with evil, we will find joy. Let us hide the word of God in our hearts that we might not sin. But once we have done this let us declare His laws so that all may know what we believe. I wish to make the endings of these two stanzas of this psalm my prayer:
“I will obey your decrees.
Please don’t give up on me!”…
“I will delight in your decrees
and not forget your word.”
I have been involved in a discussion about prayer on an Internet forum. This proverb tells us much about prayer. Those who are wicked are far from God, if they wish to hear God, they will need to come closer to Him. In order for them to do so, they will need to give up their wickedness. As we pray, and genuinely attempt to hear what God has to say to us, we will move closer to Him and thus away from our wickedness. However, the key here is the willingness to give up our wickedness and the genuine desire to heat what God has to say. As we listen to God and move closer to Him, He will listen to our prayers and grant our requests as those requests become better aligned with His will.
The second of today’s proverbs tells us that having a positive outlook on life leads to better health. There is definitely a positive feedback loop here. As we have a more optimistic, upbeat view, our health improves. As our health improves, our outlook tends to be more positive and upbeat.
