Psalm 4: Answer Me When I Call

There seems to be a connection between this psalm and the previous one — like a follow-up of Psalm 3.  David appears to be in distress again and he expects an imminent relief that can only be received from a merciful God — the “God of his righteousness,” indicating that any righteousness we have comes only from God.  Any righteousness not from God is self-righteousness — a self-deception of the kind.  David knows that because God has relieved his distress in the past, He will do it again.  So he calls upon God’s grace to be heard in his prayer.

In verse 2, it appears that people who have not only turned from him, but have also turned from God to pursue delusions, are dishonouring David.  What sort of delusions?  Useless kinds and lies.  These can consist of anything.  For example, there has been an ongoing development of Christians turning from true doctrine and pursuing false ones such as pursuing and/or supporting the homosexual lifestyle, in spite of what God’s Word says against it.  They abandon God and His true Church.  They dishonour God’s true people by discriminating against them who choose not to abandon His inerrant and infallible Word.  Even worse, they dishonour God by living unrepentantly in sin while simultaneously redefining sin, as well as spreading false doctrine.  As God set David apart from those who abandoned him, so God sets His true Church apart from those who abandon Him to chase after useless delusions such as homosexuality, and God will sort them out at the Judgement.  God hears us when we call to Him, and His ears are closed off to those who abandon Him.

While there are similarities between Psalms 3 and 4, there are also some differences.  In Psalm 3, David prayed that God “break the teeth of the wicked” (v. 7).  In Psalm 4:4-5, however, he appeals to his enemies to not allow their anger to lead them to sin and to repent and “offer right sacrifices,” as well as to trust in God.  Why the sudden change of heart — from cold wishes to warm admonition?  Remember that David was a sinner like any of the rest of us — capable of failure and being flawed (indeed, we see his human frailty in his sin with Bathsheba and poor fathering skills in dealing with his sons’ poor behaviour).  Perhaps he realised his harshness and regretted it.  Or perhaps it’s the desperate plea of a father to a wandering son (Absalom).  Whatever the reason, we can all take his advice here.  Even the apostle Paul borrowed his advice in Ephesians 4:26, “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger.”  Never go to bed angry.  When night falls and you find that you’re still angry about something, eliminate that anger before you go to bed.  Whether it’s through prayer, confronting and resolving the issue, or talking to someone to help calm you down, do whatever you need to do to get rid of that anger (so long as it’s done healthfully, of course).  If you don’t do this, it doesn’t mean that you’re sinning.  Getting rid of your anger before you go to bed at the end of the day just makes living your life that much easier and stress free.

When we desire goodness, only God can give it to us.  When we ask for good providence in our lives, only God can supply it.  In verse 7, David acknowledges that god gives greater joy than the joy that people have when they lavish in their material riches.  The joy of the Lord is eternal; the joys of materialism perish.  Just like in Psalm 3, David can sleep assured that god will keep him safe, “for the joy of the LORD is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10b).

Psalm 4 Prayer

O Lord, You never fail to preserve me.  It is by Your strength alone that I need not worry under cover of night.  For those who have separated themselves from You, I ask that You guide them back to You — help them to conquer their sins as You have helped me, as Your will be done.  Silence my anger — calm the raging seas of my desire for vengeance.  Bless me with Your joy so that it may infect others around me.  In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.

Psalm 3: Save Me, O My God

Read Psalm 3 in your Bible.

David wrote this psalm in regards to his fleeing from Absalom, which is recorded in 2 Samuel 15-18.  This psalm can therefore be applied to anyone who has experienced betrayal.  David’s enemies were not only numerous, but they were also attempting to undermine his faith.  Every Christian experiences this at least once in his or her life.  If it hasn’t happened to you yet, it will.  We have enemies everywhere.  They not only seek to destroy us (like ISIS currently), but our enemies also seek to undermine our faith (atheists like the infamous Richard Dawkins).  However, in spite of the war against us, like David, we have hope in the Lord’s presence and preservation.

A shield gives us the image of a shield in front of one’s body as it absorbs death-threatening blows in hand-to-hand combat.  Christ is our shield, for He took the blow of death for us, and we thus have hope in the resurrection of the dead (refer to Romans 6:3-7, 10-11).  While in the midst of persecution, we recall this hope and call upon the Lord for deliverance.  Indeed, He answers our call as we trust and rely on Him, just as David did on numerous occasions.  David’s confidence in the Lord’s preservation enabled him to sleep in spite of his life-threatening predicament.  When we face overwhelming worry, stress, and anxiety, many of us suffer from insomnia.  But complete confidence in the Lord’s preservation can soothe one’s mind and enable sleep.  How do we know that we can trust in His preservation?  Go back to the end of the second psalm:  “Blessed are all who take refuge in Him.”  There is no distinction.  Because we have the hope in Christ who is to come again, we can experience a lack of fear in spite of our thousands of enemies.  Anyone who is not in Christ is considered an enemy of God (James 4:4), and therefore our enemies.  So we are literally surrounded by enemies, both known and unknown.  But how many of us are afraid of this reality?  I’m not afraid because of the hope I have in Christ, and from God’s preservation in the past.  I know that He will continue to preserve me.  This is only possible through the peace of the Lord (John 14:27), and I pray that you all experience this peace.

We experience God’s preservation either through Him preserving our safety in the midst of trouble or danger, or by Him wiping out our enemies.  People use the existence of suffering as “evidence” of either God’s non-existence or that He is hateful or indifferent rather than loving.  Such people ignore the evidence of His preservation.  Let’s use World War II as an example.  The atheistic argument proposes that God allowed Hitler to reign, therefore God is either hateful, indifferent, or simply doesn’t exist.  (It is hilarious that those who don’t believe in God presume to fathom His character.)  However, is Hitler still in reign?  Obviously not, for through the efforts of the Allied Forces, God preserved His people (Jewish and Gentile alike).  Since the human concupiscence is to sin since childhood (Genesis 8:21), we have the natural tendency to view evil as an absence of God when God is always active.  Evil is not the absence of God altogether; it is the absence of God’s love and good in the human heart.  Where evil is present, God is not inactive.  Rather, it is where He is the most active, for no evil act lasts forever.  Just because we can’t immediately recognise His presence doesn’t mean He’s not there.

David accentuates our hope in Christ at the end of this psalm:  Salvation comes from God, which is effective through the works of Christ, in whom we have hope.

Psalm 3 Prayer

In the case that you fear for your safety, be it life-threatening or just from overwhelming worry, anxiety, or stress, here’s a prayer I’ve prepared:  Father, please keep me safe.  In Your mercy, preserve me.  I trust in Your preservation.  If it be Your will that I come home to You, so be it.  But if it be Your will that I continue to dwell amongst my enemies [or suffer through anxiety, etc.], I ask that You guard over me and grant me solace.

[If you suffer with insomnia]:  Father, like David, grant me Your peace so I may sleep, that I may battle this anxiety and continue my living tomorrow, and each day that follows.  Grant me rest, O Lord.  Help me to be resilient so that I may win the battle of anxiety.  Lord, thank You for Your preservation, and thank You for Your salvation through Christ.  In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.

Psalm 2: The Reign of the LORD'S Anointed

Read Psalm 2 in your Bible.

This psalm starts off with a rhetorical question.  Resisting God's authority is a futile effort, so why do nations seek to be independent of God, or enemies of Him and His children?  The word "anointed" in the text is the Hebrew word that translates in English to Messiah.  The New Testament makes it clear that this psalm was written in application to the coming Christ (Acts 13:32-33), as all the psalms are about Christ (Luke 24:44).  So, the nations set themselves against God and the Anointed One, Jesus Christ the Messiah, desiring to "burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords" from them — that is, to be independent of them and not bound by God's authority.  Indeed, this pattern continues today across many nations, and increasingly so in America.

Of course, God laughs at such futility.  You may deny God's authority, but denying His authority does not unbind you from it, and neither does it make Him any less real.  You are bound by His authority whether you like it or not.  So believing one can be released from His authority truly is hysterical.  When such futile denial occurs, God ridicules them.  In His ridicule, He passes judgement upon them, be it by oppression, famine, pestilence, war, whatever He finds suitable.  In America, it seems that this nation is perhaps being punished by a near economic crisis as it continues to condone and even encourage sins such as homosexuality.  In Scripture, Zion is often used to signify the city of Jerusalem.  Zion was a southern hill upon which a Jebusite stronghold was fortified until David conquered it (2 Samuel 5:6-7).  After some time, it became synonymous with Jerusalem.  In verse 6, God declares King David (and therefore the royal line of David and therefore Jesus Christ) as the only king with the representation and authority of His authority.  Going back to God laughing in verse 4, Luther comments:

Let us laugh at raging Satan and the world (yes, even at sin and our conscience in us). Truly, because the punishment of the godless is delayed up to now, it is certain that God is also laughing, God, who is in heaven and cannot be driven from there by impious men. Therefore He rightly laughs at their vain attempts (Luther's Works American Edition, 12:25).

The sudden change to the first person in verse 7 is an affirmation of the one being anointed — Jesus Christ.  Indeed, God the Father gives His only begotten Son the heritage of the nations through the line of David, giving Him also the earth as His precious possession, and therefore ruling over all those who inhabit it.  In Mesopotamian texts, a king's reign was likened to smashing pottery.  So "break" here means "reign" or "rule," and "iron" as "strength," and "potter's vessel" as "weakness."  So the Anointed One — Jesus Christ — would reign over the nations with strength and the power to shatter their weaknesses.

Verses 10-12 turn back to the kings of the earth, serving as a warning with a therefore.  These are the kings who are set against the Anointed One — the one who has power over the earth with the ability to destroy.  If they are wise, they will acknowledge God in reverence and piety and honour Him lest His wrath be incurred, for His wrath occurs quickly — no warning is given except the words provided here.  The psalm ends with a concise gospel message — that God's allies have His protection and will be blessed.  Blessed how?  Refer back to Psalm 1:3, "He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season,  and its leaf does not wither.  In all that he does, he prospers."

This second psalm can be applied to our nations today.  Nation after nation is setting itself into a contemptuous disposition against God and His Anointed One, Jesus Christ, to whom dominion over the entire earth (and Heaven) was given.  If the rulers of today's nations continue in their disposition against the King of the earth, the wrath of the Almighty will come down upon them without warning.  Those nations who are God's allies, however, will remain protected.

Psalm 2 Prayer
Father, I pray for my nation.  Every day that passes, she becomes more godless.  You know that the governmental actions of my nation do not reflect the true actions and desires of Your children.  I ask that You not forget Your people who live in godless nations, those who have not forgotten You.  We seek to serve and honour You with our whole heart, in spite of our government's godless actions.  But if it be Your will, I pray for our government.  Give them wisdom in their governance, and please help to turn them from their godless ways — to refocus on You and Your Word rather than the words of men, for they fear men more than they fear You, O God.  If it be Your will that our government should perish in due time, save Your people who take refuge in You.  In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.

We Don't Have A Right to Anything

We don't have a right to anything because we deserve death, for the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23).  Through the rebellion (sin) of Adam and Eve, we all therefore have the concupiscence to sin -- to rebel against God.  So we deserve nothing.  However, while we wait for Christ's return, I believe we ought to strive to live in harmony with one another since Scripture gives us guidelines on how we are to do this and love our neighbour (see Romans 12:9-21; Matthew 5:44; 22:36-39; 2 Corinthians 13:11).  So, it is palpable that there are certain things that can be done in order to make living in peace with one another possible to some extent, which is where these "rights" come in.


I don't like that word: "rights."  What makes us think we deserve anything?  Rather, there are rules of necessity to living in order to live peacefully with one another, which those principles tell us how to love our neighbour in the passages given above.  These principles given to us in Scripture apply to all people (these "rights" that we think we deserve).  We are commanded to love our neighbour, and we are given the principles on just how to do that.  We do it for each other and for the glory of God.  When we say we deserve certain "rights," it is for ourselves, not for other people and certainly not for God's glory.


When we demand these self-imagined "rights," we are wishing to impose our own will upon people rather than abiding by the will of God, which His will is revealed to us in Scripture.  Sometimes we fool ourselves into thinking that injustice exists where it is absent.  Take the "black lives matter" protests, for example.  Yes, certain injustices were done to some black people, but it is a non-sequitur to argue that because some injustice was done, that means injustice is in the lives of all black people.  That's illogical and neither is it true.  An event such as this is not a logical reaction but purely an emotional one, and since when have we trusted the whimsical folly of human emotions for a basis of argument?  I think these protestors intend "black lives matter" as a reminder, but they way they go about preaching it doesn't come across that way.  Sometimes desperate measures are necessary (e.g. the Civil Rights Movement), but the way we go about them ought to be done wisely and in love rather than hate, which is clearly not indicative of the "black lives matter" protestors.  They are demanding rights that they already have, claiming that injustice exists where it is absent (the lives of all black people everywhere), especially considering that were this to happen decades before the Civil Rights Movement, they would all be murdered, black and white people alike.  Not only that, but the message they're sending is not out of love but hate due to their selfish flare-ups because they have no self-control over their anger.


Furthermore, this can all be understood by reading Romans 13 and Acts 5:29.  I won't type the entire 13th chapter of Romans; you can read it all if you'd like.  In it, St. Paul essentially tells us of the importance of the role of government and that God establishes it and its leaders for a reason (of which only He can know).  Basically, the purpose of the government is to restrain our sin (just think of laws put into place to prevent and punish murder, other acts of violence, theft, etc.).  We are to obey our government.  However, in Acts 5:29, Peter and the apostles are famous for saying, "We must obey God rather than men."  Why did they say this?  Because the Sadducees (who had a type of governmental authority at the time) were making demands against God's will.  So, we are to obey our government, but when it starts to go against God's Word, it is the Christian's duty to oppose the will of the government in that circumstance because we obey God, not men (this is exactly why Christians oppose issues like gay marriage and transgenderism).  With a situation like "black lives matter," the individual cases that the protestors are upset about are from local communities, therefore it must be resolved at the community level, not brought to the federal government because it's not a federal issue, but a local community one.  So, not only are they protesting with hate for others, imagining that black lives are more valuable just because they happened to be born with darker skin pigmentation; but they are also being irresponsible by refusing to resolve the issues at the community level for each unique case.  Contrary to the implications of their protests, all lives matter, no matter the colour of your skin.  In Galatians 3:28 we read that in God's eyes, "there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus."  Likewise, when it comes to skin colour, there is neither black nor white simply because "God shows no partiality" (Romans 2:11).  No matter our biological and societal differences, as believers we are all one in the same in Christ -- multiple members of one body (see 1 Corinthians 12:12-20).


What does this have to do with rights?  To recognise that we don't have the right to anything.  We lost these "rights" when we rebelled against God in the beginning.  The sooner we recognise this, the sooner we can live in harmony with one another to the best of our ability by putting into practise the principles given to us in Scripture, but we are currently in a state of tension and enmity mostly because the secular world we live in denies the authority of Scripture.  This tension and enmity can only be eradicated if we stop demanding these self-imagined "rights" from a narcissistic heart and abide by God's will.  I'm not saying that by doing this, world peace will be achieved because that's impossible in a world affected by sin; but by doing this we can lessen the effect of our natural narcissism as the foundation of our natural inclination to rebel.

God Knows

*Edited October 5, 2015.*

As I was reading through Genesis one day, I stopped at Genesis 15:13 and came to an amazing realisation.  The verse says, “Then the LORD said to Abram, ‘Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be slaves there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years.’ ”  That was probably the hundredth time I read this verse and I suddenly realised:  We can take comfort from this.  Now, you’re probably thinking, “What?  What the heck are you talking about, Ricky?  How could we possibly take comfort from this?  Are you crazy?”  First of all, I’m not crazy; I’m mentally unrestrained.  Secondly, allow me to explain.

We are children of an omniscient God who loves us.  Because He’s omniscient, He knew that the Israelites, His people, would suffer for 400 years.  And what did He do?  He brought His people out of suffering.  Now, you might say, “But Ricky, why did He wait 400 years to save His people?”  I’ll tell you that in a little bit.  First, I want to reiterate myself by saying that God is omniscient — He is all-knowing, and since He is all-knowing, He knows the perfect time when something needs to happen.  Consider briefly Galatians 4:4, “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son…”  The key phrase here is when the fullness of time had come, which is just another way of saying, “When it was now time for this thing to happen,” which is given in the subsequent clause — God sending His Son to, and for what purpose?  To die for our sins and thus save us from eternal damnation.  Certain events on earth (and maybe Heaven) had to happen before Jesus was born incarnate.  Likewise, certain events on earth had to happen through His providence before He could free the Hebrew slaves.  Before I get to why God “waited” 400 years to save His people, remember St. Peter’s point in his second epistle, “But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (3:8).  Peter is referring to God’s infinitude.  To us finite beings, 400 years is a really long time, but to God, that’s nothing.  To Him, 1,000 years is the same as one day.  Time is irrelevant to God because He is not bound by time; rather, time is bound by God, since time was created when He created everything, after all.  That’s why I put “waiting” in quotations because God doesn’t need to wait; He’s already completed the work.

So, why did God “wait” 400 y ears to deliver His people?  God may not be bound by time, but we are.  He either can’t or won’t fast forward time just to get to the end.  Remember what I said about certain things having to happen on earth through His providence before He acts?  In this instance, with the Hebrew slaves, that was Moses.  Our God being omniscient, infinite, and therefore existing outside of time, He not only saw but also knew what He was going to do with Moses.  God wouldn’t free His people until Moses was born, until his mother laid him in a basket in a river, until he drifted upon the Pharaoh’s daughter, was raised as a prince, murdered an Egyptian soldier because of an injustice being done to a Hebrew slave, fled to Midian for 40 years, and then revealed Himself to Moses as a burning bush.  (I say “wouldn’t” instead of “couldn’t” because God could’ve freed His people by completely eradicating the Egyptians.  Instead, in His mercy, He brought Moses before Pharaoh multiple times, giving him the chance to repent and change his ways by freeing the people of God.)  God knew that in order to do this work through Moses, His people would have to suffer for 400 years.  Just because God knew this doesn’t mean that He approved of it.  How would you feel if you knew your children — or your descendants — would suffer in slavery for 400 years?  And by the time God started His work through Moses, he was in his eighties!  Why God “waited” 40 years to reveal Himself to Moses, we can never know.  Perhaps God was shaping him in some way in preparation for the great journey ahead of him.  And as we know, Moses went ahead to do great things in the name of the Lord, God freeing His people and bringing them to the promised land.

Now then, how do we take comfort from this?  Consider the times we’re in.  We can draw similarities between the godlessness of America and the godlessness of ancient Babylon.  (Revelation actually depicts Babylon as a whore, the imagery being symbolic of people who follow after false religions, which is committing spiritual adultery against God.)  Additionally, Christians are increasingly being persecuted by enemies such as ISIS, and even in America, and we are groaning in pain for our brothers and sisters in Christ.  Then there are our own personal sufferings.  This is where we can draw our comfort:  hundreds of years before the Israelites’ 400-year bondage, God knew it was going to happen, and because of His promise in Christ first given in Genesis 3:15, God brought His people out of it.  Sure, it was a long time, but He still fulfilled His promise.

Therefore, since God knew about their 400-year suffering, then certainly God knows of our current suffering, whether personal or global!  Not only that, but He knew what’s going on right now in the world thousands of years before it even happened!  Likewise, He knows what’s going to happen in the future before we even know about it and suffer from it.  So how can we take comfort from this?  Examine closely the words in Exodus 2:23b-25, “…and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help.  Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God.  And God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob.  God saw the people of Israel — and God knew.”  God hears our groaning and prayers and our cries for deliverance.

Even more, we have a new covenant in Jesus Christ fulfilled through the covenant God made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  God’s promise to save mankind from his sins has been fulfilled in Christ.  Here’s one way the new covenant is delineated:  “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.  All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to Himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:17-19).  Another way Scripture delineates it is:  “For if while we were enemies [of God] we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by His life” (Romans 5:10).  God knows of our suffering; He’s known about all of our suffering before the foundation of the world, which is exactly why He sent His Son to die for us, that we may not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).

God hears you.  If you’re in pain, no matter what the pain is, God knows.  He will deliver you a way of escape.  “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man.  God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation He will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it” (1 Corinthians 10:13).  Whatever it is that you’re going through, God has brought someone in the past through it as well.  It’s nothing new to Him.  He knows what He’s doing, so He’s more than capable of helping you endure the pain until He eventually cures it.  Our hope is in Christ, and as Christ intercedes on our behalf, God hears you (Romans 8:34; Hebrews 7:25).  “So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise [through Abraham] the unchangeable character of His purpose, He guaranteed it with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.  We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain [the sanctuary of Heaven], where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews 6:17-20).  No doubt you flee from your troubles and suffering into the refuge of God so that you may receive encouragement from Him, holding fast to our hope that is set in Christ, who came before us.  This hope in Christ is the anchor of our souls — it sets our hope firmly in place, unable to be moved.  What is this hope?  It is our faith in Him — His fulfillment of the Law, death as our sins died with Him, in His resurrection, ascension, and ultimately our salvation that is in Him alone — the salvation that is coming at His return.

God knows you’re hurting, but what sets  the Christian apart from the rest of the world is that the anchor of our soul is our hope and faith in Christ.  Many Christians are quick to quote Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me,” and so much so that it has become an annoying cliché.  I say that because this verse is abundantly quoted while those who quote it don’t have faith in those words.  What’s the point of quoting a verse if you don’t have faith in its truth?  Charles H. Spurgeon once said, “Impatience would push open or break down the door, but faith waits upon the Lord, and in due season her opportunity is awarded her.”  Have faith; deliverance is coming.  In due time, God will bring you through your suffering and pain.  Just have faith that He will bring you through it His way, not your way.

A Letter to the American Church: Concerning Our Failure

This is more evident on social media but I have also witnessed it in person, whether to me or someone acting upon another person.  I am speaking of our failure as the Church in this current generation.  That might sound harsh, even after reading what I’ll be talking about, but it is a failure.  In a nutshell, we are failing to preach Christ.  There exist some who are putting their sincerest and best efforts in preaching Christ and His message, but as we stand as a Church on the national scale, it appears to me that we are failing.  I’m not going to be giving statistics and numbers of how many Christians there are versus atheists, because that’s not what I’m talking about, and neither do those numbers even matter.  Our failure is simply that we are failing to not only preach Christ, but represent Him on this earth.  We are called to be ambassadors of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20), and in this generation I don’t see much of that going on.  The false doctrine that is spreading is a significant part of this, but that’s not what I’m going to be talking about here.  As Christians, we are called to possess specific characteristics in being ambassadors of Christ, which we are doing poorly.  Again, these words might seem harsh, but honest actions necessitate honest speech, so I’m giving it to you raw here.

In Romans, St. Paul writes about the marks of the true Christian.  There’s a lot that he says, but I will be focusing particularly on 12:12-14, which says, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.  Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.  Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.”  First Thessalonians 5:16 accentuates Paul’s point in saying, “Rejoice always.”  Indeed, this is easier said than done, especially when our government has little to no concern for God’s Word by legalising certain abominations (I am, of course, speaking of gay marriage and the murder of infants in abortions).  But those aren’t at issue here.  In spite of all circumstances we face, we are encouraged to “rejoice in hope… always.”  But do we?  I’m not seeing it.  So let's consider this: what is our hope?  That should be an easy one if you call yourself a Christian.  Our hope is in Jesus Christ, and in Him is our salvation, which we receive at His second coming.  That is our hope. In spite of all that happens in this godless world we live in, we will always have that hope to rejoice in, no matter what.  No one can take that away from you.  Always remember that. When facing adversity, always take the time to rejoice in the Lord. Nothing shows how liberating this can be more than the psalms.

Secondly, it says to “be patient in tribulation.”  Again, easier said than done, but it is possible, otherwise Paul wouldn’t have said it here.  After all, we Christians are fond of saying, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).  This verse has become a common cliché for many Christians, just like John 3:16 has.  By that I mean that they have repeated this and shared it on Facebook so many times that they don't put it into practise.  You can quote a verse however many times you want, but that won’t make it effective unless you have faith in it — that is, you know that it’s the truth.  You not only believe it, but you know it, and nothing else can convince you otherwise.  Any Word of God you read and quote must be as sure as your faith in Christ is.  People are always so ready to preach to me, "Patience is a virtue," yet they don't put their teaching into practise. I don’t see patience in tribulation.  I see a bunch of cry babies whining about their misfortune when there are people suffering a lot worse than they are.  They even go so far as to blame God.  I’m speaking of Christians, not unbelievers.  Unbelievers don’t believe in God and thus have no reason to expect anything from Him, so if they do then it’s out of sheer stupidity.  But these Christians say to themselves, “God, I’ve been good enough.  Why are You doing this to me?”  What makes you so sure it’s Him?  Have you forgotten about Satan, the lord of sin and suffering?  And what makes you think you’re good?  No one is good; Jesus made that very clear.

Thirdly, “Be constant in prayer.”  The only time I see prayer is in church and out of ritualistic fashion before a meal.  Prayer in church is required and necessary, but before a meal?  No.  That’s just a tradition that teaches blind ritualism.  When was your last honest prayer?  Hopefully it was recent.  How often do you pray?  Hopefully it’s frequent.  When was the last time you prayed for someone when you promised you would?  Did you forget?  Did you keep that promise?  Do you even mean it when you say it?  Or do you just think it makes you a good Christian?  Prayer must be constant — morning, day, night.  No, this does not mean a prayer every morning when you wake, before each meal, and before you sleep.  If you wish to do that, go ahead.  But dare to go beyond your ritualism and pray an honest prayer for someone, with someone, and even for yourself, as long as they all ask for God’s will to be done in Jesus’ name.

Fourthly, “Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.”  The Greek in this text for “the saints” is τῶν ἁγίων, which literally translated means, “the holy ones,” and a further translation is what leads us to, “the saints,” which is all Christians of all time.  Fortunately, I think we do this rather well.  When a fellow brother or sister is in need, we help them financially and even go so far as to provide a roof over their head for a time.  At least there’s something good I can speak on.

Lastly, in verse 14, I find it interesting that Paul not only feels the need to repeat himself, but even explain himself.  He says, “Bless those who persecute you.”  And he continues as if saying, “Let me say again, in case you misunderstand,” in which he says, “Bless and do not curse them.”  This is perhaps our greatest failure.  Depending on where you live in this world, there is Christian persecution everywhere, which has been the case for many ages.  If you’re in the Middle East, it’s the horrors of our enemy ISIS.  If it’s in America, it’s the constant mockery and scorn of atheists; the complete rejection and even alteration of God’s Word not only in peoples’ lives, but even in our courts; and the increasing likelihood of losing certain religious rights and even the rising numbers of Christians being murdered.  In our anger, we curse our enemies, judging Hell and condemnation upon them and wishing God’s wrath to fall upon them.  But Paul says we must bless them, which comes from the teaching of Christ when He tells us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:44).  This love, prayer, and blessing are absent.  It is nearly non-existent in the American Church, and it needs to be fixed.

“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, [and] self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23).  But with us there is no love in our speech and actions, there is no joy because we wallow in our anger, so peace in our hearts is impossible.  We are impatient like little children who don’t get what they want.  We are some of the most unkind Christians I have ever seen or met, for the goodness of the Lord is lacking.  We are not gentle but rather rude and abrasive, lacking self-control of our emotions and actions and as a result of all these failures, we are unfaithful to the Lord because by this failure, we fail to carry out His mission.  And why?  Because we are carrying on as the world does in unrestrained behaviour — what the world wants to do (1 Peter 4:3).

Consider carefully the words of St. Peter:  “For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure?  But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God.  For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in His steps.  He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in His mouth.  When He was reviled, He did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but continued entrusting Himself to Him who judges justly.  He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.  By His wounds you have been healed.  For You were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls” (1 Peter 2:20-25).

If we act as the rest of the world does, how does that make us any different than them?  We’re supposed to follow in Jesus’ steps.  Sure, they’re big shoes to fill, but we are nonetheless called to follow Him.  Part of that means not insulting people in return when they insult us; and it also means that when they make us suffer, we do not threaten them with our wrath or God’s wrath.  Rather, we trust God, for vengeance belongs to Him (Romans 12:19; Deuteronomy 32:35).  It seems that we His sheep are going astray.  It is time for an awakening.  Christ has healed us from the terminal damnation of sin, so stop digging up your old wounds and licking them liked a wounded animal, because you’re no longer wounded.  You have been healed in Christ, so it’s time that you start acting like it.  And that starts with exemplifying the fruits of the Spirit.  Charles H. Spurgeon once said, “Truth must not only be in us, but shine from us.”  I think this is what Jesus meant when He said that we are the light of the world (Matthew 5:14-16).  His light can’t shine if you keep covering it up.

How to Respond to Legalised Gay Marriage as Christians

On June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court of the United States overruled state bans on same-sex marriage, making it required that every state marry a gay couple.  This situation is dangerous to Christians, but not for the reasons you might think.  Some immediate reactions to this decision have been anger, discontent, and sadness from Christians around the entire country and around the globe on social media, but this is not the way we should respond because those feelings are a snare.  After hearing about the Supreme Court decision, it took every ounce of me to constantly ask God go give me a calm spirit rather than one of anger and disappointment.  It's really easy to feel that all the unbelievers are assembled together, mocking Christians because something that most of us believe is sinful is now legal in our country.  It may feel like they're "throwing it in our face" because they feel that they've won some imaginary contest against us.  This isn't the case at all, and as Christians, we need to understand three things.

1. We can't expect unbelievers to live by Christian morality.
It would be ridiculous to think that this would be possible.  That being the case, I was 99% expecting that the Supreme Court would legalise gay marriage, which partly explains why I'm not very upset or surprised by their decision because I knew it would happen.  Homosexuals are offended by Christians because we reveal to them with the Word of God that their lifestyle is sinful, and since they refuse to believe that, they're offended.  In Matthew 19:4-6, Jesus says that God made us male and female, and a man will leave his family to marry his wife, which He was quoting directly from God Himself in Genesis 1:27.  With this definition of marriage that Jesus gave, same-sex marriage is left out.  If Jesus wished to extend the right of marriage beyond His given definition, He had the opportunity to do so here, but He doesn't.  Jesus never discussed same-sex marriage because how He defined it already excluded it.  As Christians, we believe this definition of marriage that Jesus gave.  However, we cannot expect people who don't believe that Jesus Christ is their Saviour to believe that as well.

2. America is not God's nation.
For a very long time, Christianity was the national religion of America and the majority of Americans followed Christian morality.  Obviously, that has changed throughout the centuries.  Honestly, I don't believe America was ever a nation of God even though we claim that it was "founded under God."  At its founding, America legalised slavery.  A country cannot claim to be under God while it allows an ungodly practise to ensue; it is simply impossible.  Indeed, it is impossible for any nation to abide by God's Law entirely because the earth and its inhabitants have rebelled against Him in sin at the dawn of the Fall of Man, which is the perpetual condition o the world we live in.  In John 18:36, Jesus says to Pilate, "My kingdom is not of this world.  If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews.  But My kingdom is not from the world."  We declare that we follow Jesus, so we must understand that we are not physically living in His kingdom right now, so we cannot expect to live in a nation that abides by God's Law.  When we die, we'll be with Him in His kingdom, which is not on this earth.  We cannot expect our government to follow Christ and what He taught because that isn't representative of the state of our word.

3. God does not honour a marriage licence.
God honours those who draw close to Him and keep Him at the centre of their lives, which also applies to marriages.  God will only honour a marriage that has Him as its fundamental foundation.  James 4:8, "Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.  Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded," and continuing in verse 10 it says, "Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you."  So no, God does not honour gay marriage even though it's now legal in our country.  Likewise, He doesn't honour the marriage of an atheist couple because they don't put Him at the centre of their relationship.  Let's focus on the sanctity of our own marriages, relationships, and personal lives, making sure that God is the cornerstone of it all, before we blame unbelievers for "ruining the sanctity of marriage."  (This is the whole "log in the eye" concept that Jesus teaches in Matthew 7:1-5, which is how we are to judge one another righteously.)

Getting angry at the world doing what it does best (which is sinning and rebelling against God, living apart from Him) does nothing constructive for God's Kingdom.  We need to act with love and grace in the face of adversity and remember that sin has deceived the world, which is why decisions like legalising gay marriage are made, and that the cure is Jesus.  As Christians, it is perfectly understandable that we're passionate about our faith and morals.  We desire to defend our Saviour and what He did for the world, but getting mad about the sinful nature of the world is not the way to spread His Gospel.  And remember, vengeance belongs to God (Romans 12:19; Deuteronomy 32:35).

Let's first wash our hands of our own sin before the Lord, pray for the world and our leaders, and go love people the way Jesus would.  People are using the hashtag #lovewins, although ironically that love they profess does not extend towards Christians.  Now is the time that we show the world that our God is love.  Do not fall into the dangerous trap of anger, for "a man of wrath stirs up strife, and one given to anger causes much transgression" (Proverbs 29:22).  Clothe yourself with the love of Christ.  Wear His grace like a garment and share the true love of Jesus Christ with others today.