Tag: worship

By Curt Darling

“Under His wings I am safely abiding; Though the night deepens and tempests are wild, Still I can trust Him, I know He will keep me; He has redeemed me, and I am His child.” — William O. Cushing (1823-1902)

“The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust.” —Ruth 2:12 KJV

The Lord takes care of believers, keeping them “under His wings.” as we consider various passages of scripture, our hearts are drawn to Him.K We find the first such passage as we read about Ruth. You may recall that Ruth was from Moab, but she had married a man from Israel who was living in her country. after he died, she went to bethlehem with her mother-in-law. While seeking grain to provide food for both of them, Ruth, without planning to do so, entered a field that belonged to the wealthy man boaz. Impressed by her faith and kindness to her mother-in-law, boaz provided a source of food and place of safety to Ruth. In a short time, boaz became to her a kinsman-redeemer* and husband. Together, they would become ancestors of the Lord Jesus.

“Keep me as the apple of the eye. Hide me under the shadow of Thy wings.” —Psalm 17:8

The “apple of the eye” is its very tender and precious part, protected by other parts of the eye. Connected with this David said, “Hide me under the shadow of Thy wings.” David’s life was filled with danger, yet he recognized that he was precious to the LORD and he desired to be kept in His care.

“How excellent is Thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Thy wings.” —Psalm 36:7

David began this psalm by criticizing the wickedness of men (vv.1-4); then he wrote about the mercies and faithfulness of God (vv.5-7). In verse 7 David spoke of the precious lovingkindness, or mercy, of God, expressing a personal trust in the One who in mercy and faithfulness protects under His very own wings. Do we have this kind of trust in God?

“Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in Thee: yea, in the shadow of Thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities are overpast.” —Psalm 57:1

The heading of this psalm tells us it was written when David fled from King saul. samuel had already anointed David to replace saul. In view of the danger from one seeking his life, David needed the realization that he had safety under the shadow of God’s wings. I heard a story many years ago of a man walking through a burnedout prairie. Coming upon a pile of ashes he kicked it apart. as he did, a bunch of baby prairie chickens came out and ran away. The mother had protected those chicks to her death. Does that remind you of Jesus and His death for those who trust Him?

“I will abide in Thy tabernacle for ever: I will trust in the covert of Thy wings. Selah.” —Psalm 61:4

“Trust” prevails in every passage so far, even when the word is not mentioned. David began this psalm by asking God, “Hear my cry … attend unto my prayer” (v.1). He sensed a distance from God, having an overwhelmed heart (v.2). We are reminded that the Lord is a rock, a shelter and a strong tower from the enemy. Rather than being far from Him, David said that he would abide in His dwelling place forever. Therefore we again see David expressing his “trust in the covert of Thy wings.”

“Because Thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of Thy wings I will rejoice.” —Psalm 63:7

David, reminded of the LORD’s help to him, rejoiced under the shadow of His wings. We can do the same, having received “grace to help in time of need” (Heb. 4:16).

“He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be Thy shield and buckler.” —Psalm 91:4

We see related phrases in verse 1 as to dwelling in the secret place of the Most High and abiding under the shadow of the almighty. “surely He shall deliver” (v.3), but it is “under His wings” (v.4) where one must trust. notice the next words: “His truth.” Jesus said, “Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (Jn. 8:32) and, “I am … the truth” (14:6). We must know Him.

Expressions By The Lord Jesus Christ
Referring to Jesus about six months before His birth, Zacharias spoke of the visit of the Dayspring from on high (Lk. 1:78). In this he affirmed that the child Jesus was God. Later, in Luke 19:41, the Lord Jesus beheld Jerusalem and wept over it. He said, “Thou knewest not the time of thy visitation” (v.44).

He sorrowed because of the people’s refusal to know Him and to be gathered under His wings: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent [by God] unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, but ye would not” (Mt. 23:37).

as Israel refused to be sheltered under His wings, the gospel now goes out to the ends of the world. We who have heard and believed the good news of salvation, knowing the risen Christ, can enjoy the fact that we are under His wings. There is plenty in this world that could make us afraid, but we can be like what I saw in my farm days, when one peal of thunder would send the chicks running under their mother’s wings.

May we bow in adoration to our savior as we consider the chorus of the opening hymn:

“Under His wings, under His wings, Who from His love can sever? Under His wings my soul shall abide, Safely abide forever.”

ENDNOTE
* GotQuestions.org explains the kinsman-redeemer in this manner: It is “a male relative who, according to various laws of the Pentateuch, had the privilege or responsibility to act on behalf of a relative who was in trouble, danger, or need. The Hebrew term (go el) for kinsman-redeemer designates one who delivers or rescues (Gen. 48:16; Ex. 6:6) or redeems property or person (Lev. 27:9–25, 25:47–55) … [The Lord Jesus] is the true kinsman-redeemer of all who call on Him in faith.”

By Timothy P. Hadley

What comes to your mind when you hear the word “liberty”? The term has been used a lot in connection with civil liberties and personal rights. In the United States, the Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Pledge of Allegiance all speak of it. The Statue of Liberty stands in New York harbor as a symbol of freedom, while the Liberty Bell is displayed near Philadelphia’s Independence Hall. The inscription on that bell, “Proclaim Liberty Throughout All The Land Unto All The Inhabitants Thereof,” was taken from Leviticus 25:10 (KJV).

But what is true liberty? Once there was some graffiti painted on a wall that read, “Freedom is NO Authority!” But is that really freedom? Some feel that freedom or liberty means people can do anything their hearts desire. Even many Christians have the idea that we are free to do whatever we want, watch whatever we want, and go wherever we want; but is that really what the Bible teaches?

What Is True Freedom?
Spiritually speaking, the Bible tells us that everyone is a slave – no one is free. In our society today slavery is a negative thing that speaks of degradation, hardship and inequality. But the biblical perspective is that true freedom is found in Christ. Paul explained in Romans 6 that we are slaves to either sin or righteousness. Those who are slaves to sin cannot free themselves from it, but once we are freed through the cross from the penalty and power of sin, we become slaves to righteousness. In this second slavery we find complete peace and true freedom.

The only true freedom comes to those of us who recognize that we are not our own. The Lord Jesus said, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (Jn. 8:31-32 NKJV). He continued, “Most assuredly, I say to you whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed” (vv.34-36).

A servant is one who works for wages and, by virtue of his work, is owed something by his master. The believer, on the other hand, has nothing to offer to the Lord in payment for His forgiveness; he is totally owned by the Master who bought him with His shed blood on the cross (see 1 Cor. 6:19-20). These individuals are purchased by His blood and are the possession of their Lord and Savior. Every true Christian can rejoice along with Paul, saying, “The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death” (Rom. 8:2).

Why Do Many Christians Live As If In Bondage?
We often rebel against our Master, refusing to obey Him while clinging to our old lives and holding on to the sins that once bound us to Satan as our master. The Bible tells us that every believer has two natures: the new nature that came as a result of Christ’s work in our lives and the old nature with which we were born. The old nature seeks to draw us to sin. However, we are instructed to “put off” the old self with its deceit and corruption, and “put on” the new self with its righteousness and holiness. Put off lying and put on truthfulness. Put off stealing and put on usefulness and work. Put off bitterness, rage and anger; put on kindness, compassion and forgiveness (Eph. 4:22–32). We have been set free from the bondage of sin, yet we return at times to those chains because part of us loves the old life.

So how do we gain the victory and enter into true Christian liberty? It is through death! We must recognize that we died with Christ and have been crucified with Him (Gal. 2:20), and we have been born again as completely new creatures (2 Cor. 5:17). The Christian life is one of a figurative death to self and rising to “walk in newness of life” (Rom. 6:4).

What Is Christian Liberty?
This word “liberty” appears 11 times in the New Testament and it affects our past, present and future. As we have seen, freedom in Christ is not cheap – it cost Him His life! He has purchased us with His own blood, securing for us our liberty. Christian liberty is freedom from the guilt of sin, freedom from the condemning wrath of God, and freedom from the curse of the moral law (Isa. 53:12; Gal. 3:13, 5:18; Heb. 1:3).

Freedom in Christ also impacts all our present and future liberties, such as freedom from the bondage to Satan (Acts 26:18; Col. 1:13). We are free from the dominion of sin (Rom. 6:14). We enjoy free access to the throne of grace (Heb. 4:14-16), and we are free to serve Christ as His bondservants (Rom. 7:4; Heb. 9:14).

Christian liberty also includes freedom from the sting of death; we are given victory over the grave “through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 15:54-57). He gave Himself on that cruel cross to deliver us from this present evil world (Gal. 1:4), and someday very soon we will be brought out from the presence of sin to dwell in the city illuminated by the glory of God (Rev. 21:23-27)!

What Christian Liberty Is Not
We mentioned earlier that there are Christians who feel that they can do whatever they wish because they “have liberty.” But is true Christian liberty a license to sin or a permission to do want we want? The answer is, “No, of course not!” Paul wrote of this very thing in Romans 6:15-18: “What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine [teaching] to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.” Jude warned of those “who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ” (Jude 4). But Peter instructed us to be “as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God” (1 Pet. 2:16). “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31). “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him” (Col. 3:17). Every area of our lives is His, and ought to be lived out for Him.

We have been called to liberty, but the danger is that we might use this liberty as a license to sin. Listen to these words: “For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another! I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another” (Gal. 5:13-26).

If we are Spirit filled and Spirit led believers walking in the Spirit, we will enjoy the liberty that comes through the Spirit, for “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty” (2 Cor. 3:17). Romans 14 has much to say about Christian liberty, and throughout the chapter Paul taught that the real purpose of Christian liberty is to live to the Lord and serve one another – never using our liberty in a way that would stumble another brother or sister in Christ.

So Christian liberty is not a matter of being free to do whatever I please, but it is to live in such a way that whatever I do pleases the One to whom I belong – to His praise and for His glory!

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace … to the praise of His glory.” —Ephesians 1:3-7,12

By Alan H. Crosby

The Universe
One of God’s purposes in creation is to display His glory! The psalmist looked up with his naked eyes and saw only about six thousand stars, a handful of planets and one moon. Yet his response was, “the heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork” (Ps. 19:1 ESV). With our modern instruments we discovered that the Milky Way, our galaxy, is made up of billions of stars. Astronomers have found billions of such galaxies. We have also discovered about two thousand planets circling the distant stars in our galaxy and there may be many more!

Humanity
We are not told the details of God’s purposes in creating, only that “all things … visible and invisible … were created through [the Son] and for Him” (Col. 1:16). God’s “plan for the fullness of time [is] to unite all things in Him” (Eph. 1:10). This plan involves the little planet we call “Earth” which circles a minor star we call “the sun.”

Before creating, God had in mind that the earth should be a suitable place for humans to inhabit and that people should be in His own image (Gen. 1:26-27), “holy and blameless before Him” (Eph. 1:4). But Satan seduced man into becoming like him, God’s enemy. To overcome this enmity, God sent His Son to reconcile us to Himself through faith. The Son became a man that “in His body of flesh by His death” we could be made “holy and … above reproach before Him” (Col. 1:22). By this single sacrifice “He has perfected [us] for all time” (Heb. 10:14), making us fit for the glory that Christ gives to His own (Jn. 17:22). Of the blessings we will have, “no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Cor. 2:9).

In creation, God declared His glory. And when all His purposes are worked out, believers will be blessed with unimaginable blessings! May we ever “praise [God] for His mighty deeds; praise Him according to His excellent greatness” (Ps. 150:2).

“Neither are your ways My ways, saith the Lord.” —Isaiah 55:8 KJV

By John G. Bellett (Adapted)

Provoked And Proved
We are aware that in many different ways our fellow disciples try and tempt us, as, no doubt, we do them. We see, or we think we see, some bad quality in them and we find it hard to go on in further association with them. Yet the fault may be with us – mistaking a want of conformity of taste or judgment with ourselves for something to be condemned in them.

But the Lord could not mistake things in this way. He was never overcome by evil, but was ever overcoming evil with good – the good being in Himself. Pride, ill temper, indifference about others, carefulness about themselves and ignorance after painstaking instruction were some of the things in His disciples which He endured continually. His walk with them, in its way and measure, was a day of provocation much as the forty years of Israel in the wilderness had been. Again and again, Israel tempted and provoked the LORD, but in this they proved Him as well. He suffered, but took it patiently. He never gave them up. At the end of their walk together, He was nearer to them than ever.

Perfect and excellent this is, and comforting to us. The Lord’s dealing with our conscience never turns His heart from us. We lose nothing by His rebukes. He is quick to restore our souls that the conscience, so to express it, may be enabled soon to leave His school – our hearts finding their happy freedom in His presence again. We may think of this hymn:

Still sweet ‘tis to discover, If clouds have dimmed my sight; When passed, Eternal Lover, Towards me, as e’er Thou art bright.

Perfection
In the character and course of the ministry which He was called to take up, we see for each and every moment the same perfection and moral glory as in the path He trod daily. For example, consider that of Judge as in Matthew 23 and that of Advocate or Pleader in Matthew 22. I only suggest this, as the theme is too abundant.

His every step, word and action carried with it a ray of this glory. The eye of God had more to fill it in the life of Jesus than it would have had in an eternity of Adam’s innocence. It was in the midst of our moral ruin that Jesus walked, and from that region He was sent up to the throne on high. His was a richer sacrifice of sweet-smelling savor than Eden and the Adam of Eden would or could have rendered had they continued unsoiled forever.

The Same
Time made no change in the Lord. Kindred instances of grace and character in Him, before and after His resurrection, give us possession of this important truth. We know what He is this moment and what He will be forever from what He has already been, in character and in relationship to us. He is “the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever” (Heb. 13:8). The very mention of this is blessed.

Sometimes we may be grieved at changes and sometimes we may desire them. In different ways we all display the fickle, uncertain nature of human life. Circumstances, associations, friendships, affections and characters continually undergo changes which surprise and sadden us. We are hurried from stage to stage of life; affections and principles rarely staying the same with us.

But Jesus was the same after His resurrection as He had been before, though events had put Him and His disciples at a greater distance than companions had ever known or could ever know. They had exposed their unfaithful hearts, forsaking Him and fleeing in the hour of His weakness (2 Cor. 13:4) and need. He, for their sakes, went through death – a death as never could have been borne by another as it would have crushed the creature. After His resurrection the disciples were still poor, feeble Galileans, yet He was glorified with all power in heaven and on earth (see Matthew 28:18).

Grace Amid Doubt
Their forsaking Him did not change His love toward them. “Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature,” as the apostle expressed, could do that (Rom. 8:38-39). Love defies them all; and He returned to them being the Jesus whom they had known before. He was their companion in labor (Mk. 16:20). On the sea in the day of Matthew 14 they thought that they saw a spirit and cried out for fear. But the Lord gave them to know that it was He Himself who was there – near to them and in grace, though in divine strength and sovereignty over nature (vv.22-33). And in Luke 24:40-43, after He had risen, He took the honeycomb and the fish, eating before them that with certainty and ease of heart they might know that it was He Himself.

In John 3:1-21 He led a slow-hearted rabbi into the light and way of truth, bearing with him in all patient grace. And thus did He again in Luke 24 with the two slow-hearted disciples who were finding their way to Emmaus (vv.13-35).

Mark 4:35-41 tells how He calmed the fears of His people before He rebuked their unbelief. He said to the wind and waves, “Peace, be still,” before asking the disciples, “How is it that ye have no faith?” Likewise, as the risen One, in John 21, He sat and dined with Peter in full and free fellowship, as without a breach in the spirit, before He challenged him and awakened His conscience by the words, “Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou Me?” Peter had boasted earlier of special self-confidence: Though all should be offended, yet he would not, and though he should die with his Master, he would not deny Him (Mt. 26:35). But Peter’s Master had told him of the worthlessness of such claims; and He had told him of His prayer for him, that his faith should not fail (Lk. 22:31-32). When the boast was found to have been empty and Peter denied the Lord, even with an oath, his Lord looked at him. The prayer and the look availed. The prayer had kept his faith from failing and the look had broken his heart. Peter did not “go away,” but he wept bitterly (Mt. 26:75).

At the opening of John 21 we find Peter in the condition in which the prayer and the look had put him. He was enabled to give very sweet proof that his faith had not failed; for as soon as he learned that his Lord was on the shore he threw himself into the water to reach Him. This was not done as one who was repentant and sorrowing because of wrongdoing. Rather, it was as one who could trust himself to the Lord’s presence in full assurance of heart. In that character his most blessed and gracious Lord accepted him, and they dined together on the shore. The prayer and the look had already done their work with Peter and they were not to be repeated. The Lord simply went on with His work already begun to conduct it to its perfection. Accordingly, the prayer and the look were followed by the word.

Perfect Master!
He is the same to us yesterday, today and forever – the same in His gracious, perfect skill of love and going on with the work He has already begun. As the risen Lord, the service which He had left when He was taken away from His own He resumed from the point where it was suspended, knitting the past to the present. His was and is a service in the fullest grace and skill!

By John G. Bellett (Adapted)

Not as Thy ways, our ways We bow before Thy face; Not like Thy thought, our thought, As by Thy Spirit taught. Not as our ways, Thy ways! Savior, Thy name we praise; Not as our thoughts, Thy thoughts, Told by Thy love-work wrought.