The War Within

 “Rule them with a rod of iron”

Psalm 2

 

Are you the kind of driver that when you pass a police car on the road you look in the mirror to see if he whips around and turns his lights on? I don’t know if it’s a guilty conscience or what, but I do that. Maybe it’s because there are consequences for breaking the law and I/we don’t like consequences.

 

We also don’t like to think of God as a judge. We prefer to think of Him as being a loving, forgiving and understanding Father who takes us in His arms and comforts us. But Psalm 2 is very clear as it presents God as a judge of those who don’t obey the law, who rebel against Him and who prefer to go their own way.

 

^4 “But God in heaven merely laughs! He is amused by all their puny plans. ⁵ And then in fierce fury he rebukes them and fills them with fear.            TLB

 

And again it is written: ⁸ “Only ask and I will give you all the nations of the world. ⁹ Rule them with an iron rod; smash them like clay pots!”               TLB

 

The worst part of God being a judge is that we deserve to be judged. Isn’t our natural inclination exactly what the psalmist wrote about? Don’t Paul’s words in Romans 7 apply to us as well?

 

^21 “So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. ²² For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; ²³ but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. ²⁴ What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?” NIV

 

There is a war within us that we battle every day. And because of our sin, because of this war with us, someone had to pay. God the judge had to judge. Judgement was required.

 

Thankfully, Christ paid the price for our sins. Indeed, as Paul wrote, ^25 “Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

 

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%202&version=NIV;TLB
https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/niv/Ps.2

 

Touched by an Angel

Hebrews 13:1-9

 

"Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.”                Hebrews 13:2 RSV

 

Have you ever had an encounter with an angel? From 1994 to 2003 there was a TV

show titled “Touched by an Angel”. Most of the episodes involved someone who was at a crossroad in their life. Monica and Tess brought them a message of hope; that God loved them and hadn’t forgotten them, and helped give them guidance.

 

In the Bible, angels make their first appearance in Genesis. Last week we read about the angels that greeted the disciples as they looked for Jesus in the tomb. Angels announced the birth of Jesus to the shepherds. They prepared Mary and Joseph for his arrival. They worshiped God in Isaiah’s vision.

 

Angels seem to play a very significant role in the Bible. And yet, I have never had an encounter with one that I am aware of. I have never been touched by angel. Or have I?

 

I grew up in a small town in Michigan and lived in a subdivision full of kids. This subdivision was bordered by M46 on the south side. It was a busy highway and there was a hill that leveled out just as you approached the town. Cars would come flying over that hill just before the speed limit was to slow down.

 

When I was about 10 years old, a friend of mine was hit by a car flying over that hill. A year or so later, I ran out onto that same stretch of road as a car came down the hill. If he had hit me, he could have easily killed me. But he didn’t. He swerved at the last second. I don’t claim that an angel protected me, but who’s to say.

 

Although the passage today mentions angels, I think what is more important is that it presents the character of God. The Message gives us some insight with these words, “God assured us, ‘I’ll never let you down, never walk off and leave you’”. A few verses later we are reminded that, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever”.

 

Have you ever been touched by an angel? I don’t know if an angel protected me on that highway as a little boy, but what I do know is that Jesus has always been with me. He never leaves me. He won’t desert me. And if you know Jesus; if he is your Lord and Savior; if he is in your heart; you have been “Touched by an Angel”.

 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=hebrews%2013%3A1-9&version=NIV;MSG

https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/niv/Heb.13.1-Heb.13.9

 

 

I Have a Dream

Deuteronomy 6:1-9

 

 

On November 19, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln spoke these words at the dedication of the Soldiers National Cemetery in Gettysburg: “Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal”.

 

On January 20, 1961 newly elected president of the United State, John F. Kennedy, gave his inaugural speech which included the following: “My fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country”.

 

On August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and spoke these words: “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal”.

 

Just as these visionary men gave motivational speeches that changed the world around them, Moses spoke to the nation of Israel. He reminded them how the LORD had delivered their ancestors from slavery. He reminded them how the LORD had performed miracles to bring them to this location at such a time as this.

 

Now was the time for Israel to make a decision. It was time for them to take the land that the LORD had promised Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. A land flowing with milk and honey.

 

But crossing the Jordan River would mean a huge change in their lives. They were used to living on manna and quail. They were used to wandering from place to place. They were used to being nomads, living in tents. The thought of crossing the Jordan River to an unknown life must have both excited and scared them.

 

During turbulent times Martin Luther King spoke of equality in America, and inspired a national movement for civil rights. At a critical point in time Moses spoke about the character, promises and expectations of the LORD, and inspired a nation to embrace Him.

 

You and I face decisions every day of our lives. For me, when they occur, I have a dream to “love the LORD my God with all my heart and with all my soul and with all my strength”. I pray that you have this same dream.

 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%206%3A1-9&version=NIV;TLB

https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/niv/Deut.6.1-Deut.6.9