Plagues of the Heart

It seems like wherever I have lived in Sydney, it is always a fight to keep lawns, trees and shrubs healthy and free of pests.  Keeping turf free of weeds has been extremely difficult and nigh impossible.  Trees have had infestations of pests like stinkbugs, scale and white ants.  I found roots of languishing tomato plants full of chafer grubs.  I observed a careless council worker in a Bobcat gash bark off a gumtree when digging for a footpath and a flock of sulphur-crested cockatoos descend upon a tree and pluck off the tips of every branch with their beaks.  It is a constant battle to deal with the pests and problems that crop up on a daily basis.

One of the worst offenders for me are scale insects that cling like barnacles to the underside of leaves and dig into branches, robbing the plant of nutrition.  It seems pest oil does not prevent scale from forming, and Neem oil--while effective at killing scale--causes stress on the tree that makes leaves drop.  I have learned that I must physically inspect the branches up close, otherwise the scale remains and multiplies very quickly.  It is a good thing the tree is small, for lifting up all the leaves to scour for scale is a time-consuming and imprecise process.  It is one of those jobs that is never done because the scale keeps coming.

Today I read the passage where king Solomon prayed during the dedication of the temple in Jerusalem.  With all my experience with pests, Solomon's prayer in 1 Kings 8:37-40 caught my attention:  "When famine or plague comes to the land, or blight or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers, or when an enemy besieges them in any of their cities, whatever disaster or disease may come, ³⁸ and when a prayer or plea is made by any of your people Israel--each one aware of the afflictions of his own heart, and spreading out his hands toward this temple--³⁹ then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive and act; deal with each man according to all he does, since you know his heart (for you alone know the hearts of all men), ⁴⁰ so that they will fear you all the time they live in the land you gave our fathers."  Solomon drew a correlation between famine, blight, mildew, locusts, disaster and disease and the afflictions or "plagues" of his own heart.  When people were afflicted by pests or enemies, they were to cry out to the LORD who  knows the hearts of mankind would hear and deliver them.

God was well aware of all the problems people in Israel faced from famine, grasshoppers that consumed their crops and invading enemies--as well as the plagues of greed, selfishness, pride, lust and all manner of sin in the heart.  Scale is a pest that can be seen by looking closely, and we need wisdom and insight from the LORD to recognise the plagues of our own hearts.  Plagues are destructive, and without strong intervention plagues spread.  Even as people under Law were to speak to priests to inspect potential plagues of leprosy that broke out inside their home, so we are to humble ourselves before God and repent of the plague of sin that crops up day by day in our hearts.  While scale can be easily scraped off the underside of waxy leaves, we cannot purify ourselves from our plagues within.  We need the LORD to cleanse, forgive and deliver us from sin's power and influence, and as we are faithful to do this we walk in the fear of the LORD.

For God's Sake

The human tendency towards selfishness is as real as the force of gravity on earth, and we naturally have incredible capacity to be self-serving.  While the term "public servant" may fit some politicians, it seems some are more focused on serving their party or promoting their own careers.  We see among God's people this rings true as well, for John observed among Christians those who wanted the pre-eminence, putting self first in ministry, rather than being servants of all as demonstrated by our LORD Jesus Christ (3 John 9).  King Saul went and fought the Amalekites at God's command, yet he and the people spared the best of the spoils for themselves--all under the guise of doing it for God's sake.

This is something we must keep in mind, that the very thing we do for God can become something we are do only for ourselves and our glory.  There is nothing wrong in itself by constructing an ornate, expensive building for the worship of God that in itself is a work of art.  Under the guise of doing something great for God, at the centre can be thoughts for ourselves and our glory.  A grand edifice can become the source of pride as great Babylon was for King Nebuchadnezzar who was proud of his accomplishments and legacy.  He derived status and satisfaction from what he saw with his eyes sprawled before him and failed to recognise the unseen God of Israel and credit Him for his blessings with humility, reverence and worship.  The grandeur of Nebuchadnezzar's kingdom revealed the poverty and shallowness of his thanks and gratitude to God.

When Solomon was building the temple in Jerusalem according to God's design, 11 Kings 6:11-13 says:  "Then the word of the LORD came to Solomon, saying: ¹² "Concerning this temple which you are building, if you walk in My statutes, execute My judgments, keep all My commandments, and walk in them, then I will perform My word with you, which I spoke to your father David. ¹³ And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake My people Israel."  God never asked or commanded David to build a permanent structure to house the Ark of the Covenant or His holy presence.  God was pleased for His presence to dwell within curtains, and did not feel slighted David dwelt in a house of cedar.  Yet this seemed a terrible injustice to David who delighted in the LORD, and God gave Him permission and dimensions for the house his son Solomon would build.  Though nothing we build can rival the temple Solomon built, our labours of love, efforts and accomplishments can become a source of pride.

In His word to Solomon, notice God showed no concern for the imported stone, expensive timber and gold.  It was not ornate carvings or imposing size of the stones that made the LORD welcome to dwell therein:  God's condition for dwelling among His people that they walk in His statutes, execute His judgments, keep all His commandments and walk in them.  God cared much more about the condition of the hearts of His people than a building, that they would simply listen to Him and love Him, that they would be godly and have sanctified hearts He valued infinitely more than gold of Ophir.  The temple in Jerusalem was never intended by God to be a reflection of His goodness, power, majesty and grandeur because of the size or expense:  His people were to reflect Him by their humility, generosity and love with one another.  From the very beginning of creation and for all eternity, God's desire is to dwell among His people who love Him, and may our lives be lived for His glory through our faith, glad submission and obedience to Him.

If God's people would walk in His statutes and keep His commandments, God promised to dwell among His people and not forsake them.  Jesus has established the new covenant in His own blood, and having been born again by faith in Jesus the Holy Spirit now takes up residence in our own hearts.  Isn't this amazing, that we are the temple of the Holy Spirit who sanctifies us?  Hebrews 13:5-6 says to us, "Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." ⁶ So we may boldly say: "The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?"  Knowing God dwells with us, we need not covet a bigger or newer church building--as if we need that to serve Him better or glorify Him more.  Since God will never leave or forsake us and always helps us, we can rejoice to faithfully minister unto Him right where we are.  Our problem is not using everything at our disposal for His glory and simultaneously imagine what we are doing for ourselves is for His sake.

Beauty of Holiness

"Give unto the LORD, O you mighty ones, give unto the LORD glory and strength. ² Give unto the LORD the glory due to His name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness."

Psalm 29:1-2

Without doing a thing, God is awesome on glory and beautiful in holiness.  He is pure, perfect, almighty and righteous in all His ways without changing.  There is no created thing in heaven or earth that can compare with His goodness and unfailing faithfulness.  David urged all people to give worship to the LORD for His glory and strength in the beauty of holiness.  His beauty is not merely observed but personally experienced by those who love Him and His appearing.

A song by Oasis Worship that leans into worship of God for who He is is titled, "You Are Beautiful Beyond Description."  The song goes:

You are beautiful beyond description

Too marvellous for words

Too wonderful for comprehension

Like nothing ever seen or heard

Who can grasp Your infinite wisdom

Who can fathom the depth of Your love

You are beautiful beyond description

Majesty enthroned above...

As our lives plod on there are more things we appreciate and love about God, and His beauty of holiness ought to be one of them.  It is fitting we love God for the wonderful things He has done, and we ought to always acknowledge how glorious He is.  When we find God's character compelling in itself, we can praise the LORD and bow before Him reverently even when He allows or does things we do not understand.  This is why worship of God for who He is establishes a foundation of worship for all seasons of life regardless of what happens.  If our worship or thanks of God is shallow, only showing gratitude or thanks for what we see as beneficial according to our preferences, we will be disillusioned in the difficult and troubling seasons of life God allows so we can be strengthened in faith, realise on a deeper level how much we need Him, and how faithful He is to His word and us continually.

The ugliness of sin and the devastation of the world cannot tarnish God's goodness or glory.  On the contrary, God's love and goodness is a stark contrast to the world under Satan's sway that has rebelled from God and His righteous ways.  It is ironic those who do no believe in God will blame God for the wrongs in the world instead of acknowledging the self-evident truth:  "There is none righteous, no not one."  As Jesus declared there is no one good except God, and thus He is worthy of all our worship and praise.  Having had our eyes opened by faith in Jesus, let us praise and worship God in the beauty of holiness because of His goodness, wisdom and otherness from humanity steeped in sin.  That God would be scarred for our sin so we could be redeemed and reconciled to God is awesome indeed.

Scripture Rightly Divided

In our Friday night Bible study at Calvary Chapel Sydney, we discussed how Satan is well-versed in the Scripture.  After Jesus defused a temptation from the devil by quoting the word of God, Satan employed a verse from the Psalms to encourage Jesus to do his will rather than the Father's will.  The devil used a tactic people can use as well, to hijack passages from the Bible they do not believe or accept as true to condemn, guilt or manipulate other people.  Though Satan knew the words of Scripture it is evident he did not understand it, for had he considered the full passage he wrenched out of context he would have been confronted with his own ruin.

Matthew 4:5-6 tells us, "Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, ⁶ and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: 'He shall give His angels charge over you,' and, 'In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.'"  Let us consider the passage the devil quoted with verses before and after in Psalm 91:9-13:  "Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge, even the Most High, your dwelling place, ¹⁰ no evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; ¹¹ for He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways. ¹² In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone. ¹³ You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra, the young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot."  The passage holds forth the Most High God as a safe refuge from harm, the one who gives deliverance and victory to His people over all enemies.

The Bible compares Satan to a roaring lion in 1 Peter 5:8, and he is also identified as that old serpent or dragon in Revelation 12:9 and 20:2.  Jesus had no need to jump off the pinnacle of the temple to affirm His identity as the Son of God or to prove the Bible is true--being the Author of Scripture who cannot lie.  God foretold of His victory over the serpent when he was cursed in Genesis 3:15.  The proud devil was conversing with the LORD who had created him, will bind him and shall destroy him forever.  In his pride Satan refuses to admit defeat even in the face of God, but before he knows it God's word shall be accomplished.  Jesus did a far greater thing than jumping from the temple and being spared death by angels who bore Him up when He died on the cross for the sins of the world and rose again.  The obedience of Jesus to the will of the Father ushered in salvation and deliverance for all who believe.

The devil does not lay the truth of Scripture to heart and cannot rightly divide it with his forked tongue, but the child of God ought to hold fast to the truth of God's word come what may.  Jesus overcame the temptations of Satan with His feet firmly on the word of God by faith, and we are to follow Christ's example.  Jesus Christ is our faithful refuge, the Most High who keeps us in all our ways, God who tramples the lion and serpent underfoot.