He who has an ear...

Revelation 2:1-29

In Carl’s introduction to the book of Revelation last week he reminded us of the wonderful promise at the beginning that states that we are blessed to hear this book and take it to heart. As I looked at Chapter 2 for today, I was so blessed that I wrote one of my longest messages yet – only to realize that today is a Sharing Sunday, which means it should be a short message. So I had to do some painful pruning. There is so much in this chapter.  So without further ado, let’s pray and dig into this rich passage.

I wanted to say something about the symbolism that we find in Revelation and how sometimes literal pictures are not very helpful – at least I don’t find them so. Rather than considering a question like, How could Jesus speak with a double-edged sword coming out of His mouth? It is more helpful to think about what the sword might mean, in the light of other scriptures. The sword is the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, dividing soul and spirit, and judging the thoughts and attitudes of the heart, as it says in Hebrews 4:12. The word of God is able to pierce through the junk that may be in my mind, will, and emotions – the impurities in my soul – to touch the core of who I am, my eternal spirit, which is where I can truly connect with God. That’s the sword coming out of Jesus’ mouth. It’s the word of God that lays bare who we are deep inside, at our very core, where it really matters.

Do Not Be Afraid

Revelation 1:1-20

Welcome! Today we begin a new series on the book of Revelation. At one time I believed we would never do a series on this book, because of the difficulty of understanding it, but as the leaders of the church met together and prayed together, the idea of going through this book began to grow and take root, and so, here we are. 

I have to confess that one of the reasons I was previously resistant to doing a series on this book was one of fear. Would we look foolish? Would it create conflicts because of strongly held opinions? Would people just not be interested? And so the title today, “Do Not Be Afraid,” is as much for me as it is you. I believe we can trust God and the Holy Spirit to give us spirits of humility as we look inside this book, and we can also trust Him to reveal to us exactly what He wants to reveal to us, to help us understand exactly what He wants us to understand. We do not need to fear diving into this book. 

This book was written by John, understood to be the same author as the author of the Gospel of John as well as the letters known as I John, II John, and III John. One reason we can be pretty certain of this is that Justin Martyr, who lived from 100-165 AD, wrote that it was this same John, and he personally knew Polycarp, who was one of John’s closest personal disciples. Irenaeus also confirms the authorship in letters written about the same time.

Praise in Unity: Psalms 133 & 134

Welcome! Today we finish our series on the Psalms of Ascent, Psalms 120-134. These psalms are a collection, indicated in the original Hebrew as “of ascents,” or “degrees” or “steps.” We have mentioned repeatedly in this series that they may have been recited as the Israelites made their regular pilgrimages from around Israel to Jerusalem for important religious holidays. As a modern culture I think the setting of these psalms may be somewhat hard for us to relate to. We don’t walk any great distances singing spiritual songs together. Instead we drive in a nice air-conditioned car with the radio going on in front while the non-drivers watch movies, listen to music on headphones, or play games on their cell phones. 

I don’t think I’m a Luddite, but I do think we have lost something important as a culture, and we are continuing to lose it more and more day by day as we get ever more entranced by our electronic devices: we are losing our sense of community. The sense of community in residential neighborhoods has been steadily disappearing for at least the last 40 years.

The Radiant Crown: Psalm 132

Good morning!  We’re marching on through our series on the Psalms of Ascent.  These are a beautiful collection of “marching songs” for the pilgrimage that the Israelites were to Jerusalem for the appointed festivals (Passover, Weeks, Booths).

The subject matter in these Psalms of Ascent is broad.  We’ve heard prayers about deliverance (120), prayers for God to show mercy (123), prayers for Israel’s restoration (125), and prayers against Israel’s enemies (129); there was a dialog of confession and assurance (121); we’ve sung songs of joy over Jerusalem (122), songs of praise for deliverance (124), and songs of joy for the restoration of Zion and return of the captives (126); and, we’ve heard testimonies of godly living (127 and 128), testimonies of trust in the Lord (130); and a confession of trust in God (131).

Today’s psalm will take us in yet another direction of prayer and seeking God.  (Systematic and comprehensive.)  We also have the joy of looking forward to the arrival of the Savior.  Let’s pray and ask God to give us insight and application for Psalm 132.

Put Your Hope in Him: Psalms 130-131

As Carl mentioned at the beginning of this series, the set of Psalms that we are looking at are called songs of ascent because it is thought that they were sung by the people of Israel during their pilgrimages to Jerusalem three times a year. Because the city was on a hill, the journey was referred to as “going up” to Jerusalem. There was a sense of going up, all the way to the top of the temple mount to meet with God. As someone who grew up in the mountains of Nepal, I seem to have an innate desire to “go up.” Is this a universal instinct? I wonder. Little kids seem to want to climb almost as soon as they can crawl. Ian still loves to climb trees. For me, when I see a mountain, I automatically want to get to the top. I want to go up. I want to be able to see what’s on the other side.

During my mom’s last term in Nepal before she retired, she lived in a fairly remote, rural area – a hydropower construction project in the western part of the country. She was what amounted to the team leader of the group of missionary engineers who were working on a tight schedule to get a dam and powerhouse built and more than a kilometer of tunnels dug. The pressures were considerable, and relationships were sometimes strained. On Saturdays, my mom used to like to escape for a few hours. Where did she choose to go? Up a mountain. The staff housing was right at the bottom of the valley, so she would climb up about 3,000 feet to a pine forest on the very top of the mountain across the valley. It was a place of solitude and prayer and refreshment. If village kids wanted to accompany her, she would tell them that she was going to meet with God. That was very effective at dissuading them.

Cut Free: Psalm 129

Welcome! We are continuing our series on the Psalms of Ascent, Psalms 120-134. Today’s passage is Psalm 129, and before we dig into the Psalm in earnest, I do want to say a little about it and about others like it. Psalm 129 is an example of what is called an imprecatory psalm. The word imprecatory comes from the Latin word imprecatio which means to pray against. In imprecatory psalms the psalmist prays against his enemies, asking God for various bad things to happen to them. Some other psalms that are imprecatory in nature are Psalms 7, 35, 59, 69, 83, 109, 137, and 139. Some of the things the psalmists say include bring their violence to an end, may they be disgraced and put to shame, may they be like chaff before the wind, consume them in wrath, may they be blotted out, pursue them with Your tempest, and may their descendants be cut off. These are harsh words! What are we to make of them?

Anxiety vs. Fear/Trust in the Lord: Psalm 127-128

Psalm 127-128

A song of ascents. Of Solomon.

Psalm 127
^1aUnless the LORD builds the house,

its builders labor in vain.

Picture yourself as King Solomon making an ascent up the steps to the Temple construction project that your father King David started and left for you to complete.  You have the location and the manpower and the materials, but you were born a child of the king.  You may be the wisest man that ever lived but you don’t have a clue about how to actually build a temple that would actually please the Lord for whom you are building it.  

Ask yourself this question, “Do I want to build this temple and fulfill my father’s dream?”  If you answer this question, “Yes,” then you will quickly realize, like Solomon did, that unless the Lord builds the temple through you, then it is a waste of time because it won’t be pleasing to the Lord or to your father.  It may never be completed, but even if it is, it won’t last.

Unshakable with Tears: Psalm 125-126

Psalm 125

                A song of ascents.

¹     Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,

which cannot be shaken but endures forever.

²     As the mountains surround Jerusalem,

so the Lord surrounds his people

both now and forevermore.

³     The scepter of the wicked will not remain

over the land allotted to the righteous,

for then the righteous might use

their hands to do evil.

⁴     Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,

to those who are upright in heart.

⁵     But those who turn to crooked ways

the Lord will banish with the evildoers.

Peace be upon Israel.

Our Mercy and Help: Psalms 123-124

Welcome! Today we are looking at Psalms 123 and 124, continuing our series on the Psalms of Ascent. Each of these fifteen Psalms, from 120 to 134, are notated in the Hebrew as a song “of ascents,” or steps. As we have discussed previously, they may have been recited as a group as people traveled to Jerusalem to gather together on the religious holidays that required them to do so. Let’s go ahead and get right into Psalm 123.

I lift up my eyes to You, to You who sit enthroned in heaven. – Psalm 123:1

Thrones: Psalm 122

Welcome! Today we will continue our look into the Psalms of Ascent, Psalms 120-134, today focusing on Psalm 122. We will also remember the Lord together with the bread and the cup, and following that we will gather in a circle and whoever wishes can share what the Lord has been teaching them.

When I was a child, one of the highlights of the year was when we as a family would get in the car and drive from our home in Pasadena, California northward to the resort called Mammoth Lakes, a town in the Sierra Mountains at about 9000 feet above sea level. The drive, somewhere in the neighborhood of 300 miles, took about 7 hours, accounting for stops. Now in Pasadena, it almost never snows – maybe once every 30 years the snow might stick around for an hour or so. We lived in a subdivision at the foot of the mountains north of Pasadena.  There was one mountain immediately in front of us that was lower than the ones behind it,  We were so close to it that this lower mountain blocked the view of the larger ones (the frequent smog sometimes blocked the view of them all). Anyway, that lower mountain got a dusting of snow from time to time, but it wouldn’t stick around very long and didn’t look very impressive even when it did.