New Home: The Gurleyman

I moved! Nah, not apartments, but blogs :). You can now find musings, conference notes, etc at www.thegurleyman.com.

Hopefully I'll migrate some of this "furniture" over there eventually, as I'm very partial to a lot of these :). In the mean time, enjoy the new stuff that's coming out. And a continued shout out to Sommer for the tagline!

~Chris

Psalm 119:165

Psalm 119 is known as the longest chapter of the Bible, an acrostic of the Hebrew alphabet, and a work of art exalting the worth of God's truth. In 176 verses, only three fail to make mention of Scripture (using a plethora of synonyms). This morning it was verse 165 that enveloped my heart and met me where I am.

"Great peace have those who love Your law; nothing can make them stumble."

The words that follow will rotate through vantage points of this short statement, repeating it and unwrapping the treasure of each word.

"GREAT peace have those who love Your law; nothing can make them stumble."

The peace that comes from loving truth is not mere tranquility or placidity of soul. It is "great", significant, powerful, and impacting peace (as we'll see later). To me, that's huge, because the turmoil of life can be intimidating and the temptation to replace God with something less is persistent. Praise God that this peace is great!

"Great PEACE have those who love Your law; nothing can make them stumble."

Loving law would seem to produce many things for a person--intelligence, righteousness, even arrogance--but an affection for God's law brings "peace". And what does the Lord Jesus say about this peace? "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid" (John 14:27). Our peace and lack of heart's trouble comes from the promises within the law. God won't forsake us; He sent His Son to prove that; and He's coming back to take us home. That's true peace.

"Great peace have THOSE who love Your law; nothing can make them stumble."

I might be making too much out of this one, but I find encouragement in the plurality of "those". That means I'm not alone. In fact, it reminds me of Elijah in 1 Kings. He's hiding from Jezebel in a cave, crying to the Lord about being alone in his love for the one true God and His truth. But what does God say to him? "Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him" (1 Kings 19:18). The Lord had secured 7,000 others to let Elijah know he wasn't alone. Isolation can be one of my strongest enemies, but the truth is that others are right where I am.

"Great peace have those who LOVE Your law; nothing can make them stumble."

Love. It's a word we use for ice cream, baseball, clothes, and the weather. Less often does it find it's true definition of selfless devotion and unwavering affection. The bearers of this love don't see God's law as a burden or restrictive. They run to it for safety; they embrace it as a heavenly gift. I believe God's Word. I'm zealous for it. But I"m pretty sure I don't love it as defined above (at least not always). Lord, kindle more love within me for Your truth.

"Great peace have those who love YOUR LAW; nothing can make them stumble."

We've already covered a lot of what the "law" is, so we'll put the emphasis on "Your" and the two combined. It's not "the" law or "a" law as if it were impersonal. Rather, this is directly tied to and dependent on the Author and Giver of it. This law is inextricably linked to God's character. Loving God's law is loving His holiness, which is loving Him, because through the law we know our God. This isn't a bunch of rules. It's the biography and expression of our Father.

"Great peace have those who love Your law; NOTHING can make them stumble."

If I put you to sleep in the last couple points, wake up here! To me, "nothing" is the rally cry of this verse. What can trip up those who love the Lord and His Word? Nothing! What can knock me down when I'm anchored to the truth? Nothing! You have no idea how uplifting that! "...if God is for us, who can be against us?...Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies" (Romans 8:31b,33). In this spiritual battle called "life", we have God on our side! I know I forget it, which is when I stumble, but if I'll just remember...

"Great peace have those who love Your law; nothing can MAKE them stumble."

I mostly covered this in the one before, but the key here is that nothing can force us to stumble, when we love the Lord above all. Vixens can woo us, and sirens may call, but none are irresistible. We have a choice. I have a choice.

"Great peace have those who love Your law; nothing can make them STUMBLE."

This word sets verse 165 apart from most of the rest of chapter 119. The others praise the Scriptures or decry the wicked, but this one acknowledges our weakness. Here, the psalmist sees the wickedness within. Without love for the law, we would be those who deserve judgment and death. Outside of the fulfillment of the law in Christ, we would be excluded from the fellowship of God. Lord, apart from You, we only stumble in darkness. Open our eyes to Your light.

"Great peace have those who love Your law; nothing can make them stumble." ~Psalm 119:165 ESV

Notes: The Heart of the Gospel

The Heart of the Gospel, 1 Cor. 15:3-8, Tom Pennington (Countryside Bible)
Listen at: http://www.countrysidebible.org/CBC.php?t=23&p=Sermons&mainNav

Four propositions: buried, died, raised, appeared

1. Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, v.3

• sins: the violation of God's law or God's standard, Ps. 24
• king of all the earth, Ps. 47; the universe is not a democracy
• demands perfect obedience, James 2:10
• the law of God consists of two commands: love God perfectly & others
• we have all rebelled against God's rightful rule in our lives, "our sins"
• people believe God grades on a curve, but that's not what God says
• Rom. 3:9-12,23; 6:23, the outcome of our best effort is death
• Jesus came to live a perfect life and to die, 1 Pet. 2:22; Mark 10:45; 2 Cor. 5:21
• in accordance with the scriptures, Isa. 53:5-11
  

2. Christ was buried, v.4a

• important because evidence of Jesus' literal, physical death; you don't bury a live person
• everyone knew where Jesus was buried--enemies and friends
  

3. Christ was raised on the third day according to the scriptures, v.4b

• "has been raised", action with permanent results
• not the same kind of resurrection as those he had performed, i.e. Lazarus
  - Lazarus was raised in the same fallen body and died again
• Jesus was raised with a new, perfect body
• 1 Cor. 15:42, imperishable, power, glory, spiritual, real, touchable, physical
• third day: really about 36hrs (Fri PM - Sun AM), prophesied not to decay
• Isa. 53:10, he will see his offspring and prolong his days; implies resurrection
• important because, 1) it affirms Jesus' claims are true, Acts 2
• ...2) it affirms the Father accepted Jesus' payment for sins, Rom. 4:25
• ...3) it affirms that someday Jesus will be the judge of every human being, Acts 17:31
  

4. Christ appeared to eyewitnesses, v.5-8

• established the resurrection through more than 14 different appearances
• Peter: Luke 24:34; the twelve; more than 500 brethren, Matt. 28, most still living; James, Jesus' half brother, Acts 1:14, Mary & Jesus' brothers, James 1:1; all the apostles; Paul, Acts 9
• to believe in Jesus and His resurrection is not a leap of faith; exceeding evidence
  

Application:

• you have to personally respond
• Mark 1:15, repent and believe the gospel
• repent: turn from everything in your life that you know is sin and in rebellion
• believe: put your full reliance in Jesus Christ and Him alone (Rom. 10:9)

A Life Well Spent

Wycliffe Mourns Bible Translator (Wycliffe Pray Today, 3/28/2011)

“‘…I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit…’” (John 15:16, NLT).

“God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God” (Matthew 5:9, NLT).

Bible translator Mary Gardner, a member of Wycliffe UK, was killed by a bomb explosion in Jerusalem on Wednesday, March 23.

Mary was in Jerusalem studying Hebrew at The Home for Bible Translators. Mary spent much of her life in Togo, west Africa, where, in 1989, she joined a team translating the Ifè New Testament. The Ifè New Testament translation was finished in 2009.

Pray for God’s hand of peace on Mary’s family, friends, and colleagues as they mourn her passing.

Men, We Are Men. (Part 3)

In the movie, Braveheart, William Wallace is the manly man a lot of us would probably like to be. The girl he loves is brutally killed. So what does he do? First, he avenges her blood by taking out the guy who murdered her. Second, he rises up against the empire and teaches others how to fight. And finally, he gives his life and dies for the cause. He wasn't a marine, but that deserves an "Ooh-rah!"

The apostle John had those same three points (okay, with slight variations) in mind about 1100 years earlier when he wrote 1 John 2:12-14. Know the truth. Fight for the truth. Teach the truth.

I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for His name's sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one. ~1 John 2:12-14

Men, We Are Men. (Part 2)

"All men are the same. Now I remember why I don't date. (no offense, women have plenty of faults too)" ~Recent tweet by a Porch-going woman

Comments and tweets like that started the ball rolling on this post, which is part 2 of "Men, We Are Men.", but it's just a little piece of where we'll be going in this segment, so don't sign off if you're a knight in shining armor or simply disagree. You'll have something to apply here (I do!).

As a brief reminder, the goal of this little series is to stir up the men who follow Christ at The Porch and elsewhere to recognize that we are indeed men (no longer boys) and to live accordingly. So, without further adieu, let's get back on the trail and see where the Word leads...

Doubt: Is It Necessary?

Is doubt normative in the life of the believer? Is it necessary? These are two questions asked in a recent Sunday sermon, and the answers were distinctly "Yes". Perhaps the goal was to encourage believers not to let doubt shake their faith, as was somewhat stated in the speaker's points, but it seemed to also license doubt itself, especially with a citation from Dr. Chuck Swindoll's, which claimed it to be necessary.

Necessary? Really? I disagree. While we see plenty of descriptive stories in the Bible about people who doubted--even those esteemed as being "after God's own heart--God and the text do not endorse doubt as "necessary", but rather exalt faith. Now, can God use our doubt for His glory? Absolutely! But wouldn't He rather we exercise faith in the gaps where our knowledge and sight fail us?

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. ~James 1:2-8

James in this passage raises faith as the lighthouse amidst the stormy seas of trials. Doubt, on the other hand, is the enemy as it takes our eyes off of the lighthouse of God's wisdom and provision through prayer.

Perhaps this is a conversation of two types of "doubt" as the same can be said for "testing" versus "temptation". Is all doubt sin? Is all questioning doubt? The one doubting in James 1, the one who is blown, tossed, double-minded, and unstable, would surely as sinning, would he not? However, David and other psalmists' repeated cries to God in their times of trouble would seem to be reliance on Him in the form of questioning, not "doubt" as some might call it.

Paul, in Romans 14, speaks of the weaker brother who is tempted to doubt (his standing before God, it seems) by the eating of certain foods. In verse 23, Paul concludes by saying, "But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin." Faith, thus, appears to be the determiner in the midst of uncertainty (in Romans 14, whether God's declaration of all things clean and of idols being rubbish, is true).

Wrapping up, I would propose that asking questions of and in your faith is absolutely wise and necessary. Learn! Be ready to give a defense! Know your God!

But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. ~1 Peter 3:15-16

Is doubt, as it is mostly defined and spoken of in Scripture, normal? As fallen, unredeemed man, unfortunately yes. Is it necessary? By faith, no.

All passages quoted from the NIV 2011.