Not bothering with the best

If under the Christmas tree were a huge present with your name on it, you wouldn't leave it under the tree. Would you? Yet the Christian church does that. There's a present marked "Gospel" left unopened and uninvestigated.
I see it everywhere. Here's a few examples:
I was discussing Christian work with a minister and saying I felt we needed to teach people grace until they got it. He said that many people in churches don't, so we shouldn't get hung up on teaching grace and teach other things too.
Bible studies on Mark I've been to focusing life applications rather than on "trust this Jesus."
Christians who see Christ as a role model offering solutions and who get upset when I talk of Him as a Saviour and not a solution.
The majority of children I teach are Arians (don't believe that Jesus is God) and Pelagians (we get ourselves to heaven with good works) and yet they call themselves Christians. But they have a Jesus incapable of saving, because He is not God, and they don't think they need it, because they think they can save themselves.
Lord, have mercy on us, for though You are gracious, we won't have it. Be overwhelmingly gracious and bring even sinners like us, who spurn Your mercies, into Your Kingdom.

Children of Adam

Modern poetry doesn't have to rhyme or anything, as far as I can see. So when my metre, lack of rhythm and general amateurishness, from which I cannot be redeemed, get in the way of my poetic instinct, I don't care. This is my attempt to write as many verses as Paul Gerhardt, from 2005.

Children of Adam

We are born children of Adam

All enslaved into sin

Condemned to die a lonely death

Without a hope of heaven.

We brought this fate upon ourselves

By turning our backs on God

We wanted to run things our way

We rebelled against the Lord.

He was born as the Son of God

Born without sin

But He died for us our lonely death

To get us into heaven.

He took our fate upon Himself

Submitting perfectly to God

“Not my will but Yours” He said

He called His Father Lord.

He died abandoned by God

For us He was made sin

That we might be righteousness

Fitted for heaven

He died our death for us

That in Him we might live

And the One who gave His Son for us

His Spirit too will give.

Born again as sons through Jesus

Freed from slavery to sin

We may all lead new lives

Shaped by the ways of heaven.

God gave this future to us

To show the fullness of His grace

Because His love is limitless

To win our eternal praise.

Consider Christ who died for you

Have you ever seen such love?

Friend, will this not move your heart

To seek the King above.

Throw off all the sin that stops you

Turn to Him with all your soul.

You lose nothing however much you lose

For He can make you whole.

When we're sons of God in heaven

Bright shining as the sun

Will we remember any price we paid

To make it to our home?

We'll rejoice in God our Saviour

Delight in Christ our Friend

Sing in the fullness of the Spirit:

“Here is love without end”

Sing in the fullness of the Spirit:

“Here is love without end”

"...YHWH being merciful to him ..."

A few thoughts on Genesis 18:16-19:38 have been on my mind since I started writing this blog: in fact, finding a place to publish them is one reason I started. The passage concerns Sodom and Gomorrah, and in all the fuss about what all the sin of Sodom was and all the postmodern reaction to fire and brimstone (19:24), I guess others have like me missed that the passage is, like all of the story of Abraham, about the God who saves.
It kicks off with Abraham's intercession. God's chosen one has special access to God, that he might intercede for others and their salvation: Abraham is here a type of Christ - he shows us the work of Christ foreshadowed.
In Abraham's intercession, he prays on the basis that the righteousness of some is not just sufficient to find some way of getting them out of the city, but is sufficient grounds to save the whole city: again we see Christ foreshadowed, who, by virtue of His righteousness delivers the entire church of all ages - the righteousness of One delivering a great people, not of ten delivering a city.
Then there's the escape of Lot. Notice how he's dragged out of the city? C S Lewis recounts similarly being dragged into salvation by God. Free will? Praise God - He loves us too much.
God's mercy to Lot is again quite dramatic: it extends to delivering the town of Zoar too. So committed is God to saving Lot that His deliverance is extended to others - that's what I call a wideness in God's mercy.
Finally, the story ends with the strange story of Lot becoming the father of his daughters' sons. We assume the sin of Sodom is that of homosexuality, first called a sin in Leviticus 18:22. Lot and his daughters commit sins listed in Leviticus 18:5-17, the same chapter but, by virtue of their positioning in the chapter, worse sins. If the traditional assumption is right, then the final story speaks a powerful message to all, but particularly those who single out sexual sins as particularly bad: our God saves sinners, even the ones we consider the worst (cf 1 Timothy 1:15).

Why the blog?

Someone told me via Facebook my posts were a little long, and my wife agreed. I guess there's truth in that, but I'm not just logging my life. I'm publishing material I hope friends and, Deo volente, others will find encouraging.
So: there's an explanation and then the material. Skip the bits that don't interest you. But if you do benefit, do say.
That was short!

The Magnificat

Three posts on day one! Well, there is some material I've pondered on making public for a while, and since my wife has blogged for a few days, I've decided to use this method to publish it. I'll slow down once I've emptied the back catalogue, but until then, hang on to your hat, my friend!

The books that matter most to you are the ones you read at the right time. I read Luther's Magnificat at the right time, in Summer 2005. My close friends will know the events of the time; suffice it in public to say that people with a certain authority were making judgements about me I felt unfair and quite unkind. Luther was my comfort. I read and reflected on the Magnificat (Mary's Song in Luke 1 for the uninitiated) quite a bit. Here's the short sermon and the song that came out of those reflections. I'll put the song first, as I think it's the more important, more profound and more personal reflection. The sermon is short and pitched evangelistically.

A song meditating on Luther's use of the word “Nichtigkeit” in his Magnificat.

When my future plans all seem to stall,

I thought I could run but I stumble and fall.

When my best efforts prove nothing at all,

My progress in life slows to a crawl,

Teach me, O Lord, Mary's song:

Magnify, O my soul, | glorify the Lord!

My spirit, rejoice! | in God my Saviour!

He has been mindful | of His lowly servant,

Holy is His Name!

His mercy extends| to all who fear Him!

His arm has performed | mighty deeds!

He's humbled the rich, | lifted up the humble!

Israel's Faithful One!

When my heart is full, overwhelmed with self-doubt,

When my life's going nowhere and there's no way out,

Afraid of the future, regretting the past,

When the progress I make never seems to last,

Teach me, O Lord, Mary's song:

Magnify, O my soul, | glorify the Lord! ...

In weakness,

In poverty,

In meekness,

And humility,

You chose her,

Though she was nothing at all,

For you raise the humble and the proud, they fall.

Teach me, O Lord, Mary's song:

Magnify, O my soul, | glorify the Lord! ...

Not in our strength or in the things we take pride,

But with a thorn in the flesh and a spear in the side,

God does not use the great and the good,

But those who cling to Calvary's wood,

For they have learnt Mary's song:

Magnify, O my soul, | glorify the Lord! ...

The Magnificat – A Carol Service Sermon

I was twenty-three or twenty-four when I finally figured out Hark the Herald Angels Sing. I really struggled to grasp it beforehand. There's that line: veiled in flesh the Godhead see. I had lots of problems with that. What's a Godhead – does it look like a human head? Well, when I became a Christian in my late teens, I found out about the Trinity. That problem solved. But then there was the word “see” at the end. Surely we should sing, “veiled in flesh the Godhead sees”.Now it's got flesh, the Godhead can see, I thought. Finally, as I say, about four, five years ago, I figured it out. The word “see” is the writer's encouragement to us. He means “see God come in human flesh among us.” You see, the meaning of the carol had been lost on me all those years. I wonder the same is true for us when it comes to Luke 1 verses 46-55.

These famous verses have come to be known as the Magnificat. For hundreds of years, millions of people have used these words. I don't doubt there are people here who can recite these words in Latin, German and English not for reasons of Christian commitment but because they love choral music. But I wonder if the meaning has been lost on us. These words flowed from a heart full of praise. Mary had met with God, experienced God. And it moved her. I've three point to clarify the meaning of the Magnificat. The first is this:

Mary's own experience

That where her praise begins. She herself has met with God, and she cannot hold it in: My soul glorifies the Lord

And my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour

For He has been mindful of the humble state of His servant.

From now on all generations will call me blessed,

For the Mighty One has done great things for me -

Holy is His Name.

She cannot believe He's taken an interest in her. The reason comes in verse 48.

She speaks of the humble state of His servant. She was nothing. She was probably still a teenager. She lived in a village at the wrong end of the country, a total backwater. She wasn't the poorest of the poor – she was engaged to the carpenter. But she wasn't anything special either. We all know that Mary's husband was called Joseph. But who knew his surname – that he was Joe Ordinary? God has stepped into her very ordinary life. She has absolutely no sense of deserving that. The language in that sentence is drawn from Psalm 113. That psalm speaks of God looking down on the earth from beyond creation's heights. And who does He see? The poor and needy, those who are nothing in the world's eyes. Mary puts herself alongside them, at the bottom of the pile, nothing special. But for reasons that she cannot grasp, God saw her. For reasons hidden in the heart of God, He has done great things for her, calling her to Himself, to be His special servant. So she knows herself blessed – given happiness and benefits she did not earn. And she cries out that His Name is holy – that there is none like Him. Mary's experience is model Christian experience. To be a Christian involves having a similar experience. Firstly, there is the realisation of our humble state. A Christian has realised they deserve nothing from God, that they're at the bottom of the pile. Perhaps not socially or economically, but certainly spiritually. True faith begins with the sense of being spiritually bankrupt. We know we owe God so much, having lived in His world without a word of thanks, showing His good laws disrespect, and turning our backs on Him. Secondly, there is the overwhelming sense of God having seen us. What that means is a sense of God's mercy, that He is willing to take our part even though we rejected Him. He doesn't look away, but in mercy is concerned for us. Finally, there is a grasp of the mighty things He has done for us. Supremely, He has sent Jesus into this world. That's what we celebrate at Christmas. Jesus is the great thing that God has done for everyone. Because Jesus has shown us fully what God is like. And because Jesus has paid in full the debt spiritually bankrupt people owe to God. He paid the price of ingratitude, disrespect and outright rebellion towards God when He died on the cross. And a debt, once paid, cannot again be demanded. God, in His mercy, has sent His Son to pay my debt, so I may come back to Him.

My soul glorifies the Lord

And my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour

But there's a second thing Mary sings about.

The world's split experience.

Mary knows her experience is not unique. But she also knows it is not universal. In verses 50 to 53, we meet three paired groups. In each pair, there is a split experience of God. One group shares Mary's experience, the other doesn't.

His mercy extends to those who fear Him, from generation to generation.

He has performed mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thought.

He has brought down rulers from their thrones, but has lifted up the humble.

He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty.

Did you spot the pairs? There were those who fear Him, and those proud in their inmost thoughts. There were those of humble estate, like Mary, and the rulers. There were those hungry, and the rich. Mercy, deliverance and satisfaction was for the one. For the other, scattering, bringing down and denial. Let's look at each pair in turn.

His mercy extends to those who fear Him, from generation to generation.

He has performed mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thought.

What does it mean to fear God? Well, the opposite is pride in our inmost thoughts. To fear God is to put Him on the throne in our lives. Many today fear money. After all, money provides security today and a pension tomorrow. If you let financial concerns set your priorities, everything else will sort itself out. Jesus says Seek first God's kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. If we are proud in our inmost thoughts, we trust in our own ideas, schemes, and wisdom. Self-reliance, self-confidence and self-determination characterise us. A great Bible proverb says Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. Those who look to Him in this spirit of fear – as we have seen, of trust, dependence, reliance, letting Him take first place in our lives – will find Him merciful. But those who go their own way will ultimately find themselves and their plans scattered.

He has brought down rulers from their thrones, but has lifted up the humble.

The rulers are those who would fix their own and others place in this world. Whether of national or merely household authority, they choose their own fate and that of others. But finally, our fate lies in God's hands. Those who try to choose their own fate will find their self-exaltation exposed. But the humble look to God. And He will exalt them – exalt them to a high place in His Son's Kingdom. If we are those determined to choose our place in the world, we'll lose it. But those who look to God to give them a place in the new world His Son is establishing will find that He grants them that place.

He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty.

The rich are those who seek to provide for themselves. They look to their own wealth or business acumen find their fill. They seek to be independent of all, even God. And one day, He will enforce that independence and send them away empty. The hungry come to Him with their begging bowl, whether spiritual or physical. They are looking to His mercy alone, utterly dependent and reliant on Him, yet trusting Him to provide. He fills them. Do you see how actually each pair is very similar. There are those who humbly, trustingly, in dependence and reliance look to God. There are those who proudly look to themselves, exalt self, rely on what they have. The real issue is therefore, who is on the throne? Who is King in my life? Will I let God be my wisdom, let Him exalt or humble me, let Him satisify me? Or must I be in charge, with my own wisdom, my own power, my own riches? The world's experience of God will be a split one. For some it will be mercy and satisfaction – those who will have God as God. For others it will be scattering and emptiness – those who won't. But our final point is good news:

Israel's open experience

Mary finishes this way:

He has helped His servant Israel, remembering to be merciful

To Abraham and his descendants for ever

Even as He said to our fathers.

You see that word merciful again? Mary cannot get away from it. Like Mary's, Israel's experience is one of mercy. God's remembered to be merciful. That just means He's being Himself. He's being merciful. And it's working out in the experience of help. Psalm 103 verses 10-12 portray that mercy at work:

God does not treat us as our sins deserve

Or repay us according to our iniquities.

For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

So great is His love for those who fear Him.

As far as the east is from the west,

So far has He taken our sins from us.

These verses ultimately speak of Jesus' death. We are not repaid as our sins deserve. Jesus was. Sin is the inner pride and outward self-reliance that keeps people from God. It's that turning from God that means the world has a split experience of God. Jesus paid the price of that turning from God in His death. There He took our sins as far from us as they can be taken. The result: we may go free before God. That's the experience of God's people. That's the help He offers them. It's an experience of mercy. I called it an open experience. Why? The reason is somewhat hidden in the English, but very clear in Luke's own words. These final words tell us God helps Israel for the sake of Abraham and his children. Isn't Luke just repeating Himself? Aren't the people of Israel the people descended from Abraham? Well, yes. But also no. The Old Testament again and again looks forward to a day when Abraham's children will be a larger group than just Israel. There will be people who are children of Abraham by faith. That could be anyone. Anyone who trusts in God's promises. Anyone who like Mary will accept their lowliness, who like Israel will receive God's help, who will turn to Jesus. The experience of God's mercy is an open one. It is open to anyone. Mary was so taken by it she sang this song. I wonder where this mercy finds us?

What's the point of preaching?

Crumbs - only his second post and the Amateur is off on one!
But the Amateur claims a certain expertise, even if only within the well-defined limits of amateurism as defined in the header of this blog.
God be praised for the work of the gentlemen at the White Horse Inn and Modern Reformation! I can't say I have grasped all that I have learnt from them, but I listen with care and know I agree. That's unsurprising, as I am a British evangelical: in the tradition of Stott, Packer and Lucas, three Englishmen well received on their programme.
Essentially, I think preaching is about three things:
Glorifying Christ
Applying redemption to sinners
Pointing to the Lord's Table.
That spells GAP, which proves what a preacher I must be, because I did that by accident!
I recently had the great joy of preaching on Micah 4. It was a communion Sunday, and I think you'll see how I worked towards my three aims: it's at the end of this post.
So where's the Christian life in all that?
Friends: isn't the law written by nature on all our hearts? Isn't that conscience? Come on, we all know non-Christians more godly in their behaviour than ourselves. Being a Christian isn't about being superior in our behaviour; being a Christian is about realising that for all our apparent show of goodness, we are sinners in need of a Saviour. All week long, our consciences, which, as Christians, are being remade, preach the law at us, and doesn't Satan megaphone it at us, to condemn us? I want the Gospel, Sunday after Sunday after Sunday after Sunday after Sunday. I want the Sacrament of Christ's Passion, receiving the blessings of His death and resurrection Sunday after Sunday after Sunday after Sunday. I want to know just how glorious a Saviour He is Sunday after Sunday after Sunday after Sunday. That's what'll energise me to keep going during the week and to bring my life into line with Scripture.

Here's Micah 4:

Advent 1: All Nations Will Come

Introduction

What do you want for Christmas? Even as adults, we have wishes. I'd quite like some time to go running and to read. But there are bigger things. The angels sing, “peace on earth”, and we want it. Because in Iraq, Afghanistan, Darfur, Congo, Pakistan, Burma there is no peace. Or perhaps we are less ambitious. We just want peace in our neighbourhood. Perhaps we just want the family back together. In Bible language, what we want is the Ten Commandments lived out. We want an end to the killing and the stealing. We want marriage upheld and parents honoured. We want the ideal world established that would exist if all obeyed God's commands. That's what our passage is all about. It's about peace and the renewal of the world according to God's commands. To see how,we need to understand a big Bible theme. It's about:

Two Mountains

Two passages in the New Testament explore the theme of two mountains. We had Hebrews 12 verses 18-25 read. The other is Galatians 4:21-31. Both speak of two mountains: Sinai and Zion. Both Hebrews and Galatians contrast these two mountains. I've summarised the contrast on the OHT. Sinai is on the left. We meet Sinai in the book of Exodus. After rescuing His people from slavery in Egypt, God brings them to Sinai. It's at Sinai that God declares the Ten Commandments. It is the mountain of God's Law. At Sinai, staying God's people depends on conditions. On the right is Zion. Zion is quite different. Three stories help us understand Zion. One is Genesis 22, the story of the sacrifice of Isaac. God tests Abraham's faith and tells him to offer Isaac, his only son, in sacrifice. It's a doubly strange request. Firstly, God is against human sacrifice. But secondly, God had promised that through Isaac Abraham would have a great family. Now God calls Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. How can dead Isaac have a family? Once on the mountain, God stops Abraham. He points out a ram and Abraham offers the ram in Isaac's place. So Genesis 22 verse 14 says:

So Abraham called that place YHWH will provide. And to this day it is said, “on the mountain of YHWH it will be provided.”

On His Mount Zion, God will provide a sacrifice to save the children of Abraham. The second story is in 2 Samuel 5. There David conquers Zion and makes it his royal city: the City of David. So Mount Zion is also the mountain of the King. It's the place where God's chosen One rules, who delivers God's people from their enemies. The last story is 1 Kings 8. In 1 Kings 8 the temple is built on Mount Zion, the temple that stands for God's willingness to dwell among His people. When he inaugurates the temple, Solomon asks God to hear prayer to Him in Zion and forgive anyone who prays to Him there. So Mount Zion is the place of God's presence and His willingness to forgive. So Zion is quite different to Sinai. Sinai is a place of God's Law, of His demands on His people. Zion is a place of deliverance and grace. It is a place of God saving His people by sacrifice and by the rule of a King. It is where God is willing to dwell in the midst of His people.

The big question in the Old Testament is: which one is superior. If Sinai is superior, then if God's Law is broken He'll judge them and send them packing into exile out of the land. But if Zion is superior, then what God does for His people is unconditional: even though they sin, He'll save them. So what does Micah have to say about this? At the end of Micah 3 it's looking pretty bad. It looks like Sinai is superior. Micah says of himself in Micah 3 verse 8:

I am filled with power, with the Spirit of YHWH, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression, to Israel his sin.

And he does. He proclaims their sin to them and speaks of coming judgement. He applies the standards of Sinai and warns of the coming wrath of God. So what will become of the promises, of grace, of Zion and all that it means? Micah 3 verse 12.

Because of you, Zion will be ploughed like a field, Jerusalem will become a heap of rubble, the temple hill a mound overgrown with thickets.

In Micah 3, Sinai trumps Zion. So God's grace, God's deliverance, God's King, God's presence, are gone. Judgement wipes out God's people and every vestige of hope. That's why it's absolutely vital to understand our reading, Micah 4:1-8.

The triumph of Zion over Sinai, of Grace over Law

Micah chapter 3 ends with Zion wiped out. Israel is judged by the standards of God's Law and is found wanting. So even the City of the King, the Presence of God with His people and the guarantee of the preservation of Abraham's children is laid low in Micah 3:12. But in Micah 4 verse 1 we find hope.

In the last days the mountain of YHWH's temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised up above the hills, and many peoples will stream to it.

Here we see the restoration of God's dwelling with His people. Zion is no longer a ploughed field, as in chapter 3 verse 12. Zion is the mountain of YHWH's temple, and even more glorious than ever before, as the nations recognise the supremacy of YHWH. This restoration happens in the last days. That's the way the prophets talk about the final period in history, in which God mightily and finally saves His people.

Micah was simply saying this. In that moment in Israel's history, Sinai trumped Zion and judgement came over God's people. But ultimately God's promises and grace cannot be destroyed. Zion triumphs over Sinai. Grace triumphs over Law. The New Testament says that what Micah saw as a distant future is our present. We live in the last days. So what happens when Zion trumps Sinai, when grace triumphs over law, when God acts without taking account of our law-breaking?

Four wonderful points:

God is present with His people

Micah 4:1 again:

In the last days the mountain of YHWH's temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised up above the hills, and many peoples will stream to it.

And Micah 4:7, second half.

YHWH will rule over them in Mount Zion from that day and for ever.

God is with His people, dwelling in their midst. He is their Ruler and will be so for ever. Those last six words of verse 7 are crucial. From that day and for ever. How can He say that? Won't they sin again, forcing Him to judge them again? Well they might sin. But Zion has trumped Sinai. This age is the age of Grace. God doesn't take account of sin any more. So He can say He will be with His people from that day and for ever. Their sin will not bring God's judgement on God's people.

God's King reigns

Micah 4 verse 8:

As for you, O watchtower of the flock, O stronghold of the Daughter of Zion, the former dominion will be restored to you; kingship will come to the daughter of Jerusalem.

Dominion belonged to the house of David. Kingship in Jerusalem was David's kingship. That means this verse is addressed to the line of David. It tells us that once again there will be a king in the line of David. Note how the line of David is described. It is the watchtower of the flock. The king is appointed to watch over the people and guard them. When danger comes, the king is to see it far off and ride out to meet it. Secondly, the line of David is the stronghold of the Daughter of Zion. The king is the safe place. If you want to be safe, run to the king. God's king in the line of David is Jesus. And the Bible teaches that He did see our danger and ride out to meet it. He saw that our biggest danger is from Sinai and its law. The law can only condemn us and bring judgement upon us. But Jesus came and bore our punishment for us on the cross. The Bible also teaches that Jesus is a safe place. When the day of judgement comes, those who are found with Jesus will be safe. He will declare that He has already taken their punishment and they will be safe from the wrath of God against sin. That's how great a King Jesus is. Remember what we heard in our Gospel reading.

For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

Moses brought the law of Sinai. Jesus is greater, for He has brought us the blessings of Zion, of grace and of the full truth about how great and how good our God is. That's all great news. But we mustn't stop there. Micah has more.

God's people are transformed

Some people will say, “why do you always preach about the Cross? “Why is God's grace always at the heart of your messages? “Christians are to obey, you know.”

True. But obedience itself flows not from the mountain of law but from the mountain of grace. Look at the end of verse 2.

The law will go out from Zion, the word of YHWH from Jerusalem.

Once the law went out from Sinai. It came with darkness, gloom and storm, a sight so terrifying that even Moses said, “I am trembling with fear”, as we heard in the epistle from Hebrews 12. And it was not obeyed. Even the Israelites turned from that law: and that before they'd even left the foot of the mountain. As we'll see under our next point, when it goes out from Zion, the Law wins the world. When the law goes out from Zion, from the place of God's grace, then God's people can speak verse 5:

All the nations may walk in the name of their gods; we will walk in the name of YHWH our God for ever and ever.

How come? They didn't manage it before. The answer is a work of God, verses 6 and 7.

I will gather the lame; I will assemble the exiles and those I have brought to grief. I will make the lame a remnant, those driven away a strong nation.

God gathers the lame. He makes the lame His remnant. How can the spiritually lame walk in the name of YHWH? He heals them. Friends, when God's people obey God's law, when they delight in it and not only delight in it but do it, that's not their own doing. Read Romans 7 and 8. By nature we are such spiritual cripples that we cannot walk in God's ways. But God makes the spiritually lame to walk in His name. From the mountain of grace comes a work of God that heals us and enables us to obey. It is by the grace that flows from Zion that the law from Sinai is upheld.

God's world is won

What a wonderful picture of the age of God's work we have seen. God dwelling in the midst of His people. God's King on the throne. God transforming His people so that they can walk in His ways. God, God, God. It's a picture of God at work in accordance with His grace. It's God establishing Zion as the place of His presence under the saving rule of His King to ensure the preservation of His people. When the world sees that, they stand up and take notice, verse 2:

Many nations will come and say, “come, let us go up to the mountain of YHWH, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us His ways, so that we may walk in His paths.”

It is when grace – the mountain of YHWH's temple, verse 1 – is exalted that people notice God. All the religions have laws, and many are very sensible laws, even Biblical. But grace exalts the God of Jacob and makes Him attractive to the nations. Then they will want to come under His rule, even obey His laws, because they've seen His grace. It's when the law goes out from Zion, the place of grace, that the world is transformed. As people submit to the judgements of God, they don't fight for their own rights any more, and warfare ceases. Then the nations come to the gracious God of Jacob, peace comes to the world. That has a simple application. If we want world peace, we must support world mission. If we want world peace, we must support the proclamation of the distinctive saving work of God in Jesus Christ. Forgetting our differences in multi-faith forums won't bring peace. All we have in common with the other religions is our laws – and the way of law only brings judgement, because the law exposes sin. It is the message of God's grace in Jesus Christ that will bring the nations to God and peace to the world.

Let's conclude. I've one key question for everyone today.

Where do you stand?

Which mountain is each one of us standing on? Two questions will show our answers.

Obedience

Why do we obey God? If our answer is to seek His favour, we're standing on Sinai. We are seeking blessing from a God who establishes conditions. If our answer is that we're worried we might lose His favour, we standing on Sinai. If that's you, I plead with you, come to Zion. Seek the grace of God. God dwells with His people now in the person of Jesus, who is the King who has ridden out to rescue us from God's wrath and who makes us safe. On Zion, as the writer to the Hebrews put it in our epistle, there is a sprinkled blood that speaks a better word, namely that your sins have been paid for. There is no need to fear losing God's favour here.

Communion

Why do we come to the Lord's table today? If we come thinking we especially please God by coming, we're trusting in our own actions. We're on Sinai. If we come to secure our salvation or to make sure of our place in heaven, we're standing on Sinai, hoping our actions will save us. But we approach this table not trusting in our own righteousness, but in God's manifold mercies. We trust that it is Christ's table, at which we commemorate and celebrate all that He has done for us. This table is spread for us on Zion. It is covered with the blessings of God. God is present here to bless us. God speaks here of His King, and how His King died to save us. Here God declares that on His mountain He has provided for us, who share the faith of Abraham, the faith in God that God will preserve His people. He has provided His Son to die for us. And by these tokens He would remind us once again of all He has done for us, and He would have us by faith receive it all not because of anything we have done but purely because He is gracious.

Where do you stand? Sinai or Zion? Law or Grace? God's demands or God's generosity? Come, let us come up to the table of the Lord and receive all He has done for us.

Who would be Job?

I don't know what you make of "'Ein' feste Burg ist unser Gott", Luther's glorious rewriting of the 46th Psalm. I confess every word of it with my lips, but it does raise the question, "who would be Job?" I wouldn't. Check out the last verse (in English, I'm afraid, as this is an English blog):

And though they take our life
Goods, honour, children, wife,
Yet is their profit small;
These things shall vanish all,
The city of God remaineth.

Absolutely spot on, Martin. And he and others in the brutal days of the Reformation and on into the conflicts that culminated in the the 30 Years War had to believe it. They did, in many cases, lose much, and had to trust that so long as the Heavenly City is open, so they had every blessing.

But I feel differently. I am a materialistic European at the beginning of the 21st century coming to terms withe the realities of trusting Christ. Having recently read Job 1-2 in my devotional time one morning, I penned these words:

Where shall I find the faith of Job,
Faith in the fire of trouble and distress?
Faith that stands under Satan's worst,
Faith that passes the hardest test?

Though he was fully in Satan's hand,
Lost all his goods and all he had,
Though sons and daughters perished also,
Still of God he said nothing bad.

I have a wife, a son, a home,
Food as I need and clothes to wear.
Yet take from me but the least of this,
And I know not how I would fare.

I would not stand, I have not the strength
To suffer loss as great as Job did then.
But You are God, Your Spirit mighty,
Out of faith's babes You make faith's men.

So grant to me eyes fixed on Christ's Cross,
For my High Priest has suffered too.
When I can't go on, my soul has failed,
By Your Spirit let me cry to You.