Quiet times in Psalm 119

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. (Psalm 119:105)

The reader might find it hard to grasp, but the spiral-bound notebooks that accompany me in my daily devotionals read like this blog: expositions, preachy bits, language that reads like commentary, homily or just plain appeal from the heart, poetry, songs, one liners, verses copied out. Whatever comes to me as I meditate on the Scriptures.

Here's what I wrote on Psalm 119:105-112 yesterday (Saturday) morning:

I walk in darkness
My path errs and strays
Folly and foolishness
Mark much of my ways
O Lord, light the way up
Lord, let me see
All you have done Lord
And all you command me

Open the Scripture, Lord
Your word is a lamp to my feet
Your word is a light to my path
Gathered all together
Lord, let us hear
Through the mouth of your preacher
Your word loud and clear

Who has lived 119:105-112 like Christ? Christ our Righteousness!
For I can do 119:112!!

The first bit is a congregational song, starting with my own feelings as I responded to the Psalm, but looking for God's ordained instrument to bring light.
If the second bit makes no sense, you may well not understand the Christian message.

Truly Unexpected Largely Intuited Poetry (TULIP)

Turned away
Truly I have turned away
Totally rejected You
Traitor to Your righteous rule

Unmerited
Unsought is Your great love for me
Utterly the product of
Unending steadfast love

Lovingly
Leaving heaven far behind
Lost redeeming by a cross
Lord You gave Your life for me

In Your good time
Irresistibly Your Spirit came
Into Your arms to draw my soul
Invisibly my heart to transform

Perfectly
Perseverance won by Christ
Pulled out of every danger now
Perfected in heaven to be

Geddit?

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”

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?

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.