This morning part of my reading was James 3. Most of us are familiar with this as the famous “tongue” chapter. Here James draws out the power of the tongue. He starts the chapter with a warning; that not many should aspire to become teachers because the teacher will be judged more strictly, and we all know the tongue is not able to be restrained. The picture is a bit foreboding. For to describe the tongue as a restless evil, full of deadly poison (verse 8) is not really all that encouraging. And the words that follow are very pointed.

9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? 12 Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.

The contradiction that spouts forth from between our lips is not good. But there is another way that this incongruity is seen - in what we type/write. The times that we are living in seem to grow more and more vitriolic by the day. The way people “speak” on social media can be appalling. And whether I have typed it myself; I certainly have thought it and that brings culpability as well. It is disheartening to see Christians who have become so tribal and narrow in their views that anyone who does not think or say exactly what they want is fair game to be attacked. How can we curse those made in the likeness of God? This does not mean we cannot disagree, but there has to be a better way.  

Not surprisingly, James goes on to show us that better way.

13 Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. 14 But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. 15 This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. 17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. 18 And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

We must turn to the wisdom that is from above. It is wisdom that is pure, peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial, and sincere. Wow!!! Imagine conversation (spoken or typed) that displayed that wisdom! Where do we get that?

10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; 

all those who practice it have a good understanding. 

His praise endures forever! (Psalm 111:10; cf. Proverbs 15:33) 

The fear of the Lord - the knowledge of God - that is our wisdom. But it is more than that. The wisdom of God was, and is, most fully displayed in the One who came to be our wisdom and our righteousness (1 Corinthians 1:30). The one who sprang from the stump of Jesse whom Isaiah described like this;

2 And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, 

the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, 

the Spirit of counsel and might, 

the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. 

3 And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. 

He shall not judge by what his eyes see, 

or decide disputes by what his ears hear, 

4 but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, 

and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; 

and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, 

and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. 

5 Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, 

and faithfulness the belt of his loins. (Isaiah 11:2-5)

And here’s what should blow every person who is “in Christ” - it should blow your mind. You are commanded to have that mindset within you (that way of acting), and - here is the amazing part - it is yours because you are in Christ Jesus - you are united to him by grace through faith (cf. Philippians 2:1-11, especially verse 5). Ponder that. Pray for that to be more visible. And praise God for that!

Two songs this morning. The first is by Wes King (“Sticks and Stones”) and the second is by Keith and Kristyn Getty (“The Perfect Wisdom of Our God”). Enjoy.

Provided to YouTube by Sony Music Entertainment Sticks And Stones · Wes King Sticks And Stones ℗ 1991 Reunion Records Inc. Producer: Gary Chapman Producer: J...

The official video for Keith and Kristyn Getty's song "The Perfect Wisdom Of Our God" off their album "Hymns For The Christian Life." Hymns For The Christian...

“It is the spirit of a truly godly [person], to prefer God before all other things, either in heaven or on earth.”

What does that mean for us? How is it that Edwards (this is a continuation from the previous two days) draws the above conclusion?

I think of Colossian 3:1-4: 1 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. 

Our life is Christ. Apart from his we have no real life. And we, as we grow in understanding the nature of God, will long for heaven above everything else - and what we long for is to be with God. Edwards brings out Hebrews 11:13-16 where the saints died in faith longing for heaven; longing for a better home.

The main reason why though is because God is there. Heaven “is the place where God is gloriously present, where his love is gloriously manifested, where the godly may be with him, see him as he is, and love, serve, praise, and enjoy him perfectly.” That sounds phenomenal! The heart of the believer is in heaven, because he knows that is where his treasure (God himself) resides.

Edwards goes on to then state that the saint will prefer God above all things on earth. We’ve looked before at Psalm 27:4. There is great longing, but also action of seeking after God. It flows out of a heart that has seen the glory of God and longs for his presence.

1 O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; 

my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, 

as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. 

2 So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, 

beholding your power and glory.  (Psalm 63:1,2)

We could turn to the New Testament and Paul’s letter to the Philippian church: 7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— 10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. (Phil. 3:7-11)

The longing in those verses is palpable. Paul’s desire is to know and gain Christ. Now here is the reality though - we don’t all feel like this. As Edwards wrote: “The saints are not always in the lively exercise of grace, but such a spirit they have, and sometimes have the sensible exercise of it.” What I believe Edwards was seeking to communicate is that though this is not always felt (or seen) to be the case in us, it truly is the spirit of the saint to prefer God above everything else.

Why is this so important? Well, particularly in this time, when so much has been ripped away, the saint has a solid hope. Edwards wrote: “…whatever changes a godly man passes through, he is happy; because God, who is unchangeable, is his chosen portion…on which he builds as his main foundation for happiness…” The believer can be content in this time of discontent of the world, because our hope has not shifted, has not failed, has not changed…and never will. Our hope and our joy is in the eternal, unchangeable God who sent his only Son for us to redeem us from our sin.  

Here’s a song by Sandra McCracken that, in some sense, calls on our own souls to recognize the goodness and beauty of God.

Call Him Good (Psalm 104) Written by Sandra McCracken, Don Chaffer, Derek Webb From the album "God's Highway" by Sandra McCracken © 2016 Same Old Dress Music...

For me, a place of rest and tranquility and peace would be waking up in tent looking out at the scene of the picture above. The mountains have always been a place to which I have been drawn. I love the serene beauty and the sounds of nothing but nature. If I could think of a place that would bring me contentment - this would be on the top of the list.

In our men’s groups we are studying the book The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment by Jeremiah Burroughs (and it is a book I would highly recommend). In our study last night and this morning we looked at a point the author made that a truly contented Christian is content with any condition/circumstance they find themselves in, but they are not satisfied. What he means is that a believer is content with what they are providentially given in this world (with affliction, with blessing…whatever), yet the only thing that truly satisfies a believer is God and his presence.

Psalm 73:25: Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.

It also reminded me of Psalm 16 (which we have looked at a few times in this blog). Burroughs made this point: “A little in the world will content a Christian for his passage, but all the world, and ten thousand times more, will not content a Christian for his portion.” The only portion that will satisfy is God himself (Psalms 16:5; 73:28).

From there Burroughs went to Philippians 4:7,9: 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus…9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you. 

Do you see the difference between verse 7 & 9? It moves from the “peace of God” being with you to the “God of peace” being with you. And Burroughs writes: “Here is what I would observe from this text, That the peace of God is not enough to a gracious heart except it may have the God of that peace.”

The blessings of God are wonderful, but without God himself they mean very little. A Christian will only truly be content with God himself. We don’t just want the grace of God…we long for the God of grace. We don’t merely rejoice in the mercy of God…we rejoice in the God of mercy.

It is the presence of God that brings the Christian to contentment. The covenant of God with his people could be summarized with this promise: “I will be your God, and you will be my people.” God will be our God…we will be in his presence. And through Christ God has dwelt with us (John 1:14). And he will be with us to the very end of the age…and we will be with him forever. That is our greatest joy and our greatest longing.

Here is a song that goes back to my youth group days, but it still speaks just as strongly. It’s “My One Thing” by Rich Mullins. (see THIS for a live version - and it reminded me of seeing Rich live in high school and singing this song in the audience)

Last night Erin brought my guitar up to my isolation room (formerly known as our bedroom). I simply needed to be able to play a little bit. I often find myself able to express how I’m feeling or what I’m thinking through music or through the language of the Psalms. There is something about both of those avenues that brings out the metaphors that give words to what we sometimes can’t.

Last night I didn’t need the metaphor as much, what I needed was music, and truth. Through the simple playing of a simple song (as I had to be quiet as kids were already in bed) I heard truth.

This was the song: (And here is a link to various charts if you want to play it)

Through the love of God our Savior, All will be well 
Free and changeless is His favor, All is well 
Precious is the blood that healed us 
Perfect is the grace that sealed us 
Strong the hand stretched forth to shield us 
All must be well

Though we pass through tribulation, All will be well 
Ours is such a full salvation, All is well 
Happy still in God confiding 
Fruitful if in Christ abiding 
Steadfast through the Spirit's guiding 
All must be well

We expect a bright tomorrow; All will be well 
Faith can sing through days of sorrow, All is well 
On our Father's love relying 
Jesus every need supplying 
Yes in living or in dying 
All must be well

Scripture passages this song reminds me of are numerous: Romans 8; 1 Peter 1:18-21; Ephesians 1:13,14; John 15; Philippians 4:19 and so many others. Take some time and meditate on these passages, and try to find others that the song references.

As some of you might be asking - “How are you feeling?” I’m doing better. Been fever free since yesterday morning, and hope that continues. I sure seem to be on the road to recovery. Pray for my amazing wife. She is handling everything in the house while keeping me in quarantine (and not being able to sleep in her own bed), and I know that she’s a bit tired. She’s an amazing woman and we are blessed greatly by her!!

There are certain days where the longing to be with God is stronger. These are those days. I resonate with the struggle of Paul in Philippians 1…and I’ll quote it at length for the context:

Yes, and I will rejoice, 19 for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. 24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. 25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.

You can hear his longing…to be with his Savior. Even though he knows that he is called to something now, his desire is to be with Christ. He is hard pressed. He has seen the glory of the Lord and he longs for that. He longs to be with the One who so deeply loves him…the One who gave Himself for him.

Paul certainly saw the brokenness of the world. He was beaten and persecuted. He saw pain and sickness and death. He felt the darkness all around him. But he also knew the Light of the world (John 8:12). We have all seen the pain and brokenness. It’s all we hear and see on the news. My brother has a friend who is in bad shape from this virus. It’s all hard. And it increases my longing to be with Christ…for the return of our Savior to make all things new (Revelation 21:1-7).

I echo the words of Revelation 22:20,21:

20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! 

21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen. 

Amen - come Lord Jesus!

In light of that, I could think of no better song than “Is He Worthy?” by Andrew Peterson. Enjoy the beauty, goodness, and truth of this song. And I dare say, you may have this on repeat fairly soon.

The official music video for Andrew Peterson's new song Is He Worthy! This video was shot in one continuous take. Directors: Max Hsu, Brian Skinner, and Nath...

Is He Worthy? (Andrew Peterson)

Do you feel the world is broken? (We do)
Do you feel the shadows deepen? (We do)
But do you know that all the dark won't stop the light from getting through? (We do)
Do you wish that you could see it all made new? (We do)

Is all creation groaning? (It is)
Is a new creation coming? (It is)
Is the glory of the Lord to be the light within our midst? (It is)
Is it good that we remind ourselves of this? (It is)

Is anyone worthy? Is anyone whole?
Is anyone able to break the seal and open the scroll?
The Lion of Judah who conquered the grave
He is David's root and the Lamb who died to ransom the slave

Is He worthy? Is He worthy
Of all blessing and honor and glory?
Is He worthy of this?
He is

Does the Father truly love us? (He does)
Does the Spirit move among us? (He does)
And does Jesus, our Messiah, hold forever those He loves? (He does)
Does our God intend to dwell again with us? (He does)

Is anyone worthy? Is anyone whole?
Is anyone able to break the seal and open the scroll?
The Lion of Judah who conquered the grave
He is David's root and the Lamb who died to ransom the slave

From every people and tribe (People and tribe)
Every nation and tongue (Every nation and tongue)
He has made us a kingdom and priests to God
To reign with the Son

Is He worthy? Is He worthy
Of all blessing and honor and glory?
Is He worthy? Is He worthy?
Is He worthy of this?

He is, He is
Is He worthy? Is He worthy?
He is, He is
He is worthy, He is worthy
He is