The life of peace on earth is lived by prayer. When we feel wounded by lies and deceit, prayer directs our focus from ourselves to God, from self-pity to God’s glory. Obsessing over lies and deceit breeds bitterness; prayer fosters forgiveness.
Author Archives: John Clayton
With Shouts of Joy
Joy is not an achievement of the Christian life but a fruit of it. Nor is joy an acquisition but the produce of living by faith and obedience to the Spirit of Christ. Yet, some may feel as if joy is fleeting. If you are a Christian and wonder where your joy has gone, it would be wise to look to the robber baron of sin, your flesh. Like a thief who breaks in on Christmas Eve to steal all the presents under the tree, sin stealthily steals the gift of joy. And when we awake and realize it’s gone, we often look for it in all the wrong places.
For the Love of God
This is of course good news for all who are in Christ and joyfully under his reign. But it is not good news for his enemies, all who reject his gospel freely offered, his righteous rule graciously given. And as Zion is the dwelling place of God, to whom Christ has given “the keys of the kingdom of heaven” and the authority to bind and loose on earth as in heaven (Matt. 16:19), all who reject the gospel of Christ’s church will be clothed with shame. But the love of God shines forth in his dwelling presence, for Christ and his body are one (1 Cor. 12:27). But where there is no love for Christ’s church, there is no love of God (1 Jn. 4:7-12). Therefore, for the love of God, “let us love one another” (1 Jn. 4:7a), enjoying the dwelling place and presence of the Lord forever.
Deep Woes, Enduring Hope
In this, we are reminded of God’s steadfast love for his people. We rejoice that our redemption in Christ is so plentiful that it covers the sins of our past, present, and future. For, we are a people who have received the gift of God’s grace in Christ, who has redeemed us from all our iniquities, and he is the God who hears our cries, answers our prayers, sustains us moment by moment, and gives us hope, even in the depths of woe.
Trust in the Lord
It’s not only the height and breadth of a mountain that speaks but also its stature of permanence. That which we consider ancient is “as old as the hills,” and to do the impossible is “to move mountains.” Mountains so easily yield metaphors, because they have been there, cannot be moved, and continue to endure. And this is where the psalmist starts in the one hundred twenty-fifth psalm, pointing to a mountain known to all of Israel, Mount Zion, and speaking to the often unsettled and fearful, saying: Those who trust in the Lord are stable and secure.
On Our Side
As we see in this psalm, part of worship is acknowledging that God is bigger than our problems, whether man or nature. Part of this worship is recalling and reflecting on how God has helped us in our time of need. Corporate worship includes doing this together, often by singing. Whether it be psalms like this one, or hymns, or songs, in corporate worship we sing together, “making melody to the Lord from [the] heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph. 5:19b-20). Surely, St. Augustine was right in saying, “He who sings prays twice.”[2] As our psalms, hymns, and songs are in effect sung prayers, so our singing echoes the praise of our hearts. As we sing in corporate worship, we often read and repeat words, not mindlessly but redemptively. The words, so to speak, liturgically lead us, and we sing them in worship, meditating upon their meaning, singing of their significance.
Watching and Waiting
In Christ, we are promised many things, including this: “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:10). By grace through faith, if we are in Christ, then for Christ we will be treated with contempt, scorned for our faithfulness. For the Christian, persecution is not the consequence of a lack of faith but evidence of it.
Let Us Worship God
Of the many things we take for granted in the Christian life, worship is certainly one of the greatest, which is quite curious given the privilege we have been given. In his song of deliverance, David describes the Lord as “worthy to be praised” (2 Sam. 22:4), further confirmed by John’s revelation of the throne room of heaven, where those who cast their crowns before the Lord cry out, “Worthy are you, our Lord and God” (Rev. 4:11). If God is worthy of earthly and heavenly, universal and eternal, praise then worship is not only a necessity for all of creation but is a privilege of the people of God.
The Lord Is Your Keeper
He “who made heaven and earth,” who neither slumbers nor sleeps, who shields us both day and night from all harm, is the LORD who will keep you “from this time forth and forevermore.” For Christ our Lord and keeper has redeemed us, saved us from our enemies of sin and death, given us life by his Holy Spirit, and guaranteed us eternal life in his kingdom. We do not look outward to the hills or inward to ourselves but to Christ alone, for he is our keeper, forevermore.
How God Strengthens His Church
God also strengthens his church through the obedience of faith, an expression Paul used to begin this letter and now to conclude to it. It is the obedience to believe the gospel as well as to live it. Or, as one commentator describes it, “obedience always involves faith, and faith always involves obedience.”[3] He who enabled and empowered us to believe so also enables and empowers us to live obedient lives. We shall not be defined by sin and the decay of death but life through the faith God gives: “May we be rich in faith, be strong in faith, live by faith, walk by faith, experience the joy of faith, do the work of faith, hope through faith.”[4] And so, God strengthens his church through the obedience of faith.
Planter, Pastor, Preacher 