Be Stirred, Not Shaken

"We ask you not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled..." ~ II Thes. 2:2 *** "But stir up the gift of God that is within you by the laying on of hands..." ~ II Tim. 1:6

Category: Topic Studies Page 1 of 7

Do You Offer Your Firstfruits to God? (And No, I’m Not Talking About Money)

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On May 28, 2023

In Christian Living, Holy Days, Topic Studies

Something struck me the other day about the story of Cain and Abel (Gen. 4).  While we can’t know for certain why God honored Abel’s sacrifice and rejected Cain’s, it’s commonly believed that it was because Abel brought an animal, providing the required shedding of blood.  And that makes sense, given what we know.

But there’s an additional detail provided that I’d never noticed before.  The verse specifically states that Abel brought the firstborn of his flock, while it just says Cain brought something he grew.

So we know that Abel brought God the firstfruits of his labor, and it doesn’t mention the same of Cain.  That could just be an omission in the text, but I find that unlikely.

Throughout the bible, God makes it clear that the firstborn (of man and beast) and the firstfruits (of crops or produce) are set apart and belong to Him (Ex. 13:12, 22:29-30, Num. 18, Neh. 10:35-37, etc).

Because God is the sovereign Creator, technically everything belongs to God.  He owns it all.  When we bring the first yield of our labors and our lives to the (literal or figurative) altar, we are acknowledging that fact and asking for His continued blessings.

And God was very clear that His people should not be bringing merely what remains after meeting their own needs (leftovers), or bringing stuff that’s not quite “up to snuff” (flawed).

The true firstfruits in our lives

Today, WE are God’s firstfruits, spiritual Israel…those who have answered His calling, are keeping His commands, observing the sabbath and holy days, and striving to live a godly life (James 1:18, Rev. 14:4).

As we near the end of the firstfruits season this year, with Pentecost upon us, the Cain and Abel offering discrepancy got me thinking about the application in my own day-to-day life.

Our offerings today are different from those in ancient Israel’s sacrificial system, but the concept of setting apart the firstfruits of our labor to God is still applicable.

And perhaps even more importantly than material possessions or money, this should apply to our real resources—our time, our thoughts, and our energy. 

We acknowledge God to be the owner of everything that we are, and the giver of everything that we have.  Therefore, we should give Him our first and best.

So it’s worth each of us asking, is God getting my firstfruits?  Or does He get the dregs, what’s left over at the end of the day or week?

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The State of Our Hearts (Part 2 in Surveying the Gospels: The “Big Picture” Themes of Jesus’ Words & Actions)

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On April 29, 2023

In Christian Living, New Testament, Topic Studies

This is the second part in an in-depth study of key themes in the gospel accounts.  For ease of reading, we’ve split this long study into several shorter individual posts, so I recommend starting with the intro and theme #1, then reading this and the other posts (linked at the end).

As I mentioned in the introduction to this series on how to understand the gospels, I’ve always struggled to emotionally connect with the three synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) in their entirety.  I get lost sometimes in the cultural context, the somewhat sterile ancient writing style, and can overly focus on seeming-contradictions.

So this series is focused on how we can “see the forest for the trees” and survey the gospel accounts together to find the bigger ideas and consistent themes in Jesus’s direct words and actions. 

As a reminder, I’m giving some of the scripture references within each point, though in many cases there were so many that I couldn’t capture them all (it got too repetitive). I encourage you to look up and read each passage in the bible yourself as well and have these topics in mind to recognize the patterns when they emerge.

The first theme we looked at (in the previous post), was that God’s calling in this life isn’t easy—and isn’t for everyone—but if we answer His call it DOES come with expectations.  And now we’ll dive right into the second theme…

Theme #2:  God is concerned with the state of our “heart” (mind, emotions, motivations)

Jesus was constantly probing the underlying thoughts, motivations, and intentions of the people He encountered, and always called out hypocrisy, legalism, and self-righteousness—especially when it came at the expense of showing love and honor to God or other people.

Here are some of the principles He taught and modeled along those lines.

We can think we are doing all the right things and that we’re “right with God”, but be completely off-base.  

MANY of Jesus’s teachings expanded on this theme with slight variations.  And while His words clearly had implications for the Jews of that day—they saw themselves as God’s only chosen people and their rules for HOW to follow Him as elevated above God’s own instructions—Jesus’s warning should ring just as clearly for God’s elect today.

Jesus cautions that just calling upon His name (“I’m a Christian!”) or doing lots of works (“I tithe, I volunteer, I go to church every sabbath!”) does not “qualify” us for eternal life (Matt. 7:21-23).  The meaning of Matthew 7:21 is that we can’t EARN it.

Here are some other aspects of this topic we should take away from His teaching:

  • We should not be comparing ourselves to other people, but rather to God’s standards. God despises self-righteousness and loves a humble heart (the parable of the Pharisee and tax collector, Luke 18:9-14).
  • “Unless your righteousness [justification] exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matt 5:20). His audience would have understood this as a way of saying that it was impossible to “out-righteous” the Pharisees at their own game of legalistic rule adherence (which went far beyond God’s actual commands).  Perfect law-following alone cannot gain us access to the kingdom.
  • We don’t get credit for just showing up unprepared (the guest without a wedding garment, Matt 22). The “garment” God expects His people to be clothed with is made of righteous character and actions resulting from following His way (Rev. 19:8).
  • In a similar vein, “checking the box” (a.k.a. doing only the bare minimum or “what was our duty to do”) makes us an unprofitable servant (Luke 17:10).
  • We cannot be complacent—we must be vigilant. Multiple times Jesus spoke of seeing the signs that the time is near (Matt 24).  These are spoken to God’s chosen people, and the implication is clearly that if we are not prepared and watching, we can miss out—our victory is not assured.
  • The parable of the ten virgins (picturing God’s people) gets quite specific here. We’re told that ALL fell asleep, but only half of them had enough oil (God’s spirit) left when Christ returned…and the others didn’t get another chance to rectify their lack of vigilance (Matt. 25:1-13).
  • The parable of the tares makes it clear that God allows the good and the bad to hang out together within the body of Christ for a while, until it’s time for the harvest (Matt. 13:24-30). So we can’t assume that just because we’re showing up, going to church, and doing all the things that outwardly look right, that we’re “good” with God.

Our actions definitely matter, but not if they’re coming from the wrong motivations or thoughts.  

Building on the previous point, let’s go back to that part in Matthew where Jesus had just told them that not everyone who says “Lord, Lord” or does great works will enter the kingdom.

He sums up that teaching by saying, “Then I will declare to them, ‘Depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness [workers of iniquity]’” (Matt. 7:23).

What’s interesting is that He doesn’t deny that they had been obeying God’s commands or doing great works.  This indicates that something else was going on here.  We don’t know exactly what it was, but I submit that the root cause was that their hearts were not right with God.  That they were not in a state of repentance…thus their sins separated them from God despite carrying out the correct actions.

And how often do we fall into the same trap??

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Surveying the Gospels: Looking at the “Big Picture” Themes of Jesus’ Words & Actions (Part 1)

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On March 11, 2023

In Christian Living, New Testament, Topic Studies

It’s often been said that even if we only focused on reading and doing the “red letter” parts of the bible (Jesus’s words), we’d all be much better people…and certainly better Christians.

But I have a confession:  I’ve always struggled to emotionally connect with the three synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke).  Of course I read them, I think about them, I hone in on specific verses that feel really meaningful.  But even though it’s full of direct words from my Savior, I haven’t always gravitated toward them holistically.

And I could be wrong, but I suspect I may not be alone in that…

For some people, the seeming-inconsistencies across the three narratives are frustrating.  For others (myself included), the sparse writing style feels a bit clinical and I know that I’m missing cultural nuances that would make the words come to life better.  It kind of makes me feel like a failure at times.

While the gospel accounts of Jesus’s life are not quite as convoluted as some of Paul’s writings (which even Peter called hard to understand, II Pet. 3:16), they still can be somewhat challenging to really grasp onto and internalize.  And there are a number of reasons for that.

Why are the gospels confusing at times?

Some of the difficulty in reading the gospels is unavoidable, and common to any historical text.  The actual way it was written down—from the words used, to the dialogue style—feels stilted and foreign to a modern reader’s brain.

The things Jesus (and other biblical writers) said often included a massive amount of cultural context, using phrases and examples that contemporary listeners would have immediately connected the dots on, but seem super random to us today.

Then some of the confusion was, I believe, purposeful on Jesus’s part.  His words can be interpreted in different ways because He wasn’t always crystal-clear, and His sayings often had double meanings.  He even stated outright that He was intentionally making the parables hard to understand because those people weren’t being called at that time (Matt. 13:11-17).

Another reason is that many of His teachings showcased how we follow God in a situational context rather than black-and-white “rules”, so we run into paradoxes with how the same principle was applied differently at different times—creating what feels like contradictions.

And honestly, some of it is SO specific, that to our modern ears we hear something like “the kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed” and we’re like, ”Neat…sooo what do we do with this??”  As a result, we tend to cherry-pick very specific verses, often pulled out of context, and ignore other ones that might contradict.

A different approach for how to read the gospels

After years of reading through the gospels but struggling to truly feel connected to and inspired by the entirety of the writings, I recently decided to try a different approach.  Rather than getting bogged down in the verse-by-verse details, my goal was to pull back to more of a 30,000-foot view to see what we can and should glean in broader strokes.

This way of reading the gospels still is focusing on specific and actionable takeaways for my life, but it helped me be able to filter through some of the super granular and seemingly-contradictory statements to find the bigger ideas and consistent themes in Jesus’s direct words or His actions.

Rather than parsing every word (including things that feel contradictory), my goal is to glean some of the key things we should take away as Jesus’s focus, His actions, His commands—and thereby what things we need to be concentrating on in our own lives.

A few notes to orient you before we dive in:

  • The topics below are focused more on the three synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke), solely because Jesus’s teachings in John’s gospel are more directed toward Himself and His relationship with the Father. I’ve also included a couple references to the red-letter parts of Revelation where relevant.
  • As I studied through the books, I found that the various topics grouped themselves into a handful of very broad buckets, but acknowledge that there’s definitely some overlap between them.
  • I’ll give some of the scripture references within each point, though in many cases there were so many that I couldn’t capture them all (it got repetitive, especially across the three books). I encourage you to look up and read each passage in the bible yourself as well and have these topics in mind to recognize the patterns when they emerge.

And lastly, this study is a LOT.  There is so much content here, that I’ve split it into multiple posts.  This is part one of what will likely be between three and five posts.

While you *could* read through it all in one sitting, you could also take a topic or two each day as your daily bible study and spend time meditating and studying, to really get the most out of it.  Think of this as more of a reference book or study companion.

Principles, truths, and key commands in the Gospels

Theme #1:  God’s calling in this life isn’t easy, and isn’t for everyone.  But if we answer the call, it DOES come with expectations.

Anyone who subscribes to the “just as I am” belief, thinking that God doesn’t set standards by which we must live, should go back and read Jesus’s words throughout the gospels.

One of the biggest themes that Jesus emphasizes is what it looks like to follow Him.  He focuses on action, not simply “believing” as an abstract emotional idea…and He’s also clear that following God’s way is not the easy path.

Now don’t get me wrong…God calls us just as we are.  He just expects that we won’t stay that way.  Let’s look at some examples.

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Deep Roots in Times of Trouble:  Lessons from the Acacia Tree (Jeremiah 17:7 & Psalm 1:3)

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On August 13, 2022

In Christian Living, Topic Studies

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope [confidence, security] is in the Lord. 

For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit” (Jer. 17:7-8)

Many believe that the tree Jeremiah had in mind when he wrote those words was the acacia tree, which was common in the deserts of ancient Israel.

The bible is filled from cover to cover with tree-focused imagery and analogies, and they featured heavily in the teachings of Jesus.  To the agrarian-based ancient biblical-era societies—particularly those living in a desert climate—the deeper meanings and takeaways from tree-based language would have been very clear.  But to us today it’s easy to gloss over these verses with only a surface understanding.

Recently I was reading a daily bible devotion that expounded on the acacia and its relation to this verse in Jeremiah:

“This tree has been designed by God to survive decades of intense heat and drought. It can survive tough circumstances because it has a deep root system to sustain it during the hardest of times. Even during a time of drought, this tree is still able to bless local residents by providing shade during the day and wood for fire at night” (from Bible.com).

Psalm 1:3 mirrors our Jeremiah foundation passage, with a few nuances.  It tells us that the one who delights in the law of the Lord and meditates on His law is like a tree planted by the rivers, which yields fruit in due season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does.

These passages give us some important insights into qualities that God wants from His people.

  • Planted by a good source of water (intentionally placed, proximity, set up for success)
  • Deep and wide root structure (stability, connection to sustenance)
  • Green leaves, no withering (healthy, growing, provides shade)
  • Not anxious in a time of drought or heat (knows that God will provide)
  • Does not cease yielding fruit in season (productive even in harsh conditions)

We’ll dig (ha, plant pun!) into these characteristics more in the rest of this study in order better appreciate what God is telling us.

You might also like: Book Reco: “You’ll Get Through This” by Max Lucado

But first, what’s the purpose of a plant’s roots?

That sounds like a “duh” question, but stick with me here.  Despite growing up on a farm, I had to do a little research because I am admittedly NOT a plant person…I don’t really garden, and can’t keep plants alive, no matter what I try.

Roots play such a key role in the survival and health of a plant.  They anchor it, keeping it from being blown or washed away.  They tap into the water needed for sustenance, and find the nutrients a plant needs to stay alive and produce fruit.

I’m not going to go way down a rabbit hole on the spiritual analogy, because any analogy breaks down eventually, but basically envision roots as your means of connecting to God, utilizing His holy spirit, and being nourished by His words and your relationship with Him.

Let’s briefly explore a few facets that may bring some additional insights into how we view the analogy of spiritual roots.

Roots provide life-sustaining water and food

Perhaps the most obvious thing about roots is that they are the tree’s means of getting water and nutrients, which they use along with sunlight to grow.  Our spiritual roots are much the same.

God’s holy spirit is often symbolized as “living water”, and each of us must be spiritually tapped into this source on a daily basis (John 7:38-39).  We should be partaking of “our daily bread” (Christ and His words) and seeking out nourishing spiritual food (John 6:35, Heb. 5:12-14).

What I didn’t realize, though, was that roots really have to work for it:

“Plants are not passive actors in the soil environment, humming along to themselves idle while nutrients and water jump into their roots. Rather, it takes a substantial amount of effort by the plants to wrest and wrangle away the basics needed to eke out a living from the soil. As a matter of survival, then, they must invest some of the energy gained from sunlight in this process.” (see article)

The spiritual analogy mirrors this.  God provides the water (His spirit), food (Is. 55:2, John 8:51), and the (sun)light (John 8:12, Ps. 18:38) that we need—not only to survive, but to grow, thrive, and bear fruit.

They are there for the taking, but they don’t just *jump* into us.  It requires diligence, consistency, and effort on our part.  Peter blasts a hole in the “once saved, always saved” myth and makes very clear that God expects His people to actively work toward growth.

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What Does “Casting Down Arguments & Pretensions” Mean in II Cor. 10:5? (Part 3 of II Cor. 10 Series)

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On July 1, 2022

In Christian Living, New Testament, Topic Studies, Verse Studies

“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (II Cor. 10:3-6)

We’ve been sharing a series of studies taking a deeper look at these verses in II Corinthians (you can read Part 1 & Part 2 here).  They provide important insight into how we should view our inner selves, and our responsibilities in actively guarding, defending, and tending to our hearts and minds.

In particular, these studies focus on interpreting Paul’s somewhat literary or metaphorical language into something that feels tangible and actionable to us today.

One of the ideas that was brought out in the earlier studies on pulling down strongholds was this:

“When we allow our beliefs and our expectations of God to become bigger than God Himself, we limit God.  We have made our God smaller.  And we create an idol out of our own beliefs or ways of thinking.”

That idea segues us nicely into this study, where we’ll dig into the second big element of that keystone verse—casting down arguments, and every “high thing” that exalts itself against the knowledge of God.

What does II Cor. 10:5 mean?

It’s kind of a weird phrase in our modern vernacular, so first let’s define more clearly what it really means.  The translation of “casting down” in the NKJV might come across to us in a softer way than its true meaning—which is to demolish, destroy, or utterly obliterate (most other translations beyond the KJV and NKJV use these words instead).

What exactly are we supposed to be demolishing??  Those “arguments” (G3053, logismos…where we get the word ”logic”) encompass our self-directed human reasoning, opinions, convictions, conceit, philosophy, imagination, and thought.

Some translations of the verse also include “high” or “lofty” things (also translated “pretensions” or “opinions”), which indicate something proud, arrogant, human-centered, and self-confident or self-sufficient.

Basically, this verse tells us that (sometimes unintentionally) we elevate our own thoughts or convictions above what God says—which creates a competing and adversarial relationship that can destroy us if we don’t recognize it and work to defeat it instead.

We are in a war for our minds

Those different translations really give us a much better idea of what we’re dealing with here.  We are commanded to be using the spiritual weapons and protection at our disposal (Eph. 6:10-18, armor of God) to recognize and root out human thinking that sets itself up contrary to God’s word.

Sound familiar in today’s world?  I loved this quote so much I had to include it verbatim, as a jumping-off point:

“There is the fortress of human reasoning, reinforced with many subtle arguments and the pretense of logic. There is the castle of passion, with flaming battlements defended by lust, pleasure, and greed. And there is the pinnacle of pride, in which the human heart sits enthroned and revels in thoughts of its own excellence and sufficiency” (from this article).

Human reasoning is a mighty fortress (one of those strongholds we talked about).  But the thing is, God CREATED US with the capacity for human reasoning, and He did that with a purpose.  He wants us to have free will, to use our brains.

The key phrase in unlocking our hero passage is “raises itself up against the knowledge of God” (CJB).  When our (or someone else’s) opinions, logic, convictions, beliefs, or political correctness sit in opposition to what God tells us, we are in deep trouble.

One of the subtleties with human reasoning that contradicts the bible is that it’s not always coming from a place of outright malice and rebellion—just as often, it’s fueled by theoretically good intentions, the appearance of logic, or our emotional reactions on a topic (we see an example of this in the conversation of Jesus and Peter in Matt. 16:23).

In the rest of this study we’ll break down and examine—through a few different angles or lenses—these “arguments” and “lofty things” that we are to demolish, and how they can manifest in our lives:

  1. In our hearts and minds…reasoning with ourselves (justification, self-righteousness, putting our logic onto God, etc.)
  2. In our dealings with our brethren…how we treat our brethren, biblical disputes and pet doctrines that divide and distract, etc.
  3. In our interaction with society around us…being swayed by or caught up in worldly human reason at the cost of the spiritual truths (news, social media, politics, etc.); letting the social and cultural thinking of our time shape our own views and how we interpret the bible

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The Meaning of Ps. 37:7 “Rest in the Lord, & wait patiently for Him” (Psalm 37 Study – Part 6)

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On January 4, 2022

In Christian Living, The Writings, Topic Studies, Verse Studies

“It is good that one should hope and wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord” (Lam. 3:26)

This is the last part in a study on how the first few verses of Psalm 37 give us a five-part prescription for resisting the envy and anxiety that come from comparing ourselves to other people or struggling with, “why do good things happen to bad people?”  For ease of reading we’ve split this long study into 6 individual parts, so I recommend starting with the intro to Psalm 37 (which lays the groundwork), then reading the other sections and this one (linked at the end). 

What does it mean to rest in the Lord?

Finally we examine Psalm 37 verse 7:

“Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him”

Perhaps the most difficult part in Psalm 37, the hardest thing asked of us, is to rest and wait patiently for God…particularly when we’re “fretting” (worked up) about something.

Or maybe that’s just me??  And I think to some extent, the order of these commands in this passage of Psalm 37 is important because they help us build up to this.

You’re working on trusting God and doing good, abiding in Him and consuming His word, finding delight in His commands, entrusting your whole self, life, and worries to Him…and now He says to rest and wait.

The word for “rest” here means to stop, be still, and be silent.  God is telling us that in order to succeed, we must turn down both the speed and volume of our lives.  That, in order to be attuned to His will and the way He’s working in our lives, we must be better at tuning *out* the world.

Do you sometimes lie in bed with your mind racing, maybe stewing over a co-worker getting credit for something you did, or thinking of something you should have said in response to a criticism?  You toss and turn, running over it in your mind, unable to sleep.  King David sure seemed to struggle with this, and his advice was to “meditate [on God’s word] within your heart on your bed and be still” (Ps. 4:4).  In other words, we must re-orient our focus toward God.

God’s sabbath plays an important role in this idea of resting in the Lord.  On the seventh day of every week, He commands us to stop what we’re doing, step back from the frenetic pace of our lives, and place our attention on Him.  Our core spiritual tools of prayer, bible study, meditation, and fasting are also geared toward helping us shift our focus away from the noise of the world, and toward God’s voice.

After accomplishing some astounding things in God’s name, the prophet Elijah was having a self-pity party out in the wilderness.  He railed at God, as he experienced perhaps his lowest moment physically, emotionally, and spiritually.  And God made a point.  He battered and wowed Elijah through a strong wind, an earthquake, and a fire.  But none of those gave Elijah what he was looking for (I Kings 19:12).

Finally He came to Elijah with a “still, small voice” (NIV says “delicate whisper”).  God explained that things weren’t as bad as Elijah feared, and encouraged him with the news that God had been working behind the scenes with thousands of faithful followers (which Elijah had no clue about), preparing them for what was to come.

Despite all God’s miracles and Elijah’s role in accomplishing them, he had temporarily lost his focus on God, taken his “eyes off the prize”…and as a result, he got caught up in the discouragement, isolation, and hopelessness he felt in the world around him.

How often are we like Elijah, fixing our eyes and ears (and our minds and our time) on the circumstances around us, anywhere but on God??

When the world around us gets loud, God speaks in that still, small voice.  Can you hear God when He whispers to you?  Do you know how to “turn down” the speed and noise—in the world, and in your own mind?  Or do you lean into the distractions, filling every spare moment with anything *but* spending time with God?

We should be able to identify when we’re worked up (“fretting”), and consciously work on calming our minds.  This requires focus and discipline, yanking on the ”leash” of our thoughts when they run down a well-worn path, refusing to allow ourselves to dwell constantly on whatever is upsetting us.

What’s your first instinct when you’re worked up about something?  Is it to go to God and place it in His hands (“roll your burden upon Him”, as we saw in the previous study)?  And if so, what comes next?

“Be still, and know that I am God” (Ps. 46:10)

What does it look like to “wait on the Lord”?

So, hopefully we’re working on “turning down” the noise of the world around us and being more attuned when God whispers.  How should we then apply the idea of waiting patiently for God?

The word used here for “wait patiently” (chul, H2342), gives us a richer understanding of what’s being asked of us.  It can imply many things, but in this case we should think of it as being firm and strong, enduring and prospering.

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The Meaning of Ps. 37:5 “Commit your way to the Lord & He shall bring it to pass” (Psalm 37 Study – Part 5)

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On January 4, 2022

In Christian Living, The Writings, Topic Studies, Verse Studies

“Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be shaken” (Ps. 55:22)

This is the fifth part in a study on how the first few verses of Psalm 37 give us a five-part prescription for combatting the envy and anxiety that results from comparing ourselves to other people or asking, “why do good things happen to bad people?”  For ease of reading we’ve split this long study into individual parts, so I recommend starting with the intro to Psalm 37 (which lays the groundwork), then reading this and the other sections (linked at the end). 

Next we look at Psalm 37 verse 5:

“Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass”

The word for “commit” is interesting, a root word where the literal translation is very broad and figurative, and the word translated “your way” is basically your road, path, mode of action, or course of life.

The way we can understand “commit” in this case is “to roll yourself upon,” like a burden is rolled onto a kneeling camel to be carried away—completely relieving you of that burden and carrying it for you.

We can think about this “burden” we roll onto the God in a couple different ways, one more outward and one more inward:

  • Your “road” – your choices, actions, plans, what happens to you, the direction your life takes
  • Yourself – your health, needs and wishes, thoughts, emotions, heart, spirit

What it means to commit yourself to God

It’s worth asking, have you committed your “course of life” to God, placed yourself body, mind, and heart FULLY into His hands?

Committing yourself that completely takes an immense amount of trust!  And let’s be honest, no one gets it right all the time because we’re all human (I mean, look at how King David handled the Bathsheba/Uriah mess…and he was a “man after God’s own heart!”).  But it should be something we consciously think about and strive for.

It’s interesting to note that the main other way that “commit” is used heavily throughout the bible is to commit adultery, fornication, or (more broadly) sin or iniquity.  It’s the same idea of giving your whole self to something—body, heart, and mind.  We commit or give ourselves to God or to the world, but it can’t be both (Matt. 6:24).

James continues this idea of “rolling our burden upon” God and entrusting our path to Him:

“Therefore, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, so that at the right time He may lift you up. Throw all your anxieties [NKJV “cast your cares”] upon Him, because He cares for you” (I Pet. 5:6-7; CJB).

The Adam Clarke commentary notes that when it says “He cares for you”, what we’re really being told is that “He meddles or concerns Himself with the things that interest you”.  To me, this idea helps it feel even more active and tangible, more real.

And if we believe that what God says there is true—that He concerns Himself with the things that we care about—then that is an incredibly comforting statement!

So the question is, do you believe that?  And if so, how does that change your perspective on the things you’re struggling with?  Have you handed over your worries, fears, struggles, and desperate hopes to your Almighty Father?

This segues nicely into how we can think about the second part of Psalm 37:5, where it tells us that if we commit our way to the Lord, “He shall bring it to pass”, or as the CJB says, “He will act”.

“I will act”:  Do you trust that God will make the right choices?

That seems like a ridiculous question, and it kind of is.  But it starts to get at the heart of our anxieties, and whether we truly trust God (as we explored in part 2).

God tells us that His word “shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please” (Is. 55:1).  He takes an active role in the lives of His people.  God doesn’t have “oopsies”, and nothing happens without His knowledge and permission.

Here are just a few of the many scriptures we can read to remind us of how God views His role in our lives:

  • “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jer. 29:11)
  • “We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose…if God is for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:28, 31)
  • “Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. Do not fear therefore, you are of more value than many sparrows.” (Matt. 10:29-31)

Where we struggle, though, is that our expectations and timing don’t align with His, because we can’t see the “long game” the way He can.  When it says “He will act”, that is not a promise that we will get everything we want, when we want it.

It IS a promise that He is in control, that He knows what we hope for, that He wants amazing things for us, and that “He will act”.  That’s pretty awesome.

So it’s worth coming back to as we wrap up this section…have you committed your “way” to God?  What do you dedicate your time, energy, and thoughts towards?  What burdens are you trying to lug around yourself?  Do you trust God to act on your behalf and direct the course of your life?

“Commit your works to the Lord, and your plans will succeed” (Prov. 16:3, AMP)

Finally we’ll look at Ps. 37:7…”Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.”

Here are the other studies in this series (this is the fifth):

The meaning of Ps. 37:5 "Commit your way to the Lord, & He shall act" | Placing the course of your life & the burdens you carry into God’s hands., what that trust really looks like. Have you TRULY handed over your hopes, fears, struggles, & desires to Him? Psalm 37 study part 5

Ps. 55:22 cast your burdens on the Lord & He will sustain you | Examining the meaning of Ps. 37:5 "Commit your way to the Lord, & He shall act" | Placing the course of your life & the burdens you carry into God’s hands., what that trust really looks like.

What Ps. 37:4 Means: “Delight in the Lord, & He will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37 Study – Part 4)

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On January 4, 2022

In Christian Living, The Writings, Topic Studies, Verse Studies

This is the fourth part in a study on how the first few verses of Psalm 37 give us a five-part prescription for combatting the envy & anxiety that come from comparing ourselves to other people or asking, “why do good things happen to bad people?”  For ease of reading we’ve split this long study into individual parts, so I recommend starting with the intro to Psalm 37 (which lays the groundwork), then reading this & the other sections (linked at the end). 

Continuing on to Psalm 37 verse 4, we’re told:

“Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart”

What does it mean to delight yourself in the Lord? 

That question is a logical place to start.  And for that matter, what does it mean to “delight in” anything??

“Delight” is not a word we use quite as much today, though honestly it’s one that I love.  Some other ways of thinking about this…what do you take great pleasure in, what brings you joy?

What brings contentment to your heart and satisfies your soul?  Can you honestly say that you find enjoyment in God’s commands?  This contentment and satisfaction also builds upon the previous verse’s idea of feeding on faithfulness.

Part of why I love the word “delight” rather than the tamer “happiness” is that it evokes a sense of joy and even childlike or innocent wonder.  It’s also a verb, indicating an active choice to take delight, rather than a passive feeling or reaction.  (There’s that theme of taking action again…)

According to Rhonda Stoppe from Bible Study Tools, “True delight in Him causes us to take our sights off of what we want in order to long for what He desires.”  Now, this doesn’t mean that God will automatically give you that new car you’ve been wanting—this isn’t about a prosperity gospel.

Instead, “The idea behind this verse and others like it is that, when we truly rejoice or ‘delight’ in the eternal things of God, our desires will begin to parallel His and we will never go unfulfilled.”  (link to study on Ps. 20:4 about God fulfilling all your heart’s desires)

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What It Means to “Dwell in the land & feed on His faithfulness” (Psalm 37 Study – Part 3)

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On January 4, 2022

In Christian Living, The Writings, Topic Studies, Verse Studies

“You have been a shelter…I will abide in Your tabernacle forever” (Ps. 61:3-4)

This is the third part in a study on how the first few verses of Psalm 37 give us a five-part prescription for combatting the envy and anxiety that come from comparing ourselves to other people or asking, “why do good things happen to bad people?”  For ease of reading we’ve split this long study into individual parts, so I recommend starting with the intro to Psalm 37 (which lays the groundwork), then reading this and the other sections (linked at the end). 

Putting down roots in the land God provides

Let’s pick up where we left off in part 2, with the second half of Ps. 37:3:

“Trust in the Lord, and do good…Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness”

The second part of verse 3 tells us that if we put our trust in God, He will provide for us both physically and spiritually.  Shelter and food are two of the most fundamental needs of human life.

We’re told to “dwell” in the land He provides.  This word means to settle, permanently live, abide, inhabit, or rest.  Basically, to live and put down roots.  What is the land God has given us?  It’s being in relationship with Him, extended an offer of grace and forgiveness from our sins.

On the night before He was crucified, Jesus spent a long time talking with His disciples.  One of the teachings He gave was that He was the true vine and God the vinedresser, and that we were branches connected to the vine that needed to bear fruit.  He told His disciples:

“Abide [dwell, live] in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you” (John 15:2-6).

Can you truthfully say you abide in, or live with, God and Jesus Christ?  I don’t mean in some weird mystical way.  One way to think about this is being fully present, spending time with.  If you go back to that branch and vine metaphor earlier, the branches literally cannot survive without the vine’s nourishment.  If they get disconnected, they perish.

When we dwell in the land God has given us, we consider God and His way of life our home, and we’re not always looking around at society to see if the grass is greener.  The Israelites always displayed this attitude…*kiiiiind of* dwelling with God in the land He’d provided, but always casting an eye around at their pagan neighbors to see what they were missing out on.

You might also like:  FOMO: How to Derail Your Relationship with God

Taking a “cultivate faithfulness” mentality

The next part of the verse tells us to “feed on His faithfulness”.  While I love the NKJV translation of “feed on His faithfulness”, the Berean Study Bible’s translation also adds some nuance.  It says, “Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness”.

This is interesting because it positions us not only as consumers of what God provides, but also as being accountable for actively planting, tending, and producing ourselves (with His help, of course). 

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Meaning of Ps. 37:3 “Trust in the Lord and do good” (Psalm 37 Study – Part 2)

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On January 4, 2022

In Christian Living, The Writings, Topic Studies, Verse Studies

“Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You” (Ps. 56:3)

This is the second part in a study on how the first few verses of Psalm 37 give us a five-part prescription for combatting the envy and anxiety that come from comparing ourselves to other people or asking, “why do good things happen to bad people?”  For ease of reading we’ve split this long study into individual parts, so I recommend starting with the intro to Psalm 37 (which lays the groundwork), then reading this and the subsequent sections (linked at the end). 

What does Ps. 37:3 mean?

After David tells us not to get worked up when we see bad people get what we feel we deserve, his first instruction is to “trust in the Lord and do good” (Ps. 37:3).

What does it mean to trust God?

The word used here for “trust” means to be confident, secure, or “to hie for refuge” (which makes me laugh).

Ye Olde English aside, that last bit really helps flesh out something we can take away from this…like in Psalm 91 where it speaks of God as “my refuge and fortress”.  He should be what I look to for protection, and who I run to in times of trouble (like peasants running toward the castle walls when the barbarians attacked).

In other words, with my trust placed in God, I am certain of my protection and deliverance.  The word is used many times in the Old Testament, including dozens in the Psalms alone.  And so I have to ask myself, what makes me feel safe and secure?  How certain do you feel about things in your life right now?

Where is your center of gravity, the thing your world revolves around?  Is it in your 401k, or your ability to defend yourself (Ps. 49:6, 44:6)?  Is it in your own judgment, your career, the government, or even your family and friends (Prov. 28:26, Ps. 146:3, Ps. 41:9)?

What is your confidence in?  What is the one thing that, if it became shaky, would rock the foundations of your world?  If you don’t know the answer to that, it might be wise to take some time to reflect on it *before* you’re in a situation where you find out in real time and regret the answer.

“And do good”: The need for action

But we shouldn’t forget the rest of the phrase in Ps. 37:3.  We’re told to trust in the Lord and do good.  As with many of God’s commands, this isn’t only a mind exercise, but rather mind AND body.  Heart and action.

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