Old Testament

Have you seen it? It is difficult to describe. But if you look close, it’s almost always there.

Let me back up first; back up to an Old Testament minor prophet. Hosea prophesied to the northern kingdom of Israel, just before its captivity by Assyria in 722 B.C. As a vivid object lesson, God tells Hosea to marry an adulterous wife, a symbol of Israel’s unfaithful relationship to God. Hosea marries Gomer, and despite bearing him three children, she still found her way to the street corner in the bad part of town. She prostituted herself to other lovers. Likewise, Israel tried to wed the worship of God to Canaanite religion. After all, Canaanite religion was a lot of fun—it deified sex—going to “church” was going to the brothel. God makes His assessment of His wayward people, “They consecrated themselves to that shameful idol [Baal] and became as vile as the thing they loved” (Hosea 9:10). What God is saying is that the character of what is worshiped rubs off; people become like the objects they love.

And this is the “look.” I have seen it many times. Masks and make-up can veil it for awhile, but in time, the unfaithful heart reaches the surface. People ensnared in sin or vice begin to look different. I’m not talking about the emaciated junkie. I’m talking about the effects of idolatrous sin on one’s countenance and even on one’s features.

Have you seen someone you may have known for years come to saving faith and before long, they look different? Once again, I’m not talking about someone getting a haircut or straightening their teeth, I’m talking about that new look in their eye or that new smile that reveals something very real and profound has happened inside of them.

But Hosea is talking about the opposite scenario. We actually take on the character of the idol or sin we bow to or fondle. People start to look different. I’ve especially seen it with sexual sin. If I may, people actually look uglier! It makes sense; sin and idolatry is acidic; unbeknownst to the deceived is that which they embrace is spiritually killing them. And what is happening on the inside begins to make its way to the outside.

Do you have the “look”? You don’t need to gaze in a mirror, simply be honest with God. Have you replaced Him with someone or something else? Have you downplayed sin in your life, perhaps even redefining it as something else?

Do you see the “look” in others? Do you love them enough to speak with them about it, doing so with humility and love?

Don’t think the “look” just goes away. What is behind it must be confessed: “Say to [God]: ‘Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously, that we may offer the fruit of our lips’” (Hosea 14:2). The prophet’s final words are these, “Who is wise? He will realize these things. Who is discerning? He will understand them. The ways of the Lord are right; the righteous walk in them, but the rebellious stumble in them” (Hosea 14:9).

Be wise and discerning, lose the “look.”

Pastor Rich Hamlin

February 9, 2012 

Times were difficult in the days of Daniel. Judah had been overrun by Babylon. Much of the nation had been deported—Daniel included. Babylon was quite proud she had destroyed Jerusalem and raided the temple of God. The people of God were defeated and discouraged. Was Marduk (the chief god of Babylon) stronger than God?

In Daniel 2, Nebuchadnezzar (the king of Babylon) has a troubling dream; he wants to know what it means. He orders his cabinet, “Tell me its meaning.” But he also throws them a curve ball: “Tell me my dream before you give me its meaning.” When they protest and say that’s impossible, he orders them killed. Daniel finds out about the king’s decree when they come for him. That night, God gives Daniel the dream and the interpretation. The next day, he reveals it to the king.

In short, the dream was this: Nebuchadnezzar saw an enormous, dazzling statue with a head of gold, chest and arms of silver, belly and thighs of bronze, and legs of iron with feet a mixture of iron and clay. Then a rock not cut by human hands smashes and levels the statue. Like chaff, the wind blows the broken pieces away. The rock, however, becomes a huge mountain and fills the whole earth (Daniel 2:31-35). It is understandable the king was troubled; the dream too much for his Tylenol PM.

After faithfully regurgitating the dream, Daniel tells the king the interpretation given him by God. The dream was about four great pagan kingdoms. Babylon was the golden head, now reigning. Three successive empires (Media/Persia, Greece, and Rome) would follow. All would enjoy their time until the “rock” appears smashing all subordinate kingdoms and reigning forever. That “rock” was Jesus (1 Peter 2:8), who comes six centuries later. He now sits upon the throne of God’s worldwide empire.

At the time of the dream, God’s people were in exile. Things were not looking so good. For six centuries, pagan empires were enormous—they looked dazzling. The Medes, who succeeded the Babylonians, let Israel go home. But shortly after their return, the Greek’s ascended to power and then the Romans began their ruthless reign. God’s voice was silent in Israel. For over six hundred years, it looked as if God, his people, and his Kingdom had lost. And then, the silence was shattered, when the “Word became flesh” (John 1:14)—the “rock” had arrived. The Kingdom of God was established and the mountain still grows.

I gave you a little from Daniel and a little from history to tell you this: it is easy to get discouraged by what we read, see, and hear. Culture sours and smells. Politicians play God. Even the church seems to be blowing in the wind, uncomfortable in its skin and seeking to redefine itself once again.

In times such as these, we must remember Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. Daniel concluded the interpretation this way: “The God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed… It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever” (Daniel 2:44).

Where is Babylon, where are the Medes and the Persians and the Greeks and the Romans? They are no more. As it was then; so shall it be again. Those who seem to wield the power only do so for a time. But they don’t even wield it at all. Nebuchadnezzar would learn this personally two chapters later, rightly declaring, “His dominion is an eternal dominion; His kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back His hand or say to Him: ‘What have you done?’” (Daniel 4:34-35).

The Rock won. The Rock always does.

Pastor Rich Hamlin

January 26, 2012

This book review by Terry Delaney appears on his website, Christian Book Notes (December 5, 2011). Used by permission. 

Sibbes, Richard. Josiah’s Reformation. Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 2011. 176 pp. $10.00. Purchase at Westminster Bookstore or Mongerism Books for less.

Introduction

Josiah’s Reformation is the latest in the Puritan Paperbacks Series published by the Banner of Truth Trust. This work was originally published in 1629. Sibbes “always sought to get under the superficial layer of his listeners’ behavior and deal with their hearts.” It is for this reason that Richard Sibbes is one of the more beloved of the Puritans by today’s readers.

Summary

Josiah’s Reformation is a compilation of four sermons preached by the Puritan, Richard Sibbes from Isaiah 57:15, “For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose Name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.”

In explaining the doctrinal truth behind this verse, Sibbes exposits for his readers from 2 Chronicles 34:26-28 and offers four keys to true personal reformation. He looks at the tender heart first and foremost as the only means by which one can be humbled. He next looks at the art of self-humbling and the art of mourning. Both are necessary if true reformation is to take place in the soul. The last sermon (4th chapter) is entitled the Saint’s Refreshing. Here the reader is treated to true nourishment for the soul.

Review

You do not pick up the Puritans and expect to read something light and fluffy that does not impact you for in the here and now as well as later on down the road. Josiah’s Reformation offers sweet nourishment for the soul on most every page. The chapter on self-humbling is much needed today with our “me-first” theologies. I have said that there is much pride in the pastorate and many will know this to be true. Sibbes sought to not only teach his hearers how to properly self-judge, but he also offers, from Scripture, the importance of keeping ourselves humble. The art is when we are able to maintain that proper humility.

Far from being a book that will “work you over the coals,” Sibbes will bring you time and again to worship the Lord who alone enables the Christian to accomplish anything resembling reformation.

Again, Sibbes offers a wonderful treatise on the art of mourning…over sin. Not just your own sin, but the sins of others including your own nation. When was the last time you grieved over sin? Chapter three on Josiah’s Reformation will take you to that place of grief over sin once again.

All in all, while the language may be tough for some to overcome, it is well worth the effort to take the time and read through Josiah’s Reformation. To do so will be to take a break from the craziness of the world and to bask in the glory of the salvation granted to those who believe.

Recommendation

I heartily recommend to any who call on the name of Christ as Lord and Savior this work by Richard Sibbes entitled Josiah’s Reformation. It may be best to sit down and read it one chapter at a time (there are only four which take about an hour or so to read), but it is also worth putting on your nightstand and reading a page or two in the evening and meditate on the contents while drifting off to sleep.

Jeremiah had a difficult gig. He was a priest and prophet during the days leading up to Judah’s demise and deportation by Babylon in 586 BC. Most of his sermons and prophecies concerned the impending doom. As a result, he was unpopular: “I never sat in the company of revelers, never made merry with them; I sat alone because Your hand was on me and You had filled me with indignation” (Jer. 15:17). His loneliness compounded when God told him he could not marry, either: “You must not marry and have sons or daughters in this place” (Jer. 16:2). Why no wife and kids? God tells him what was about to happen; the consequence of Judah’s faithlessness: “They [parents and kids of that generation] will die of deadly diseases. They will not be mourned or buried but will be like refuse lying on the ground. They will perish by sword and famine, and their dead bodies will become food for the birds of the air and the beast of the earth” (Jer. 16:4). Now you know why he “sat alone.”

But it was not Jeremiah who had the problem; it was the people. God said of them: “The Word of the Lord is offensive to them; they find no pleasure in it” (Jer. 6:10). But the people hung their hat on going to “church” anyway. In fact, they were quite proud that they did: “This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord” (Jer. 17:4)! But saying the name of the building three times revealed their allegiance was to the place and not to the deity. Call it hypocrisy or call it formalism; but don’t call it worship. Jeremiah would note this later to God: “You are always on their lips but far from their hearts” (Jer. 12:2).

A couple weeks back I was at a school function for one of our children. While there, I chit-chatted with another father at our table who I just met. I asked him what he did. He said he was a bread delivery driver. I commented that probably meant early mornings for him. He said it did. A few minutes later he followed up with the obligatory question: “What do you do?” After telling him I was a pastor, he fired back: “I have a tougher job than you.” He wasn’t joking when he said it. I figured there was something behind his comment but I didn’t ask. I just went back to picking at my taco salad and tried not to be offended by the exchange. But my mind was working overdrive wondering why he thought delivering Ho-Ho’s and hotdog buns was harder than getting to a place each week with a piece of Scripture where you can say: “Thus saith the Lord.” But I digress.

Maybe he does have a harder job. We don’t need to get into a spitting contest over it, though. What is undeniable is that Jeremiah had one more difficult than the both of us. He preached to a people that said the right things but did none of them.

From the pulpit, that does not characterize the people I look upon each Lord’s Day. And for this I am grateful. So maybe the bread delivery guy was right—his job is harder. He has to deliver bread that he knows even when eaten, people will hunger again. It also grows stale. Whereas I get to deliver each week something far greater and more satisfying, preaching the One Who said: “I am the bread of life…the bread that comes down from heaven, which a man may eat and not die” (John 6:48, 50). And He never grows stale.

“Not only was the Teacher wise, but also he imparted knowledge to the people.” That’s Ecclesiastes 12:9. Who is the referenced “Teacher”? It is Solomon, the writer of Ecclesiastes (1:1). Early in Solomon’s reign, God gave him a “genie in the bottle” opportunity: “Ask for whatever you want me to give you” (1 Kings 3:5). Young Solomon asks well: “Give Your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong” (1 Kings 3:9). God was pleased with the request: “I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be” (1 Kings 3:12). A chapter later we hear the same: “God gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight, and a breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore” (1 Kings 4:29).

Solomon then went to work with his “measureless” mind. “He pondered and searched out and set in order many proverbs” doing so by finding “just the right words, and what he wrote was upright and true” (Ecclesiastes 12:9-10). And what did these upright and true words accomplish? What impact did they have on those who heard them? We are told: “The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails” (12:11). Goads and nails are sharp; used to prod wayward cattle and to penetrate resistant wood.

Solomon knew he was the “Teacher” but he knew he wasn’t the “Author”. He knew his wise words were wise because they came from the “one Shepherd” (12:11). God gave Solomon “goads and nails” to prod and penetrate; apparently people can be wayward and hardened.

In this, we find insight and application for today’s preacher. He is to give “knowledge to the people” (the congregation) by using “just the right words”—words given by the “one Shepherd” (the Bible). And if he does this faithfully, it will have the impact of a sharp stick to the backside of a beast or of a nail driven through hard wood.

The parishioner may not like the imagery (“You’re likening me to a cow? To a piece of wood?”) Actually, the wisest to have lived said this; he also was under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit when he did.

A sermon characterized by “goads and nails” may not always endear the preacher to the pew; but he is not looking for endearment. His concern is for the wandering sheep under his care and for the hardened soul who thinks God has nothing to say to him. There is always temptation in the pulpit to entertain or to wax eloquent. The pastor has to remember, however, the Shepherd wants him to use “goads and nails”. By design they are sharp—that’s the point.