“[By the waters of Babylon] our captors
required of us songs,
and our tormentors, mirth, saying,
‘Sing us one of the songs of Zion!’
“How shall we sing the LORD’s song
in a foreign land?
If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
let my right hand forget its skill!” [1]
“Our citizenship is in Heaven, and from it we await a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who will transform our lowly body to be like His glorious body, by the power that enables Him even to subject all things to Himself” [PHILIPPIANS 3:20-21]. We who follow Christ must never forget this revelation that was delivered to us by Paul. Our destiny is not to live on this earth, trapped in bodies that are subject to death. God has redeemed us for a higher purpose. We who are twice-born have been saved; we are being prepared to spend eternity serving the Living God. We shall be changed into the image of Christ Himself, and we shall dwell eternally with Him.
We who follow the Risen Saviour are now living in foreign territory. The land where we now serve our King is hostile to Him and to His cause. This is to be expected since Jesus Himself warned that the whole world lies under the reign of the devil. We who follow the Risen Lord of Glory advocate for peace with all people, pleading with any who now live in opposition to the Son of God to cease warring against Him, receiving the gift of life which He offers. Jesus offers rest and peace to any who are willing to receive Him,. Jesus invites all who hear His gracious words, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” [MATTHEW 11:28-30].
And with the rest which Jesus offers, He offers divine peace. We testify that Jesus has promised His disciples, “Peace I leave you; My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” [JOHN 14:27]. And that peace is offered to you, even this day.
All who are restless, all who are exhausted by their battle against God and against His grace, all who are defeated and who now live under the terrors of the wicked one, are invited to receive Christ Jesus as Master over life. And when you receive Him as Master, you receive the great benefits of rest and peace, gifts that only He can give. You can leave the realm of darkness now, and enter into the life marked by light, which is the Kingdom of God. This is freely offered to all who come to Christ in faith.
At the outset, allow me to make the issue plain by citing the words which the Apostle to the Gentiles penned almost two millennia past as he wrote a congregation meeting in the city of Rome. Paul reminded everyone who would ever read that missive, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved” [ROMANS 10:9-10].
Then, as if to meet any objection that what was required was too difficult, Paul reached back into the pages of the Old Covenant to simplify the matter, citing the ancient words of the Prophet Joel, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” [ROMANS 10:13].
Salvation is freely offered to each individual who receives Jesus as Master over life. Salvation, the forgiveness of sin, acceptance into the Family of God, is promised and immediately given to each person who comes to Him, believing this message that the Father sent His Son to provide a perfect sacrifice for our broken condition. Having given His life as a sacrifice for sin, Jesus conquered death, rising from the tomb. He ascended into the glory where He is now seated at the right hand of the Father. You, if you look to Him, will be born from above and into the Kingdom of Heaven.
We who have believed in Christ the Lord are forever changed. Our struggle to make ourselves acceptable to the Living God is finished and we are now able to rest from those efforts. This is witnessed as an unknown writer encouraged believing Jews who were experiencing intense persecution. That writer urged those who would read his words, “While the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said,
‘As I swore in my wrath,
“They shall not enter my rest,”’
although his works were finished from the foundation of the world. For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way: ‘And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.’ And again, in this passage he said,
‘They shall not enter my rest.’
Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, again he appoints a certain day, ‘Today,’ saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted,
‘Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts.’
For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his” [HEBREWS 4:1-10].
Here is the point I am making by tying what has just been said to the thrust of message that is to be delivered this day. We who have entered into God’s rest are a grateful people; and because we are grateful people, we sing joyous hymns and songs revealing our praise of the Saviour. Our hearts are filled with joy, and we cannot help but sing. The faithful have always been noted for their singing, and the songs we sing are characterised by joy. And yet, the world about us, those who imagine that we are somehow in their thrall, wonder at our joy. They hear our songs and if they could, they would capture that joy for themselves. Since they cannot seize that joy, they will often attempt to co-opt what God alone has given us—rest and joy. The songs of the lost are but a sad parody of the joy that is ours as followers of Christ the Lord. Amen, indeed.
THE SONGS OF ZION —
“Our captors
required of us songs,
and our tormentors, mirth, saying,
‘Sing us one of the songs of Zion!’
[PSALM 137:3]
Perhaps you consider it somewhat strange that a sermon should focus on the hymnody of the Faith. However, the hymns of joy reveal who we have become in the Risen Saviour. We need but remember that Paul encourages singing when he writes, “Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ” [EPHESIANS 5:18-21].
Paul’s admonition delivered in the Ephesian Encyclical boldly anticipates his words to the saints in Colossae. The Apostle has written in the Colossian missive, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” [COLOSSIANS 3:15-17].
The hymns of the Faith are so much more than a catchy melody with a rhythmic beat, they are a beautiful expression of our experience with God Who gives us our life. These hymns that we sing should never be thought of as entertainment, pleasant concepts that soothe our worried souls; they are the means by which we praise our God, the expression of our hope for what lies beyond this darkened world, the affirmation of joy that fills our lives even when we are passing through some period of dark opposition.
The hymns of the Faith are an indispensable part of worship. They are not the sole component of worship, as some appear to believe through their actions and their attitudes, but hymns are an intrinsic part of worship. The hymns of the Faith prepare our hearts to meet the Saviour, and at other times the hymns we sing express our joy and our anticipation at what will be revealed as we continue worshipping through the prayers of God’s people and through sharing in the preaching of the Word. The hymns we sing are a demonstration of our love and of the joy we experience as we meet the Living Saviour.
Why do we sing the Psalms, the hymns, and the songs of praise that we commonly associate with worship as followers of the Christ? Many of these hymns are familiar to Christians throughout the world. Perhaps the words are sung in a tongue other than the English such as is familiar to each of us gathered here today; but listening to fellow Christians as they sing during worship in China, or in Iraq, or in Pakistan, or in any church found within the Zion of the Lord, the melody allows any follower of Christ to feel at home among brothers and sisters. The skin tones may differ, and the language may reflect our diversity as the worshippers are singing in Shona, or Xhosa, or Tagalog, or Farsi, or the beautiful tonal cadence of Korean or Japanese, or any of a thousand dialects, but those singing praises are worshipping Him Who is able to save and Who reigns in the hearts of His people throughout the world.
I read the words that the Revelator penned, and together with saints worshipping throughout the world, I eagerly await one great revelation witnessed in that event that shall shortly be seen. John witnessed what we who believe shall see when all the saints have at last been gathered to the Lord. John has written, “I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!’ And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, ‘Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen’” [REVELATION 7:9-12]. May that day come soon and may we all thrill at what we will witness when we see that great multitude! I want to learn those words of praise: “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” Amen, indeed.
Our hymnal contains songs that were written hundreds of years ago, hymns that were written during the era of great revivals in the late nineteenth century, as well as hymns and songs that have been written within the past several decades. Our hymns and songs span millennia, as would be expected since the Faith is not some recent phenomena. What does this truth indicate if not that the people of God have always sought to praise the Lord through the hymns of the Faith? Hymns of praise, doctrinal hymns, hymns of joy have marked the worship of God’s people from earliest days. It is impossible to imagine the Faith of Christ the Lord without those who worship praising the Lord in song. The early missionaries that traversed the prairies and trekked through the forests of North America carried a Bible and a hymnal. Wherever the saints have gathered to worship, the worship is marked by hymns that are familiar to many.
It is appropriate to ask, “Why should singing be a part of worship for us who follow the Saviour?” This is an excellent question. The answer leads us to the realisation that music was integral to worship in the Temple. The Psalms are prayers that were put to musical accompaniment. Temple worship was built around songs of praise to God. That action which was part of the worship of the Jewish people transitioned into the worship offered by the first followers of Christ Jesus, the Risen Lord of Glory.
Allow your mind to reflect on the music of the Temple. When you look back, you realise that worship in the Temple was noisy, joyful, loud, and often accompanied by dancing. As evidence of this contention, consider just one of the Psalms.
“Praise the LORD!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty heavens!
Praise him for his mighty deeds;
praise him according to his excellent greatness!
“Praise him with trumpet sound;
praise him with lute and harp!
Praise him with tambourine and dance;
praise him with strings and pipe!
Praise him with sounding cymbals;
praise him with loud clashing cymbals!
Let everything that has breath praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD!”
[PSALM 150:1-6]
On one occasion I cited this Psalm during a televised message, and a lady in the Maritimes watching the broadcast was immediately offended by what I said. She wasn’t offended by the Psalm—she was offended at the application I made from the Psalm. I noted that Jewish worship was obviously a noisy affair—and it included dancing. I suggested that some of us might benefit from becoming so excited at the prospect of coming into the presence of the Lord that we could not stand still. And this lady was distressed, even horrified, at the thought that Baptists might dance! I had not even gotten home when I received an Email rebuking me at the thought that Baptists might dance!
Now, I’m not suggesting that our times of worship must be interrupted so that we can dance, but it is a fact that our worship has more often than not become quite staid, unnecessarily sedate, excessively sober. There appears to be little joy revealed as we come into the presence of the Living God; and that should be a concern for each of us.
I am not offended at orchestral accompaniment for the hymns we sing. I am not disturbed at the presence of guitars and trumpets and drums sharing in worship. The accompaniment to our songs and our hymns glorifies the Lord if the purpose is to encourage worshippers and all present in the service to praise Him. So long as the accompaniment is not solely, or even primarily, mere entertainment, why would anyone be offended? I admit that I am disappointed when we have no desire to rejoice in the presence of the Lord. Something is terribly wrong when we have no joy in our worship!
This assertion raises the question of whether it is possible that music could dishonour the Lord Whom we claim to worship? When music becomes an end in itself, God receives no honour. When the music that accompanies our singing complements our voices and doesn’t detract from the message we present in the songs, God is glorified. When the music becomes an end in itself, then we should question what we are doing and why we are doing it. At such a time, we have become much like the people present when Nebuchadnezzar crafted a golden image before which all were to worship. We hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, and we all fall down to worship [see DANIEL 3:7]. Such a response is reactionary and not spontaneous praise arising from the heart; it is fearful and not joyful. Such should never mark the people of God. And that thought introduces a point that must necessarily be made.
MUSIC AS ENTERTAINMENT —
“Our captors
required of us songs,
and our tormentors, mirth, saying,
‘Sing us one of the songs of Zion!’
[PSALM 137:3]
It should disturb those who follow the Risen Saviour that far too many of the hymns we sing and love in this day have been reduced to a form of entertainment. It is not always recognised that some of the hymns Christians love are sung to melodies that were originally drinking songs from the taverns of the day in which they were written. It has even been suggested that the tune “New Britain,” the popular melody to which we sing the words of the hymn “Amazing Grace,” was the melody of suffering as slaves sang their lament to this tune during their dark passage from the African coast to Britain.
Whatever the origin of that hymn and hundreds of other hymns may have been, we are fully aware that the melodies are associated today with the worship of the Lord Jesus. Worshippers of the Living God have appropriated those melodies to give substance to the praises we ascribe to our God. God is God even of those so thoroughly imbued with the spirit of this dying world that they would never think to honour Him as God. And if the Lord uses their music to glorify His Name, all it says of our God is that He is greater than the evil of this dying world! However, no worshipper of the Saviour should ever stoop to giving approval to repurposing the melodies so familiar to us as worshippers of the Christ so that they are reduced to entertainment for the unsaved.
Some time past, Lynda and I were watching a television movie depicting a Jewish man who was forced through circumstances to discover who he was in reality. As the film progressed we witnessed a somewhat moving portrayal that disturbed me greatly. Let me explain what I’m talking about. The movie, “The Song of Names,” depicted a gifted violinist, a young Polish Jew orphaned by the cruelty and devastation brought to his homeland during the Second World War. This young man had renounced his Faith, only to return to his religious roots when he encountered a refugee Jewish community that had committed to song the names of those murdered at Treblinka so that none of the murdered people would be forgotten. Hearing the names of those murdered sung in a synagogue, the young man is driven to reconvert to his childhood Faith.
The movie portrays Dovidi Rappaport as giving one final concert in response to impassioned pleas from his adopted brother, Martin Simmons. His agreement demanded but one request that after playing with the orchestra that is to be provided, that he should play a solo rendition of “The Song of Names.” As Dovidi is playing what is a sacred song that speaks of those who died at the hands of the Nazis, and especially of his family members who died in that dark place, the audience sits in stunned silence as they witness the haunting beauty of what they are hearing before erupting into an enthusiastic standing ovation as the last note dies away. What was offensive to me was that a solemn, sacred song should elicit an ovation rather than thoughtful contemplation. For Dovidi Rappaport, the song he played was deeply personal and sacred. For the audience, it was a performance—the sacred had been reduced to mere entertainment to mesmerise them.
That cinematic depiction was tragically reminiscent of many hymns and psalms heard throughout our Evangelical Zion. The hymns we sing are too sacred to allow them to be reduced to mere entertainment. These sacred hymns represent the blood of those who went before us. Too often the hymns speak of the blood shed by brothers and sisters to this day. And yet, at least among churches in the western world, it seems that parishioners judge the hymnody of the Faith by how entertaining the songs are made.
Too often the music of the services has become a performance rather than joyful praise to the Lord God our Saviour. I confess that I don’t appreciate street bands playing “When the Saints Go Marching In” as a jazz number for entertainment. However, such entertainment is no more disrespectful than witnessing a congregation that claims to worship the Lord as they listlessly mumble their way through one of the great hymns of the Faith or as they mindlessly repeat the words of some hollow chorus as if they were seeking to induce a trance. I want to shout out, “To what end! What are you doing!”
When selecting hymns to accompany our worship, I suggest that we weigh what we are saying as we sing. Look at the message presented in the song. Ask whether the melody enhances the message or whether it detracts through drawing attention to itself. When we sing praises to our God, we are but offering back what He Himself has given. Recall how the Psalmist encourages the people of God when he writes,
“He put a new song in my mouth,
a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
and put their trust in the LORD.”
[PSALM 40:3]
God Himself has put a song of praise in the heart of the redeemed. And when we lift our voices in praise to Him, our songs of praise have an impact on those who hear. Our fellow saints are encouraged and outsiders are compelled to consider their lack of relationship to the God who saves. Our music is not neutral for those who hear us.
That the redeemed will sing meaningful hymns and songs becomes apparent when we consider the words David wrote at the time God forgave His sin and restored Him to fellowship. You will perhaps recall how David wrote,
“Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,
O God of my salvation,
and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.”
[PSALM 51:14]
It becomes almost impossible not to sing when the heart is free from guilt and when we are set free from condemnation. It becomes almost impossible not to burst out in joyous song when the Lord God delivers one from the sin that weighed her down and she is able to rejoice again. And though we may not be trained musicians, we find that our tongues are loosed and we must give expression to the joy that fills our heart with singing.
Again, when we contemplate the character of our God, when we see His might and majesty as it is displayed for us, we find we must sing.
“O my Strength, I will sing praises to you,
for you, O God, are my fortress,
the God who shows me steadfast love.”
[PSALM 59:17]
Over and over we witness the Word of God reminding us that songs of praise are normal for the redeemed of God. He has done great things for us, and we must sing. Moreover, as we give voice to the song He has placed in our heart others hear and glorify our God.
A question suggests itself from the text before us in this hour. The question is this: “Why would the captors of Israel require that the captives sing songs?” We must wonder, “Where is the mirth in compelling captives to sing joyous songs that remind them of their homeland?” Compelling captives to act joyful is a form of torture, a form of mockery. What was commanded was nothing short of reducing the faith of those captives to a form of entertainment. Such demands differ little from the ribald demand of the Philistines after Samson was captured. You will perhaps recall how the Philistines were holding a festival in honour of their god, Dagon. They saw this as an opportunity for entertainment. Samson had been taken captive and rendered powerless. Yet, it was the LORD Who had delivered him into the hand of the enemy, and not the false god Dagon.
The Word informs us, “The lords of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to rejoice, and they said, ‘Our god has given Samson our enemy into our hand.’ And when the people saw him, they praised their god. For they said, ‘Our god has given our enemy into our hand, the ravager of our country, who has killed many of us.’ And when their hearts were merry, they said, ‘Call Samson, that he may entertain us.’ So, they called Samson out of the prison, and he entertained them” [JUDGES 16:23-25a]. They gloated, boasting of their own strength and power, assuring themselves that their god was more powerful than the True and Living God.
Dear people, whenever we gather to worship it is natural that we should be filled with joy at the grace we have received. The Saviour has delivered us from sin and the judgement we so richly deserve. He has given us every reason to rejoice; He has saved us. As we worship, we must take care that we don’t begin to worship our own strength or our own ability. Rather than seeking a personal “high,” we must take care that we meet the Lord in our worship. Let us take care that we worship Him Who holds all authority.
Little differs in what was done by those who held Israel captive when the Psalm was written from what is too often done in the worship services of multiple churches in this day. It is not our enemies who cajole us to sing, but the songs of Zion are reduced to a form of entertainment. Tragically, we fail to seek the Lord as we evaluate what is done by how we feel! I recall a “worship leader” who was distinguished week-after-week by cajoling the assembly, “Let’s worship, and then we’ll have the sermon.” Throughout the singing she’d coax the congregation by demanding, “Sing, people!” For her, the opportunity to entertain, to receive the praise of the people, was the sum of worship. She was the entertainer and the singing she provided was the entertainment, and the songs and hymns and choruses were the medium with which she attempted to entertain the church. Tragically, her worship consisted of worship of her own ability to sing. A number of those who began attending during the time I served that particular congregation openly said that they purposely avoided coming to the services before the time for the message just so they didn’t have to listen to the entertainment that this woman valued so greatly.
SINGING THE LORD’S SONGS IN A FOREIGN LAND —
“How shall we sing the LORD’s song
in a foreign land?”
[PSALM 137:4]
I believe that it is not only music that is view when I cite this text. To be certain, we do want to be clear in stating that the music we sing should not dishonour the Lord. The question the Psalmist asks does lead me to note that the words we sing should accurately point us to look to the Lord. And the music to which our songs and hymns are sung should not detract from considering the beauty of the Lord our God, nor detract from His grace. Without doubt, it is good to allow our minds to be filled with the music of the Faith. However, I suggest that even our words are ultimately in view.
Specifically, the Psalmist is writing of the experience of captives in a foreign land. The enemies of Israel taunted them, demanding that they sing the songs of Zion. The demands caused deep sorrow and an inability to sing the hymns and Psalms that glorified the Lord GOD. The Psalmist, distraught that the people of God are captives and subject to the ridicule of their captors, asks how it is possible to sing the LORD’s song in a foreign land. How, he wonders, can one who is a servant of the Living God, praise God because of what has happened to the people of God?
He then transitions to an avowal that is startling, writing,
“If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
let my right hand forget its skill!
Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth,
if I do not remember you,
if I do not set Jerusalem
above my highest joy!”
[PSALM 137:5-6]
Better that he should lose all ability to do any work with his hands or that he should lose all ability to speak, if he should forget who he is and from whence he came. If he should somehow forget that he is a servant of the Most High God, called by the Name of the Living God, then what purpose has he in the earth?
I am compelled to draw a comparison to the people of God now filling the churches of this present day. It seems apparent that many of the professed Christians occupying the pews of our churches have been taken captive by the world. To be sure, no one holds a gun to their head, they are neither bound with actual chains nor restricted by the presence of iron bars, but they are captives nevertheless. These are people who are perhaps church members, or they are at least attendees at the services of a church on some regular basis, yet they serve the wicked one rather than Christ. They know the language of Zion, speaking it fluently, but they live as though God is not a consideration. These are individuals whom the Apostle writes about, longing for them to “come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will” [2 TIMOTHY 2:26].
Here is a truth that should be disconcerting for each one who follows the Saviour. Paul cautions that it is quite possible that some individuals who are recklessly promoted to eldership may stumble into the snare of the devil. Recall how he warns of a potential elder, “He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil” [1 TIMOTHY 3:6-7].
It is one thing when professing Christians act as the world acts because they are not twice-born. That is a terrible situation for those who are deluded by an incomplete gospel, a flawed gospel that stops short of submission to the Saviour. It is another thing, a tragic condition when those who are acting as the world acts are actually twice-born followers of Christ who have been cowed into singing the Lord’s song in a foreign land. How tragic when one who is born from above forgets to Whom he belongs, forgets where his home lies.
Do you recall the passage I cited as the message began? The passage was the reminder given by the Apostle of who we Christians are and where we are destined. Listen to Paul’s words telling followers of the Christ who we are and where our home is. “Our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself” [PHILIPPIANS 3:20-21].
Of course, the passage is speaking of us who are born from above and not those who have merely signed up as a member of a church or a denomination. The Apostle’s words serve as a reminder that the obligation of each one who follows the Christ is to honour Him as Master over life. We who follow Christ Jesus have no obligation to please those living in this world. I’m not suggesting that we are to seek to deliberately insult those of this world; nevertheless, our first priority is to Christ Jesus as Master of our life. My speech, the choices I make day-by-day, the actions that mark my walk, either reveal that I belong to Christ the Lord, or they comfort those identified with this dying world because I do not make them uncomfortable.
The reality is that we are born into this present world as physical creatures. Thus, we are bound by the physical parameters of the world. However, because of the new birth, we who are saved are born again into the Kingdom of God. One writer states our situation thusly: “You have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel” [HEBREWS 12:22-24].
So, we Christians are resident in a foreign country where we have been appointed to serve as ambassadors for Christ. In this foreign environment, we may grow overly comfortable, forgetting that we are here temporarily, forgetting our purpose here, forgetting the One Whom we serve. When this happens, we begin to think in concert with those identified with this dying world. We may begin to live a life that is indistinguishable from those who shall perish with the world itself. We find ourselves beginning to speak the language of the world, though we continue to attempt to live in such a way that we no longer offend the world. We are straddling the line that separates time and eternity. In such circumstances, we cease to honour our King and begin to live for this dying world.
Paul amplifies the transformation that has taken place in our lives because we have been born from above. Listen as he reveals this truth in the Letter to the Ephesians. “Remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called ‘the uncircumcision’ by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands—remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ” [EPHESIANS 2:11-13]. He reminds us that though we once were identified with this dying world, that is no longer the case. We are in the world, but we are not of the world.
The Apostle continues, reminding each one who follows the Risen Saviour, “[Christ] himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit” [EPHESIANS 2:14-22].
I need such reminders! It is far too easy in the pressure of the daily routine to forget how being focused on pleasing those about me can cause me to forget my responsibility to live to please the Master. I cannot live for Him without taking time to remember who I am and what He has done for me.
I find am fascinated each time I read something that the LORD reveals through the Old Testament prophet Malachi. The passage that captures my attention states, “Those who feared the LORD spoke with one another. The LORD paid attention and heard them, and a book of remembrance was written before him of those who feared the LORD and esteemed his name. ‘They shall be mine, says the LORD of hosts, in the day when I make up my treasured possession, and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him. Then once more you shall see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him’” [MALACHI 3:16-18].
Imagine! The Living God bends over to hear what is said as His people speak. It is as though the Father says to the Recording Angel, “Angel, did you hear what she just said? Write that down! I want a record for all eternity so that all the redeemed and all My servants will realise how she has honoured Me!” God is so delighted when you speak of Him, when you build other saints and when you warn those outside the Faith, that He orders a written record to be maintained. God takes note of what you say and to whom you speak, noting especially whenever you are speaking of Him and of His mercy.
Child of God, our time to serve Him now is so very limited. Surrounded as we are by those who know nothing other than this world, we must refresh our minds constantly to focus again on who we are and on the home for which we are destined. Let this message serve to renew your commitment to the One Who loved you and gave Himself for you. Let the words that have been spoken encourage you to renewed service to the Saviour. Amen.
[1] Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
