Psalm 33:6-12, Proverbs 25:6-14, Ephesians 4:1-6, Luke 14:1-11.
A). THE CREATOR GOD, OUR REDEEMER.
Psalm 33:6-12.
PSALM 33:6-7. “The word of the LORD” (cf. Psalm 33:4) is the same powerful, Creative word by which the cosmos was created (cf. Genesis 1:3). And Jesus is the Word (cf. John 1:1-3). “By the breath of His mouth” corresponds to the work of the Holy Spirit in Creation as there is only one Hebrew word for both “breath” and “Spirit.” The waters gathered together “as an heap” is also reminiscent of the Redemptive power of the LORD in the parting of the Red Sea (cf. Exodus 15:8).
PSALM 33:8-9. The whole earth is summoned to “fear the LORD” and “stand in awe of Him. For He spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.” All things of nothing!
PSALM 33:10-11. This same God confounds the counsel of the ungodly (cf. Psalm 2:2-3), and sets up His own unchanging counsel for all generations.
PSALM 33:12. “Blessed is the NATION whose God is the LORD; and the PEOPLE whom He hath CHOSEN for His own inheritance.” In ancient times, it was only Israel who had such a relationship with the LORD. Not that they chose Him, but that He chose them.
It is still true today that there is only one “people” who can thus be defined as those “whose God is the LORD… whom He hath chosen for His own inheritance.” That is the people referred to as ‘the Israel of God’ in Galatians 6:16 - the church of our Lord Jesus Christ - ‘chosen in Him from the foundation of the world’ (cf. Ephesians 1:4), and made up of both Jews and Gentiles (cf. Galatians 3:7-9). The word to the church is, ‘But ye are a CHOSEN generation, a royal priesthood, an holy NATION, a peculiar PEOPLE’ (cf. 1 Peter 2:9). It was His choice, not ours: but what a blessing it is! What an honour!
B). SOME OBSERVATIONS OF SOLOMON.
Proverbs 25:6-14.
1. “Come up hither” (Proverbs 25:6-7).
This proverb is doubtless what Jesus had in mind when He made His own parable about people choosing the finest seats for themselves at a feast (cf. Luke 14:7-11).
There are always ranks in society, any society. Solomon speaks of a king, and of “great men.” But he exhorts his pupils not to intrude themselves uninvited into such company (PROVERBS 25:6).
It is better to take a ‘low’ place in the great hall, and to be invited, “Come up hither;” rather than to be sent down lower in public shame and humiliation (PROVERBS 25:7).
The force of this argument is summed up in the reversal of roles indicated in Luke 14:11, which both abases the arrogant and elevates the humble. This is God’s work, and the order of priority in God’s kingdom.
Perhaps the greatest demonstration of this reversal comes from Jesus Himself (cf. Philippians 2:6-11).
In the incarnation Jesus gathered our manhood into the Godhead. He willingly partook of death on our behalf, ‘even the death of the cross’ – and God exalted Him to the place where He now receives honour from all.
And this supreme example of humility is one that we must aspire to reflect in our own lives (cf. Philippians 2:5)!
2. Do not be in hurry to take your neighbour to court (Proverbs 25:8-10).
“Go not hastily to strive” lest you end up regretting it “when thy neighbour hath put thee to shame” (PROVERBS 25:8). This will occur when he is proved right, and you are proved wrong (cf. Matthew 5:25).
“Debate thy cause with thy neighbour” – just you and him alone (cf. Matthew 18:15). And “discover not a secret to another” (PROVERBS 25:9). Do not bring any third party into the debate.
“Lest he that heareth thee put thee to shame, and thine infamy turn not away” (PROVERBS 25:10). If you involve a third party in your neighbour’s business, they in turn will also put you to shame, and the disgrace of it will remain upon you.
3. Right speech (Proverbs 25:11-14).
“A word fitly spoken” – or ‘in due season’ (cf. Proverbs 15:23; Isaiah 50:4) – “is like apples of gold in pictures of silver” (PROVERBS 25:11). The “word fitly spoken” represents sound advice. The “pictures of silver” stand for the right setting: way, time and place for such advice.
“As an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise reprover upon an obedient ear” (PROVERBS 25:12). This indicates the value of sound advice, with gentleness on the part of the reprover; and a willingness to hear, understand, and obey on the part of the reproved.
“As the cold of snow in the time of harvest, so is a faithful messenger to them who send him: for he refresheth the soul of his masters” (PROVERBS 25:13). Nobody desires snow upon their harvest, but perhaps a snow-cooled drink in the heat of a harvest day. The opposite is found in Proverbs 10:26, where an unfaithful messenger is compared to ‘vinegar to the teeth, and smoke to the eyes’ of those who send him.
“Whoso boasteth himself of a false gift is like clouds and wind without rain” (PROVERBS 25:14). So is a minister without a message - or worse, with a false message (cf. 2 Peter 2:17; Jude 1:12).
Jesus Himself is the ultimate faithful messenger (cf. Hebrews 1:1-2). There were prophets before, and apostles afterward. And there continues to be faithful messengers of the Gospel, ministers sent by the Lord Himself to this day (cf. Romans 10:15).
C). THE UNITY OF THE SPIRIT.
Ephesians 4:1-6.
Our unity is based in the unity of all three Persons of the Godhead (EPHESIANS 4:4-5).
EPHESIANS 4:1. We are asked to “walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called” How do we do that?
EPHESIANS 4:2. “With all lowliness” = humility. Like the humility of Jesus (cf. Philippians 2:5-8).
“and meekness.” Meekness is not weakness, but the gentleness of the strong (cf. Matthew 11:29).
“with longsuffering” = patience. Patient even with annoying people. “forbearing one another.” Mutual tolerance.
How can we possibly do this? “in love.” (cf. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7).
EPHESIANS 4:3. “Endeavouring” has a certain eagerness about it: a purposefulness. We are not being asked to create a unity - it already exists as “the unity of the Spirit” – but to “keep” it, maintain it. “in the bond of peace.”
What is that? Christ Himself is our peace, who has broken down the middle wall between us (cf. Ephesians 2:13-14).
EPHESIANS 4:4. “There is one body, and one Spirit.” In other words, there is only one Holy Spirit, who has created the church as one body. “even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;”
EPHESIANS 4:5. There is only one Lord (Jesus), so there is but one hope of our calling, one faith, one baptism (cf. Romans 6:3).
EPHESIANS 4:6. Those who are born again have but one God and Father, because we are all members of the same family.
D). HEALING AND TABLE ETIQUETTE.
Luke 14:1-11.
1. A HEALING ON THE SABBATH.
Luke 14:1-6.
One Sabbath, one of the chief Pharisees gave Jesus the courtesy of a dinner invitation. Jesus courteously accepted. Somewhat discourteously, the Pharisees were keeping their eye on Jesus (LUKE 14:1).
It is perhaps remarkable that Jesus accepted hospitality from such a man, with such an attitude. Sometimes, in the course of Christian ministry or grass-roots Christian witnessing, it does become necessary to rub shoulders with unconverted people. When we ‘withdraw from the world’ and become Christians ourselves, it is not that we might become hermits, but rather, like Jesus, that we might do what good we can, when we can, where we can, and to whom we can.
We learn from Jesus, too, how to conduct ourselves in worldly company. Even in this, He was, as when He was twelve years old, always ‘about His Father’s business (cf. Luke 2:49). It was the Sabbath, and Jesus took the opportunity both to heal, and later to teach.
“And behold, there was a certain man before Him which had the dropsy” (LUKE 14:2).
Did Jesus just happen to notice him there, and diagnose his condition from the swelling under his skin? Or did he approach Jesus for healing? Or did somebody present him to Jesus as a victim of an unspoken test case to trap Jesus.
We do not know; it does not matter. What does matter is that Jesus was well aware of the unspoken attitudes of His would-be examiners. He took up the challenge, and confronted them to their face, with the full intention of healing the man.
First he answered the unspoken question of the lawyers and Pharisees with a question of His own: “Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath day?” (LUKE 14:3).
If any of them answered that it was, then they would excite the anger of their peers in their little narrow-minded holy club. Yet if they answered in the negative, it would show up the uncharitableness of their whole sect.
So, “they held their peace.” And Jesus “took him, and healed him, and let him go” (LUKE 14:4).
As I said, it as well for us to do what good we can, where we can, when we can, and to whom we can. And even in the face of cold opposition from people of whom we might have expected better! This is what we learn from Jesus’ example here.
Jesus asked a second question: “Which of you shall have a donkey or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath day?” (LUKE 14:5).
It would be an act of mercy – and indeed, an act of necessity (even if it is out of self-interest) – to do so!
As Jesus said elsewhere, ‘The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath’ (cf. Mark 2:27).
“And they could not answer Him again to these things.” (LUKE 14:6).
Jesus had replied to the lawyers and Pharisees’ unspoken question in a most practical manner, and with great authority. But ‘they were not able to reply to Him as to these things’ (Greek).
We have the equivalent of Pharisees in our own days, who expect us to keep their man-made rules, and impose upon young believers all sorts of ‘dos’ and ‘do-nots’ that are nothing to do with what the word of God actually teaches.
When it comes to the Sabbath, we can safely conclude that, according to Jesus’ own teaching, works of necessity, works of mercy, and works of piety are all permitted on this as on every day (cf. Matthew 12:1-12).
2. TABLE ETIQUETTE IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD.
Luke 14:7-11.
It was on this occasion, as Jesus observed the unseemly jostle for place amongst His fellow guests, that Jesus told them “a parable” (LUKE 14:7).
This “parable” addressed the immediate problem of table manners in wisdom terms familiar from Proverbs 25:6-7, but was recognized by at least one of Jesus’ hearers in the context of the great feast of the kingdom of God (cf. Luke 14:15).
The force of the argument is summed up in the reversal of roles indicated in LUKE 14:11, which both abases the arrogant and elevates the humble. This is God’s work, and the order of priority in God’s kingdom.
Perhaps the greatest demonstration of this reversal comes from Jesus Himself (Philippians 2:6-11).
In the incarnation Jesus gathered our manhood into the Godhead. He willingly partook of death on our behalf, ‘even the death of the cross’ – and God exalted Him to the place where He now receives honour from all.
And this supreme example of humility is one that we must aspire to reflect in our own lives (Philippians 2:5)!
