Some can’t quite grasp the allure to hunt & fish. Not even those of us who enjoy it can articulate it perfectly. It’s similar to the desire for a good hike, or the unshakeable need to gaze at the mountains in glacier national park. Except when it comes to hunting & fishing, not only do you get to enjoy nature, you get to join in on the chorus. The outdoorsman seeks to join in on the dance of life & death, and if he succeeds he obtains the gratification of having demonstrated some level of mastery over the creation that God has put under his authority. Sometimes you win and sometimes you are reminded that only God is sovereign. It’s an exhilarating experience.
But like all things these hobbies need to be rightly ordered. It makes no sense to abandon the throngs of God’s people on the Lord’s Day for the inferior choirs of nature. Keeping the sabbath is a command, hunting is a privilege. Worship is not optional, skinning a goose is always optional. Honoring God is paramount. This one will sound obvious but the obligations of family are also more important than that trophy elk. The outdoorsman’s family must not suffer. If your monthly budget is taking a hit you’ve gone too far. If your wife is devoid of love and affection you’ve made a mistake. If your kids are misbehaving you’ve been too absent. There are ways to work around these more important duties and still have a good time. Being in right standing with God will give everything else color. It is only when we rightly order our lives that we can truly say we have done all things to the glory of God (1 Cor 10:31). As the wise men ventured into Jerusalem seeking the toddler-king of the Jews they get a pretty shocking reaction, after they start asking around Matthew says in v.3 of ch.2 that “When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.”
Herod’s reaction is not shocking. He knew when he heard this that his job as Caesar's puppet-king was over so it’s not a surprise that this news riled him up. What is shocking is that it wasn’t just Herod who was troubled but “all Jerusalem with him.” You would expect the average citizen to be excited. Well, you might say, maybe they just didn’t get the memo. Maybe they really thought it was a rival king or maybe Herod had manipulated them. No, it’s worse than that, they knew exactly what was going on. We know that on two separate occasions the news of the Messiah’s arrival had spread through Jerusalem before the wisemen came. The first time Luke says in ch.2 v.18 that when the people heard about the birth of the Messiah they marveled. They were filled with wonder and were amazed at the news. The second time a prophetess Anna came and told Jerusalem that redemption had arrived. So Jerusalem wasn’t troubled due to their ignorance; they were troubled due to their arrogance. They knew the truth. They marveled at the fact that the Messiah had come to rule with an Iron rod, but cowered at the thought of Him actively ruling their hearts. They were excited that he had come to take away sin, but were troubled when they realized that they’d have to confess their search history. And on top of all that they preferred the artificial peace of Herod to the Holy war of their rightful King. It is easy, during this time of year, to fall into the same pattern. It’s easy to marvel that Christ came to take away sin all while disguising envy and bitterness as jokes and then hurling them at others like snowballs with rocks in them. See it is not enough to simply hear the truth. It’s not even enough to hear the truth and be amazed! You must also lay down your sins in faith and submit to Jesus Christ. This exhortation was given to Christ Church Downtown on Dec 10 2023 AD One of the strongest temptations of the Advent season is that of letting trial and tribulation overcome the jollyness of the season. When you’re hit with a trial during this time it tends to hit a little harder. It’s like spilling red wine on white linen or spraining an ankle right before the championship game. The temptation is to let trials turn a good thing into something shocking & unbearable.
But it is unbecoming of Christians to cast off the joy of Christ so easily. The death of a loved one may be particularly painful during this season but we have to remember that we are celebrating the one who came to overcome death. Unforeseen health issues, strife with extended family, and smaller-than-expected Christmas bonuses cannot dim the light on this season, because Jesus came to heal, bring peace, and cultivate contentment. The advent of Christ didn’t happen for the benefit of the unafflicted, Jesus came for the sick. Jesus came for you. Rather than ruining Advent & Christmas these things magnify the miracle of the incarnation. When we are hit with trials during this season, instead of thinking “well, Christmas is ruined” our knee-jerk reaction should be “well, now I’m going to celebrate even harder,” The King came to conquer sin, and though you still see sin, if you look in faith you will see that Jesus is on His throne and He’s making all things new. There is not a wet-blanket big enough to quench the consuming fire that is our God. So come and be warmed at the fire of His Word. Come and rejoice. Come in faith and welcome to Jesus Christ. This exhortation was given to Christ Church Downtown on Dec 10 2023 Much is made in the evangelical church, and rightly so, of sanctification. Sanctification is the process by which we are lead by the Spirit to continually die to our sin and be conformed to the Image of Jesus.
In Psalm 32 David displays an array of issues that many of us would recognize. He reports feeling physically weak and just barely making it through the day (v.3.) He reports feeling heavy, weighed down and oppressed to the point of not being able to sleep. Where he once felt lively he now feels like his life is in a drought (v.4) In other words David is experiencing anxiety, depression, insomnia and fibromyalgia.
Now imagine for a second that David somehow wobbled into the year of 2023 and told someone all his problems. What would the suggested solution be? In a day and age such as ours where people refer to “my therapist” as if it were the same as saying “my doctor” or “my accountant” he would certainly be told that he needs to go see a therapist. Among other things he would be told that he needs to understand his own childhood trauma. And David certainly did have a lot of trauma. His dad seemed to not like him, his mentor tried to kill him, his wife left him & his best friend was murdered. Maybe he would even leave with a prescription for antidepressants. Now sometimes medical intervention is necessary but the solution that David lays out for us in Psalm 32 isn’t therapy or a new hobby or a new haircut, it is this, listen: “I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” And You forgave the iniquity of my sin.” He says that his problem was actually that he was keeping silent about his sins and harboring guilt. See the solution to most of your mental health problems is confessing your sin and being reconciled to your Creator and His body— the church. Oftentimes, when the spirit is laden with guilt, the body manifests this through anxiety, depression & insomnia. But when we let Christ take away our guilt, ordinarily the body eventually follows. Letting secret sin and guilt ruminate in the back of your mind is like living in a house with black mold, it makes you sick. So be honest with the Lord about the sins you would rather not acknowledge; maybe you treated yourself to a lustful fantasy, gossipped about a friend, or snapped at your kids. Don’t stay silent. Bring it to the Lord and let Him rid you of guilt. This exhortation was given to Christ Church, Moscow ID on Nov 12 2023 AD |
AuthorJeremiah is a husband, father, CPA, and is currently studying pastoral ministry at Greyfriars Hall. Archives
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