Saul Asks Satan

In the famous chapter of 1 Samuel 28, Saul seeks wisdom from a witch at Endor. Saul seeks Samuel but is willing to listen to Satan. We can see that Saul is half way in the grave at this point. He is alive but barely. He is spiritually dead and the only thing awaiting him, like Judas, is to go out and hang himself. Saul does not literally hang himself but he does die by his own hand, lost in defeat and despair. He is a dead man walking.

         This is no place for those among the living. David was a man alive, looking for life among the living. He was in great straits but Yahweh kept him alive, protecting him from the wicked Saul.

         We again have two contrasts, David acting like a king in exile and Saul acting like a wicked one as king. Saul turned to the devil for help and David turned to God.

Pleasing Aroma

Dear Saints, it is good to be gathered here as a pleasing aroma to the Lord. We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. He is our Father and we are His children. His love has extended down to us in His own Son, through sin and death, triumphing over them in the cross, and He has brought us through sin and death to righteousness and life.

         We are pleased to be here in peace with God and men. But God is also pleased to be here. Jesus has gathered us as friends. His Father is our Father. The Holy Spirit dwells with and in us. We are no longer at enmity with God or with one another. We are of one mind and one body. One Lord, one faith, one baptism.

         This is a beautiful thing. It looks, smells, tastes, feels and sounds glorious. We are glad our Father is pleased and we are also pleased.

Well Done Good and Faithful Servants

Sometimes in our circles we speak of the doctrine of total depravity, which correctly states that all men are fallen in Adam and are therefore born into sin, and we confuse Total Depravity with Absolute Depravity, which says that there is nothing that we can do which is right or that pleases the Lord.

         I readily admit that prior to the Resurrection of the Body, we still struggle with being truly spiritual. Our fallen flesh really does get in the way. But that is why we need a Savior, Jesus, to save us from our sins. Having been cleansed in Christ, we really can stand before the Father, now, in full assurance of His love for us. Just as He said of His own Son, this is the One in whom I am well pleased, so does He also say of us, who are in Christ. He says to us, “Well done, good and faithful servants, in whom I am well pleased.”

         We can receive this without having to make a hundred qualifications. You are in Christ. You are children of Your Heavenly Father. He is well pleased with you. Well done, good and faithful servants.

Saintly Suffering

At a pastor's retreat the last few days, I was reminded again how there is no track to maturity except through suffering. We wish it were not so but such wishes are dreams.

My friend, Tom, has been suffering with cancer for about 18 months. It has been a brutal trial. There is progress and hope but he is not out of the woods yet. Before this all began, he was already a tender and godly man but now he seems very close to Heaven, close to Jesus. The glorious thing is that the more he suffers and the closer he gets to Heaven, the more grounded he has become on Earth. This is the mark of a great saint, and Tom is one. His love for the brothers, for those suffering, for the weak, the lonely and the desperate is a testament that He has seen Jesus. I have learned much from this brother and pray the Lord will give him many more years grounded here as he continues to draw near to Christ in the heavenlies.

But we should note the manner in which the saintly become more like Jesus. They suffer like Jesus. Their suffering seems unjust. Certainly, they are not without guilt before the Lord but that is not what I mean. The sufferings of the saintly are rarely judgements or even chastisements for sin. Their suffering is too holy for that. They must suffer like Jesus, who, though He was innocent, it pleased the Father to bruise Him. This is why saintly sufferers take on a heavenly visage. Think of Stephen. Although Stephen went presently into the presence of the Lord, many others find it better that they remain with those on Earth, as Saint Paul told us. This link of saintly sufferers is God's kindness to us in grace. An enigma. Thank God.

Prepared in Jesus

Our Father, we thank You that You have prepared us to eat this meal. We are cleansed by the blood of Christ. We are cut open and revealed by the Word of God. We are instructed in the law of Christ through His Holy Word. We have made our petitions to You. We have now entered into the Holy of Holies, presenting ourselves to You in the sacred offering. Feed us now in Your dear Son that we might be made strong and courageous and full of the zeal of the Lord of Hosts. Amen.

Giving Thanks

O Lord God, Maker of Heaven and Earth, we thank You for giving us all things in Jesus Christ. He is Your only begotten Son and we are joint-heirs with Him. Thank you, Father, for providing for our daily bread, for giving us an abundance of all good things and for giving us faith, which is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. May we rest in Christ, in full assurance of Your goodness to us this day and in all days to come. Amen.

Praise

Based on Psalm 111 O Lord God in Heaven, great are Your works. They are studied by all who delight in them. Your works are full of splendor and majesty and Your righteousness endures forever. You have caused Your wondrous works to be remembered. You are gracious and merciful.

         You provide food for those who fear You as You remember Your covenant forever. You have shown Your people the power of Your works by giving us the inheritance of the nations. The works of Your hands are faithful and just and all Your precepts are trustworthy. They are established forever and ever to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness.

We praise Your Name, O most high. Amen.