Selah

In the Psalms, we frequently see an odd little word, Selah, tucked in among the verses. Most of us just zip past it, but have you ever stopped to consider what it’s all about? That little word packs a lot of wisdom. Technically, it is an ancient musical term calling for a momentary suspension, like a pause. The Psalmist used it as an interruption for emphasis; the Amplified version of the Bible renders Selah, “stop and think about that.” It comes from a root word meaning “to weigh” or “to balance”. Spiritually, it’s a two-step word of wisdom for our Christian walk.
Consider these verses:
“But you are a shield around me, O Lord, you bestow glory on me and lift up my head. To the Lord I cry aloud, and he answers me from his holy hill. Selah” (Psalm 3:3-4).
“You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with sons of deliverance. Selah” (Psalm 3:7)
The Psalmist is saying, when difficulties come, stop and think about God as your shield and your hiding place. Think about Him placing His great hand under your chin and lifting your head. Stop and think about His protection and deliverance.
“How awesome is the Lord Most High, the great King over all the earth! He subdued nations under us, peoples under our feet. He chose our inheritance for us, the pride of Jacob, whom he loved. Selah” (Psalm 47:2-4).
Stop and think about how worthy God is to be praised – He is the Lord Most High, the great King, the Sovereign over every nation. Now stop and think about how He has chosen you as His own.
“Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens. Selah (Psalm 68:19)
When you are weighed down by burdens, stop and think about God inviting you to cast them all on Him so your heart can be at rest. Then do it.
If there is a “secret” to surviving life on this side of heaven, it is this: Stop and Think. Stop worrying, stop agonizing, stop fretting, stop comparing. Stop letting your thoughts control you and take control of them instead. Think about who He is, think about who you are because of Him, think about His faithfulness in the past, think about His promises, and think about what is true and right and pure and worthy. It’s time stop the negativity in your head, to stop the voice of the enemy speaking doubt and fear and temptation. It’s time to fill your heart and mind with the Words of your Creator and Father and Savior – words of truth and hope and strength.
Selah, Beloved.

Overcomer

I was scrolling through an online news site and came to the unsurprising conclusion: we are surrounded by evil. It is prevalent all around the globe. Just consider the daily reports from across the nation (the United States, where I live). People do cruel things to one another. Wickedness is on full display – approved, lauded, and honored. Sin isn’t relegated to dark, secluded places any longer. Even here in the “Bible belt,” there is ample evidence of evil. At times, it seems to be overpowering.
Can we overcome the power of evil? You better believe it!
Standing in heaven, watching the end unfold, John, the author of Revelation, heard a “loud voice” proclaim: “They overcame [satan] by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony” (Revelation 12:11). There are only two things that will guarantee our victory over evil and the evil one: the blood of the Lamb, which is salvation through the blood of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and our testimony.
But what testimony overcomes evil? John knew. “Who is he that overcomes the world? Only he that believes that Jesus is the Son of God” (1 John 5:5). Jesus, the Son of God, who overcame the world, is our good testimony.
God the Father proclaimed it at Jesus’ baptism, when “a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased.’ (Matthew 4:17); and again at Jesus’ transfiguration (Matthew 17:5). The disciples declared it when they saw Jesus and Peter walking on the water, “Truly you are the Son of God” (Matthew 14:33). Peter pronounced it in his confession saying, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). Jesus built His church on that very confession. Even the Roman centurion exclaimed, “Surely this man was the Son of God!” (Matthew 27:54). Paul repeatedly preached that Jesus was the Son of God. The martyrs of the ages past died with the good confession on their lips —“Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”
As this world becomes increasingly evil, only the good confession of the Son of God will enable believers to overcome. The church’s witness for more than two thousand years has been: “Jesus Christ is the Son of God!” It is the core truth of the Christian faith. Everything else comes from that good confession.
One day, “every knee will bow” before Him and “every tongue will confess” the divine Name of Jesus Christ, the Son of God (Phil 2:10-11). Beloved, don’t wait. Evil is all around us. But “today is the day of salvation” (2 Cor 6:2). Will you declare Jesus this day?

In the Beginning God . . .

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1
Someone asked me what I believe about the Biblical account of creation – specifically, whether I believe the world was created in six 24-hour days, or whether the Genesis record of “days” is actually longer stretches of time? I told him that I did indeed believe in six literal days of creation and a day of rest, but more importantly, I believe in the Creator who spoke it all into being.
Throughout the Bible, its writers affirm this very basic truth. God addressed Job’s complaints by saying, “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation…laid its cornerstone… made the clouds…gave orders to the morning…?” (Job 38:4, 6, 9, 12). Acts 17: 24 declares, “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth.” In Hebrews 11:3, we read, “By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command…” The Apostle John wrote: “He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made…” and again in Revelation 4:11, “You created all things, and by Your will they were created and have their being.” Over and over, the Bible declares that “The Lord [is] the Maker of heaven and earth” (Ps 115:15).
I believe that seven literal days are accurate, not because I was there or science has affirmed it, but because God said it was so. I have faith that His Word is true. You see, faith both believes in God and believes God. Hebrews 11:6 says, “Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.”
From the beginning of creation, Satan has tried to cause the created to doubt the Creator. His words to Eve still reach the ears of men and women today: “Did God really…?” He wants us to doubt the existence of God. He tries to cause us to doubt the Bible. Like the philosophers of Athens (Acts 17: 16-33), he sends us chasing for answers that seem religious but do nothing to encourage us to believe the truth.
There is a new theology forming today, people who choose to believe nothing. What a sad way to go through life. What a tragic way to face eternity. I choose to believe God. I choose to believe the Bible. I choose to live a life of faith that pleases Him. I choose to seek Him and know Him with all my heart. Beloved, I hope that you will choose God too.
Want to go deeper: Genesis 1-2; Job 38-41; Acts 17:16-33

Don’t Let the Devil Sharpen Your Sword

Do you know how to recognize your enemy? I don’t mean men of other nations, or people in a different political party, or even people with an opposite ideology to the faith that I profess. I’m not talking about enemies who can “kill the body, but cannot kill the soul” (Mat 10:28). Remember that Paul declared, “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the power of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph 3:12).
If you haven’t figured it out yet, your enemy and mine is satan. We need to get wise to this enemy, or as Paul put it, we need to become acutely “aware of his schemes” (2 Cor 2:11). One of his most effective ploys is to dull our senses and our passion for the Lord. Check this out:
“All Israel went down to the Philistines to have the plowshares, mattocks, axes, and sickles sharpened” 1 Samuel 13:20.
Israel faced the wicked Philistines in battle, and their enemy had captured every blacksmith around so that Israel’s army could not sharpen their weapons. Even the farmers had to take their tools to the Philistines to be sharpened for plowing and reaping. As expected, they paid a steep price for the service.
It occurred to me that the church has been sharpening its tools in the enemy’s camp. The plows that are meant for breaking up hard hearts are rendered useless when we let the world tell us how to prepare them. The axes that were intended to bring down Satan’s lies have been made dull, so they bounce off the tree rather than bite into the roots. The sickles that should be reaping a great harvest of souls are dulled when we listen to the culture around us. Our swords grow rusty, and we are too weak to swing them when we do not hone them on the Holy Scriptures and draw strength from the Spirit. Both the church and the lost world are paying a steep price for our – let’s call it like it is – spiritual laziness (Heb 5:11).
We are in a battle, and our enemy is doing all he can to weaken us and our weapons. But unlike the Israelites, we have the Word and the Spirit of God to prepare us. Beloved, it’s time to gather up our tools and take them to the Lord. Let’s get back to Jesus’ camp and get ready for the victory!

Keys to the Christian Life

If I were to lay out before you the “secret” to living the Christian life, I would go to Paul’s message to the Thessalonian church. He wanted to encourage the believers, so he pointed to the good things he saw in them. These are the four keys to living a fruitful and blessed life in Christ. He wrote, “We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thess 1:3).
The triad of “faith, hope, and love” may sound familiar; they are repeated frequently in the New Testament Scriptures. As our Bible Study 101 group is learning, repetition is like a spotlight in the Scriptures. When God repeats Himself, He means “This is important; pay attention.” Let’s do just that.
“Work produced by faith” – in the modern church, faith is an ethereal belief, but to the first-century believers, faith was a catalyst for action. Faith is a deep conviction that inspires actions based on the promises or commands of God. James declared that, “Faith without works is dead” (Jas 2:14-26), and rightly so. Works are the fruit of our faith. No fruit means no faith and no spiritual life.
“Labor prompted by love” – Paul went on the call the believers, “brothers and sisters loved by God” (v.4), and that “love compels us . . .” (2 Cor 5:14). It moves us with urgency to share the true gospel with a lost and dying world.
“Endurance inspired by hope” – hope in what? “Hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” Hope is not wishful thinking; it is the absolute assurance that Jesus has saved us, redeemed us, restored us, and is preparing a forever home for us in heaven. And He is coming back to take us there. He said that we are to “encourage one another” with this promise: Jesus is coming back.
But wait, I said there were four keys to the Christian life, and indeed there are. Paul added one more that often gets overlooked: “Joy given by the Holy Spirit.” Paul knew something about suffering, and he also knew about Joy. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit, the evidence that the Spirit of Christ lives in the believer. In Romans, Paul wrote, “The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children” (Rom 8:16). That’s a reason for overflowing Joy!
Faith. Love. Hope. Joy. These are not only the keys, but the motor, the tires, and the steering wheel of our Christian life. Beloved, are you ready to take ‘em out for a ride?