Attempts at Honesty

Reflections on the interplay of the Bible and Culture

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Peace of mind

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Isaiah 26:3 (ESV)

3 You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.

Romans 8:6 (ESV)

6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.

Philippians 4:6–7 (ESV)

6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

I read a definition of sin which was attributed to Soren Kierkegaard. He said something to the effect of “sin is taking a good thing and putting it in the place of God.”

The effect of this is disappointment. In a fallen world, if I look to a person (other than God), thing or action to fulfill me, I will end up disappointed. People will let  me down, things will break and I will never accomplish enough to feel satisfied.

It is only when I am looking to God for my validation and seeking satisfaction in deepening my relationship with him that I even begin to approach a sense of peace.

The opposite condition is one of fear. Fear that I will be let down, therefore I cannot trust. Fear that I will fail, therefore I should not try. Fear that my stuff will break or get lost, therefore I must watch over it.

The verses above remind me that a mind set on God is the only mind that can truly be at peace. Peace that is not just the absence of conflict, but peace that means wholeness and joyful life.

Therefore, I can be free of the need to please people. I can be free of the fear of criticism. I don’t need to accomplish anything to achieve peace.

I can live my life in a day-by-day, minute-by-minute response to God while becoming more sensitive to his leading. He promises to lead me to peace. How cool is that?

A Thought from Saint Augustine

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St. Augustine of Hippo
St. Augustine of Hippo

In the Confessions, Saint Augustine describes a depraved soul as “falling away from security in you to destruction in itself.”

I like the way that Augustine puts this. When I make moral choices, I am choosing between God or self, light or darkness, building or destruction. There is no middle ground.

Yet there is hope. The first source of hope is found in Romans 8:1 – there is no condemnation for me if I am in Christ.

The second source of hope is that God can take my half-hearted attempts at obedience and use them for His purpose and His glory. Later on in Romans 8, Paul says, “all things work together for good.” In this context, I take the word good to mean good from God’s perspective, which too often is different than mine.

Genesis 50:20 – The Proper Understanding of Evil

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EvilGenesis 50:20 (ESV) As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.

Life in a fallen world requires a response to pain and suffering. Bad news is all around us. Whether it is directly or indirectly perceived, evil cannot be ignored.

The most difficult evil of all is when people who are supposed to love and care for us fail in this responsibility or are cruel or abusive.

In this verse, Joseph reminds us that God is in control even we are victims of those who actively perpetrate evil.

Knowledge that God is in control does not make the evil any more palatable but it does help us grasp that it is not permanent and we will be able to move beyond it. This knowledge provides a context and a means for getting through the difficulty.

I see that God has used the most difficult people and events in my life to teach me dependence upon himself. I have also begun to learn a little of patience when my situation is beyond my ability to control.

God is My Fortress

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Psalm 59:16b (ESV)

For you have been to me a fortress
and a refuge in the day of my distress.

Matthew 10:28 (ESV)

28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

In reading Psalm 59 this morning, I notice that David twice describes God as his fortress.  A fortress is a place of protection. In a physical sense I visualize impenetrable walls and a defensible location when I think of a fortress. When under attack, I want my body protected.

Fortress

Is David merely using symbolism in this description? Perhaps not.

The verse that came to me as I considered this was Matthew 10:28. There Jesus reminds me that God is the only one that has authority over my true self, my soul. Governments and thugs (sometimes two different groups, sometimes not) can kill my body but my soul is protected by God.

Perhaps David, the man after God’s own heart, had this in mind when describing God as his fortress. Saul, who was pursuing David at the time, could kill David’s body, but David’s soul was protected by his relationship with God.

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