Be Still And Know

Luke 19:41–42 I will never forget my first visit to Jerusalem. A disabled friend of mine asked me if I would take him to Israel as his carer. He needed me to push his wheelchair, drive the hire car and lift him from place to place. We stayed in a hotel on the Mount of Olives and arrived there in the dark. Driving through the chaotic traffic in Jerusalem for the first time was a hair-raising experience! The next morning I pulled back the curtains and was completely overwhelmed by the sight of the golden walls of the old city, set against a deep blue sky. It was one of the most amazing moments of my life and it was so easy to imagine the time when Jesus looked over the city and wept. Indeed, not far away from the hotel there is a beautiful modern church in the shape of a teardrop, which enables modern pilgrims to reflect on that poignant moment in Jesus’ life. Jesus longed for peace. That lay at the heart of his mission. He came to bring peace between humankind and God. Of all places, Jerusalem, the

Luke 19:36–39 Palm Sunday was a day full of surprises. Many people had hoped that Jesus might be the one who would kick the hated Romans out of the land. It would have suited them well if he had turned up on an impressive war horse and led a rebellion. But that wasn’t Jesus’ way. Instead, he turned up on a donkey of all creatures. Donkeys are undoubtedly attractive and loveable but you would never start an uprising with one! As he did so often, Jesus turned people’s expectations upside down; indeed everything that would happen in the coming week was going to shock them to the core. People reacted very differently to Jesus on Palm Sunday. There were some who showed him the respect of laying their coats on the road and who shouted and sang their praises. They recognised that Jesus truly was the Messiah, sent by God to bring hope to the nation. But then there were the Pharisees who were appalled by this outburst and who encouraged Jesus to rebuke his noisy supporters. But Jesus informed them that the pra

Psalm 33:1–2 Many of the psalms surrounding this one are full of descriptions of the psalmist’s pains and problems. He talks often about his enemies and those who are out to kill him. He tells us about his health problems and his times of depression. When we come to this psalm, however, the atmosphere is very different. The psalm bubbles with praise and confidence in God. Praising God can be done in any number of ways, but it is interesting how often it is associated with singing. This has been true throughout history. We read about the angels singing at creation (Job 38:7) and, when Moses and the children of Israel crossed the Red Sea, they burst out in song, celebrating God’s deliverance (Exodus 15:1–19). Singing was integral to the life of the people of Israel and the Levites were given the responsibility of leading the singing. In the New Testament we find frequent references to singing too, and Paul encouraged his readers to “be filled with the Holy Spirit, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual

Psalm 32:1 King David is very reflective in this psalm. Some commentators suggest that he wrote it some years after his disastrous adultery with Bathsheba. That agonising episode led to the murder of Bathsheba’s husband and caused untold grief. When Nathan the prophet confronted David with his sin the king turned back to God and discovered the wonder of his forgiveness (2 Samuel 12). It is thought that Psalm 51 was written at this critical time in David’s life. He pleaded to God for his mercy and forgiveness. He asked God to purify him and to wash him whiter than snow. He wanted God to restore him and to make him new. In Psalm 32 he appears to be standing back from the experience of forgiveness and reflecting on how completely wonderful it is. David thought back over those days when he had refused to confess his sin. He recalled how his body wasted away and how he had groaned all day long. His strength had evaporated like water on a summer’s day (vv 3–4). But when he confessed his sins, his life was t

Psalm 31:14–15 We have seen David recount his problems in many psalms, but in this psalm the procession of problems is particularly depressing. Tears blurred his eyes and his body and soul were withering away. He felt as if he was dying from grief. Sin had drained his strength and he was wasting away from within. His enemies were laughing at him and even his friends were avoiding him when they saw him in the street. He felt as if he was surrounded by terror, knowing that his enemies were plotting to kill him. But, amid all of this pressure, he knew that he could look to God with confidence, knowing that his future was in God’s hands. This knowledge didn’t suddenly remove all his problems, but it did give him security and confidence. We are all curious about our future. However, the truth is that none of us knows what the future holds. Life may stay much the same for many years or it might change overnight. We simply do not and cannot know. It is therefore vital that we place ourselves in God’s hands i

Psalm 30:11–12 In David’s Psalms we meet him as he was surrounded by enemies, cheated by his friends and family, staring death in the face and feeling so ill he longed to die. But it was David’s experience that these glum times did not have the final word. God was able to transform his mourning into joyful dancing. This particularly reminds of the time when the Ark of the Covenant was brought to Jerusalem. David was happy to have established Jerusalem as his home but it wasn’t complete until the presence of God represented by the Ark was brought to the city. When it arrived he indulged in such wild dancing that he was accused of behaving shamelessly, but David wasn’t remotely bothered (2 Samuel 6:14–22). This was a special moment and it needed to be celebrated. When times are hard and everything seems to be going wrong, it is very easy to believe that our circumstances will never change. But they can. God is able to transform our disasters and pain as we commit them into his hands. The Bible introduce

Psalm 29:3–4 David repeatedly refers to the voice of the Lord in this psalm. On seven occasions he talks of the way in which God speaks powerfully through creation. He graphically describes the way in which God’s power and majesty are displayed in thunder and lightning. He speaks of the way in which this power is so great that it shatters the cedars of Lebanon and even makes the wilderness shake. Many of the psalms are focused on the worship of God in the temple but this psalm encourages worshippers to go outside and recognise the awesome power of God in creation. This is a good challenge for all of us. It’s so easy for us to allow our experience of God to be trapped by our personal walk with him or the life of our church. Both of those aspects of the Christian life are vital, but we should never neglect to look outside and see how powerful and majestic he is. We all need to take time to look at this amazing world and acknowledge that it is the work of our awesome Creator God. Thomas Brooks, the 1

Psalm 27:14 As I commented previously, life involves a lot of waiting. Some of it is life-changing and at other times waiting is just part of living in an uncertain world. We may be waiting to find the right job or life partner, or waiting for something to arrive in the post. We can live calmly in a period of waiting but at other times it is all-consuming. We find it hard to settle to anything else because what we are waiting for is so important. Waiting can, at times, be laced with a sense of despair. We may be waiting for something to happen, wondering whether it will ever turn up. Sometimes we are absolutely confident that something will happen; we are just unsure of the timing. When King David talks about waiting for the Lord, he is absolutely sure that God will respond to him. And because of that confidence he knows that he can wait with patience. In this psalm he is so confident that God will respond that he challenges us to be brave and courageous. In his commentary on this psalm, Michael Wilco

Psalm 27:4 In about the year 1050 BC King David established Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. One of the first things he did was to take the Ark of the Covenant to the city. God had given specific instructions to Moses for the construction of the Ark of the Covenant and it was here that God dwelt among his people. During the years of the wilderness wanderings, the Ark was placed in a tabernacle or large tent. It contained the two stone tablets brought down from Mount Sinai by Moses on which were written the Ten Commandments. David took the Ark to Jerusalem and placed it in a tent with great ceremony and wild dancing. Celebrating the presence of God meant so much to him that David longed for a temple to be built in Jerusalem. He went to huge lengths to prepare for it to be built. However, this wouldn’t happen until the reign of his son Solomon. We live at a very different time and now, because of the gift of the Holy Spirit, we know that we can worship God anywhere, at any time. We are not tied d

Psalm 27:2–3 David’s confidence in God is incredibly inspiring. But it didn’t just happen. It was the result of his experience of living for God. He had been threatened with death by King Saul time and again, and through these experiences he had learned that God would not let him down. Even if he was confronted by the biggest army, he knew that God would protect him. There was absolutely no need for him to be afraid. We all face challenges and are tempted to feel afraid. Most of us will probably not, like King David, face up to the threat of death from an enemy, although that will be the experience of some Christians around the world. For many of us the challenge may come in the form of a health issue or financial problems. We may have relationship difficulties in our family or workplace or be threatened by a neighbour. Any of these challenges can cause us to feel afraid, but David’s words remind us that if God is our light and our salvation, such fear is unnecessary. We need to make sure each

James 5:19–20 Churches are not made up of perfect people. Far from it! This surprises some, who assume that Christians live lives of near perfection. For such people there is great consternation when the organist goes off with the youth leader, or the treasurer embezzles the church’s money. We should always be shocked and disappointed by such behaviour – but never surprised. Churches are, in many ways, similar to hospitals: composed of people who are far from perfect but who, by God’s grace and in the power of his Spirit, are becoming stronger and more mature in their Christian lives. Sadly, there have always been people who wander away from the Church. It is always tragic when this happens and churches need to have a clear strategy for reaching out to such people. Here James finishes his letter by inspiring his readers to be proactive when someone sadly backslides. He wants them to know how important this restorative ministry is. In bringing someone back to the Church they are doing nothing less than

James 5:16 Some years ago I contracted whooping cough. To be honest I thought that it was something only children got so was amazed when my GP told me that I had caught it. From time to time over a number of weeks I struggled to breathe. The worst episodes were in the middle of the night; I will never forget those desperate attempts to breathe, which ended in the “whoop” as air finally, slowly and painfully returned to my lungs. Breathing is essential to life, and I now have a new respect for the process – and a deep gratitude that I can breathe without a struggle. The Bible makes it clear that prayer is the way in which we ‘breathe’ as Christians. Everything depends on prayer. It has been wisely said that we are as strong as our prayer lives and no stronger. It would be impossible to exaggerate the importance of prayer – just as it would be impossible to exaggerate the importance of breathing for ongoing life. James encourages his readers to pray because it can have incredible results. In the nex

James 5:16 How are you? I wonder how you normally respond to that question. Probably, like most of us, you smile sweetly and summarise your life with the one word “Fine”. It’s a good word and if it’s true that’s wonderful. But, if we’re honest, it is sometimes the word we use to push people away. What we’re actually saying is, “It’s none of your business. Leave me alone. Hopefully if you think I’m fine you won’t bother me again.” The reality is that we are not always fine. Sometimes we feel awful, and there are times when we know that we have failed miserably. James is encouraging his readers to be honest. We need to be real with one another and actually confess our sins and pray for each other so that we can find God’s healing. I don’t believe that God is calling us to share absolutely every inner secret and sin with one another. But I do believe that churches need to be places of love and encouragement where we feel able to reveal the people that we really are. Often that will best be done with

James 5:14–15 Jesus was both a healer and a teacher. He ministered to the whole range of people’s needs – body, mind and spirit. When Jesus left this earth he commissioned the Church to carry on with that ministry. Here in James we see what that meant in practice. The Church is called to minister to those who are sick and to pray for them knowing that God loves to make people better and also to forgive their sins. In recent years the word ‘holistic’ has become very popular to describe the way in which God works. In the power of his Spirit he wants us to be whole people, enjoying him and his world to the full. Many parts of the Church have focused on words and preaching and marginalised the healing ministry. But that makes no sense if we are truly following in the footsteps of Jesus. Premier Lifeline (0300 111 0101) offers an amazing ministry to tens of thousands of people every year. When people ring up, they speak with Christians about their needs, which may be physical, mental or spiritual. In t

James 5:13 I remember as a teenager hearing a well-known preacher telling the story of a young woman who had told him that she often didn’t feel like praying. His response was that prayer is not a glandular condition! Prayer is something that we need to do whatever our feelings. That’s precisely the point that James is making here. In short, it’s always the right time to pray – whether you are going through a good or a bad time. God doesn’t want us simply to be people who say their prayers, and then forget about him until the next time. He wants a relationship with us, within which we share fully the ups and downs of life. I love the fact that the Bible doesn’t present us with a line of holy people, who always got it right and who loved sharing their lives with God. The Bible is almost the opposite of that. It tells us the story of women and men who struggled and often failed. And amid it all we see how those frail and failed human beings discovered that God loved them and had a purpose for their

James 5:12 James isn’t talking here about bad language but about the very common practice at the time of trying to strengthen a statement by taking an oath. Jews made a distinction between oaths made in the name of God, which could never be broken, and other oaths that didn’t mention God, which could be broken. James encourages his readers to make life much easier by simply telling the truth. The Greeks held that the best guarantee of any statement was not an oath, but the character of the person who made it. Our words are the natural overflow of the lives that we live and so if we live with integrity, people will know that they can trust our words. If we always keep promises, then people will know that the next promise that we make can be relied upon. Speaking the truth is the fundamental building block for every relationship. When relationships break down it is almost always accompanied by lies and deception. The only way to bring a relationship back on course is by learning to speak the truth.

James 5:11 We don’t know exactly what James’ readers were facing, but clearly it was tough for them to live as Christians. They needed to persevere. Amid all the temptations, distractions and persecution, they needed to hang in there for God. Job is a classic illustration of this. Everything went catastrophically wrong for him. He lost his children, his possessions and his health. He had the indignity of being struck with boils and his wife, seeing him sitting in the dust, scratching at his sores, exclaimed, “Are you still trying to maintain your integrity? Curse God and die” (Job 2:9). But he wouldn’t. He put up not only with his suffering but also with his hopeless companions, whose misguided thinking added another crushing layer to his agonies. However, he didn’t give up. He was confident in God and, in the end, God rewarded him generously. We would love God to fix our difficult situations, and remove all our problems. But there are many times in life when God calls us simply to endure, promisi

James 5:9 The Bible introduces us to lots of grumbling people. Most famously, the people of Israel, who whinged after
God had miraculously led them out of slavery in Egypt. They had been there for 400 years and, at last, were set free by the mighty hand of God. The yoke of oppression had been broken and they were now able to enjoy the sweet taste of freedom. But almost immediately their response was to grumble because things weren’t working out in the way that they had hoped. Nothing much has changed. Grumbling continues to consume huge amounts of time and energy in every part of society. You would hope that churches would be a glorious exception to this rule but, sadly, that isn’t true. James is concerned about this and is severe in his words. Grumbling shouldn’t be taken lightly. It seriously damages the spiritual health of a church and God will judge it. You have been warned! How should we respond to all of this? Billy Graham once observed, “Grumbling and gratitude are, for the child of God, in

James 5:7–8 Waiting sounds easy – until you have to do it! Waiting can be incredibly difficult and demanding, especially if you don’t know how long you are going to have to wait for. Waiting for medical test results, for a member of the family to make contact or for someone to repay a debt, for example, can sap your energy and leave you feeling exhausted, disappointed and confused. The challenge we have to face is that Christians are called to be a waiting people. We are all waiting for the Lord’s return, and no one can be sure when it is going to happen. He is going to return, because that is what he promised to do. In Acts 1:11, after Jesus’ ascension, his disciples were assured, “Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!” I had relatives who were so sure of the Lord’s imminent return that they believed that it was inappropriate to store any food. They felt the Lord might return in the next day or two and so it was irrespo

James 5:1–2 You can almost see the steam coming out of James’ ears can’t you?! He was furious at the way in which rich people were abusing their position. His very specific gripe with them was that they had failed to pay their workmen for mowing their fields. For James this wasn’t a little economic problem. This was an evil that had reached the ears of God himself and the rich people were heading for certain judgement. Let’s be clear that the Bible isn’t against rich people. However, God certainly is against anyone who abuses others. The Bible on many occasions reveals times when rich people have abused their position and exploited others. This was a major theme in the prophecy of Amos. He had particularly severe words for the women of Bashan in chapter 4:1: “You women who oppress the poor and crush the needy and who are always calling to your husbands, ‘Bring us another drink!’” These rich women lived in their charmed and privileged world, totally cut off from the suffering of the poor people on who