Donavon Roberson's Blog

This is another great verse and reminder that God loves us…and in fact his love is old and from ancient times.

Why would the Psalmist ask the Lord to “remember”? That is my big question here…the Psalmist starts of with a call for God to remember - why?

It’s not because God forgot that He loved us.

It’s not because God even has to think about or consider his love for us.

It’s not because God needs to be told to remember

So why?

I think for a few reasons: they word means “in the present moment recall” which indicates to me that the Psalmist is saying “Please show up the way that you have from ancient times” AND I think it is as much a call for the Lord to remember as it is for the Psalmist…some times just saying “hey god don’t forget to show up for me now the way that you have showed up for us in the past” is a powerful reminder for US.

In fact…that may be really what it is all about - a not so gentle reminder for the Psalmist to consider all that God has done, from ancient times, and recall how God showed up with compassion and kindness for the people.

There are just times, when I am ‘going through it’ that I need to remember the ways that God has shown up for me, for others around me, and for his people throughout history. He never lacked in His mercy. He has never been found lacking in his love for his people. He has never NOT given to his people what they desperately need…and he won’t start now and he won’t start with me - there are times that I simply need the reminder that God’s love is ancient and it is old and it is a sure thing in this present moment when I turn my head and heart to receiving that which God faithfully offers his people.

The Psalmist is speaking for God and states:

“Don’t be afraid, I am with you. Don’t be dismayed, I am your God; I will be your strength, I will help you, I will hold you up by my righteous hand.”

How many times in life could we use this reminder?

How many times a day could I use this reminder?

To be afraid here is to be filled with dread, to the point of trembling. I have known that kind of fear…more than once. A fear that is surrounds and consumes from within. A fear that is debilitating…leaving me dead in my tracks. A fear that confounds and dismays…leaving me confused and without the strength to move forward.

The word dismayed had me stumped but it carries the idea of simply being stuck, confused, unable to move forward…or at minimum move out of the current situation - it’s the classic deer in the headlights and God says “don’t just stand there…I am your God and I got you!”

God says that he help strengthen me; I will make you bold, strong, alert and able to stand stout! I love that word “stout” - it makes me think of a good strong stout that is able to stand on it’s own…and also able to deliver great flavor and presence.

God continues to communicate that he will uphold me; I will support you, I will help you attain greatness and achieve all that you have been called to do, all that you were created to do.

This verse often gets passed over quickly, due to my familiarity with it, but it is full of some great truths that I need today…in this moment. I often find myself dismayed by life, beaten down, afraid to move because I have “learned my lesson” that when I step out in faith there is someone there ready to take me out…but God is saying not to give up or give in but to keep going and to look to Him, to trust in Him, to rest in Him because He is with me.

Be with me today God…be with me today.

Time and again Jesus calls us to give ourselves over in unconditional abandon to God’s mercy and time and again we make excuses. He has promised to forgive…He has forgiven. Your past is gone…it’s done.

Philippians 3:3 says that we ARE the circumcision (the ones called by God and called out by God) and that we worship by the spirit, that we glory in Christ and that we put no faith or trust in our flesh.

This verse tells us how go about living life in this manner…it isn’t us the lives like this but Christ living through us.

“I can do all things” - I have the strength to do all of the things, every one…no matter how great or small, I have the power, the strength, the ability to dig deep and keep going!

“Through him who gives me strength” - the word through is incredible…it is by way of a mystic indwelling.

Yep, that’s right the strength that I have to do all of the things to which I have been called and that come into my path comes from the mystic indwelling of Christ in me.

I’m just leaving this here because that truth is so pure and powerful…it really doesn’t need any other explanation or commentary. I just need to know that no matter what comes my way, I have the power, the strength, the ability to do what needs to be done because I have been mystically in dwelt by the spirit of God through Christ…all I need do is dig deep, find that strength and allow Him to live in me and through me to get it done and make it happen.

I think we can all apply this strength in our lives…that’s powerful!

One of my favorite quotes from Parks and Rec! Jerry gets all flustered and turns his words around - instead of “what are you going do?” He hits everyone with the ole’ “What are do gonna you?” Isn’t that just life some times? We get so flustered, worries, anxious, nervous…whatever it is we get there because of what is going on around us.

The author of Hebrews breaks it down easily…what can any human do to me that is worth being frightened about? Nothing because God is there to help us.

Now…does that mean that fear is a meaningless emotion? No

Does that mean that we will never be in pain? No

Does that mean that “bad things” won’t happen to us? No

Life happens. Broken people to hurtful things…Hurt People Hurt People and we are going to go through pain, suffering, hurt…and in some ways so much more!

I have been through a lot of hurt…both taking place in and outside the church (the church hurt is the worst and something I am sure I will write about at some point in time) but let’s face it…we are all going to go through some crap in life and it’s going to hurt and it could cause us to fear.

So what is the promise here?

That God is going to help us in spite of it.

That God is with us, for us and that nothing will be able to stand in opposition against us or take us out!

Here is the part of the verse that REALLY gets me…the writer says that understanding this truth gives him courage and helps me live life in good cheer! That is an amazing truth!

Because we know that God is for us and that nobody can truly hurt us or harm us in a way that “takes us out of the game of life” we can confidently live and interact with others in confidence and good cheer!

Again…living a life that goes beyond what is to be expected or what is accepted by others points others to the person of God!

That God is going to help us through it.

This is the life I want to live…I have to get at it!

Brennan Manning talks about living from the center; living a life that is hidden with Christ in God. I love this idea and to be honest the older I get the more I understand this…I never wanted to hide myself in Christ, hiding meant weakness and weakness was just something that I wasn’t willing to accept in my life - I never wanted to be weak because I didn’t want people to see me that way and I definitely didn’t want God to see me that way.

How silly of me…

The truth is that my understanding of “hiding myself in Christ” takes on a completely different perspective the older I get; though I don’t want to be weak…I am and hiding in Christ is running but taking refuge. The older I get the more I realize that there is so much in the world that is trying to take me out and every turn and I need to a place to go for refuge, rest, and a place to refuel and become my best self. To hide myself in Christ means that I am resting at the center of who God is and what God is doing in my life.

Romans 8:18 is such a great verse that speaks to “living from the center” - we need to live from a place that recognizes that the sufferings of life don’t even compare to the glory that will be revealed in us through Christ.

Let’s break it down…

To consider is to think, determine, judge, or reckon as though from an account perspective. It carries a finality with it…not just to think about but to think on until completion or a fullness happens.

Sufferings refer to a cooler less, evil experience - the suffering destined for the Messiah.

Glory here is defined as the unspoken manifestation of God!

Consider this interpretation of the verse, Paul (who let’s face it…suffered a great deal more than many of us could even consider - though I will say that the purpose isn’t to start comparing suffering but to consider the glory that will be revealed in us through Christ), has judged and determined that the colorless, evil experiences that we all face today (those experiences that equate to the suffering destine for the Messiah) can not even come close to the unspoken manifestation of God that will be revealed in us through Christ.

Here…the way that God is going to show up in us and through us is so much greater than any of our current suffering - it’s not even a fair fight…in fact it’s incomparable!

Listen…we all suffer, we all go through experiences that reveal our weakness, our humanity, our need for rescue. It’s part of the human experience and it’s completely normal…what isn’t normal is how we “reckon” or determine the impact of that suffering on our lives. As children of God we must consider that what we are currently going through, as painful and evil as it feels in the present, isn’t our end state and in fact our end state is so much greater than we can even imagine - it is the unspoken manifestation of God and will be revealed in us as we live from the center.

The question is “when will it be revealed?” … I think the answer is quite simple - it is revealed when we live from the center and live our lives that reflect our belief in this truth.

Personalizing this a bit - when I consider the reality that my current suffering and afflictions are nothing compared to the unspoken manifestation of God that comes from living at the center with Christ…it is then that the glory of God is revealed in me and through me!

That is an amazing truth…that is the way to live life!

No Jesus didn’t pull his disciples into him like Scorpion pulls in his victims…but he wasn’t far off.

I have read this verse time and again, I have always heard or thought the purpose of the verse was simply talking about humility and being humble…you know the way of the kingdom.

It is and it isn’t. I think…I think this is one of those stories that is simple and beautiful and often missed because we are looking for something more.

Jesus is sitting with his disciples and they are discussing the kingdom and “who is the greatest in the kingdom”. You know that Matthew softened this right? He was part of the conversation…it was a group of Jesus’ followers and they wanted nothing more than to debate and get ahead of the others around them…it was about positioning themselves.

Remember me Jesus…I did XYZ

Remember my contribution to the kingdom…I talked to ABC

Don’t forget about that time….

Yeah but you know you also said this….

True but he did that….

Discussion. Debate. Deliberation. Diluted…they missed it.

In the midst of this conversation, I imagine Jesus looking around and shaking his head in frustration. It seems that the disciples missed the point more often than not and it was time for another lesson; he had to make this simple and he had to make this sting…

In the midst of the noise, Jesus looks up and “Hey child, come here for a moment.” And the child came…

I think THAT is the point of this verse…Jesus called and the child answered. No pomp. No circumstance. No debate. No discussion. No doubt, fear, hesitation, second guessing, or questions. It was simply this - Jesus called and the child answered. Period.

And THAT my friends is what greatness in the kingdom looks like - the faith of a child, the humility of a child, a simple response to a simple request.

When Jesus calls, do I answer? Or do I continue to discuss, debate, deliberate and dilute the experience with my own pomp and circumstance? Do I make the call about me?

The answer - often, more often than I care to admit, I make the call about me and miss the point of the call altogether. Jesus is calling out - get over here and he is patiently waiting for us to respond with the faith of a child.

I have heard this verse preached, I have studied it, I have read it several times…and yet with all of that I have managed to miss how powerful it is and how “communal” it is.

Looking at a few of these words we see:

- apostle’s teaching: these are the teachings of those that walked with Jesus and saw how He lived His life, they would share stories of the time they spent with Christ and bring those stories into the current day in attempt to help them all grow together in the body of Christ.

- fellowship: they gathered together and wouldn’t others keep them from gathering together, it was both an verb and a noun - they fellowshipped and were the fellowship.

- breaking of bread: this is simply the activity of eating together, but think about what happens in those times that we eat with others…we share stories, we share life, we laugh, we cry, we commune, we talk….we are doing life together and I believe that this practice of breaking bread really got into this transmission of life at a deep level.

- prayer: again a verb as well as a location…they prayed together and they did so in the place of prayer, in the presence of God.

All of these actions run deep…they are a part of the daily life of these believers. Now look at the first part of the verse…this is what is often missed - they devoted themselves to these actions:

The word devoted here denotes perseverance, constant, and to be earnestly moving towards something…together. But it goes deeper than that, this idea comes from root words that communicate pressing forward in steadfast power!

Think about that for a moment, they are pressing toward something together and it gives them strength and power as they do this together. These actions aren’t simply boxes on a spiritual task list that need to be checked off in order to attain today’s portion of holiness, these activities gave the early church strength, power, togetherness and caused them to be devoted to each other.

The church is missing this today, we have made it too simple for people to come in and sit, soak and sour (nod to my bible college days). They sneak into their seats, listen to a sermon, sing a few songs, shake a few hands and then walk back into life to go on about their days. I think Jesus meant for there to be so much more to it than that. I long to find something that is so much more powerful and meaningful than that…I long to find a fellowship of believers with whom I can do life and press forward together in strength and power for the Kingdom.

I love this idea…I have been raised to think that being arrogant is “bad”. I don’t typically like arrogance in others, I certainly don’t want to see it come out in my own life.

…but what if?

What if there was a religious or arrogant joy that ins’t rooted in who we are or what we bring to the table but in God?

Now that…that would be cool.

And it’s not rooted in the person of God but the promise of God…ok NOW we are getting somewhere. The idea of a joyful heart in Proverbs 17:22 isn’t simply that I put on a happy face, suck it up and just act happy - it runs much deeper than that.

The word “cheerful” means joyful, glad and if you start to double click on it a bit more we see that it drives home this idea of being arrogantly joyful! Given, as children of God, we are steered away from arrogance it becomes clear to me that this arrogance isn’t in anything that we bring to the party but in who God is and how we interact with Him.

I can walk around in joy, live in joy, act in joy…with a cheerful and glad heart knowing that God is for me, I’m His and nothing in this world is going to take any of that away from me. I don’t have to let the things of life get me down. I don’t have to feel moved or be moved by any circumstances, any fears or doubts, any feelings - emotions - sensations that might try to pull me away from the truth that I am grounded in God and if He is for me…who or what can be against me?!?!

That is pretty powerful … It’s like living life knowing, confidently knowing, that no matter what happens in life I will THRIVE and overcome. It’s not giving the rough patches in life lip service or the “Christian head nod” but truly looking at life and all that it has to offer and saying…ok cool, I’ve got this - I choose to find joy in this situation, I choose to be glad because God is with me and this isn’t able to come close to standing against me.

Living life from this perspective is living an arrogantly joyful life that provides healing to others…it turns the dried, crushed and stricken bones to life again! Living an arrogantly joyful life brings life because it points to God and offers hope, freedom, life, love, mercy…all the things!

I want to live my life in that way…I want to live an arrogantly joyful life that is fully grounded in the promise that God is for me, nothing can stand against me and that God is going to work out every situation in my life for my good. It may not be easy, it may not be fun, it may not be pleasant…but I can be arrogantly joyful in my knowledge and understanding of who God is and how God is at work in every single moment of life.

Luke is writing about some pretty powerful teachings from Jesus about how we should interact with one another. In essence Jesus says:

“I want you to love like God and in case you aren’t sure what that looks like, I want you to find your enemies and do good to them and for them - be kind and give of your possessions and meet their needs without asking for anything back in return - your needs are taken care of and you want be wanting. Listen, God was kind to a wicked and ungrateful people, He was kind to them, gave to them, loved them when when they were not even looking in his direction…and in case you aren’t sure to whom I am referring - it’s you!”

This idea of “loving your enemy” by showing kindness and giving of your own possessions to meet their needs seems just doesn’t feel right BUT God did it and requires the same from us. He’s not asking to do anything that He hasn’t done and - truth be told - the distance between me and God isn’t even comparable to the distance between me and my enemies. It may feel like that distance is just too great but let’s face it…my enemies and me are the same!

The other aspect of this that I think is amazing is that WE NEED MERCY…why would God do something for us if we weren’t in need, if it wasn’t in our best interest, if it was something that was essential for us? Now flip that around…our enemies are in need of mercy as well - it is ESSENTIAL to their wellbeing.

So who is my enemy? How can I show them kindness?

What will the net net benefit of this interaction be?

Something to consider…

Hey, today, I want you to show mercy - in the same way that God showed you mercy in your time of need!

This verse is pretty straight forward but difficult to master; it is pleasing and good for the soul to be made low or humbled than to divide the shares of the proud.

When I think of dividing shares or portions, it is typically due to the fact that a battle has been won but this verse makes it fairly clear that the spoils of the proud and arrogant aren’t “winning”. It’s easy to live life under the delusion that we are capable of doing much on our own; don’t get me wrong God gives us the ability to do, live, act, exist on our own and in our own power - we are able to live the life that we want to live BUT that doesn’t mean that we are on our own.

The proud say they don’t need anyone else.

The arrogant act as though this life is all about them.

And the spoils of that war are loneliness, disparity and a life lived alone…it’s a life that really isn’t.

Those that humble themselves, make themselves low and live a life that realizes “it’s not about me” have the life that is meant to be lived…it’s not about us, it’s about others. Jesus says love God and love others…that’s it. That’s life and when we live life from that place, we are living a life that is pleasing and good!