Tag: holy desires

Better by Far! (Part Two)

Philippians 1:23

I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far… (NIV).

What kind of desire did Paul have?

He had a desire that was eminently spiritual. An old catechism question asked, “What is the chief end of man?” With some input from John Piper’s writings, I’ve modified the traditional answer to say, “The first goal of mankind is to glorify God by enjoying him forever. This includes everything we do in life, including the outlook we ought to have. The New Testament Scriptures direct us to be watching for Christ’s return in power and great glory. When Christ comes, all his people will be with him forever (1 Thessalonians 4:17). Then we will fully be able to fulfill God’s purpose for us.

True Christianity is personal. It involves a personal relationship with God in Christ. It is fellowship with the Lord! A Christian has the zeal of love to know his or her Lord! Since this is so, I think it is proper to consider the following questions. Are you really a Christian? Do you love the Lord? Do you really want to be with him forever? If you do, then why do we see so little zeal for the Lord from you right now? Do you think you will really like heaven? To be in heaven means that you will be with the Holy God forever! Does this really interest you?

He had a desire that grew from his present experience. Paul already considered the knowledge of Jesus Christ to surpass everything else. More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Because of him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them as dung, so that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own from the law, but one that is through faith in Christ—the righteousness from God based on faith (Philippians 3:8-9 CSB). He had already evaluated all things in the light of Christ’s surpassing excellence. Yet he wanted to know more of Christ. I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead (Philippians 3:10-11 NIV). Could it be that a reason for a lack of heavenly-mindedness among professing Christians is a present lack of the knowledge of Christ? Should we seek to know him better? Are you seeking to know Christ better?

He had a desire that affected his whole life. He longed to bring every thought captive to Christ. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5 ESV).   He lived in order to gain an imperishable crown (1 Corinthians 9:24-27). How is the knowledge of Christ remaking your life? What is different today in you today compared with three months or one year ago?

How can we have the same godly desire that Paul had? Let us set our hearts on things above.  If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God (Colossians 3:1 ESV). God has so ordered all things that people can only put treasure in one place at a time. See Matthew 6:19-24, 33. “There is no man’s soul comes into heaven, but his mind is there first” (Sibbes).

Let us cut our affections loose from the world. A soul that is crucified with Christ and raised with Christ should be living for the one who loves it. This is a core idea of our new life in Jesus Christ (Romans 6:1-7:6).

Let us seek assurance of our salvation. Therefore, brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election, because if you do these things you will never stumble. For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be richly provided for you (2 Peter 1:10-11 CSB).

Grace and peace, David

Psalm 63 (Part One)

God, you are my God; I eagerly seek you. I thirst for you; my body faints for you in a land that is dry, desolate, and without water (63:1 CSB).

David wrote this psalm when he was in the desert of Judah. This probably refers to the time of his flight from his son Absalom (cf. 2 Samuel 15-17). This was a time of great sorrow and deprivation for David. His emotions were stretched to the limit, and we can see him making some unwise choices and saying harmful things, as well as acting godly. All of us are a strange, even weird mixture of grace and sin. Let’s not be too critical of David and remember our own weaknesses. David became a temporary exile from the center of law covenant worship in Jerusalem. Being away from worship is a burden for those who love the Lord (cf. Psalms 42-43). Adding to David’s grief was the knowledge that all this came as discipline from the Lord for his sins connected with Bathsheba (cf. 2 Samuel 12:9-12).

During this situation, David wrote this psalm to record what he learned about the relationship between the covenant Lord and his people. He learned that believers can sing even when they are in desert places, because the thirsting soul finds satisfaction in God. This ought to encourage us all, since our lives have many such times, even prolonged seasons of drought. We do not need to wait until we arrive at a spiritual high to experience God. We can know him in deep trials and when troubles multiply. I have recently seen a dear brother and sister in Christ go through such a time; indeed, they are not out of it yet. But it is stirring to see them rejoice in the Lord. Think of three others who experienced God in the desert—Hagar, Moses, and Elijah.

This psalm is intensely personal. Sixteen times David spoke about his relationship with the living God. His friendship with God was far from the ritualistic or legalistic performance mentality of many religious people. God can be known personally. We can experience his personal activity in our lives. We can know his presence when we are separated from the “sanctuary” (tabernacle or temple in the old covenant and the local gathering of Christ’s people in the new covenant age). It is good to gather with the godly, but it is refreshing to know that he remains with us when we cannot.

From ancient times, this psalm has been known as “the morning psalm of the church” (Leupold). This was due to the translation of “early” instead of “eagerly” or “earnestly” (NIV). “Chrysostom testifies ‘That it was decreed and ordained by the primitive Fathers, that no day should pass without the public singing of this psalm’” (Perowne). While this might not fit with our modern lifestyle and worship, it can be a useful nudge to induce us to refer to it more frequently. The passionate language will help us leave behind the coldness of our disappointments to be warmed in the experience of God’s greatness and love for us. We will learn about how to talk to the God we love.

The psalm can be simply outlined as followed: the believer’s desire of God (63:1), the believer’s experience (63:2-8), and the believer’s security (63:9-11). We want to think about these ideas. What do you do when you are in a desert place? What do you know of God in such circumstances? How can you relate to God in such times? Are you in a desert place now? Please open your Bible and listen with your heart to this song written by a man that knew the misery of desert places.

Grace and peace, David

Holy Desires (Part Four)

2 Timothy 2:22

Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart (NIV).

Every adult ought to take children into toy stores and candy stores. After hearing that statement you’re probably thinking that Pastor David is out of his mind! But having helped raise three children, I’ve thought it through, and I still think it’s a good idea, if the parents are self-controlled and in control of their children. Why? I think we can learn a lot about ourselves by watching children in toy and candy stores. We ought to learn something about our hearts when we hear them say, “I want this and this and this,” which is basically everything in the store!

God has given us the good gift of desires, but since the human heart has been twisted by sin, human desires do not naturally seek what is holy and good. This is true even of those who follow Christ. Those who have been saved by grace feel two competing sets of desires. For example, consider the words of a song written by Eric Grover. In the first verse he writes:

In my heart there is a stirring
One that did not start with me
A love to worship my Creator
To show His love for all to see

But in the second he brings out what is also in our hearts:

In my heart there is a treason
One that poisons all my love
Take my heart and consecrate it
Wash it in Your cleansing blood

While we are on this earth, our hearts will struggle with the pull between these two desires—one to glorify God and the other to walk away from God and live like he doesn’t exist.

In previous articles, we considered the desire that we should have for the law of the Lord, the Holy Scriptures. Now, let’s think of another holy desire—the desire for a godly way of life.

In the words from 2 Timothy, the Lord urges us to flee from the evil desires of youth. What is meant by these words?

This is the only time that this word occurs in the New Testament Scriptures, so we cannot determine its meaning by seeing its usage in other passages. However, since the word is used in a negative sense, we can safely conclude that there are various spiritually immature attitudes and cravings to avoid. We can learn what they are by examining other passages where spiritual immaturity is presented (1 Corinthians 1-3; Ephesians 4:15-16; Hebrews 5:11-14; 2 Peter 1:4-9). To summarize:

  • A spiritually immature person evaluates things based on worldly standards—eloquence, strength, influence, human wisdom and selfish ambition.
  • A spiritually immature person is easily moved from one set of ideas to another; he or she likes to hear something new (cf. Acts 17:21).
  • A spiritually immature person has trouble distinguishing good from evil. This comes from a lack of experience with God and his ways.
  • A spiritually immature person is not spiritually productive.

What areas of spiritual immaturity do you see in your life? We all have some. All of us need to ask the Lord for grace to examine ourselves according to the Scriptures. Perhaps you are struggling with a delight in human wisdom or selfish ambition (pride and jealousy). Ask God to show you.

Grace and peace, David