Worth Keeping Around

If you had to assess your life and your behavior for any period of time, would you say that you are doing something to make it worth keeping you around? Are you worth your pay at work? Are you worth the love and kindness you receive in your home and church? Are you worthy of the good things God does for you?

David prays in Psalms 6:1-4 for mercy from God, and then in Psalms 6:5 he says something very unique and interesting: "No one remembers you when he is dead. Who praises you from the grave?" If you were to say this to God, what would His response be to you?

Would God respond to your plea with: "You don't remember me, anyway." or "Do you praise me while alive?" I hope that God would say to each of us, "I will answer you because you praise me with your whole heart." I want God to be pleased enough with my worship to hear me when I pray.

The Bench-Warmer

What kind of follower of Christ are you? Do you jump at every opportunity to get involved in your church, volunteer to help any time you can lend a hand? God knows what kind of Christian you are, and whether you're just warming a bench at church or if you're committed to following Him and doing all that you can to further the kingdom of God.

Jeremiah 17:9 tells us that the heart is a liar. Too often, someone who appears sincere in their worship is simply putting on a good show for those around them. No matter how sincere you appear to be, God knows the intention of your heart, and you aren't fooling Him, even if everyone around you falls for it.

The Bible goes on to say in Jeremiah 17:10 the God searches our hearts and minds and will reward us according to what we deserve. Matthew 6:1-2, 5, 16 tells us that if we are just putting on a show for men, then the recognition of men is the only reward we'll have; Matthew 6:3-4, 6, 17 shows us that if we are sincere with God, then our reward will come from Him.

God is not pleased with our praise when we do it for the recognition of men. God only recognizes and rewards us for our praise to Him because we love Him and want to serve him. So will you be a bench-warming hypocrite, looking only for the praises of men, or will you be on fire for God, simply because He died to save you?

Confidence in God

Do you have confidence in God? Would you tell someone who opposed you that God listens to you when you pray? David had the courage to do just that. Psalms 4 is believed to have been written the morning after Psalms 3. This is during the time when Absolom is leading a rebellion against David. It's almost as if David sings this prayer to God knowing that some of his enemies might hear it.

David starts this psalm out with thanks to God (Psalms 4:1), then begins directly addressing his enemies (Psalms 4:2-5). He addresses them in such a manner that shows that he has the utmost confidence that God will take care of him, and protect him from them.

Then, in Psalms 4:6-7, David contrasts hid faith in God with the faith that his enemies have. He shows that his enemies have faith in the things of the world: grain and new wine. David's faith, however, is in the joy of the Lord. David is an example here of Colossians 3:2, having set his faith in God, not on the things of the world like his enemies.

Lastly, in Psalms 4:8, we see David's confidence again in God. He says he can rest well at night because his peace comes from God. Do we have enough confidence in God to place our entire trust in Him, and have peace knowing that He's watching over us?

It's Good for Everyone

With Christmas fast approaching, I feel it is appropriate to remind people exactly what it is that we are celebrating, and the sort of men that were used by God for this to all come to pass. There were 3 distinct groups of men represented in the birth of Jesus: the government, the family, and the church. Essentially, this represents every type of man possible by representing government, the family unit, and the church.

The Government
Matthew 2:1-2 introduces us to the "wise men" or "Magi". We don't know their whole story, but obviously there was a star that these men spotted in the sky that was different or new, and they recognized it as a sign that Jesus had been born, and came to worship Him. These men were obviously significant emissaries of their countries, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, all very expensive items. These Magi encountered another type of governmental leader, Herod, who according to Matthew 2:3-9 and Matthew 2:12-16 wanted to kill Jesus. Jesus' mere lowly presence on earth was such a threat and offense to Herod that he wanted Him dead the moment He was born. Christ represents a very real threat even now to worldly leadership. Those following Him have the power of Christ through prayer to tear down the authority of men who would oppress them. To these Magi though, Christ, this little newborn baby, was worthy of their allegiance and their worship.

The Family
In Luke 2:8-20 we find the magnificent appearance of angels to the working man, heralding the birth of Christ. These men get to be the first average Joe to hear the good news and come seek Him. These men wouldn't have necessarily been educated men, and a sign in the stars may well have passed their understanding, so for them, it was made much clearer. An angelic for broke throughout the heavens and sang praise to them! How awesome and amazing it must have been! These men didn't have expensive gifts to bring, but Luke 2:16 says they hurried or made haste to find Jesus. When they heard the news, they immediately rushed to find Jesus. Luke 2:20 shows them returning glorifying and praising God.

The Church
Luke 2:25-39 shows us Simeon and Anna, who immediately upon seeing Jesus began to worship and praise and speak about Him. We often hear of Simeon here, but unfortunately Anna is commonly overlooked. Anna is an important piece here, as in the church she is the confirmation of Simeon's praise. Matthew 18:16 and 2 Corinthians 13:1 show us that we should be able to confirm anything with the word of 2 or 3 people. It's an important part of Judaism, established in Deuteronomy 17:6 and in Deuteronomy 19:15, then repeated for the New Testament church also in 1 Timothy 5:19 and Hebrews 10:28. This event established the practice again for those who follow Christ.

Every Walk of Life
We've seen here that by the time Jesus was 8 days old, His presence had been acknowledged by people from every walk of life, and members of every group had given praise to Him. Not everyone who heard of Him worshiped Him, as is still the case today. His words and a life pleasing to God and patterned after the example Jesus left us is good for every man, every group, and every walk of life. Have we acknowledged His presence in our lives this season? Have we praised Him? Have we spread the news of His birth to everyone we've come across?

Praise Ye the LORD

How often do we Praise God? Is it a daily thing, or does it only happen on Sunday morning? How often should we praise God? The answer is found in Hebrews 13:15. Continually with the help of Jesus we should offer our sacrifice of praise to God specifically by proclaiming the glory of His name.

I think too often we get caught up in the specifics of what praise is to Christians. Perhaps more of what we've always been taught. Perhaps to some people praise is three hymns (two if they're longer) then offertory followed by two hymns of worship. While there's nothing wrong with having a method to worshiping God, this is not a regulated thing when it comes to praise.

As a father, when I praise my daughter I don't have a specific ceremony to do it. Rarely do I perform the praise in song, and if I did it wouldn't be choral (I love my daughter, but it's hard enough to get a small group of people to sing to the Almighty God let alone an eight year old). So my praise of her comes in words mostly to people who I think should know just how smart, beautiful, and well-behaved she is.

Likewise our praise to God isn't just the songs we sing to Him, but the way we proclaim him to people that we meet. Witnessing to someone is telling them about God. If you're telling them the good things God has done, then you're praising Him. It's that simple. So praise God continually. Wherever you go. Whoever you meet. As the Psalmist said in Psalm 150:6 Let everything that has breath Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord.