Covenanter Witness Vol. 53 - Rparchives.org

me"come".References: Illustrateren"wise"around."the world. He longs for the days gone bywhen he had gone to the house of Godwith the throngs of worshipers. But inhis sorrow he consoles himself with God'shelp. He knows that although he is farfrom the house of God, he is not far fromGod. Because of this, he can sing, evenin the darkest, gloomiest night of sorrow. "Yet the Lord will command hisloving-kindness in the daytime, and inthe night his song shall be with(verse 8). It is easy to praise and thankGod in pleasant times; and one canmanage to keepsilent in times of sorrow and distress. But it is a real test offaith to try to sing in the dark night oftrouble, to praise and thank God in themidst of grief. Mere resignation is notthe highest expression of our trust inGod. Merely accepting our woes withoutcomplaining is not enough. We must beable to thank God for misfortune, andwe can if we really trust Him. We canhope in God because we know thatbrighter days are ahead for us. But faithgets its supreme test when it has to trustGod when there is no prospect of betterdays ahead. Yet the Christian is neverleft without hope; for he can alwayssing : God is my God.//. Longing for the House of God(Psalm 84).This 84th Psalm and the 42nd have acommon origin: the experience of a godly believer estranged from the Lord'shouse. The psalmist was an "out ofbounds"member, who wished he could bewith God's people in the sanctuary. Itwill helplongingus to appreciate the intenseof the psalmist's heart for thehouse of God if we remember that truereligion was bound up with the life ofthe nation and its people, Israel. To beoutside of the boundaries of Israel wasto be cut off from the Lord's people andfrom the worship of Jehovah. For a godly Israelite there could be no fellowshipwith the people outside of the borders ofhis own nation, for they were worldly,heathen people. Hence we have in thesetwo Psalms, according to Delitzsch, "athoroughly heartfelt and intelligent expression of the love to the sanctuary ofJehovah which yearns toward it out ofthe distance, and calls all those happywho have the like good fortune to havetheir home there."Do we ever have the yearning expressedin this Psalm? Would we wish to dwellin constant communion with God? Wecannot literally dwell in the house of God,but we can fulfill our deepest longingsthrough regular attendance at God'shouse. If we really love to commune withthe Lord, we will never be absent fromdivine worship unless we have some goodreason. Notice verse 5: "Blessed is theman whose strength is in thee; in whoseNovember 24, 1954heart are the highways to Zion." We maynot live far from the church, but are wesometimes estranged in our hearts fromGod's house? If we have the heart of apilgrim, ever going up to God's house,we will find even the valley of Baca(weeping) a place of blessing, and stepby step throughout life we will findstrength in God, until we reach our finaldestination, where we shall dwell in thehouse of the Lord forever. "They gofrom strength to strength, every one ofthem in Zion appeareth before God"(verse 7). If we have hope of communionwith God in eternal glory, we should delight in the worship of God's house eachSabbath morning and evening. For thecommunion of saints in the visible churchis a sample on a small scale of the communion in heaven. Our hearts thereforeshould swell with exultant happiness aswe worship today in God's house.III. The Eternal, Unchangeable God(Psalm 102:25-27).Considering the Psalms as a whole, itis a prayer of a patient sufferer for himself and for the Jerusalem that lies inruins (Delitzsch). The poet shares thecalamity that has befallen Zion and thehomeless people of Israel. He longs forthe day when Zion shall be rebuilt. Hehas faith that Zion will not lie in ruinforever. The basis of his faith is thatGod is forever the same (verses 25-27).(Read the entire Psalm 102 at this point.)In the psalmist's lament and hopethere is certainly a prophetic message forthe Lord's people today. Manyof theLord's people are in the captivity of modernism. All about them is unbelief; Zion'swalls lie in ruin. Few, like the psalmist,are grieved because of the state of thechurches today; few are pining away atthe sight of modern unbelief and apostasy. But there is hope. There are somewho do care about Zion, and pray for herprosperity. There are some who weep forher sins, and work for her welfare. Andthere is the everlasting God. He will buildup Zion strong and fair. His Kingdomshall come; He will establish it in Hisown time. The Church, though part ofher is lying in ruin today, is about to seea new Reformation. "Thou shalt arise,and have mercy upon Zion: for the timeto favor her, yea, the set time, is(verse 13).Our chief concern should be to be readyto hear what God speaks and, hearing,immediately to obey. If we have notgrown in grace it is because we have resisted the Spirit. For it is through Himalone that we understand Christ. G.Campbell Morgan, D.D.PRAYER MEETING TOPICDecember 15, 1954CONVERSIONA RETURN TOPsalmsFIRST LOVERev. 2:5Rev. Lester E. Kilpatrick50:7-11, page 12832:10-13, page 7495:5-9, page 23180:17-19, page 197such "conversion"in the life of David, II Sam. 12; Manasseh, II Chron. 33; Jonah, Jon. 2; Jeremiah, Jer. 15.Conversion, as being the side of regeneration which we can see,occurs butonce. Jesus says, "I give unto them eternal (not temporary or conditional) life;and they shall never perish, neither shallany man pluck them out of my hand"(John 10:28). Yet it would appear thatstill looking at this matter from thehuman side there are frequently otheroccasions in human experience when thereis a desperate need for professing Christians to "turnWhen Jesus was using to the utmostthose last few hours with the disciples,He tenderly but firmly warned Peter ofhis need. "Simon, Simon, behold Satanhath desired to have you, that he maysift you as wheat: But I have prayed forthee, that thy faith fail not: and whenthou are converted, strengthen thy breth(Luke 22:31, 32). Peter felt no suchneed. "Although all shall be offended,yet will not I." And when Jesus addedHis "Verily I say unto thee," Peter"spake the more vehemently, If I shoulddie with thee, I will not deny thee inany (Mark 14:29-31).This was, of course, after Peter's greatconfession at Caesarea Philippi whenJesus had said, "Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hathnot revealed it unto thee, but my Fatherwhich is in heaven" (Matt. 16:17). Peterhad been converted, but he had turnedaround again. In fact, his first recordedwords after Jesus declared that his confession wasof the Holy Spirit, showthat almost immediately he had turnedback toward sin, and needed to be turnedagain toward God.The letter in Rev. 2from which ourtext is taken was addressed to the churchat Ephesus. The Christian life and testimony are acknowledged,yet they areurged by the One holding the seven starsin His right hand, who walketh in themidst of the seven golden candlesticks,"Repent . . . else I will come unto theequickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except yerepent."Paul wrote to the Corinthians (I Cor.3:1 ff.), "I, brethren, could not speakunto you as unto spiritual, but as untocarnal, even as unto babes in Christ .. .331