The Joy of Glory

Matthew 5:33-37 (click here)
…do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil. (Matthew 5:36-37)

Reflection
We like to think we are in control. We like to think we can determine what is going to happen. Yet, we cannot even make one hair on our head white or black (excluding modern dying practices…we’re talking about really changing the color of our hair as it grows…we can’t do that).

Swearing an oath is rooted in the assumption that we can control what is going to happen. Invoking things to guarantee our oaths (like “I swear to God”) actually dares to assert our authority over the things by which we are swearing. It is like we need to add the authority or character of something else to our word because somehow we are not trustworthy without this added authority.

The purpose of Jesus words here in Matthew 5 are not to prevent us from making promises, but to simply be the kind of people who do not need to reinforce their word because we already exude trustworthy character.

So far as it depends upon us, we keep our word. We recognize that we do not have ultimate control, but we mean it when we say “yes” or “no” and we will do all we can to keep our word.

Ultimately, we are a people of our word, because we serve a God who keeps his word. The way to honor the Lord in all our promise making is not be “swearing by him,” but by being faithful to what we say as he is faithful to what he says.

Our God keeps his word. As his people, we are to keep our word in so far as it depends upon us. As a faithful people, we are pointing to our faithful Lord.

*The complete SVCC Lenten reading guide is available here.

Zechariah 14:6-9
On that day there shall be no light, cold, or frost. And there shall be a unique day, which is known to the LORD, neither day nor night, but at evening time there shall be light. On that day living waters shall flow out from Jerusalem, half of them to the eastern sea and half of them to the western sea. It shall continue in summer as in winter. And the LORD will be king over all the earth. On that day the LORD will be one and his name one.

Reflection
On that day…

The prophet sees a day coming in which the Lord will recreate everything. Just like in the original creation, when there was yet neither day or night, God shall remake everything to be the way it should.

There will be everlasting life!

Flowing water is known as living water and is a great Biblical symbol for life. The prophet sees such life giving water flowing out from the city of the Lord to the farthest reaches of the earth in both directions!

God himself is enthroned over all and his name alone is on the lips of people. All the names of every false god have faded away…his name is one!

We have been promised this day. Yet, amidst the world we inhabit, such a day seems like a far-off, fanciful dream. Our world is covered in anything but God’s life giving water and people use their lips for anything but praise of the one true God.

How are we to have faith that God will fulfill such massive promises of grace?

The cross.

The cross is the darkest moment this world has ever seen…and yet…it is the brightest moment in which God brought forth eternal life through death itself! The cross serves as the our constant reminder and guarantee that we serve a God who can take all the darkness this world can muster and bring forth light and life and beauty.

When you need a guarantee that God will bring about every grace he has promised…cling to the cross.

*The complete SVCC Lenten reading guide is available here.

Zephaniah 3:9-13 (click here)
…for then I will remove from your midst your proudly exultant ones, and you shall no longer be haughty in my holy mountain. But I will leave in your midst a people humble and lowly. They shall seek refuge in the name of the LORD… (Zephaniah 3:11b-12)

Reflection
The prophet is crying out to God’s people about a coming day of salvation and restoration. Yet, not all who have labeled themselves as belonging to the Lord will experience this day the same.

There is a sharp contrast between the experience of the proud and the humble. James 4:6 tells us that “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

That is exactly what we see here in Zephaniah’s words. The proud experience judgment, while the humble experience salvation. So my question is, “What’s the difference?…what makes someone proud or someone humble?…what guarantees salvation over judgment?”

On the surface, it may seem like the difference lies in our works. If we act in a humble way, verses acting in a prideful way…we will earn salvation. But, that is contrary to everything we know about the grace of God! Such earning would only serve to put me in a prideful place because I could boast about the salvation I had earned.

Zephaniah leaves no room for confusion over what it means to be prideful or humble. The proud are those who have been “haughty” in God’s holy mountain. In other words, they have trusted in themselves, even when proclaiming trust in the Lord. Zephaniah 1:8-13 describes these people as wealthy and trusting primarily in their own possessions and abilities.

The humble, on the other hand, are those who are “lowly” and seek refuge in the name of the LORD. In other words, they do not trust in themselves or rely on their own resources, but totally rely upon God.

The difference between the proud and the humble is not works-based but faith-based. The difference is where we place our trust. Do we admit our lowliness and our need for the Lord…or are we prideful and trusting in ourselves. The only people who can receive grace are those who first know they need it.

No matter how much we try to identify ourselves with God’s people, we are only truly one of those people if our trust is in him.

The difference between pride and humility is where one places their faith.

*The complete SVCC Lenten reading guide is available here.