All Creatures of Our God and King

Berean Baptist on April 22, 2019

Psalm 148

            In the last week of Jesus’ life, He entered Jerusalem to the wide acclaim of the people. They hailed Him as the King whom they believed would deliver them from the occupation of Rome and restore the kingdom to Israel. With one voice they shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest.” It was a remarkable display as palm branches were strewn in His path. The people wondered as He approached.

            Perhaps the most intriguing part of this display is the way Jesus chose to enter. It was not on a fine steed with bright regalia but on the foal of a donkey. No Roman official would enter a city this way. They would have a full cohort of soldiers in a display of power and they would ride on white horses with heads held high. Jesus, however, was meek and lowly and riding on a beast of burden that was the transportation of the common man. This fulfilled the ancient prophecy which said: “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass” (Zechariah 9:9).

            In Luke chapter 19, the story is told in a little different way. Like did not concentrate on the people’s shouts of praise but rather on the disciples. A multitude of them gathered to join the people’s homage. The Pharisees protested and asked Jesus to rebuke them, to which He replied, “If these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.” From this we can see that all creation was made to glorify Jesus Christ. Stubborn men may withhold their praise and never make mention of the majesty of His name, but the creation shall never cease to give their maker the acclaim He deserves.

            The psalmist would certainly agree. In 14 verses of the 148th psalm, he bids all of creation to witness the glory of Christ. He encourages all from every corner of the universe to sing their maker’s praise. He begins in heaven with the powerful angels. They were made to protect God’s throne and His holiness. They always do His perfect will and never stop as messengers of His good will to men.

            Then the psalmist moves to the celestial creation. He calls upon the sun, moon, and stars to join the chorus. And then it is the physical earth with its wide variety of creatures and natural beauty. From there, kings and rulers must lend their voices. Finally, it is all people especially those who are called by His name. The creation cannot be silent. Wicked men will not lift up their voices, but need we be disappointed because of them? Jesus was not. The Pharisees would not give Him praise and insisted others should not. Jesus simply said, “They may be silenced but you cannot silence the creation.”

            Christ will have His glory. We do not worry that the race of fallen men will not bow. We are not offended by what they may or may not do. The mighty vast creation is sufficient for this beautiful chorus. It will not be silenced no matter how loudly unbelieving skeptics may rail against Him. Remember this when you are worried about what America will do. The leaders of this country will not trample the sovereignty of God. He will triumph with all of the hosts on His side. “Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest” (Luke 19:38).

                                                                                    Pastor V. Mark Smith

All Creatures of Our God and King

Berean Baptist on August 13, 2018

Psalm 148

In the last week of Jesus’ life, He entered Jerusalem to the wide acclaim of the people. They hailed Him as the King whom they believed would deliver them from the occupation of Rome and restore the kingdom to Israel. With one voice they shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest.” It was a remarkable display as palm branches were strewn in His path. The people wondered as He approached.

Perhaps the most intriguing part of this display is the way Jesus chose to enter. It was not on a fine steed with bright regalia but on the foal of a donkey. No Roman official would enter a city this way. They would have a full cohort of soldiers in a display of power and they would ride on white horses with heads held high. Jesus, however, was meek and lowly and riding on a beast of burden that was the transportation of the common man. This fulfilled the ancient prophecy which said: “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass” (Zechariah 9:9).

In Luke chapter 19, the story is told in a little different way. Like did not concentrate on the people’s shouts of praise but rather on the disciples. A multitude of them gathered to join the people’s homage. The Pharisees protested and asked Jesus to rebuke them, to which He replied, “If these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.” From this we can see that all creation was made to glorify Jesus Christ. Stubborn men may withhold their praise and never make mention of the majesty of His name, but the creation shall never cease to give their maker the acclaim He deserves.

The psalmist would certainly agree. In 14 verses of the 148th psalm, he bids all of creation to witness the glory of Christ. He encourages all from every corner of the universe to sing their maker’s praise. He begins in heaven with the powerful angels. They were made to protect God’s throne and His holiness. They always do His perfect will and never stop as messengers of His good will to men.

Then the psalmist moves to the celestial creation. He calls upon the sun, moon, and stars to join the chorus. And then it is the physical earth with its wide variety of creatures and natural beauty. From there, kings and rulers must lend their voices. Finally, it is all people especially those who are called by His name. The creation cannot be silent. Wicked men will not lift up their voices, but need we be disappointed because of them? Jesus was not. The Pharisees would not give Him praise and insisted others should not. Jesus simply said, “They may be silenced but you cannot silence the creation.”

Christ will have His glory. We do not worry that the race of fallen men will not bow. We are not offended by what they may or may not do. The mighty vast creation is sufficient for this beautiful chorus. It will not be silenced no matter how loudly unbelieving skeptics may rail against Him. Remember this when you are worried about what America will do. The leaders of this country will not trample the sovereignty of God. He will triumph with all of the hosts on His side. “Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest” (Luke 19:38).

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

 

Zion

Berean Baptist on May 14, 2018

Psalm 132

Psalm 132 is most interesting as it relates to the temple built by Solomon and the placing of the ark of the covenant in the most holy place. For the previous five hundred years, Israel worshiped at the Tabernacle which at this time was located at Gibeon. When David was anointed king, he vowed to build a house for the Lord God but was prevented because scripture says he was a man of war. Instead, the building of the new magnificent sanctuary that would hold the most holy ark of the covenant was left to David’s son, Solomon.

Solomon’s reign was one of peace as no major wars occurred during his lifetime. At the same time, Israel increased in power and influence throughout the world. Solomon’s days were the most prosperous for Israel leading his reign to be known by successive generations as the Golden Age. In the New Testament, it was Solomon Jesus appealed to for His example of prosperity and notoriety telling the people He was greater than Solomon (Mt. 12:42) and comparing Solomon’s beauty to the loveliest of God’s creation (Mt. 6:29).

In the 13th verse of the psalm, the psalmist speaks of Zion as God’s choice for His holy habitation. Zion is Jerusalem and is synonymous with the city of God. The area was originally the hill on which David built his fortress, but later was expanded to include the temple mount. In the Old Testament when people spoke of going to Zion, they were referring specifically to making the trip to the temple.

Jerusalem is the only place God allowed a temple to be built. In the ancient world, temples for pagan gods were built in various locations such as Paul saw in Athens and Ephesus. However, the one true living God had only one place of worship and one place of sacrifice. In Paul’s time, the ark was long since gone but there was a stone in its place in the Holy of Holies on which the priest put a censor on the Day of Atonement. There were no images allowed and no representation of the ark. Any Israelite that wanted to observe the solemn feast days had only one place to go—he must go to Jerusalem.

Zion’s was further expanded to mean the holy city of the New Jerusalem (Heb. 12:22). This is the brilliant city of light in Revelation 21. It is the home of the bride of Christ, the Lord’s church. The New Jerusalem is a city that comes out of heaven and descends to rest above the new earth, possibly touching it at some point. Although all of heaven belongs to God and His presence fills it all, His special manifestation is in the New Jerusalem whose entirety is His temple. Essentially, God’s people dwell within His temple. We are in Christ so that scripture says Christ Himself is the temple.

The beauty of worship in Solomon’s time was unparalleled by any other period of Israel’s history. It most closely models the worship of heaven. When the Queen of Sheba visited Solomon, she was stunned with the magnificence of what she saw. And yet, Jesus, the one who was a lowly carpenter, said He was greater than Solomon. The real beauty of Jesus is not seen on the outside. It is to be inside Christ to be able to understand how glorious He is. You can see His beauty by faith. Trusting Jesus is to have a glimpse of Zion, the holy city of God.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Distorted Scriptures

Berean Baptist on January 22, 2018

The Bible is the only record we have of the way God works, and so it stands to reason that if Satan wants to confuse people about who God is he would work very hard to distort the only record we have that tells us what God is like.

The scriptures give a very clear description of what happens when people do not have the Bible to tell them what they must believe in order to know God. The knowledge of God’s existence is revealed in the creation, but this revelation is not enough to tell us His plan of redemption. It reveals His transcendence and His providence but does not tell us how we can have a personal saving relationship with Him. When people do not understand this, they have a tendency to transform God into an idol fashioned by their own hands and make Him into things that match even the lowest forms of the created order. This is a conscious effort to push God down. As Paul said, God is made into an image like corruptible man and to birds and four footed beasts and creeping things (Romans 1:23). Though most today do not have a visible idol of God as do the pagans, they still reinvent Him as the invisible likeness of man who thinks and acts like us. In this scheme, God becomes the approver not reprover of our sin.

Conversely, when we have the scriptures, we learn who God really is. As David said in Psalm 119, “I love thy law.” This was not because David had a special propensity for doing what was right, but he saw in the law of God a reflection of God’s true character. He learned to love and trust God because of it. He learned these things while possessing only a small portion of the scriptures. He had access only to the books of Moses and a few of the historical books. How much greater is our ability to know God’s goodness when we have the full complement of the sixty-six books of the canon of scripture?

Before the completion of the Bible and the globalization of it we enjoy today, Satan had to contend with only a very small population that possessed any of the Word. Today the world is filled with copies of the Bible and Satan must work overtime to confuse the minds of those who read it. For this reason, he attacks the Word at its core. He twists not only the concepts of scripture but also the very words themselves. How does he do it? By flooding the marketplace with counterfeit scriptures. He plants mistranslations—even missing translation such as is found in the NIV. Once the words of scripture are changed or eliminated, he has great success at changing the doctrines. When we concede that the Bible has errors, it is only a short step to include men’s ideas of how those errors should be corrected. Thus, we get Bibles with interpretation instead of translation.

This is just one of the many tactics Satan uses in relation to the Word to distort the truth of God’s character. How do we avoid these errors? Without question, the first measure is to stick to a tried and true translation. We have a reliable text that God has used to save the souls of millions of English speaking people. For more than four hundred years, the King James Version has led people to Christ and established believers in the faith. Why change what we know God has approved? Be safe—stay with the Bible of our English forefathers. We are determined to do this at Berean. The foundation of truth must be solid before the faith built upon it can stand. Satan has many avenues of attack. This is one we refuse to allow. We will not let him begin his deception by taking away the true Word of God.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

Thy People Shall Be Willing

Berean Baptist on October 30, 2017

Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth. (Psalms 110:3)

At the end of Matthew’s gospel is one of the most familiar of all texts concerning the work of the church. It ends with the commission of world evangelism given to the apostles by the risen Christ. The task of preaching the gospel to the nations was daunting to say the least, and seemingly unreasonable given the nearly wholesale rejection of the Lord’s own ministry. He was despised, rejected, beaten, humiliated, and crucified which was no indication the message He preached would gain widespread acceptance.

There was, however, a very important factor that made the task possible. It was His resurrection from the dead which told the disciples that anything was within His power. He was “declared to be the Son of God with power…by the resurrection from the dead” (Rom. 1:4). If the risen Christ commanded world evangelization, it was therefore possible. Jesus further declared the success of His commission by saying, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth” (Matt. 28:18).

This brings me to the 110th Psalm with its powerful message of the authority of Christ. In verse one of the psalm, David wrote, “The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.” This is a conversation between two persons of the Godhead. God the Father spoke to God the Son promising He would receive all authority in His kingdom. The suffering and death of the cross would result in His exaltation to the right hand as the King of heaven and earth.

This psalm holds the distinction of being the most quoted Old Testament passage in the New Testament. The importance of it cannot be overestimated especially as it relates to the closing verses of Matthew. There are two critical factors for the success of the commission of Matthew 28:19-20 that arise out of Psalm 110:3. The psalmist wrote, “Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power…” As witnesses of the gospel, the disciples were not much willing as they forsook the Lord and despaired in His death. They saw no hope of a dead Messiah fulfilling His promise of being the King in an earthly kingdom. However, their hope was revived with the resurrection. The power of the risen Christ and His promise to remain with them by the presence of the Holy Spirit gave them the sorely needed motivation for gospel preaching. They were willing to attempt an impossible task because the strength to accomplish it was not their own.

It is wonderful to have courage induced by the strength of Christ, but as impressive as this is, it is not enough to complete the task. This alone will not turn wicked sinners with depraved hearts to Christ. The factor of a willing soul-winner is needed but another factor must also accompany it. The second factor is a willing lost soul. This is equally impossible without supernatural ability because no souls are willing to come to Christ. Man’s will is bent away from Christ and will be forever unless it is changed by the Holy Spirit. This is what the Holy Spirit does in regeneration. He brings dead sinners to life and enables them to choose Christ in repentance and faith. When scripture says, “Thy people shall be willing” we know the gospel will be successful because God makes it so. He empowers the soul-winner with the courage to preach and then guarantees the success of the preaching by empowering the sinner to believe.

This is a topic that requires much more time and space, but it should be noted the word says, “Thy people shall be willing.” No others become willing except those who have been chosen by God to believe the gospel. This powerful combination of enabled soul-winners and enabled lost souls is far more than enough to convert those intended to be reached. Thank God none of this depends on our power. There is no success without God’s power and nothing but success with God’s power.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Help me, O LORD my God: O save me according to thy mercy…

Berean Baptist on September 25, 2017

In Acts chapter one after the ascension of Jesus, the disciples entered a ten-day waiting period for the coming of the Holy Spirit. During those days (Acts 1:15), Peter stood before the disciples to explain the need to appoint another apostle to fill the place of Judas who had betrayed the Lord. Peter spoke of the traitor’s awful death and then quoted Psalm 109:8 as justification for the selection of a replacement (Acts 1:20). This is a truly amazing exposition of the psalm as no one before could have interpreted this verse in this way.

If we care to investigate this Old Testament reference, we find ourselves immersed in one of the most perplexing of the psalms. Psalm 109 is perhaps the chief imprecatory psalm in which vengeance is asked against the enemies of David in particular and the enemies of God in general. David’s attitude does not seem to support Jesus’ teaching that we are to forgive our enemies.

I have read several explanations for the harshness of David’s words and how we might excuse him for what seems to be the opposite of a Christ-like spirit—but is it really unlike the Lord our God? I am convinced that God wants us to see the side of Him most people ignore or just completely dismiss. This side is God’s wrath. This is His commitment to justice in His condemnation of sin. I do not believe we need to make excuses for David because he asked God for vengeance. When he made the statement in verse 8 which was quoted by Peter in Acts 1:20, the link was established that what was spoken is the mind of God. This is not a repudiation of His love and mercy in the forgiveness of sin. It is confirmation of the awful consequences of the rejection of Christ.

My thoughts are drawn to Jesus’ words on the cross: “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” They did not know He was the Christ for if they had they would never have crucified Him (1 Cor. 2:8); but perhaps of equal importance, they would not have crucified Him if they knew the wrath of their coming judgment. Without repentance and faith, the blackness and darkness of an eternal hell were their destiny.

The modern pulpit rarely broaches the subject of God’s wrath. Sin and its consequences are negative and depressing, while the prevailing opinion is that church services should be positive and uplifting. Trevin Wax made this enlightening statement: “Hell is full of people who think they deserve Heaven. Heaven is filled with people who know they deserve Hell.” Churches are unwittingly confusing people and making far more of the first category than of the second. The first part of the quote is the problem of the “God loves you” pulpit. God’s love for people is never juxtaposed to His disgust for their sin. All of us deserve hell because we are guilty of sin. We do not have a few faults that need to be corrected. We have not made minor mistakes, but at heart, we are basically good people. No, we are nasty, vile, wicked, and disgusting. Such descriptions do not play well in the pulpit.

Psalm 109 is a reminder of what we deserve. David’s inventive mind in suggesting different punishments for his enemies cannot touch what God has planned. David’s imprecations only go as far as humans understand. No one knows how deeply God is offended nor how capable He is of satiating His vengeance. “God is love”—yes. John wrote this in his first epistle. Jesus came to save deeply offensive hell-deserving sinners which prove it. However, John also wrote the wrath of God abides on those who do not believe. Turn past 1 John to Revelation to see page after page of examples of God’s execution of wrath. Read chapter 19 and see Jesus in the thick of it as He wields the bloody sword of vengeance.

Heaven is never sweeter than when we understand what would have been if not for Jesus Christ. God’s wrath accentuates His deep love. We must preach it or else confuse people about what they deserve. “Help me, O LORD my God: O save me according to thy mercy.”

 

                                                                                    Pastor V. Mark Smith

A Psalm of David or a Psalm of Peter?

Berean Baptist on May 8, 2017

Psalm 86

As the title of Psalm 86 reveals, this is a psalm of David. As I read the psalm this week, I noticed how David’s thoughts parallel what must have been in Peter’s mind after he denied Jesus for the third time. This was a dark period in Peter’s life. This is the lowest point, the farthest he ever sunk in the trials of Christian living. Although he made the great confession of faith in Matthew 16, and although he steadfastly protested when Jesus told him what he would do, he still had a moment of weakness that was as bad as the traitor Judas.

The purpose of the story of his failure at the end of Matthew 26 is to show how easily we can fall into denial. In persecution, we may stand strong; in times of heightened sensitivity, we may gather ourselves and with strong resolve, we will not give up our faith. However, Satan rarely attacks at those times. He prefers to wait until we are unprepared; until we are smug and self-assured before he slings his fiery darts. When you lay aside the armor or are too casual to pay attention, Satan has the advantage. Peter was not felled by a burly Roman soldier, but by a little harmless maiden who made no threats.

Peter’s failure was not as sudden as we might think. It was a step by step process. The same is true of our failures. We rarely go from a stellar workhorse for Christ to a scared little weasel who pretends not to know Him.

How does this fit with the psalm? The psalmist wrote in a moment of despair, “Bow down thine ear, O Lord, hear me: for I am poor and needy.” We catch up to the psalm after Peter’s denials. This is when Peter realized his awful mistake. It was when Jesus looked at Him with disappointment that he knew how miserably he failed. Peter’s reaction was the reaction of a true Christian, not of a Judas. It was a gut-wrenching moment and he could not live with himself for what he had done. His tears were not merely tears of regret, but much more deeply felt. They were tears of godly repentance. Can we not image when Peter went out and wept bitterly that verses 5 and 6 of this psalm were the cry of his heart? “For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee. Give ear, O LORD, unto my prayer; and attend to the voice of my supplications.”

Peter’s denial was as serious as it gets. Jesus said those who deny Him before men He will deny before His Father in heaven. Peter denied before men, not once but three times. What kept Christ from denying Him? It was his repentance. He proved he was a child that God promised never to forsake. David and Peter prayed with the same confidence knowing that when they fell they would not be finally cast down.

When we sin, their plea must be our plea. Paul wrote, “Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.” No sin is too big for God to forgive. Peter’s story teaches us this lesson. Bitter tears of repentance are always followed by blessed forgiveness and renewal. It is God’s word and you can always count on it.

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

 

 

Failing but Not Forgotten

Berean Baptist on March 13, 2017

Psalm 78

Psalm 78 is a record of Israel’s history from their deliverance from Egypt to the reign of David. This psalm describes Israel’s often rebellion but also records how God would never let them go too far away to the point He would forsake them forever. The reading of this psalm might have been a little more appropriate in conjunction with next week’s study in Matthew, so you might catalog these comments in your mind and use them as an introduction to the disciples’ denial of Christ in Matthew chapter 26.

The Bible is an amazing book for many reasons, not the least of which is God’s way of exalting Himself from what seems to be an upside down position. If we were trying to convince people to follow a God they never desired, and if we wanted to preach His ability to change lives for the better, we would surely pick examples of His followers’ successes and leave the rest untold. Moses parting the Red Sea would be enough without telling how God kept him out of the Promised Land because he disobeyed by twice striking the rock. Joshua’s great victory over Jericho is enough without telling the story of Achan’s sin and the defeat at Ai. Samson carrying the gates of a Philistine city to the top of a hill is enough without telling of his terrible weakness of lust in falling prey to a conniving woman. And of course, David’s victory over the giant Goliath is enough without telling how he betrayed a trusted friend by committing adultery with his wife and then having him murdered in the cover-up.

The complete details of these fallible men’s lives would have been better left untold if we wanted to preach the marvelous virtues of our great God. However, God seeks glory in uncommon ways. The revelation of all the details shows how exceedingly gracious and merciful He truly is. How much love is needed to love someone who loves you? Jesus said if you love those that love you what thanks do you have? Even sinners love those that love them.

It would be enough to tell of God’s salvation of sinners who did not love Him if we wanted people to see how superior God’s love is. But what if God should add more details? What if after sending His Son to die for them and saving them those He loves are terribly ungrateful? How much more love does it take not to obliterate them in anger? It takes even greater resolve to love those that multiple times turn their backs on Him after receiving His rich benefits. God’s love is magnified as He promises to preserve His people despite their constant failures. This is the way God works. This is the way He wrote His book. Tell the whole story and God will be glorified in most uncommon ways.

After many verses of Israel’s obstinacy, the psalm ends on a note of peace. God gave Israel her greatest king. David, the shepherd king, brought Israel to prominence as he led them with a gentle hand. David symbolizes the last king of Israel. He is also a shepherd that feeds His flock and gently cares for those that are with young (Isa. 40:11). Christ is the great King. He loves us with unconditional love. He will never leave us or forsake us. Tell the whole world the story of Him and they will never find failure in Him. He came to make up for failures. God accepts us because of Him.

Thank God for His book. We see ourselves reflected in stories like Psalm 78. All too often they are tales of failures, yet we can still claim His promise that He will bring us home to glory.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

The Ark of the Covenant

Berean Baptist on November 28, 2016

Psalm 68

A few weeks ago I had a conversation with some of our members about my motivations for the study of God’s word. I have been teaching the Bible for over forty years, which by my obvious youthful appearance must mean I started when I was about four years old! I can’t explain exactly how it happened, but there was something in my father’s preaching that gripped me at a very young age. My desire was to know as much as he knew about the Bible. I have not reached that place after all these years, which has kept me in constant pursuit of the goal.

Psalm 68 caused me to reflect on this as I thought back to one of my father’s favorite topics, which was the preaching of the Tabernacle. I have to go back a long way to the first time I heard his series of messages on the subject. It must have been about 1960, and when I heard it I was hooked. The types of Christ found in Tabernacle worship became the foundation of my studies in the Word of God. All of the major doctrines of scripture are found there as they most gloriously display the magnificent work of our Lord Jesus Christ.

You might ask, “What has this to do with Psalm 68?” This is a very good question. The hint comes in verse 1 in which David said, “Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him.” Compare this to Numbers 10:35:  “And it came to pass, when the ark set forward, that Moses said, Rise up, LORD, and let thine enemies be scattered; and let them that hate thee flee before thee.” The subject of the psalm is thus identified. It is the movement of the Ark of the Covenant. This part of the Tabernacle worship is the most prominent because it represents the power of God in the presence of Jesus Christ.

The Ark was most useful on the Day of Atonement when the high priest went into the Holy of Holies to sprinkle the blood of the sacrifice on the mercy seat, a part of the Ark. This took place only once each year as the high priest made atonement for the sins of the entire nation. When sin is atoned, God is satisfied, and when Israel was sanctified the power of God was with them.

The power of the Ark struck fear into Israel as God strictly prohibited anyone to touch it (Numbers 4:15; 2 Samuel 6:6-7). Israel’s enemies also greatly feared the Ark: “And when the Philistines heard the noise of the shout, they said, What meaneth the noise of this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews? And they understood that the ark of the LORD was come into the camp. And the Philistines were afraid, for they said, God is come into the camp. And they said, Woe unto us! for there hath not been such a thing heretofore.” (1 Samuel 4:6-7).

The Ark of the Covenant has always fascinated me. There is much missed by those who never care to explore its significance in Old Testament worship. My dad loved this study and his passion for it was passed on to me. I cannot imagine I would understand what I know about doctrine if had not been for this blessed study. We went through the Tabernacle in 2005, and I am not sure that I wouldn’t want to research and revise those messages for another time.

Psalm 68 tells of David’s movement of the Ark from the house of Obed-Edom to Jerusalem. It was a thrilling journey filled with singing, sacrifice, and jubilant praise. Soon it would find a permanent home in the exquisite temple built by Solomon. The Ark continued to be the focal point of worship until Israel disobeyed God and turned to idolatry. When this happened, the Ark was taken away and the power of God has not since returned to Israel. However, we have been studying Israel’s future glory which is assured when the Ark’s antitype, Jesus Christ, will rule from Jerusalem in the temple of the millennial kingdom.

We pray that we will learn the lesson of obedience well. With obedience will come blessing. Without it, the power of God will never be a part of our lives.

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

Christ Beyond Understanding

Berean Baptist on October 24, 2016

Psalm 61

“From the end of the earth I will cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.”  Never has a verse been a more heartfelt cry of dependence than this. In the worst of times when we feel we are literally at the end of the earth, with despair like the fear of dying and helpless to go on living, we cry out to the only sure refuge in our awful desperation. What do you do when your world is crushed in heartache and you feel utterly alone?

In the past few weeks, many have reached out to ask for prayer because they face these kinds of circumstances. They are overwhelmed in their grief and may not know what to say, but only to ask, pray for me. Overwhelmed, the burdens are too heavy and there is nothing on the inside that can ease the pain or make them lighter. It is in these times that we seek someone higher. Not a nameless undefined higher power, but a rock of refuge who has proved His ability time and time again. The rock David refers to is Jehovah God for never in scripture is any mortal man referred to as a rock. For who is God, save the LORD? and who is a rock, save our God? (2 Samuel 22:32)  This rock is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ, the spiritual Rock who is always there (1 Cor. 10:4).

David is filled with metaphors for the one who always sustained him. Christ is a rock, a shelter, a strong tower, a tabernacle, a winged cherub, and a king. We might as easily say He is all in all, the one who is everything and from us withholds nothing. It is impossible to remain in despair when we know such incredible help is always available.

Those of you that are most familiar with my favorite subjects might well suppose I would be drawn to verse 4 with its references to the tabernacle. The person of Christ shines no brighter in any place in scripture than in the building and articles of this sacred structure. David would dwell in the tabernacle forever for there he sees God as the covering of salvation. There is a door through which we reach the incomparable glories of Christ. The door is faith and it opens to a golden room where the Holy Spirit lightens the believer to a world never remotely imagined.

Here is Christ as the nourishment of life in the shewbread. He is the sweet smell of incense on the altar as He lifts our prayers to the Father. He is the mercy seat where atonement is selflessly made for our sins. There is no beauty like Him so that He defies any adequate description. In verse 6, Christ is the eternal king whose days are prolonged to provide unceasing intercession. As long as He lives we live, enabling us to perform our vows of worship to the one who deserves love and adoration beyond all others.

It is difficult to express the sentiments of this psalm until you have been to the lowest place and been lifted out. When you reach the bottom and there is nowhere to look but up, this is when Christ means more than you can ever imagine. If He is this lovely through sinful eyes, think how matchless He will be when we reach perfection! Like heaven itself it is too much for mortal comprehension. Christ beyond understanding must satisfy us for now.

Pastor V. Mark Smith