Sleep! It's A Good Reminder
John Piper brings theology to bear on our sleep:
Sleep is a daily reminder from God that we are not God. “He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep” (Psalm 121:4). But Israel will. For we are not God. Once a day God sends us to bed like patients with a sickness. The sickness is a chronic tendency to think we are in control and that our work is indispensable. To cure us of this disease God turns us into helpless sacks of sand once a day. How humiliating to the self-made corporate executive that he has to give up all control and become as limp as a suckling infant every day.
Sleep is a parable that God is God and we are mere men. God handles the world quite nicely while a hemisphere sleeps. Sleep is like a broken record that comes around with the same message every day: Man is not sovereign. Man is not sovereign. Man is not sovereign. Don’t let the lesson be lost on you. God wants to be trusted as the great worker who never tires and never sleeps. He is not nearly so impressed with our late nights and early mornings as he is with the peaceful trust that casts all anxieties on him and sleeps.
What’s in a Genealogy?
What’s in a Genealogy? Not much right? It’s just a list of names.
Yes, but…those names are of real people with real stories. And those stories matter.
As we studied the book of Ruth we saw that the entire book ends with a genealogy of David:
Now these are the generations of Perez : to Perez was born Hezron, and to Hezron was born Ram, and to Ram, Amminadab, and to Amminadab was born Nahshon, and to Nahshon, Salmon, and to Salmon was born Boaz, and to Boaz, Obed, and to Obed was born Jesse, and to Jesse, David (4:18-22).
But why put this at the end of the book of Ruth? Essentially it shows the “birth certificate” of David, who just so happened to be the grandson of Obed. David would be the first legitimate and greatest king of Israel. God was answer the plea from Judges 21:25 – “In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”
God is saying to his covenant people, “Amidst all this darkness, I have not forgotten about you. I’ve been working to provide a great king for you.”
The story of Ruth is not just about a sweet marriage in a little village and a happy grandmother. It’s about the Lord sovereignly exercising his covenant love to redeem a people for himself through the lineage of David. This story points forward to David. The book of Ruth tells us about the preservation of the family line of David. And it’s from the line of David that Jesus Christ would come! So the story of Ruth points forward to David who points forward to Jesus!
But there’s more!
Notice who is part of this genealogy. Perez whose mother was Tamar. Boaz whose mother was Rehab. Obed whose mother was Ruth. David whose wife was Bathsheba.
Those are the four women listed in the genealogy of Jesus (cf. Matt. 1:1-17). That’s right included in the genealogy of Jesus is Tamar, a foreigner who deceived her father-in-law to sleep with her; Rehab, a prostitute; Ruth, a broke, widow from enemy land; Bathsheba, an adulteress.
Oh, how great of a Redeemer we serve! That he would not only redeem the foreigner, the prostitute, the enemy, and the adulteress, but sovereignly orchestrates it so that his very family line included those people so that we are left with no doubt about his redeeming power and love.
Remember, that you are Tamar, Rehab, Ruth, and Bathsheba. Yet, God in his kindness offers the same redemption to you.
Don't Let Satan Dull You
Below is an excellent post from Desiring God on capturing the wonder of God even in what may seem mundane and ordinary:
The devil does not want you to wonder. Wonder is deadly to the domain of darkness because of its dangerous tendency to lead to worship.
So the devil is going to do his level best to keep you stupid — stupid in the sense of being sense-less. If he can’t damn you, he will try to dumb you. You must resist him (1 Peter 5:9)!
All the senses that God has given you are telling you about God today (Romans 1:20). And one of the healthiest things you can do for your soul after prayer and bathing in God’s living Word is to listen to creation tell you about the glory of God (Psalm 19:1).
You live and move and have your being in a world so full of visible and invisible, material and spiritual wonders that’s it’s a wonder you are not constantly overwhelmed by even the most ordinary things.
Look at the dead fly on your windowsill, for example. Could you have imagined such a creature? Its eyes gave it almost 360-degree compound vision and it tasted with its legs. Its transparent wings moved it faster than your hand. The most brilliant humans in history combined could not create one and God made this marvel mainly for manure.
Then look at the windowsill. If it’s wood it was once a living tree whose branches stretched to the sky and caught sunrays in its leaves for food. Where did that tree grow? How did light and water produce something so strong and durable that it now shelters you and frames your view?
Now look at the window glass. Who first discovered that by putting the seashore into the fire you could put the seashore into the side of your house and see through it? How God must have delighted the day the glass age dawned!
And as you look through your window know that each thing on which your eye rests has a story that stretches back, back into ancient ages before all memory except the Ancient of Days. Every living thing you encounter is a descendent of the Adam of its kind. Open your window and listen. Every sound is telling you something about that story. Every smell too. Get out into the sun or rain, heat or chill, wind or still and feel the real.
And wonder. Let yourself wonder. Let it lead you to worship the One who created it all (Colossians 1:16) and who is at this very moment upholding it all by the word of his power (Hebrews 1:3).
But expect a fight. The devil wants you stupid, distracted from wonder, fearful of an imagined future, and deceived by his virtual, distorted counterfeit of God’s true world.
But don’t be fooled. All the awe and health and romance is in the real. Get into the book of Scripture first and then get out into the book of nature. Listen to them tell you of the glory of God.
“Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well” (Psalm 139:14).
Looking at Jesus in the Face of Boaz
In the face of Boaz we see a pointer to Christ, the greater Redeemer. Here is what we see of Boaz in Ruth 2:
- Vs. 4 &12: The Redeemer is one of Blessing to the unworthy servant
- Vs. 9, 22: The Redeemer is one of Protection to the unworthy servant
- Vs. 14, 18: The Redeemer is one who has abundance & satisfies the unworthy servant
- Vs. 13: The Redeemer gives comfort & kindness to his unworthy servant
- Vs. 10-11: The Redeemer even rewards his unworthy servant
How more clear a picture do you need of Christ!? Are we not Ruth, in that we are from outside the clan of His people? Yes, enemies of the Living God & His people. Did we not “happen” upon His field of harvest as unworthy, needy servants?
Did He not give us blessing, reward, protection, abundance, satisfaction, comfort, kindness, yes even the greatest of Rewards?
Marvel at the abundant “hesed” kindness of our great God and Redeemer!!
Six Ways of Minimizing Sin
These six ways of minimizing sin are very instructive regarding gospel-centered sanctification/mortification of sin. Take a moment and examine your fight against sin, the ways you are prone to minimize sin, and develop an intentional strategy to renounce them.
Defending
I find it difficult to receive feedback about weaknesses or sin. When confronted, my tendency is to explain things away, talk about my successes, or to justify my decisions. As a result, I rarely have conversations about difficult things in my life.
Pretending
I strive to keep up appearances, maintain a respectable image. My behavior, to some degree, is driven by what I think others think of me. I also do not like to think reflectively about my life. As a result, not very many people know the real me (I may not even know the real me).
Hiding
I tend to conceal as much as I can about my life, especially the “bad stuff”. This is different than pretending in that pretending is about impressing. Hiding is more about shame. I don’t think people will accept the real me.
Blaming
I am quick to blame others for sin or circumstances. I have a difficult time “owning” my contributions to sin or conflict. There is an element of pride that assumes it’s not my fault AND/OR an element of fear of rejection if it is my fault.
Minimizing
I tend to downplay sin or circumstances in my life, as if they are “normal” or “not that bad. As a result, things often don’t get the attention they deserve, and have a way of mounting up to the point of being overwhelming.
Exaggerating
I tend to think (and talk) more highly of myself than I ought to. I make things (good and bad) out to be much bigger than they are (usually to get attention). As a result, things often get more attention than they deserve, and have a way of making me stressed or anxious.
**These are taken from TheGospel-CenteredLife study**
31 Days
Revelation 5 & 8 tell us the prayers of the saints fall upon the altar of God. Yes, our prayers are heard, and in God's perfect timing he will answer our prayers. We should feel the privilege and responsbility to pray for our brothers and sisters around the world. To help you do just that, this prayer calendar, which focuses on many countries known for having the worst persecution and the least Gospel light, is now available for download. Use this calendar as a resource for your daily prayer time—and share it with others.
(HT: Tim Challies)