Going with the Flow

The heavens are Yours, the earth is also Yours; the world and all it contains, You have founded them; Tabor and Hermon shout for joy at Your name. You have a strong arm; Your hand is mighty, Your right hand is exalted. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; Lovingkindness and truth go before You. How blessed are the people who know the joyful sound! O Lord, they walk in the light of Your countenance. In Your name they rejoice all the day, and by Your righteousness they are exalted. For You are the glory of their strength, and by Your favor our horn is exalted. For our shield belongs to the Lord, and our king to the Holy One of Israel. (Psalm 89:11-18)

I started the last post with this Psalm and it seems appropriate for this discussion as well. It’s attributed to Ethan the Ezrahite who was one of the Levite musicians who accompanied the return of the ark of the covenant to the city of David (i.e. ancient Jerusalem) during David’s reign. The psalm exalts the Lord as the source of all that pertains to living the “good life.” His power is acknowledged, but the exercise of that power is qualified in terms of His righteousness and justice, as well as His lovingkindness and truth. Our God is all powerful but He also displays the epitome of goodness—which is comforting for those of us who seek to know Him.

Who is God? That’s the question to be asked. Who exactly is the Lord: or do we think about that at all? When I try to envision the Lord the image of a great light on a distant horizon comes to mind. There might be an outline of Him sitting on a throne enveloped in that light, but it’s the brightness of that light and the panorama of the presentation that’s my focus. And yet the other qualities that were presented in the psalm are more particular in nature. Our God is a person not an entity; He’s an individual not a force that animates our reality. He displays characteristics to which we can identify. His power and strength are exercised in a manner that’s informed by His righteousness. Justice adheres to His intentions. Lovingkindness and truth direct His actions. He’s a personal God who engages His personal creations. We can engage the Lord because we are personal self-conscious beings created in His image. And it’s through those attributes that we can get to know and walk with the Lord. It’s an interesting balance; our God is an all-powerful presence and an accessible, distinct being at the same time.

The question is: How do we interact with Him? It’s one thing to believe that the Lord exists, but does that recognition translate to a meaningful relationship with our Father God? Coming to the faith was a wonderful experience for me. I was plucked out of a very dark place when I realized that God was real and that He’d made a way for me to be reconciled with Him. He really does exist, but who is He? That’s the question that I’ve continued to address throughout my walk with Him. Who is the Lord? And what does He have to do with the way I conduct my life? At the extremes He’s the all-powerful reality who presents as an enthroned figure enveloped in light on the horizon. From that vantage point He’s given us a “rule” book that we’re expected to follow in order to establish and maintain our good standing with Him. At the other end of the spectrum He’s a close friend with whom we walk as we go through life. He’s our confidant; someone we can turn to for advice and consultation as we make our way. From this vantage point we can use the Bible as a guide book informed by His presence with us. Both approaches are valid to a certain extent, but I don’t think either approach is sufficient: there’s more to it than that. Being familiar with Him through the abiding Holy Spirit is legitimate, and following the “stipulations” that adhere to godliness is appropriate. But I think that there’s more to be gained in an ongoing exploration with regard to the Christian walk. There is a greater sense of His presence to be obtained. In John’s Gospel Jesus explains features of this approach by likening it with a fruit-bearing vine.

I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. You are already (pruned) clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither than can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:1-5)

I’ve used this text in the past and it continues to resonate with me. It really does capture the essential nature of our walk with the Lord. We are called to serve His purposes and in the process of our service our existence is redefined. As followers of the Christ we don’t just mimic His example, or regulate our behavior according to a set of rules. We’re called on to enter a very personal relationship with our Lord, a relationship that redefines us as true sons and daughters of our Holy Father.

However, establishing and developing this relationship can be hindered by the environment in which we live. It is the case that we’re usually surrounded by ideas no matter where we might be. Usually these ideas are familiar, often to the point that we don’t notice them. We usually have an affiliation with our surroundings. People within our community usually speak a familiar language, and share with us a basic understanding of our world and its features. As modern Americans we understand in general terms the composition of our world and the phenomena that it displays. Ideas about gravity and motion, atoms and molecules, heat and cold, light and darkness, don’t baffle us. We know where we are and, in some sense, why we are the way we are. This is true for everyone, Christians and non-Christians alike up to a point. Distinctions arise when we consider why we are the way we are. Non-believers are informed by science; believers of various types recognize a “supernatural” element. Within the Christian sphere a variety of ideas inform our understanding of the Lord and our understanding of ourselves. What I’m emphasizing here is a view in which our very existence is defined by our relationship with the Lord. We’re defined by that relationship. Following the “rules” of the Bible is important, engaging in habitual practices that reinforce our knowledge of who God is and what He has provided in the death and resurrection of Jesus is significant. However, Scripture points us to a dynamic relationship with God that redefines us. We’re not just “born again” to a new idea about God and ourselves. Our rebirth alters our existence. God comes to dwell within us as Holy Spirit, and His presence changes us…we become “new creatures” in Christ! I’ve emphasized this before, and I’m doing it again. What animates us is spirit not synapses; and when we’re born again, God takes up residence in us as the Holy Spirit. But that condition is not imposed on us against our will, we must accommodate that residence by functioning in unison with the Lord. He doesn’t impose Himself on us against our will; we must choose to follow His leading. (Ephesians 4:5; Romans 8:12-17) And as we learn to do that our life choices take on a significance that renders us useful in the larger scheme of things intended by the Lord.

This is not usual even within the Christian environment, and the reason for this is twofold. On the one hand there are many who affirm the Christian faith without understanding the Good News that they’ve embraced. The reason for this is that they haven’t read their Bible very much, and, perhaps, those who are looked to for leadership aren’t presenting the full depth of the Gospel. There are a lot of people throughout the world who affirm the Christian message in some way, but in order to really “get it” we need to seek it aggressively. The other source of résistance is the world itself and all that it presents. I’ve said it before and I’m saying it again, in this day and age we’re being inundated with a deluge of ideas about virtually everything! And the question is how does reading the Bible and prayer stand up to that? Distractions are being presented in a thrilling, sensational manner that excites us and threatens us at the same time. If we don’t keep up we’ll miss out; we’ll be left behind; and, if we’re not careful, we’ll never catch up! This circumstance can affect the Church as well. In order to get, and keep, everyone’s attention, it’s thought that the Gospel needs to be presented and affirmed in a sensational manner. This can be appropriate and effective to a certain extent. The danger is that such an effort can lack the emphasis of a very personal and vital relationship with the Lord that Scripture presents to us. Cultivating such a relationship requires a determination to stop and listen, to seek and expect, to absorb and process what God by His Spirit is saying. Such an effort requires choosing a personal encounter with the Lord rather than being swept along by a momentum of excitement. It’s a choice that we all must make, and one that should be encouraged by the leadership within the Church. It reminds me of an expression that was used in the past to refer to our prayer life: the term was “quiet time.” We were called on to stop what we were doing and get quiet as we sought the Lord in prayer. The environment that surrounds us today is fast moving and continuous, and to some extent that pace and intensity has seeped into the Church. The content being presented and endorsed may be appropriate but the presentation reflects the intensity and continuous flow of the world. My point here is that we need to regularly stop and reflect on what the Lord is saying to us. Slow down…quiet down and not only speak to the Lord in prayer, we need to listen to what the Lord has to say to us. It is possible to ignore the Holy Spirit, to “grieve” Him and fail to listen to Him. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-20; Ephesians 4:30) And the likelihood of that happening is enhanced in the current environment of continuous sensationalized movement. It’s up to each one of us to stop “going with the flow” and place ourselves in a posture in which we can hear what the Lord has to say.

Stop, Look, Listen

Praise the Lord!