5.26.19 Work: #4
Robert Donovan video
- Intro:
*The reason we began this year, the first 3 months, looking at the Bible as a single, reliable story…is so that we would have confidence in it when it speaks to our lives in ways that the voices inside us and around seem to contradict it.
*Then we began looking at what the Bible says about suffering, then work/life balance, next month sexuality/family/singleness.
Not that we would take irrational “leaps of faith” and deny evidence and reason.
But because we all live by faith…and both evidence and reason point to the reality of God and the reliability of his word.
We need a fixed point of reference for our lives…God has given one.
Robert had voices from experts, from those who could choose to take his business away, from people who seemed to be prospering (and at the time they were)…telling him things that contradicted what he believed the Bible said to be true.
This was a very serious decision for him…was he going to believe God is there or not?
Was he going to live like that in practical, and difficult ways or not?
He would be the first to say he didn’t do it perfectly…but he was struggling with the right question…”Since God is there and the Bible is true…how do I do this?”
The answers are not easy to come by, sometimes the way ahead is like driving through fog…you have limited visibility except on the road right in front of you.
But this is the super important question…is there a road, what is the right road?
There will always be some fog in this life…but there is a right road to travel.
We must begin the decision-making process on how we will live and work with the conviction of both the reality of God and the reliability of his word.
Because our faith in him and his word will be tested time and again
Sometimes we believe that we have no problem with faith, we are fully confident in God…but really we are just not currently being tested.
The last few weeks many homes in our area have been tested for their water resiliency.
Many failed the test…some of those homes, the owners believed them to not be at risk for water damage.
The fact is, they had not been fully put to the test…but given enough water, as a friend said last week, all homes will fail the test.
Our faith will be tested in the real world…it need not fail the test…because God will be found faithful…the question is….are we now training to trust him when those tests come?
Are we walking the right road…in the day to day life we live now?
Luke 16:10…Jesus said that the way to prepare for the big tests, is to pass the many little tests of faithfulness we have before us every day.
Do we believe this stuff or not? If we do…it will show up in our lives…in practical choices we make.
Years ago my father in law was in a meeting with other leaders in his church…he made the suggestion that they trust God in specific ways in regard to a major decision they were making.
My father in law was a business man, and he lived his life…across the board, in ways that demonstrated confidence in God’s existence and the reliability of his word.
He thought it made sense for them as a church…to express their confidence in God in a practical way regarding the decision they were making.
Other businessmen and the pastor at the time…dismissed his thoughts as being unrealistic.
So do we believe this stuff or not?…what about when it doesn’t seem to make good “business sense” or the experts of the day say otherwise?
This month we are looking at work, life, worship balance.
We are going to work through Ps. 15…a Psalm that outlines the life of faith revealed in actual, practical and difficult choices.
Psa. 15:0 A psalm of David.
Psa. 15:1 LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill? 2 He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from his heart 3 and has no slander on his tongue, who does his neighbor no wrong and casts no slur on his fellowman, 4 who despises a vile man but honors those who fear the LORD, who keeps his oath even when it hurts, 5 who lends his money without usury and does not accept a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things will never be shaken.
The Psalm begins with a question and ends with a promise.
Q: Who may dwell in your sanctuary?
P: He who does these things will never be shaken?
What does it mean to “dwell in his sanctuary”?
What are the things that will lead to us never be shaken?
What exactly does it mean that we won’t be shaken?
“Dwell in your sanctuary and live on your holy hill?”…saying the same thing different ways.
Hebrew poetry… frequently used what is called parallelism for emphasis.
This just means saying the same thing in two different ways…we do it all the time…
Like “I really love you, you mean so much to me.”
Here and in other places like this, we shouldn’t make much of the different words used…but rather the idea being emphasized.
The sanctuary refers to the Tabernacle or Tent where God’s presence was localized in mobile fashion during the Exodus.
The Holy Hill is the temple mount…where God’s presence was localized in fixed form during the time of the Kings
Both represent the same thing…the presence of God…a close, personal, relationship with God.
So our ears should perk up…“Hey, here is the kind of person who will experience God personally.”
“Really…what kind of person is that?”
“Well, let me tell you what kind.”
What follows is not a list of rules or a 1, 2, 3 plan…but a representative list of the kind of heart and life this person will exhibit.
Why is this distinction important?
We tend to read the Bible looking for rules, principles, a map…that will lead us to success in life.
But the point of the Bible is relationship with God…it’s not a self-help book or merely a guide to success in life.
Of course the only way to be successful in ultimate ways is to have relationship with God…but relationship with God is the point.
That is the heart of this promise…not some path to our success but the way to journey with God.
So in this Psalm we see some of the character of God revealed…and how we can live life his way…and as we walk his way…we can know him.
This life of dwelling with God or experiencing God is portrayed as a journey…a long walk his direction.
It is why we frequently, correctly, talk about our relationship with God as our “walk with God”
It is traveling his path, his way…with him.
So here is the kind of person who will live in God’s presence:
2 He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous,
This walk is marked by being blameless…a word that was used to describe Job.
It doesn’t mean perfect it means these people are marked by ethical rightness and so their day to day actions are “righteous”…they do the right thing.
This is not a walk of moral perfection it is a life direction.
Again…think relationship not rules.
This is not a map TO God but a life walked WITH God.
Faith in God shows up in choices to do the right thing…Since he is there I can know the right thing to do…then I must choose to do that right thing.
This is a journey…a day to day walk…that is shaped by the reality of God and the reliability of his word.
This is the path…then some specific examples are given of how to walk this path…this is not an exhaustive list but a representative one.
“So, you want to know the kind of person who will experience God in his or her day to day life…it is this kind…the kind who will journey the path of doing the right thing.”
He doesn’t join us…we can join him.
What does that look like? “Well, for example…”
- They have integrity of speech:
- Positive: who speaks the truth from his heart
They don’t attempt to deceive with their words.
What they say represents what they actually think.
They don’t try to mislead or keep necessary information from others.
*Lying is assumed in our culture (and every other culture for that matter)
-If you were to say “I don’t lie” in many circles…they would laugh and say “you just did.”
*But lying originates from Satan…he is the Father of lies…he invented it.
God, is truth…he is all light and life and relationship…lying destroys relationship…it is verbal eclipses…blocking light in relationships.
But speaking the truth from the heart…doesn’t mean they say everything on their minds either.
Some things shouldn’t be said…negative side.
- Negative: And has no slander on his tongue, who does his neighbor no wrong and casts no slur on his fellowman,
Slander, slur…again, parallelism…don’t try to make too much of the differences but recognize the emphasis.
“Don’t mistreat people with your words…it is bad!”
In between “no slander” and “no slur” is the general statement…”who does his neighbor no wrong.”
Much of the wrong done to others begins and ends with words designed to hurt or to diminish or to deceive.
One of the greatest compliments someone can say about another person is that that person never has anything bad to say about other people.
Why is that we so highly value this quality in people and yet don’t always aspire to have this quality in ourselves?
There are many things you are not going to attain to, not matter how much you might want to.
*Perhaps you want to play music at a certain level (but you are tone deaf) or accomplish a certain athletic feat(but you are clumsy) or any number of things that might be beyond your ability to choose.
*The great news is…though all those dreams may never come true…here is one that actually can.
You can be one of those rare people…that other people speak of like this…”They never have bad things to say about other people.”
*You can become a person who…has no slander on his tongue, who does his neighbor no wrong and casts no slur on his fellowman.
Complaining and slandering and gossiping is a national pastime…you are not obligated to participate.
In fact…do you want to experience God in deep, daily ways? Then you are obligated to not participate.
- They have integrity in their loyalty
4 who despises a vile man but honors those who fear the LORD
Here again is parallelism…but it what is called antithetical parallelism.
Saying the same thing but in opposite ways.
“I can’t stand rain, I love sunshine.”
This person who will experience God personally “despises a vile man, but honors those who fear the Lord.”
Let’s unpack this.
“Vile” means the wicked person and to despise this person doesn’t mean we are to pursue their doom, or contemplate how much we hate them…you don’t want to become that kind person on the inside.
This means we are to mirror God’s own attitude towards the wicked…on the one hand he loves all people, on the other hand he judges their wickedness.
They cannot dwell in his presence in their current state…because he is holy…their wickedness could no more stand in his presence than darkness could exist in midday sunlight…not possible.
This doesn’t mean we scorn those who are far from God…Jesus was the friend of sinners…we are to be as well.
It means we do not delight in their darkness…Jesus was the friend of sinners on his terms not theirs.
He did not tell people “You’re okay, I accept you as you are.”
He said “You are not okay, and you know it…but you can be…accept me as I am…come to the light and leave the darkness”
So despising a vile man and honoring those who fear the Lord is about “integrity of loyalty”
Think about this in terms of “what we allow our hearts to be drawn to” or where we place our internal loyalty.
This is a contrast…What kind of person do you celebrate and attempt to emulate (or become like?)…will you celebrate those who live in the light or dark…what is your heart being drawn to?
In culture at large people who are celebrated are not those who live humble, selfless lives…not those who “fear the Lord”…in terms of living as if he is real and his word if reliable.
Sure there are occasional news stories of people who do selfless things…but the cool factor is by and large with those who are self-serving, who step on people to get ahead, who live indulgent lives.
Integrity of loyalty is my phrase for a “well-ordered heart”…a heart that values what is valuable and honors those who are honorable.
The disordered heart that directs a disordered life is drawn to things that God despises…what they find most valuable is upside down from what God most values.
So Jesus said,
“What is highly valued among men is detestable in God’s sight.”
What kind of life are you drawn too?
It is interesting that celebrities who are worshipped as heroes…are often not the kind of people anyone is able to live with for very long.
Why is it that the people who are most admired…are people who would make your life miserable if you had to actually live with them?
We must be careful to keep watch over our hearts…what they we allow them to become enamored with and drawn to…because they direct the course of our lives.
Prov. 4:23 Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.
Let’s move on
- They have integrity in their commitments.
who keeps his oath even when it hurts.
This is a simple verse tucked away in the Psalms but it packs a punch.
“Keeps his or her promise when it is costly.”
To keep a promise that doesn’t cost anything is not impressive…but to keep a promise when it does cost something…that is very different to see isn’t it.
Just like the fact that we are drawn to people and admire people who don’t slander others…so too we are drawn to and admire people who follow through.
Because in both cases they can be trusted…and trust is essential for relationship.
If they slander others…I have reason to believe they will slander me as well.
If they don’t follow through on commitments…how can I have a trust relationship with them?
Relationships are founded on trusting the other person will say what they mean and do what they say.
There is a painfully descriptive verse along these lines in Proverbs.
Prov. 25:19 Like a bad tooth or a lame foot is reliance on the unfaithful in times of trouble.
Ouch…unfaithful people create pain for those around them.
To walk God’s path and to experience God’s presence we must be the kind of people others can trust to keep commitments.
I want to remind you…this is not the path TO God but the path OF God…we don’t do this in order to earn relationship with God…this is the kind of character God has, this is the path he walks.
This is how we join him on his path.
So this is not some kind of hurdle we must clear to prove ourselves worthy…but because this painful promise keeping…reveals God and loves others in practical ways.
God is the ultimate example of…”Keeping his oath even when it hurts”…look at his Covenant promise fulfilled on the Cross of Christ.
This truly is living life his way.
Disclaimer: If you have made a foolish commitment you can and should ask out of it.
-This is about a heart and life direction that is line with the character of God.
So there is Integrity of speech, loyalty and commitments…integrity with their resources.
- Integrity with their resources:
5 who lends his money without usury and does not accept a bribe against the innocent.
Here is another parallelism…here is what this kind of person does and what they don’t do with their money.
It is about dealing with financial resources and with others with integrity…money is where the human heart is often tested.
God is a generous being…to walk his way means we put the interests of others first with our resources.
Usury was cheating the poor by demanding exorbinate interest…if the righteous do lend their money…they do so in a way that has integrity.
On the negative side…even if it meant a great profit…they would never accept money if it hurt people.
They trust God with their money…they live like he is real and his word is reliable…with their actual resources.
This would apply directly to your business…does you conduct your work in ways that honors God by loving people.
*I have used the word integrity over and over…what does it mean exactly?
-In terms of character it means: the quality of moral uprightness.
-In physical structures it means: reliability, wholeness.
If an aircraft lacks structural “integrity” it is not reliable, hull is compromised…this can cause mission failure or death.
The person who has integrity in the various aspects of their lives is a “whole” person, they can be trusted.
To live this way indicates confidence in God…God can be trusted…so I will be trustworthy in my words, relationships and with my resources.
Even before Robert was a Christian he had determined to do the right thing.
He had a healthy fear of the Lord before he had personal relationship with the Lord.
He refused to profit if it meant misleading and taking advantage of people…it actually proved to be a wise business decision.
*From his decision to do business with integrity came an opportunity that turned their business around financially…it is a great story.
The interesting thing about God’s providence is that those who do what is right will experience the fruit in this life of those right things.
If the non-Christian farmer operates his farm using the laws God has built into the world regarding farming…he will experience a harvest.
The same with car dealer, same a in marriage.
You don’t have to be a Christian to experience the benefits of living life God’s way.
However…
The one who doesn’t believe God exists or this his word is reliable…is unlikely to continually to do the right thing if he or she doesn’t see personal benefit at some level…or if it proves too costly for them…or it stops “working”
And even if they do experience the good of living life God’s way in practical realities…they will experience the lesser gift (what God gives) without the greater gift (relationship with God).
*All truth is God’s truth and it “works” for all who live in it…but…
*In the end…the point of God giving us truth is that we would know him…not merely live more successful lives…then die without him.
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego(boys of Babylon)…when told they would not only fail to continue to prosper (they were senior leaders in the nation), but they would die if they did not disobey God and obey the king… replied with this classic response.
Dan. 3:17,18 f we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”
In the history of the people of faith…some have died after making that kind of stand…in this case they lived.
But in all cases…God was honored and the ones making that stand…live unshaken by the threats of mere men…and unmoved by the things that don’t last and won’t matter most at the end.
Which brings us to the promise.
The Promise:
He who does these things will never be shaken.
Job lived this Psalm. God himself said Job was “blameless”
Yet he suffered every imaginable hardship.
So what does it mean to “never be shaken?”
It doesn’t mean we will not be tested but that we will not fall apart…because we are walking with God.
Walking God’s way…we will have trouble…but we will not be taken out by the trouble.
We get a clue from Paul’s writing…
2Cor. 4:7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. 8 We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.
The earthquakes will come but we will stand because God will make us stand.
God will be with us because we will be with God…we walk his path he doesn’t walk ours.
The often-used illustration related to work, life balance is that of the ladder that someone spends their life climbing only to find it was placed against the wrong wall.
The illustration is over used but it is good none the less…that is how David ends this Psalm…that is the promise.
He who lives this way…in ways that reveal a confidence that God is real and his word is reliable…will never have to worry or wonder…
“If I live this way, will I end up getting ripped off in the end?”
“If I trust God with my life and sacrifice, and service, and don’t do all I could do to get ahead, put myself first…will I find that I wasted my life?
No…absolutely not…the one who lives this way can know for certain…they will never be shaken.
Many people have deep and lasting regrets about how they have spent their lives…we don’t have to.
This is the right wall…now climb away with confidence.
CONCLUSION:
David describes a person of blameless moral character and righteous action…this person is able to enter the Temple presence of God.
Does that mean sinners could not enter?
No, as we saw in our journey through the OT God made provision for sinful people to dwell in his presence.
Through the sacrificial system…the people of God could enter into the presence of God…though their actions and attitudes were imperfect.
Now because of the final sacrifice of Christ…we can go into the presence of God freely.
Not because we are blameless but because of what he has done for us.
Now…we do not seek to live with integrity in order to have God’s favor…but rather because we have it.
*If we live this way, life does “work” better…it’s how God designed things to work…treat employees well you will likely keep them, treat customers right…they will come back.
The golden rule…works for anyone who tries it…it describes reality…do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
But there are times when doing the right thing will prove costly…it will not always pan out like we hoped…at least in this life.
*But as followers of Christ we don’t just live this way because it works(and it does)…but because we love.
1John 4:18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
This life of integrity works…try it.
But more important…it is the way of God…it is the path of living in God’s presence…experience him.
Application:
So in your day to day work…what you spend most of your life on.
Will you actually believe God is real and his word is reliable?
What might that look like if you were to think about those categories of Ps. 15?
Integrity of: speech, loyalty, commitments and resources?
What if you are put in positions (and maybe you are now)…like Shad, Me, Abed?
Will you say “God is able to save me, but even if he does not…I will not worship what you worship.”
*If you waiting for the “big” test of faith…like the boys of Babylon had…are you missing the many little tests of faith around you right now?
Luke 16…faithful in a little, before faithful in much.
What are the tests of faith that face you daily in your work and your life as a whole…this are you opportunity to demonstrate that God is real and his word is reliable?
Will you cry out to God, look to his word, and enlist the help of his people to pass those tests.
Journey with God his good path…in the real day to day life you live.