GOD DOESN'T GIVE US WINGS TO RUN FROM OUR TROUBLES

GOD DIDN’T GIVE US WINGS FOR A REASON!

The Psalmist once cried out to God for wings so that he could fly away from all his troubles. How many of us have joined the Psalmist in his prayer and added, “And me too Lord!” Yet God didn’t answer his prayer and never answers this for us either. As Francis Thompson found, running away from your problems only unleashes certain hounds who inevitably set off in pursuit and track us down. Wherever a person goes, they are often surprised to find their troubles have gone ahead of them. I think God didn’t give us wings for a reason.

Legend has it that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle decided to play a joke on five of his friends. He sent a telegram to each of them one night with the message- “All is known. Flee immediately.” That night, all five of friends fled England for France! What secrets do we each hide hoping that we will never be found out? How often do we run from our problems only to find them awaiting for us?

And I say, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove!
I would fly away and be at rest;
Psalm 55:6

THE TWO TYPES OF TROUBLE

We all know that troubles come in two varieties: the ones we create and the ones we didn’t. In both cases it is a test of our character (who we really are) when are confronted by them. Recently I had the painful experience of public humiliation. In that moment, all eyes were on me. I felt the Psalmist’s prayer of Psalm 55 pounding in my heart. I knew that in the next few moments my true character would be revealed to everyone in the room. It’s in moments like this that I am challenged to apply the Apostle Paul’s instructions to the Philippians when he told them to have the mind or attitude of the humiliated Christ-

You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had, who though he existed in the form of God did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature. He humbled himself, by becoming obedient to the point of death–even death on a cross!
Philippians 2:5-8

The opening chapters of the Book on human history reveals that mankind’s most natural impulse when confronted by our own failure is to:  i) hide, and if this doesn’t work, then: ii) blame.  

And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden… He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
Genesis 3:8, 11-13

THE DEFAULT RESPONSE TO TROUBLE

The antidote to blame is humility which enables us to accept responsibility. This especially applies to the kind of trouble which we contribute to. It is in this light that Psalms 51 and 32 offer us such hope. The author of these Psalms had failed terribly. It was the kind of failure that today would have not only meant the worst kind of public shaming, but also life in prison. David had resorted to the default human response to terrible failure and tried hide and cover it up. But as usual, this strategy always, always, always, makes the problems from failure far worse. Before he get fall back onto option #2, Nathan the Prophet removed it from him.

¶ Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul. And I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your arms and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah. And if this were too little, I would add to you as much more. Why have you despised the word of the LORD, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and have taken his wife to be your wife and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites.
Second Samuel 12:7-9

I imagine that David’s heart would have been pounding in his chest, his head would have begun to feel hotter, his mind would have been racing. What could he do now? The result of this moment was Psalm 51 where he made confession before God and, since it is a public Psalm, he also made confession before those he had let down. This is God’s remedy for our failure. David would teach this principle to his young son Solomon –

Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper,
but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.
Proverbs 28:13

It’s doubtful that Solomon ever truly appreciated the riches of the wisdom that his father gave him in that moment, but then again, Solomon was never blessed with a Nathan in his life (he was the only king of Israel not to have a prophet minister to him).

When David confessed his sin to God, acknowledge the injury he had caused to the Name of God, sought to make restitution to those he had hurt, and surrendered his life afresh to God, he experienced the joy of God’s cleansing forgiveness.

¶ Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,
whose sin is covered.
Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity,
and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

¶ For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;
my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah

¶ I acknowledged my sin to You,
and I did not cover my iniquity;
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,”
and You forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah
Psalm 32:1-5

WHAT FRANCIS THOMPSON FOUND

I mentioned Francis Thompson earlier. He was an extremely bright young man with a very promising future as a medical student. But he stumbled. Something happened. He doesn’t tell us what. But we do know that after Medical School, he moved from Scotland to England and lived on the streets of London where he became an opium addict. In his worst moments his life hung in the balance and he was cared for by a kind-hearted prostitute. In his good moments he was one of English literature’s finest poets. G.K. Chesterton described him as “the greatest poetic energy since Browning.“[*]  He wrote a poem called The Hounds Of Heaven. He describes the wayward being pursued by God through His ‘hounds’ (the ministry of the church, the ministrations of our conscience, and the mediation of the Holy Spirit). No matter where the wayward attempts to flee from these troubling hounds, he cannot. Like the hounds of old used then by hunters, God has a way of pursuing and bringing the wayward to their knees and summoning them to experience what King David described as the greatest blessing available to a man – the blessing of having our sins forgiven by God.

The other day I met with such a blessed person. They had stumbled. They had fled and hid. Things only got worse for them. The internal turmoil they had been experiencing had impacted their physical well-being. We spoke. They described their repentance and shared empathy for those they had hurt (a sign of genuine repentance). Many of the troubles they now faced had not vanished, but it was now obvious that they would now be dealing with their various challenges with the strength of a clean heart and the assurance of God’s presence. 

KIND-HEARTED WING-CLIPPERS

Maybe God has used you as one of His ‘hounds’? The Prophet Nathan was King’s David’s ‘hound’. If you are, chances you yourself were once ‘hounded’ by someone who cared enough to chase you down. The Apostle Paul spoke to the hounds of Galatia and gave them some sombre exhortations which godly hounds today should take careful note of as they seek to clip the wings of their wayward brothers and sisters who would rather fly away from their troubles than deal with them –

¶ Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. For each will have to bear his own load.
Galatians 6:1-5

While the old saying, “If God wanted man to fly He would have given him wings!” is wrong in so many ways, when it comes to dealing with our failures - especially relationally - it’s very true. You may not be able to fly away from your troubles (Psalm 55), and even though you may want to take the next best alternative (running and hiding, Gen. 3) there is a grace available to you from God that can make you stronger, cleaner, taller (Psalm 32), if you confess, repent, make restitution, and seek restoration (Psalm 51). Interestingly, although we are created in the image of the God who is described as having "wings" which He uses to rescue (Exodus 19:4) and safeguard (Psalm 36:7), I think God didn’t give us wings for a reason.

Amen.

Ps. Andrew Corbett  

WE HAVE A MAJOR THEOLOGICAL CRISIS!

"HOW CAN THERE BE A GOOD, LOVING POWERFUL GOD WHEN THIS HAS HAPPENED?!"

We have a major theological crisis. It's really bad. In the public square we hear it, read it, and are shaped by it. Most of the proponents of this bad theology make the most amazing statements about their 'god' and then make the outrageous assertion that they are describing our God. For those introduced to God, it is easy to detect this bad theology. Truthful theology presents God as the Sovereign, All-Wise, All-Knowing, All-Good God who demands, expects and deserves our utter devotion and submission. Deceptive theology presents its god as the one responsible for our happiness and existing to grant our requests. Even the youngest Christian with an elementary understanding of the Bible can spot the difference. And you can easily tell the difference for yourself between those who hold to Truthful Theology and those who hold to Deceptive theology: their response to tragedy.

For Herod had seized John and bound him and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife because John had been saying to him, "It is not lawful for you to have her."
Matthew 14:3-4

Theology is the study of God and His ways, His Word, and His will. Deceptive theology does not do this. Rather, it fancifully imagines that God is like the god they have created. Truthful theology gives real knowledge of the true God and how He deals with people. Deceptive theology sets up an expectation of God as the god who exists to make people happy. Thus, when tragedy strikes the one who is beguiled by Deceptive theology they become angry with their god and assume that they are angry with God - and take out their anger on those who claim allegiance to God.

And though he wanted to put him to death, he feared the people, because they held him to be a prophet."
Matthew 14:5

Truthful Theology is grounded in the Scriptures. The Bible provides the knowledge of the truth about God. This is no mere "head knowedge". When dealing with truth, there is only knowledge - not head knowledge. When tragedy strikes those in love with Truthful Theology they are able to draw on their knowledge of the truth and experience a richer, sweeter, devotion to God.

Prompted by her mother, she said, "Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter."
Matthew 14:8

Jesus gave His highest accolades to one man. "No one is greater in the Kingdom", Jesus said of him. He loved John The Baptist deeply. When John was imprisoned, John doubted his faith in Christ. Doubt is not the same as unbelief. To doubt is to question. And that's exactly what John the Baptist did.

¶ Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, "Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?"
Matthew 11:2-3

I wonder if behind John's questioning of Christ there was a cry of confusion - a cry for help? After all, if we live for Christ aern't things supposed to go well for us? When we get into trouble isn't our God supposed to come and rescue us? Maybe John The Baptist thought so too? I wonder if Jesus similarly considered whether He should rescue John? What actually happened helps us to understand how real life - and God - works when tragedy happens. Too many people assume that when a disaster strikes them or someone they know/love that God is inactive. Our perspective of disaster is often that harm or even death is an indication of God's absence. But this story of the imprisonment of John The Baptist counters this idea. Christ knew where John The Baptist was. He knew what John was enduring. And He knew what John was about to face.

Prompted by her mother, she said, "Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter."
Matthew 14:8

What happened to John The Baptist and how Christ responded shows us how differently God views suffering and tragedy. We are so consumed with the here and now that we forget that whatcomes to pass comes to pass - and does not last in eternity!  The Bible calls our adverse circumstances, "light momentary affliction" (2Cor. 4:17). This does not lessen the ache and pain that such affliction causes, nor does it lessen the grief we feel when it affects those we care about. When the Son of God received word that John had been executed He was deeply moved and exhibited the immediate signs of human grief.

And his disciples came and took the body and buried it, and they went and told Jesus.
¶ Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns.
Matthew 14:12-13

Whenever we experience tragedy or loss, we follow in the blood-stained footprints of our Lord who experienced the worst tragedy and loss! He understands our grief. He understands our pain. He understands our heart and the pain that fills it during such times. How can there be a good loving all-powerful God when people experience tragedy? It's actually in times of tragedy that we need the good, loving, all-powerful God to help and comfort us.

¶ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.
Second Corinthians 1:3-4

Those holding Deceptive theology clench their fist at God in anger for the tragedy they are experiencing because their bad theology deludes them into thinking that God is like the god their dysfunctional theology has created. John The Baptist didn't. Jesus didn't. The apostles didn't - because they had good Theology. Rather, like the Psalmists, they lifted their open hands in worship of the One who knows, understands, and feels what we go through. Good Theology always produces good worship. When you offer up an open hand to God rather than a clenched fist, you are demonstrating that you have a sound theological understanding of God and His dealings with those He loves - yet who suffer. And in a world dogged by really bad theology, it's not how the follower of Christ argues about the goodness of God during times of tragedy - it's how they demonstrate it in their worship of Him.

Ps. Andrew