Sunday 10 July

2 Kings 19:14-20:21

It has ever been thus.  A crisis leads us to pure devotion.  Like Hezekiah, our vision sharpens when we understand the fragility of our life.  It dawns on us that nothing really matters apart from the glorification of the LORD.  “May all the kingdoms on earth know that you alone, O LORD, are God” we cry.  And we really mean it.  But, just like a car that keeps slipping out of 5th gear, we find it so hard to stay in that place.  The crisis passes, we get more comfortable and we begin to alter our definition of what is good - peace and security in our lifetime become our goal.  We still love God, we are still moving in the right sort of direction but the full-throttle obsession with God’s name is replaced with a trundling journeying towards our own comfort.  Our criteria for what is desirable or undesirable now revolve around our well-being, not His glorification.  We are happy to liaise with Babylonians. They aren’t doing us any harm - at least not in the short term - and we enjoy their praise and their respect.  They make us feel comfortable.  They reassure us of our security.  They help us feel peace.  But it is a sham.  It is just an illusion.  It sullies the name of the Almighty.  Let me not follow the way of Hezekiah O God.  Please don’t let me prefer my peace to your glory.  Please don’t let me desire the comfort of sin.  Smash up that high place within me O God.  Glorify your name in me O God.  And glorify your name in all this land.

Acts 28:1-16

Here is a good picture of what Paul was really like.  Here is a good picture of what it means to be a mature Christian.  He gathered firewood - he was not above menial tasks.  When he had a viper hanging from his hand he didn’t whoop and holler, he didn’t identify the viper as a demon and wail and groan about spiritual attack.  He just shook it off.  And he didn’t get fixated on the miraculous protection that he experienced, he just plodded off to the local estate to find another person to engage with, another person to potentially bring into the kingdom of Jesus.  He happily prayed for those who were sick and went on from that prayer to build fuller relationships with them, to receive honour from them and support from them as appropriate.  He was happy to sail on a boat dedicated to two false gods - he didn’t insist on everything around him being “Christian” or on spotting demons behind every pagan symbol.  He accepted an invitation to spend a week with some fellow believers - seeking out relationships and giving himself to people whenever he could.  And finally, he thanked God and was encouraged by others while at the same time being happy to live alone under armed guard.  Paul cuts me to the core.  He challenges me just to get on with it, not to wax and wane about my surroundings or circumstances or to get stressed about spiritual battles.  He just calls me to a mission, to give myself to people and to be content in the presence of my God.  He just refused to get distracted.  O God would you give me a similar resolve.

Psalm 83:1-18

I must confess I can’t for the life of me remember who Oreb and Zeeb were.  They sound like an illusionist double-act but I’m guessing it’s not good to be like them, right?