I don’t remember what I preached that night, but I sure remember what happened afterwards. The people responded warmly. I was asked to go pray with a man about his son’s brain tumor. But when I approached this string tied, snap-shirted man in cowboy boots and enormous belt buckle, before I even said a word, he looked directly into my eyes, grabbed my hand and said in a very quiet Texas drawl, “You know God is calling you to preach, don’t you boy? You know that, don’t you?” I completely lost my train of thought! There was something about the whole evening, about the way he looked at me and spoke to me. For some reason, I couldn’t speak. But then just as I was about to respond, the rain came back with a vengeance and we all had to run for our tents. I was upset I didn’t get to talk more with the guy, but even as I thought that, the Spirit seemed to say not to worry. I would see him again.
And sure enough, two weeks, hundreds of miles and countless mountain passes later, who should appear in another congregation but this very same man. Billy Jones, my quiet, cattle ranching, cowboy friend from East Texas! I couldn’t wait to speak with him. There was just something inescapable and compelling about him. I spent two hours sitting around his campfire that night, listening. He didn’t seem to like talking much, but there was one thing he said that night I will never forget. We were talking about the mysterious “fear of the LORD,” (is it awe or is it fear?) something I’d been studying that year. When I asked for his opinion on the matter, he said, “Well Kevin, you know, one starry night a few years ago I was out walking through one of my cow pastures. The night was so peaceful and the stars so blame purty I just started praying and praising God, you know? I went on that way until it just seemed like the presence of God Himself started to fall all around me. And eventually, it was all just so blame perfect and good, I had to quit cause all that perfection would have just up and killed me. I got scared; it was all too good. And now I know exactly what it means to fear the LORD.”
I still don’t know quite what to make of that story. I don’t honestly think Almighty God would have allowed my friend to die by drowning him in spiritual goodness, but I sure know what my cowboy friend meant by experiencing the glory and beauty of God in the heavens.
When was the last time you allowed the glory and beauty of Almighty God to overwhelm you? When was the last time God left you speechless? Turn with me to Psalm 19.
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun, which is like a bridegroom coming forth from his pavilion, like a champion rejoicing to run his course. It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is hidden from its heat.
The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes. The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever. The ordinances of the Lord are sure and altogether righteous. They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb. By them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.
Who can discern his errors? Forgive my hidden faults. Keep your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then will I be blameless, innocent of great transgression. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.
I believe King David must have been having sort of a Billy Jones, East Texas moment. David was overwhelmed by the sheer joy, beauty, provision and perfection of the LORD.
We’re talking this month about the joy of the LORD; about real rejoicing in the midst of an increasingly joyless, crabby world. Where do we find enduring joy when hurricanes, both in Texas and on Wall Street, leave such fearsome devastation in their wake? Last week in our study of Nehemiah 8, we watched as the Israelites experienced the joy of the LORD during a great Bible conference. They were fully exposed by the Word of God, God met that exposure with grace and they all went away rejoicing as a result. Our lovely song for the choirmaster this morning from the psalms describes a similar experience, except David spends more time talking about the exposure leading up to his repentance. If we seek to experience the full joy of the LORD in our lives, we would do well to see the same three things David sees in this psalm.
The first thing David sees is the glory of God. I see the heavens. Dear LORD, I see the sun you made to run its race like a satisfied bridegroom or a champion around the track. Look at the universe around you, people! How do you honestly think all this got here? Aren’t you at least a little curious about all this? David asks basically the same question the prophet Isaiah would ask years later, “Lift your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one, and calls them each by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.” David is saying basically the same thing the Apostle Paul will repeat many years later in Romans 1:20-21. “Since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.” Look around you, folks! Forget all the theories about how it all got there for a moment; can’t we just agree that the order and design in the universe is remarkable? Isn’t it all glorious?
Oh my goodness, is it possible God did all this?
Dr. Richard Swenson, in his fantastic book More Than Meets The Eye, talks about the perfection and planning of the universe in wonderful detail. He talks about the 30 billion stars we can see just from earth and the microsurgical precision of the sun’s perfect placement and power to sustain life on earth. He quotes astronomer Allan Sandage, who began his scientific journey an atheist, saying, “It was my science which drove me to the conclusion the world is much more complicated than can be possibly be explained by science. We can’t understand the universe in any clear way without the supernatural.” Poet Gerard Manley Hopkins says, “The world is charged with the grandeur of God.” When we spend any time looking deeply at the glory, order and beauty of the universe, it ought to at least make us curious.But forget everything all the scholars and smart people argue about for a moment. When was the last time you made a point of really looking at the universe? When was the last time you noticed the lengths to which God will go to impress us? When was the last time you really smelled the salt air or listened to all the noisy birds? Have you ever wondered what the cuddly panda bears are looking at or where they got their designer sunglasses and friendly, fat faces? How often do we stand up and look around at what God is doing? I know it’s a religious cliché and everything, but do you notice the colors of the flowers? What is the deal with that? This is extra! This is unnecessary! Doesn’t it make you at least a little bit curious? Don’t you think it might just be possible Almighty God is peeking out at us from everywhere in creation?
David sees the glory of God. David sees God’s hand everywhere in the world around him. David is overwhelmed and driven by the glory of God…I know this doesn’t scientifically prove anything. I know there is only so much we can discover about God through a bunch of pretty pictures, but it ought to make us curious. It ought to drive us to ask more questions.
And so because David sees the glory of God, he goes running to God’s Word for clarity, more insight and explanation. And David sees the Word. The more deeply David digs into God’s Word, the more deeply, profoundly and obviously he falls in love with it. But please notice David doesn’t describe what he sees in God’s Word in negative, legalistic or religiously duty-bound ways. There is no boredom here. David describes a book he adores. David sees perfection. David sees certainty, righteousness and absolute purity. David sees truth and preciousness. David sees value, warning and reward. David sees the Word. David finds in Word a well of wisdom and explanation he needs for Glory! His curiosity is satisfied.
And in seeing the Word of God for what it is, King David is reminded the universe is not just glorious, beautiful and exquisitely designed. David comes face to face with the personality of the universe. In Word, David is reminded this universe is personal. Ultimately, it is a Person.
Many years ago, a Calvin & Hobbes cartoon caught my attention. In the first frame, Calvin stares up quietly into the starry sky until, in the second frame, he screams, “I’m significant!” Then, after another moment of quietness, he says quietly, “Screamed the dust speck.” But Calvin misses the point. The point of seeing the glory of God is not so we will be depressingly reminded of our own dusty speck insignificance. The point of seeing the full glory of God is to drive us to the Word, where we will shockingly discover our incredible significance. In seeing the Word of God for all it truly is we hear Almighty God shouting significance to us!
You’re significant, Calvin! You matter to me, son! I love you, my daughter! I created all this gorgeous, glorious, fun and funny stuff for you to fully enjoy! I did this for you! Can you believe that? Can you trust that? I’m telling you all the things I’m telling you in my Word only to help you understand how incredibly precious and important you are to Me!
Spend some time in my Word, Calvin. See how very personal all this truly is.
And when David does that, when David allows the Glory to drive him to the Word, the rest of the conversation is easy. David sees the Glory of God. He sees the personality of God in the Word of God. And when he sees those things, he sees himself as he really is. And just like our dear Israelites at the Bible conference back in Nehemiah, David is exposed and his reaction is utterly predictable. But unlike those Israelites, David sees the Glory and Word so clearly and vividly, he doesn’t just end up being exposed for all he is; he begs God to expose him for all he is. David sees God’s Glory and Word so clearly, he wants nothing more in the world than to remove any thing that might possibly taint his experience of Glory and Word.
Oh dear Father, forgive me my hidden sins. Keep me from willful sins. I want to be blameless and innocent. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer!
Oh Father, I want as much of your glory as I can stand! I want my life as perfectly aligned with your Word as it can be! I want to know myself in the way you know me. I want to know every ounce of the joy I was created to enjoy! Wash me and I will be whiter than snow. Teach me, train me, show me how to live so that I might enjoy Glory and Word even
I am not some insignificant speck of dust in the universe. Almighty God created and sustains the universe just for me. I may literally be a dust speck dimensionally, but that is not what I am spiritually. I am a speck of great and powerful joy! I may be nothing but a quiet, East Texas cowboy standing in a cow pasture thanking God for a “purty” night, but the LORD of the universe knows my name. The LORD of the Universe wants me to enjoy His Glory and fully understand His Word. He paints the stars in the night and the sun by day, He puts the orange on the birds, extra on the flowers and brown eyes on my Monica and He does all this for me.
And that ought to make me happy, don’t you think? Come what may; this stuff ought to make me very happy indeed. May we all know Glory, Word and Ourselves as God knows these things! May the Glory, Word and Joy of the LORD be our strength and song!
Amen.
