David Bahn – Reflections

The time that the people of Israel lived in Egypt was 430 years. ⁴¹ At the end of 430 years, on that very day, all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt. ⁴² It was a night of watching by the Lord, to bring them out of the land of Egypt; so this same night is a night of watching kept to the Lord by all the people of Israel throughout their generations. – Exodus 12:40-42

“Who watches the watchmen?” This phrase comes from the Latin, “Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?”. Found in the work of the Roman poet Juvenal from his Satires, it is literally translated as “Who will guard the guards themselves?” But is also rendered as above. The idea being that it is difficult to hold accountable those with power. Who will see to it that they will do the right thing? Who will see to it that they do not abuse their power and the people under them?

It may not be obvious in the case of the Exodus that the watchmen need watching. But there it is…God is on watch that long night of the Exodus. Other translations of this text have a different way of expressing this watchfulness. The NLT, for example has, “On this night the Lord kept his promise to bring his people out of the land of Egypt. So this night belongs to him, and it must be commemorated every year by all the Israelites, from generation to generation.”

But the clearest sense is that God is watching over his people to see that they get safely out of Egypt. He is on guard. He is remaining vigilant. He will see them through.

Jesus tells us that not one sparrow falls to the ground apart from the Father’s knowledge. As the gospel song says, “His eye is on the sparrow, And I know He watches over me.”

Sometimes we may want to hide from God. We may not want him to see what we are doing. We may wish to keep our dark secrets. But God is watching…not to shame us, but to protect us and provide for our needs. God’s attentiveness is a good thing. God is watching us, and he calls us to be watchful as well.

They went to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and Jesus said, “Sit here while I go and pray.” He took Peter, James, and John with him, and he became deeply troubled and distressed. He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

He went on a little farther and fell to the ground. He prayed that, if it were possible, the awful hour awaiting him might pass him by. “Abba, Father,” he cried out, “everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”

Then he returned and found the disciples asleep. He said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Couldn’t you watch with me even one hour? Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”

Then Jesus left them again and prayed the same prayer as before. When he returned to them again, he found them sleeping, for they couldn’t keep their eyes open. And they didn’t know what to say.

When he returned to them the third time, he said, “Go ahead and sleep. Have your rest. But no—the time has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Up, let’s be going. Look, my betrayer is here!”

Mark 14:32-42

My alarm didn’t go off yesterday morning. Usually that’s not a problem. I often awake very early in the morning. So even if I have an early morning breakfast meeting (which I did yesterday), I am often awake before my alarm goes off. I get frustrated sometimes when I wake up earlier than I need to. But not yesterday morning. I had actually slept 8 hours!

That’s not the issue here with Peter, James and John. They hadn’t overslept. They fell asleep on the job! After a long day, a full meal, likely several glasses of wine during the Passover Seder, and the not-so-exciting activity of watching someone else pray, they couldn’t keep their eyes open. They fell asleep.

It seems clear, however, that their sleep wasn’t just a matter of full stomachs and a boring activity. Jesus says, “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” He implies with these words that there is a spiritual dimension at play here, and that their failure to stay awake was due to the influence of their flesh over their spirit.

We might think little of this unless we realize just what Jesus was concerned about during these hours. He was concerned about his own imminent arrest, suffering, and death. Forces of Satan were at work to attack him in every possible way. It seems clear that Jesus isn’t as afraid of the physical torment that awaits him as he is of the spiritual battle that is raging all around him and his disciples.

Jesus wanted Peter, James, and John to stay awake in order that they not fall into temptation. It wasn’t to protect him from the mob coming to arrest him with spears and torches. It wasn’t to alert him so he could escape into the darkness. Jesus wanted them not to fall prey to Satan’s wiles because of their spiritual sleepiness.

Perhaps that’s why Peter, years later would write, “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). He knew how stealthy Satan could be. He knew we need to stay alert. We not only fall into sin by distractions and enticements, but by failure to remain alert to see sin and temptation coming our way.

“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? ²⁶ Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? ²⁷ Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?

²⁸ “And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, ²⁹ yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. ³⁰ And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?

³¹ “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ ³² These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. ³³ Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

³⁴ “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today. – Matthew 6:25-43

Many know of my “Flowers by God Photos by David” moniker. I use that for my photography pursuits to give witness to the creative glory of God and the sublime beauty of flowers and other created things which I enjoy photographing. Some of my work over the years has actually won significant prizes. I’ll include a slideshow below of some of those. Most of my work is politely received, and others’ works are appropriately honored. I’m in a club with some truly excellent photographers!

More important than my photography pursuits, however, is the implied truth behind God’s creation of flowers and birds, and other things of creation – including man and woman. God is good, and a creator who has given himself to his creation to redeem it. In the meantime God also preserves his creation. He provides for birds, flowers, trees, and men and women.

Jesus wants us to take note of the way he provides for his creation’s needs. He wants us to take note of these things. He wants us not only to see the birds and flowers. He wants us to take note of them.

This is one of the greatest challenges of photography: learning to see. Taking note of things. Not just passing by. One exercise for aspiring photographers is to go to your own back yard and photograph things there. It isn’t as easy as it sounds, but much easier than you might think. Seeing things. Taking note. Everything tells a story.

Birds and flowers tell the story of God’s creative glory and ongoing providential care. We cannot know everything about God by looking at birds and flowers, or even all of the vastness of creation. But we can know there is a God who created all things. We can recognize that we are his creatures. We can acknowledge that we are accountable to him.

We who have been told the fuller story of God’s love – shown in Jesus Christ’s life, death, resurrection and promise of eternal life – need also once in a while to take note of birds and flowers and thank God for his fatherly divine goodness and mercy by which he still takes care of us and all things. He does this without any merit or worthiness in me, and it is my duty to thank and praise, serve and obey him.

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As for me, I look to the Lord for help.
    I wait confidently for God to save me,
    and my God will certainly hear me.
⁸ Do not gloat over me, my enemies!
    For though I fall, I will rise again.
Though I sit in darkness,
    the Lord will be my light.

Micah 7:7-8

Maybe you’ve seen the movie, Wait Until Dark.” This thriller is about a blind woman, played by  Audrey Hepburn. Alan Arkin plays a violent criminal searching for some drugs that Hepburn’s character innocently possesses. The climax of the movie comes as the bad guys are in Hepburn’s apartment and she is trying to escape their nefarious plans. If you’ve seen it you will remember the refrigerator door being kept open so the light was on, and Hepburn frantically reaching for the electrical cord so she could plunge the apartment into total darkness. In the darkness she would be safe.

That’s not the case for most of us. In fact, very few of us experience total darkness at all. We seldom escape the lights of the city, and even in the countryside we see lights of homes or streetlights. We seldom experience darkness like the people of Jesus’ day.

That was brought home to me when we were in Jerusalem. The guide led us down to a 20 foot deep pit under Caiaphas’ house. He asked me to read from Psalm 88 to the group gathered there in that pit. The last line of that psalm reads, “darkness is my only friend.” At that moment the guide flipped a switch and turned out all the lights. It was dark: oppressively so.

Darkness sometimes overtakes us. We grow weary and hopeless. We see no way forward. We yearn for companionship. We want to see the sunshine of God’s love. But our vision is clouded by darkness.

Especially in those times we must trust in God. For if we cannot see God, we may either despair of his goodness or trust in his faithful love. Death, sickness, disappointments, loss of jobs, financial downturns, and even a friend’s betrayal all bring darkness. In those moments we remember the One who is the Light of the World. We trust in him and rejoice in the hope that he promises. We look to the Lord for help. And wait for his help.

Let our enemies gloat. Let them ridicule us and wag their tongues. God is our light and our salvation. In him is no darkness at all.

Have mercy on me, O God,
    because of your unfailing love.
Because of your great compassion,
    blot out the stain of my sins.
² Wash me clean from my guilt.
    Purify me from my sin.
³ For I recognize my rebellion;
    it haunts me day and night.
⁴ Against you, and you alone, have I sinned;
    I have done what is evil in your sight.
You will be proved right in what you say,
    and your judgment against me is just.
⁵ For I was born a sinner—
    yes, from the moment my mother conceived me.
⁶ But you desire honesty from the womb,
    teaching me wisdom even there.

Psalm 51:1-6

We just recently returned from a mission trip. It was a great experience. If you want to see some highlights of our trip, you may see them at danddbahn.wordpress.com. That is my more personal blog for things of that nature. The business end of the trip, however, has not been as fun. Working through the reimbursements proved to be a challenge that was only today resolved. Nothing nefarious. Nothing controversial. Just complicated payments, an advance, and credit card reconciliations. Whew! I’m glad we’ve taken care of that business!

There is, however, even more important business we all need to take care of before God. It is far more serious. It has eternal consequences. The end result of this business dealing will be either glorious eternal joy or horrific and endless suffering and despair.

The business is that of sin and forgiveness.

David wrote this psalm when he became aware of his terrible sin against Bathsheba, Uriah (her husband), and God himself. In fact he admits that his sin was ultimately against God. Without denying the terrible impact of his actions toward this woman whom he seduced and her husband who he had killed, David recognizes that his sins against them are actually sins against God.

We’d like to think otherwise. Our sins are surely not all against God. And surely they’re not all that great. We may have fouled up a bit, but we haven’t sinned gravely. We’ve not gone that far.

That’s what David had thought for some time. It was only after Nathan the prophet confronted him (cf. 2 Samuel 12) that David realized how grave was his sin. This is when he wrote this psalm. I don’t think it’s a matter of David’s overactive conscience getting the better of him in the moment. This is serious business, and it must be taken care of.

Thankfully God has taken are of this business when Jesus paid the atoning sacrifice for our sins. When he was on the cross he said, “It is finished.” Those words are also used when a debt has been paid. “PAID IN FULL” This is the status of accounts before God for all who are in Jesus Christ. Serious business. Taken care of.

“Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. ² For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.

³ “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? ⁴ How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? ⁵ Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye. -Matthew 7:1-5

It used to be that the best-known Bible verse was John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in him, should not perish, but have eternal life.” No longer is that the best-known Bible verse. That honor belongs to Matthew 7:1, “Judge not…”

Sadly this verse is not only the best known, it is the most poorly applied Bible verse. People use this verse to justify all sorts and kinds of actions. “Don’t judge me,” they say when you point out a propensity to engage in pornography. “Don’t judge me,” they say when they are confronted about a sexually-wanton lifestyle. “Don’t judge me,” they say when there is the slightest innuendo about too much drink or drug use.

Sadly, these words betray an even greater issue than people not wanting to be accountable for any sort of ungodly behavior. The greater concern is that by invoking this verse, they are actually relying on the justification of others, or their own personal assumptions about what is right or wrong.

The problem with this conclusion is that only God can justify. At the end of all time we will not be subjected to others’ judgement. We will stand before Jesus himself. He will judge. He justifies. And Jesus’ justification is all that will ultimately matter.

We receive this gift of his justification (his righteousness) by faith. He declares us righteous by his grace and we receive that justification by faith. This is not new: “Abram believed in the LORD, and he reckoned it to him as righteousness” (Genesis 15:6). No human can provide that eternal verdict: only God.

There is a similar mis-application of this verse that is exposed in Romans 1. There Paul lays out all manner of sin, showing how God punishes sin with sin. The obvious conclusion is that those who sin like that deserve to be judged. Then he says, “Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things” (Romans 2:1).

Try as we might we cannot help but fall into the trap of judging others. We can, however, examine ourselves. We can be very conscious of the fact that we can all too easily miss the log in our own eye while pointing out the speck in someone else’s eye.

This calls for humility on our part of the highest order. Thank God we have an example in Jesus, whose humility took him all the way to the cross for the forgiveness of our sin. God judged him guilty in our place and we are declared righteous for his sake. Keep your eyes on him!

Then Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, went to the chief priests in order to betray him to them. ¹¹ And when they heard it, they were glad and promised to give him money. And he sought an opportunity to betray him.

⁴³ And immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. ⁴⁴ Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man. Seize him and lead him away under guard.” ⁴⁵ And when he came, he went up to him at once and said, “Rabbi!” And he kissed him. ⁴⁶ And they laid hands on him and seized him. – Mark 14:10-11, 43-46

People like to conjecture about Judas’ motives for betraying Jesus. Some have excused him, saying that he had no real choice in the matter. Some say he was trying to force Jesus’ hand: making him assert himself and set up his kingdom on earth. Others say it was simply for the sake of greed: 30 pieces of silver enticed him.

Some wonder whether Judas really knew who Jesus was. It he did, they surmise, surely they would not have handed Jesus over. Surely he would have trusted him to do the right thing at the right time.

That’s all well and good, but it misses the reality mentioned in Luke 22:3: Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve. There was another force at work behind the scenes here. We have here the unholy trinity at work seeking to thwart the work of Jesus. The devil enters Judas who is compromised in his own flesh by greed. All this while the world conspires through the religious leaders to get rid of Jesus.

These three enemies of God and people continue to conspire to undo Jesus’ work. The devil will always tempt us. The world will always hold out an easier way. Our own flesh will always be drawn away from God. These three relentless forces pursue us for evil purposes. It should not be too difficult for us to understand Judas’ motives.

We may still not know all of Judas’ motives. But Jesus did and does. He is perfectly aware of what is in the heart of man. He knows the wiles of Satan better than anyone else. He’s fully aware of the broken world and its corruption. He knows what will happen. He knows about the kiss. He knows he will face the cross. And he does nothing to thwart these enemies.

Evil will always ultimately collapse under its own weight. All the deceit and scheming will ultimately serve for God’s glory. For Jesus will remain faithful. Under the greatest duress imaginable Jesus keeps faith. For not only does Jesus know the intent and motives of Judas, he also knows the pure goodness and boundless love, the infinite faithfulness and ultimate end of true righteousness. He promises that those who believe in him will reign with him in the life of the world to come.

Yet when I am among mature believers, I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world or to the rulers of this world, who are soon forgotten. ⁷ No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began. ⁸ But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord. ⁹ That is what the Scriptures mean when they say,

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
    and no mind has imagined
what God has prepared
    for those who love him.”

¹⁰ But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. – 1 Corinthians 2:6-10

When I was in junior high school my dad bought me a telescope. Actually it was a telescope kit. It showed up in a 2 inch by 3 inch by 2 inch box. We had to get a cardboard tube and a piece of pipe, make some bushings. Then we fitted lenses and cardboard holders for the lenses into a rigged-together eyepiece. Sad (and needless to say), it didn’t work. We couldn’t get the optics lined up correctly. We couldn’t adjust things finely enough. Our skills (and maybe the instructions) were simply not that well honed. It was a big disappointment.

Many years later we were at a state park where a bonafide telescope was set up. Looking through the lens yielded an amazing view! Stars appeared, along with planets and new details. We could actually see the rings of Saturn. It was amazing. Inspiring. Delightful. Much like the view we had of the night sky in the middle of nowhere in far-west Texas.

Paul speaks of things no eye has seen. He is not talking about constellations, stellar apparitions, or planetary details, but of something even more sublime and glorious. He speaks of the grace and love of God shown in Jesus Christ.

This was truly something not seen prior to Jesus’ appearing. Although the prophets had foretold it, and the word of God had laid it out, even grasping it by faith offered only a glimpse of the glory of God in Jesus Christ.

Even today we are constrained in our ability to see the fullness of God’s glory in Jesus Christ. For – as Isaiah had foretold – he had no appearance that should attract us to him (Isaiah 53:2). And his most glorious moment was hidden from our view. Only the disciples witnessed Jesus’ ascension into heaven to be seated at the right hand of God. In fact the most indelible image of Jesus is found in his suffering on the cross.

This is nothing new to God. His plan was set before the foundation of the world. Jesus’ crucifixion was not a mistake, but the essential element of God’s plan for our rescue, redemption and salvation.

This is the way I think also of the Great Last Day. We think we know what it will be like – just like the people of Jesus’ day who were waiting for the Messiah. But we do not know. No eye has seen.

One day we will see – face to face. One day the veil that clouds our vision will be removed. One Day that which no eye has seen will be revealed before our very eyes. In the meantime we wait, hope, and trust in God and his promises. We look forward to the fullness of the blessings God has in store for those who love him.

Oh that you would rend the heavens and come down,
    that the mountains might quake at your presence—
² as when fire kindles brushwood
    and the fire causes water to boil—
to make your name known to your adversaries,
    and that the nations might tremble at your presence!
³ When you did awesome things that we did not look for,
    you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence.
⁴ From of old no one has heard
    or perceived by the ear,
no eye has seen a God besides you,
    who acts for those who wait for him. – Isaiah 64:1-4

Have you ever wanted God to show up? Have you ever wished that he would lay your enemies low and take his stand for all to see? Mockers scoff at God with impunity. Those who dismiss God’s ways and scorn God’s laws live in ease. It’s enough to make me wish for an Ananias and Sapphira moment in the church today (cf. Acts 5:1-10). Once in a while if God would just show up on power and might and teach those who deride God’s laws and ways a lesson!

It’s not like God cannot do this. Think of the Exodus and the angel of death striking the first-born of those who did not have the blood of the Passover lamb on their door frames. Consider the way Elijah slaughtered the prophets of Baal. What about Gideon or the battle of Jericho? Seems like God can do these mighty acts of radical comeuppance. 

It seems, however, that Isaiah is pointing us in a new and better direction. The problem with calling on God to judge is that we may well end up being judged by God. We ourselves may be just as guilty of sin as we accuse others of being.

In the end God does not want to be famous for smiting people. He is not interested in being known for laying people low. He rejoices at the repentance of sinners, not the annihilation of peoples. He welcomes and rejoices in repentant sinners’ contrition. He is more delighted in mercy more than he is satisfied by retribution.

Isaiah says there is no other God who acts in favor for those who wait for him. No other god acts in that way.  No other god will bring you hope and joy. No other god will save you.

So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. ⁷ Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths. – Genesis 3:6-7

In order for temptation to work, it has to be appealing. Somehow there must be something desirable. But temptation’s appeal always hides a bitter aftertaste. Sometimes that aftertaste is fatal. Sometimes the full impact of the poison center of temptation isn’t seen until much later. Sometimes the impact seems in many ways positive.

This is the case when Adam and Eve give into the temptation to eat the forbidden fruit. There was an initial benefit. Their eyes were opened. They saw things they had never seen before. There was a new self-awareness.

On the one hand, to be self-aware is a good thing. Perhaps you’ve known someone who is totally unaware of his impact. You might run into people who are boorish and insufferable, but have no clue that everyone is moving away from them.

You might also know of some people who are so self-aware that everything becomes something about them. A trip to the store becomes a saga of frustration, distress, and personal offense.

All this imbalance has its beginnings in the seemingly-desirable forbidden fruit. Boorishness is simply self-absorption to the extreme. Paranoia is self-worship. In either case our eyes are not focused on God. We have no true point of context to make our way through life. We lose sight of our True North.

Rather than delightfully-desirable distractions, we must look to Jesus. His mercy, love, and grace will point us back to God, and to the blessings he offers. He is delighted to give those blessings to all who look to him in faith.