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Songs in the Night

“Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me. Yet the LORD will command his lovingkindness in the day time, and in the night his song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life.” (Psalm 42:7-8)

There are times in the life of a believer when he seems about to sink under great avalanches of trouble and sorrow. But then “I call to remembrance my song in the night” (Psalm 77:6), and God answers once again. In the book of Psalms, the theme of conflict and suffering is prominent, but always there is also the note of hope and ultimate triumph.

The very first psalm, for example, notes the conflict of the righteous with the ungodly but promises that “the way of the ungodly shall perish” (v. 6). The second psalm foretells the final rebellion of the heathen against God and His anointed but assures us that God will “vex them in his sore displeasure” (vv. 2, 5). In Psalm 3, the believer says, “Many are they that rise up against me.” But then he remembers that “salvation belongeth unto the LORD” (vv. 1, 8). He cries in Psalm 4, “Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer” (v. 1).

In Psalm 5, immediately after the first imprecation in the psalms (“cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions”) occurs the first specific mention of singing in the book of Psalms: “Let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout [literally ‘sing’] for joy, because thou defendest them” (vv. 10-11).

The Lord Jesus and His disciples sang a psalm even as they went out into the night of His betrayal and condemnation (Mark 14:26). This is His gracious promise: “Ye shall have a song, as in the night.…And the LORD shall cause his glorious voice to be heard” (Isaiah 30:29-30). HMM

Light for Every Man

“That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.” (John 1:9)

The Bible clearly teaches that faith in the person and saving work of Jesus Christ is essential for salvation. Jesus Himself said, “I am the way...no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

This means that there is no salvation whatsoever in Islam, Buddhism, evolutionary humanism, or anything other than faith in Christ!

But what about the millions over the ages who have lived and died without ever hearing about Christ? Paul answers, “But I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world” (Romans 10:18). That is, they have heard! Our text reminds us that Jesus Christ is the true Light that has been sent to every man in the world. Paul was referring to the familiar Psalm 19, which reminds us that God’s glory is declared by the heavens themselves.

Paul also stressed that even God’s “eternal power and Godhead” are “clearly seen” “from the creation of the world,” so that those who don’t see are “without excuse” (Romans 1:20). Thus, as Peter said, “in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him” (Acts 10:35). Although Christ has provided at least some light for “every man,” the tragedy is that “men loved darkness rather than light” (John 3:19). But for those like Cornelius (to whom Peter was sent with the gospel—Acts 10) who act on whatever light they have (in nature or conscience or any possible remnants of primeval truth in their native religion), God will send more light, for “he that doeth truth cometh to the light” (John 3:21). HMM

Profit and Loss

“For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26)

In these materialistic days, many people have become abnormally occupied with investments and returns, capital gains and losses, balance sheets and cash flows. This is nothing new, of course. The prevalence of covetousness is so universal, in one form or another, that God had to place a prohibition on it in the Ten Commandments.

The Lord Jesus made a heart-searching comparison one day when He posed a surprising question relative to divine bookkeeping. Not even the riches of all the world could purchase one human soul, yet people often seem willing to sacrifice their souls in pursuit of riches. Is such an exchange really a sound investment? Merely to ask the question is to answer it.

Earning wealth is good if it is acquired honorably and by the will of God, but coveting wealth and hoarding wealth are foolish sins. Here is another of many divine profit-and-loss statements: “There is [he] that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing: there is [he] that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches” (Proverbs 13:7). The true measure of profit and loss is the balance sheet kept in heaven. One must first glean an account there, however, and this means coming to God empty-handed, on the basis of Christ’s free gift of His own riches. “Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). He died for us, that we might live through Him.

Then, once our heavenly account is established, here is real investment counseling: “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth…but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven.…For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6:19-21). HMM

Take and Eat

“Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree.” (Galatians 3:13)

Paul here explains that when the Lord Jesus offered Himself up as a sacrifice on the cross, He did what was required to rescue any sinner from the curse of the law. Two connections add poignancy to this divine redemption.

The first involves the first created couple. They ignored the words of their Creator and listened instead to this false promise: “Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened” (Genesis 3:4,5). They ate. The death curse came.

They would not have eaten that fruit if they did not believe that doing so would add something desirable to their lives. But ever since then, “all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world” (1 John 2:16).

But the Father offered salvation from the curse by sacrificing His Son, “being made a curse for us.” What, then, remains to be done? Though Adam and Eve ate a physical fruit, we must receive a spiritual food—the fruit of Him who hung on a tree for us.

The Lord’s supper is the second connection. It reminds each believer who takes and eats to trust Him. “And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this is my body” (Mark 14:22). When we take and eat that symbol of the Lord’s body, we celebrate our redemption through Him who was “wounded for our transgressions” (Isaiah 53:5). BDT

The Christian's Cleansing

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

This familiar promise is often quoted as a sort of pat formula for dealing with sin in a believer’s life. Simply identify and acknowledge the sin, and all is forgiven.

This is gloriously true, so far as it goes, but the last part of the verse is also vitally important. The Lord wants His people to be cleansed from all unrighteousness. “If we walk in the light, as he is in the light,…the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

In these and other verses, the verb translated “cleanse” is the Greek katharizo, from which we get such English words as “cathartic.” It is a strong word, sometimes translated as “purify” and even “purge.” The sin not only is to be confessed but must be purged!

The Lord Jesus Christ “by himself purged our sins” (Hebrews 1:3) so that God can be perfectly “faithful and just to forgive us our sins” on the basis of His cleansing blood and sanctifying Word. But this is far more than an academic formula, for this cleansing, purifying, and purging must become a real experience in one’s life, and the Lord will do whatever is necessary to make it so. He “gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify [same word as ‘cleanse’] unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works” (Titus 2:14).

We must learn to “walk in the light” and to be “zealous of good works” as He “purgeth us from all unrighteousness” when we “confess our sins.” It is necessary that we be constrained to become more “like him,” for “when he shall appear,…we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure” (1 John 3:2-3). Thus, His forgiveness of our sins is inevitably accompanied by a purging of our lives. HMM

The Two Ways

“For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.” (Psalm 1:6)

This verse outlines the inescapable truth that there are only two roads and two destinations to which they lead in eternity. The word “way” (Hebrew derek) means “road.” There is only one way leading to heaven—the way of the righteous—and one way leading to hell—the way of the ungodly.

This is a very common word in Scripture, but it is significant that its first occurrence is in Genesis 3:24, referring to “the way of the tree of life.” Once expelled from the garden of Eden because of their rebellion, Adam and Eve no longer could travel that “way” of life and began to die.

The equivalent Greek word in the New Testament is hodos, also meaning “road,” and it, too, occurs quite frequently. Its literal meaning—that of an actual roadway—lends itself very easily to the figure of a style of life whose practice leads inevitably to a certain destiny. Since there are only two basic ways of looking at life—the God-centered viewpoint and the man-centered viewpoint—there are only two ways of life, the way of the godly and the way of the ungodly. The one leads to life, the other to death. There is no other way.

The Lord Jesus taught, “Enter ye in at the strait [i.e., ‘narrow’] gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it” (Matthew 7:13-14).

“There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Proverbs 14:12; 16:25). But what is the way of the righteous that leads to life? “I am the way,” said the Lord Jesus, “no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). “This is the way, walk ye in it” (Isaiah 30:21). HMM

Till Heaven I've Found

“Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” (Hebrews 1:3)

As Christians we desire to be with our Lord and see His glory forever. The writer of Hebrews expressed our passion for Him in the text for today. He goes on to tell how “they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city” (Hebrews 11:16). Our ultimate goal is to reach glory and see our Savior face to face. The final verse of “Higher Ground” agrees.

I want to scale the utmost height
And catch a gleam of glory bright;
But still I’ll pray till heav’n I’ve found,
Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.

We must have our expectation fixated on Him and our eternal home. We must pray for His return to take us there and pray that we can influence many others to join us too. Now we face persecution, trials, and troubles, but these are temporary. Indeed, we are promised that we “shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God” (Romans 8:21). Only when we reach that “utmost height” and finally perceive that “glory bright” will we fully understand Him, while our thankfulness continues for eons.

Studying this grand Christian hymn reminds us of the wondrous Christian opportunities before us and the majesty of heaven’s higher ground that awaits us. We have the privilege of living above the sin so prevalent around us and confronting even our enemy with victory. And our ultimate goal is our Savior in heaven. Dear friend, we have a great journey ahead and great joy at the end. JDM

Satan's Wiles

“Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.” (Ephesians 6:16)

Our goals as victorious warriors or even survivors in the battle at hand include neutralizing the enemy’s tactics and defeating him. The Christian wants to live above the fray, being successful in his efforts to “quench all the fiery darts of the wicked,” as we saw in our text. The third verse of the hymn “Higher Ground” expresses this desire well.

I want to live above the world,
Though Satan’s darts at me are hurled;
For faith has caught the joyful sound,
The song of saints on higher ground.

The passage surrounding our text captures the warrior’s spirit well. The fighter is to don with care his entire armor (Ephesians 6:13) and protect his “loins girt about with truth” and wear the “breastplate of righteousness.” He must be protected from head to toe, “shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace” (v. 14-15) and stand with the “helmet of salvation” on his head. The text gives further instructions, perhaps more important than all the others, for it instructs, “above all, taking the shield of faith.” Our faith, our belief in God, and the knowledge of the Word of God provide the necessary and winning power for the battle. “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith” (1 John 5:4).

The final item mentioned in this important passage is the striving together of the saints for the common goal, praying together and beseeching God for His blessings. “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:18) makes victory more certain in both the short run and the long. What bliss to catch the joyful sound of faithful saints on higher ground. JDM

Sin and the Christian God

“But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.” (1 Timothy 6:11-12)

A Christian has no desire for his past life of sin. As we see in our text, we should “flee these things” and “lay hold on eternal life,” putting off whatever is old and instead putting on what is new. The second verse of our study hymn “Higher Ground” expresses this as well.

My heart has no desire to stay
Where doubts arise and fears dismay;
Though some may dwell where those abound,
My prayer, my aim, is higher ground.

One of the most precious promises of Christianity can be found in 2 Corinthians 5:17, where we see that “if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” We are told that we can put our old habits of sin behind us and live a new life in victory over sin and death. No longer can sin reign over us—we can live in victory. Even doubts and fears can be dismissed from our presence. Our God has promised throughout His Scriptures, “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness” (Isaiah 41:10).

There is no need to be anywhere else. My prayer and my aim are to walk where He leads and be where He wants me to be. Only while there can we be assured of higher ground with Him. JDM

Upward Way

“And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.” (Ephesians 3:19)

The hymn “Higher Ground” acknowledges the difficulties of the Christian life. But we press on, ever striving for the goal. A Christian must be habitually “forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before” (Philippians 3:13). And so it is in the hymn.

I’m pressing on the upward way,
New heights I’m gaining every day;
Still praying as I’m onward bound,
Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.

All faithful warriors must remember that they are fighting for the King. “No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier” (2 Timothy 2:4). Many successful soldiers in the Lord’s army may be gaining new victories each day, although in the bigger picture these may go unrecognized by others and sometimes even by the individual soldier. But these efforts and soldiers will be commended by the One for whom we are fighting.

Our endeavors must always be bathed in prayer as we seek to gain His favor. Our supplication must be, “Lord, grant me victory over any sin which besets me. Provide me favor today as I press on in your service. Give me opportunity to teach your Word to those in need. Give me fruit which lasts for eternity.” An earnest plea that touches God’s heart has great power, and we can look forward to seeing it work mightily. As the hymn teaches, we can expect Him to plant our feet on higher ground. JDM