But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, "You are my God." My times are in your hands; deliver me from my enemies and from those who pursue me.Psalms 31:14-15
Today's Preaching Insight...
The Joy of a New Thing
I like new beginnings: a new book or a new class; a new art project or a new car; starting a new job or repainting a room. There is a deeper new thing, too -- a renewed spirit and enthusiasm after a satisfying vacation, Waking up to the singing of the birds as they celebrate a new sunrise, experiencing the mercy of God again and knowing that everything is going to be OK. A new thing.
A new thing is exactly what God promised to do for Israel in Babylon. You remember the Babylonian captivity. A whole nation driven away from home into a foreign country. A different language. Different customs. Different religion. Far from home. Disorienting, and disillusioning. The Psalmist recorded that the people of Israel sat down by the river Babylon and wept ... wept against the day they used to sing songs to God. Zion songs. "How can we sing songs to God in a foreign land?" they asked.
But now God was about to do a new thing. "I will break down all the bars in Babylon. I will make a way in the sea. I will make a path in the mighty waters, I am about to do a new thing, now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?" A new thing.
God doesn't leave us parched and dried up. God doesn't leave us without hope. God doesn't leave us without a way. "I will make a way in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my chosen people, the people whom I formed for myself, so that they might declare my praise," says the Lord." "I am about to do a new thing."
In The Jesus You Can't Ignore (Thomas Nelson), John MacArthur paints a picture of Jesus unlike that offered by many. He demonstrates that the Jesus of the New Testament was blunt, confrontational, and passionate about drawing people to the Kingdom.
