A Sovereignly Chosen Church

Tuesday the 14th of May

in Meditations I

Psalm 87:4

    The glorious city of God called Zion in Psalm 87:2 and 5, and declared in verse 3 to be a city of which glorious things are spoken, has in it people who might seem to belong outside of it and far from it. Psalm 87:4 states,"I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon to them that know me behold Philistia and Tyre with Ethiopia; this man was born there." Another name for Rahab is Egypt. Thus here we have listed some of the nations that were the fiercest enemies of the kingdom of Israel, the unbelieving nations round about the land of Canaan where the church stood until the day of Pentecost. Yet we read that many from these Gentile nations were born in Zion.

    Egypt was to the west and south of Canaan, Babylon was to the east, Tyre to the north, and Ethiopia to the far south, while the inhabitants of Philistia lived right there in Canaan; and Israel had to take their land away. Yet in the wonder of God's grace — and we can see that clearly today -- God brought into the church people from other nations than the seed of Abraham. He has a universal church with people from every nation, tongue, and tribe. In fact, today there are more members in Christ's church from people outside of the Jewish race than in it.

    Sovereignly, that is, with a perfect right, and a power that cannot be challenged, God eternally chose who would be citizens in Zion. As our versification has it: (PRC Psalter)

     Heathen lands and hostile people
    Soon shall come the Lord to know;
    Nations born again in Zion
    Shall the Lord's salvation know:
    God almighty shall on Zion strength bestow.

    Did you note that the text ascribes it all to God? In evey sense the church from Adam onward is the city of God, the city He brought forth. The city is glorious because glorious things are spoken of God Who designed it and brought it into being in His Son.

Read: Revelation 5 
Psalter versification: #238:2

Meditations on the Heidelberg Catechism

Through the Bible in One Year
Read today:
I Samuel 15 
I Samuel 16 
John 8:1-20 
Psalm 110 
Proverbs 15:8-10

****
Quote for Reflection:

 “One Christian conversing with another is a means to confirm him. As the stones in an arch help to strengthen one another, so one Christian by imparting his experience, heats and quickens another. " Let us provoke one another to love, and to good works " (Heb. 10:24). How does grace flourish by holy conference! A Christian by good discourse drops that oil upon another, which makes the lamp of his faith burn the brighter.”  --Thomas Watson


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    Knowing God in His Faithfulness

    Psalm 9:10

        Although it may not look that way because we closed our eyes, yet God is always faithful and can be trusted to do fully all that which He promised us. Even though on a cloudy night we cannot see the moon or the stars, they are there above us in the sky; and it is folly to say that they are not there, just because we cannot see them. Yet so often we go by what our fleshly eyes see or cannot see and behave as though what the eye of faith sees does not exist. For we have closed our eye of faith and judge all things by what our fleshly eye sees.

        David warns us against this when in Psalm 9:10 he writes, "And they that have known Thy name will put their trust in Thee: for Thou, 0 Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek Thee.''  David here uses the name Elohim, the Almighty One, and that name says that all the creatures have strength only when and in the measure that God gives it to them. And therefore knowing God's name means that we know and see Him with the eye of faith as the one Who has every creature large or small, animate or inanimate, in the angel world or in the world of men, completely under His control. They can only do what He eternally decreed that they would do, and what He gives them the strength to do.

        No wonder then that David says that those who know God's name can trust Him and see that He never forsakes one of His children. And with David we can sing:

        All they, O Lord, that know Thy name
        Their confidence in Thee will place,
        For Thou hast ne'er forsaken them
        Who earnestly have sought Thy face.

        Consider then that, since our God is almighty, no one can prevent Him from doing what He promised us, and no one has the strength to make Him change His mind. See Him then in that name, with your eye of faith, as an unchangeably faithful God Who will destroy all your enemies and bring you to glory. And when things look bad, as far as the eye of flesh is concerned, look at Him with the eye of faith.

    Read: Revelation 20 
    Psalter versification: #17:2

    Meditations on the Heidelberg Catechism

    Through the Bible in One Year
    Read today:
    II Samuel 12 
      John 16 
    Psalm 119:65-80 
    Proverbs 16:4-5

    ****
    Quote for Reflection:

    "… And assuredly, when we consider that the sluggishness of our flesh hinders us from elevating our minds to the height of the divine majesty, in vain would God call us to himself, did he not at the same time, on his part, come down to us; or, did he not at least, by the interposition of means, stretch out his hand to us, so to speak, in order to lift us up to himself."  –  John Calvin

    Last modified on 26 May 2019

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