“The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions.”
                    –Deuteronomy 29:29  (NLT)
——————————–
Proverbs 3:
          19 — The LORD by wisdom founded the earth; by understanding He established the heavens;
          20 — By His knowledge the depths were broken up, and clouds drop down the dew.  (NKJV)
(CEB)
          19 — The Lord laid the foundations of the earth with wisdom, establishing the heavens with understanding.
          20 — With his knowledge, the watery depths burst open, and the skies drop dew.

     Often I would ask students what would happen if they were walking and released hold on their books.  Invariably they would say, they would drop, or they would fall.  I would then gently remind them they would not…but gravity would pull them down.  In saying that I don’t mean to imply that I understand the laws of physics.  I do know that some things will happen, such as in the case of the books, but I don’t understand the why of it.  In watching movies I see cowboys shooting up in the air; they don’t understand physics any better than I.  What goes up, must come down, and it will come down in the same arch that it went up (barring other things in nature).
     Stop for a minute and look out the window.  Look at the marvelous creation of God; not evolution–happenchance, but the work of the infinite Creator.  God in His infinite wisdom and plan put it all together.  He spoke and it happened.  I read, whether true or not, of a meeting between the brilliant Albert Einstein and the comedian Charlie Chaplin.  In their conversation it is reportedly said that Chaplin made this remark to the famed scientist:  “The whole world admires you, even though they don’t understand a word of what you say.”
     Bob Beasley points out that “God established the earth, as He set each star of the firmament in position, and as the seas were formed and the ecosystems set up.”  Add to that the grandeur of nature and the wonder of man.  Whew!  It is too much for my pitiful brain to grasp.  I recall the words that God spoke to Job, “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding.” (38:4, NKJV)  I for sure do not have all the understanding, but I know that it all works together.  I am reminded of the wonderful song by Maltbie D. Babcock:

          This is my Father’s world,
          And to my listening ears
          All nature sings, and round me rings
          The music of the spheres.
          This is my Father’s world:
          I rest me in the thought
          Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas–
          His hand the wonders wrought.

     “This is my Father’s world,” and I leave it at that.  “I rest me in the thought,” that I cannot comprehend the works of His hands.  Man often gets in the way of the laws of nature and physics.  When that happens bad things can happen and often do.  Warren Wiersbe reminds us, “Obey these laws and creation will work with you; disobey them and creation will work against you.”  Try walking on water.  Oh ye of little faith.  Take a step off a ten story building and see if you can defy the laws of gravity.  On the way down, be sure and pray asking that the Lord forgive you for your stupidity.  He will answer, “My son/daughter, I forgive you” just before the sound of “PLOP!”
     Since this creation belongs to our heavenly Father we are to be good stewards not only of our finances but also of God’s creation.  Upon leaving a campsite I always told my kids and students to leave it better than when you found it.  I hate to drive along roads and see all the trash.  In that same concept, we should also be better stewards of our intelligence.  J.L. Flores states that, “the exhibition of God’s wisdom in creation is intended to lead men to listen to His Word of Revelation.”  Ponder this last thought throughout the day from the NIV Study Bible, “To live by wisdom is to imitate the Lord and conform to the divinely appointed creation order.”

                         –Louis L’Amour  (The Broken Gun)

       “Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”
                          –Hebrews 7:25(NKJV)  
——————————-
     The words of George Whitefield are appropriated for Psalm 140, “Let us never despair while we have Christ as our leader!”  The NIV starts with the words, “Rescue me…”  It is almost a frantic plea.

          1 — Deliver me, O LORD, from evil men; preserve me from violent men,
          2 — Who plan evil things in their hearts; they continually gather together for war.
          3 — They sharpen their tongues like a serpent; the poison of asps is under their lips.   Selah
          4 — Keep me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from violent men, who have purposed to make my steps stumble.
          5 — The proud have hidden a snare for me, and cords; they have spread a net by the wayside; they have set traps for me.    Selah
          6 — I said to the LORD:  “You are my God; hear the voice of my supplications, O LORD.
          7 — O GOD the Lord, the strength of my salvation, you have covered my head in the day of battle.
          8 — Do not grant, O LORD, the desires of the wicked; do not further his wicked scheme, lest they be exalted.    Selah    (NKJV)

     “Steven Lawson states, “The storms of life either make us or break us.  They either mold us into the persons God wants us to be, or they cause us to lose heart and crumble.  Fiery trials either drive the believer closer to God, or they drive him farther away.  But no one ever remains the same after experiencing a severe distress.  Affliction either softens the believer or sours him.  It either makes him better or makes him bitter.  This is the powerful effect of trials upon our spiritual lives.  All believers go through storms, but none pass through them unchanged.”  There are storms rising, the winds are building, the house is ready to crumble under the onslaught.  What house?  Why the house of your soul.  “Rescue me!”  
     When storms have come, whether wind, rain, or fire, there is always the situation that follows–scavengers.  Those people who will raid a person’s home after the storm has passed just to please their greedy, evil appetites.  People who don’t mind hurting others, and seem to delight in it when they are down.  “Deliver me!” from the hands of evil.  It is an urgent cry, almost to the point of pleading, “Do it now.  I need help now!”  The NLT says these people, “stir up trouble all day long”; the NIV translates verse 2, “who devise evil plans in their hearts and stir up war every day.”  There are people out there who go about wrecking havoc throughout society.  Ruthless people who care nothing about the rights, feelings, and property of others.  And their tongues, oh my, they run their mouths continuously against you.  Poison seems to be injected into every word they spit out.
     These evil people have a hidden agenda.  They set hidden traps.  One of the most feared traps during the Vietnam War were punji sticks hidden in holes along the paths.  On top of that the enemy would coat these sticks with feces to bring about quick infection.  They laid the trap for the unsuspecting, but even the old veteran sometimes fell into one of them.  Close scrutiny must be given to the path we are traveling on.  One cannot walk through life complacent or wham!  They are jammed with a punji stick hidden by the enemy.  Another careless traveler has been waylaid.  David writes, “Selah,” at the end of this.  Just think on this…just think on what type of person this is.  Hmmm, we should realize that the enemy of our souls is not a gentleman, but a seething evil being who wants nothing more than to hurt, destroy, or kill you.  Think of that!  Don’t let it leave your mind.
     But then…recall the next words and realize that you too can say them:  “You are my God!”  Note that in “the midst of this difficulty, his faith was active and dynamic.” (Lawson)  No matter who is out there to get you, no matter what circumstances may come your way, the Lord God Almighty is there with you.  When someone tries to get you to respond in a like manner, don’t give them that satisfaction.  Stay above their antics, be aware of them, but don’t give in to them.  Go to God, ask Him to act on your behalf, He is able and willing to deliver you.

               “Through all the changing scenes of life,
               In trouble and in joy,
               The praise of my God shall still
               My heart and tongue employ.”
                      –Nahum Tate

       “Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
                    –Matthew 20:28(NKJV)
————————————
               “On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross,
               The emblem of suffering and shame….”
                         –George Bennard

     No doubt about it, the cross was horrendous with agony unimaginable, but it was not a great tragedy.  It was a great victory, especially for anyone who turns to the Christ of the cross.  That cross brought the mission of Christ to an end when He cried, “It is finished.”  His work was complete, justice was met, reconciliation with the Father was now available, the propitiation was done.
     There are many in Christian circles who shy away from the cross.  They do not want to speak of sin, shame, and guilt, or the wrath, anger, and justice of God.  Yet that is part of the purpose and great wonder of the cross.  Alistair Begg reminds us, “Any attempt to articulate Christianity that denies the centrality of the cross can never lead to saving faith.”  Sin had to be dealt with.  Justice was demanded.  Jesus’ death on the cross defeated the curse of sin and He accepted the justice of God and took the wrath of God for all of mankind.
     One cannot read the New Testament without coming in contact with the cross and the work done upon it.  D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones writes, “The whole of the New Testament is proclaiming the blood of Christ, the death of Christ upon the cross on Calvary.  It is the heart and centre of the Christian evangel, the good news of salvation.”  
     Be careful, however, of making the cross an idol, a relic that saves you.  On the other hand, do not negate the purpose of the cross and what took place there.  “So you do not regret the cross, and you do not try to forget it or idealize it, or philosophize about it, and turn it into something beautiful and wonderful.  No, what you say is this:  I glory in it!  It is the means of my salvation.  It is the very way in which I am saved.” (Lloyd-Jones)  Jessie Brown Pounds penned these words to remind us that, “I must needs go home by the way of the cross, There’s no other way but this…”
     Perhaps we should heed more closely to the words of that grand old hymn by Isaac Watts:
                When I survey the wondrous cross,
                On which the Prince of glory died,
                My richest gain I count but loss,
                And pour contempt on all my pride.
What do you see when you survey the cross?  Do you see your sin?  Sin, a word that humanists try to avoid.  Do you shun the cross?  Is it just an ornament you wear around your neck?  Is it a symbol of your faith?  Is it a crucifix upon which Christ still hangs, redemption incomplete?  If so, how does it affect you?  Do you recognize the God-man Jesus on the center cross?  Listen, get this into your mind–the cross was not an accident.  It wasn’t just planned by the Jewish religious council or the Roman government.  Jesus’ life was directed to His fulfillment of the Father’s will.  Jesus came to give His life a ransom for many. (Matthew 20:28).  “Any man who is saved, is saved by the cross, and to be saved means that your sins are forgiven, that you are reconciled to God.” (Lloyd-Jones)