He Will Lick Your Face

An excellent illustration of the fear of the Lord, taken from a sermon by John Piper on Proverbs 31. Preached in 1981.

Noël and the boys and I went out to Dick and Irene Tiegen's place last week. They have a big dog as tall as Benjamin which greeted us with barks and growls from where he was chained. But after we were there and in the house with the dog, he was friendly. Then we went outside again and Irene gave the warning: Don't run from him. But as Karsten was heading out to the car, the dog came trotting up behind, and instead of slowing down and petting the dog, Karsten started to run, and immediately the dog barked and growled. What a lesson in the fear of God. Irene was Moses and she says to us Israelites, the Piper family, "Do not fear to draw near, but keep the fear of the dog (the fear of the Lord) before your eyes, lest you try to run away (lest you start to fall into sin)." God is a joy to be near and a terror to those who flee. The comparison breaks down, however: Irene put the dog in the basement, but nobody puts God in the basement.

If you are running from God because you are afraid of him, then you are not yet as afraid as you ought to be. In fact, your very flight is a mockery of God, presuming to think that you could outrun this German shepherd. If you really fear him and love your own life, stop running, turn around, and hug his neck for dear life, and he will lick your face. The fear of the Lord is fear of fleeing out of his fellowship into the way of sin. Therefore the fear of the Lord is full of peace and security and hope. It keeps us near to the merciful heart of God, our fortress, our refuge, our sanctuary, our shield, our sun. Isaiah 8:13 says, "The Lord of Hosts, . . . let him be your fear, and let him be your dread, and he will become a sanctuary." A proper fear of the Lord keeps us under the shadow of his wings where we need not be afraid.

Chin Up and Face the Reality

From a sermon preached by Pastor John MacArthur explaining Hebrews 4:12-13.

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword,
piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow,
and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
And no creature is hidden from his sight,
but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

Now let's follow along in verse 12, the Word is alive, it's active, it's sharp, it cuts deeply and reveals the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Verse 13, "And there is no creature hidden from His sight but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do." God takes His Word, cuts deep into your heart, lays you open, you're flayed, as it were, right before God's eyes. And nothing is hidden, He sees every single thing about you. We are open to the eyes of Him.

He uses a most interesting term in the Greek which was also used among the soldiers. Let me give you a little idea of how it was used. It was used to describe a criminal who had to lift his face and face the crowd as he was marched to his punishment. And the way they did that was quite interesting. A soldier held a dagger right at the chin with it just barely piercing the skin. The point of that dagger was held to force the criminal to hold his head high and his face so that every one could see him as he was paraded to his punishment.

Now you see when you turn on the television set some criminal... and holding his hands over his head and ducking under his coat because he doesn't want to be seen by the television cameras. There's a certain amount of shame and guilt. They knew that but they wanted the criminal to have to face the whole wide world and the whole community to see his face so they rammed a little dagger up under his chin and made him walk with his chin up and were he to lower his chin, he would have pierced himself right through. And in a very real sense he is saying that's exactly what the Word of God does, it jams its pierced point right up under your chin and it makes you face the reality and it makes God able to see exactly what you look like.

It reveals you to Him.
You are open before Him.
You can't hide a thing.
That's what the Word will do.
The Word is a reprover.
The Word is a rebuker.
The Word is a convicter of sin.

It sifts, it analyzes, it reveals emotions, attitudes and thoughts.

The Best Chapter Written on the Final Chapter We Write

I just finished reading Byron Yawn's helpful and convicting book, What Every Man Wishes His Father Had Told Him. His chapter on ambition was great. But the chapter on integrity was even better. Challenging us particularly in the context of how we will be remembered after we're gone, Byron very accurately describes the deceptive gap between what is often said about a person at the end of their life, and what is actually true about that person throughout their life. His point? The increase of our integrity will be directly in proportion to the decrease of that gap.

More lies are told at funerals than at any other occasion. They are forced out as the silent deceptions of a man's character are finally dealt with at his memorial service. People spend lifetimes covering or ignoring the truth of who they are. Friends and family, who spent their lives playing along with the deception while they were alive, stick to the beloved's script in the end.... It's a bizarre type of courtesy paid to the bereaved. But it's a disservice to reality. We should speak up sooner.
There's nothing so powerful as a life that speaks for itself. A life that is its own benediction. A life that is a translation of integrity.
We carry the final chapter of our lives around with us every day we live.
It's our next decision.
We're the mosaic of every decision we've ever made.
When we die we push print.
You wrote your life's story moment by moment. Not preachers and loved ones. It's not the honorable mentions of accomplishments, or financial worth, or possessions. People will accomplish greater things than you. If you were fortunate to have any, people who "loved" you will fight over the money you leave behind. Your possessions will fit into boxes of all shapes and sizes. The real conclusion is about integrity. What kind of man you were. The last thing written about your life will be the correspondence between who people though you were and who you actually were. What your family actually inherits is the truth. (emphasis original)

Byron then describes cleaning out his father's medical office months after his sudden death. The last area to pack up was a locked cabinet. When he finally unlocked the cabinet, he found... nothing. At least nothing unsuspected - just some medical journals. No locked-up surprises. No hidden secrets. His dad was exactly who he knew him to be; a man of integrity. The author then closes the chapter with these words:

You're going to die. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe tragically. Maybe forty years from now. Your family, in one way or another, will be faced with the task of digging around in the remains of who you were. As you are dead, there will be nothing you can do to stop them. Those defenses that kept back the truth about you while you were alive will be powerless in death. Your children will face the truth about you. They may come to discover things they never knew about you. They will face a locked cabinet of one sort or another. What will they find there?

This is sobering. This makes me think about those daily decisions. It makes me wonder if I'm ready to hit the print button. But if I'm not careful, I'll stop there, when there's even something more to consider: my eulogy cannot be my motive. There is Another who already knows my beginning and my end and everything in between must be pleasing to Him, not merely impressive to my mourners.

And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
(Colossians 1:9-14, ESV, Emphasis added)

Putting Christ in His Place

There is a lot I could say about the Christmas holiday, family tradition, and the place (or misplace) of Santa Clause. But I'll try to be brief. Below are just a few guidelines for shepherding your family through one of the most wonderful times of the year.

1. Tell the truth. 
Tell your children the true story of Christmas. His birth which resulted in His death which secured the salvation of many sinners is indeed the reason for this season. Read the narratives in Matthew 1-2 and Luke 2 with your children. Read them throughout the month of December. Read them on Christmas morning before the gloriously chaotic unwrapping frenzy begins.

If we're going to cry "foul" at the world's ongoing attempt to remove Christ from Christmas,  let's make sure we're not guilty as well. Make much of Christ in your home this Christmas.

2. Do Not Lie. 
While I would not want to dictate, in areas of liberty, how your family celebrates Christmas; I can say one thing on the authority of God's Word: Do not lie. (Exodus 20:16; Ephesians 4:25) Parents, do not lie to your children about Santa Clause. It's that simple.

Transformed by the Gospel of Glory

The glory of God is the most powerful agent of transformation available to mankind.  It is so powerful that is transforms those who merely gaze upon it.  The Apostle Paul gives personal testimony concerning this stunning fact.  "But we all," he says, "beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, and being transformed into the same image from glory to glory." (2 Corinthians 3:18)  From Paul's testimony I learn that if I wish to become all that God wants me to be, I must behold His glory each day.

 But where do I find God's glory to behold?  Indeed, the glory of God is revealed throughout all of Creation, (Psalm 19:1, Isaiah 6:3) but the Bible indicates that, outside of heaven, the glory of God in its thickest density dwells inside the gospel.  It is for this reason that the gospel is described in Scripture as "the gospel of the glory of Christ" and "the gospel of the glory of the blessed God." (2 Corinthians 4:4, 1 Timothy 1:11)  Consequently, as I habitually gaze upon the glory of the Lord revealed in the gospel, I can know the actual deposits of God's very glory are attaching themselves to my person and transforming me from one level of glory to another. (2 Corinthians 3:18) This transformation is deep and abiding, and unfadingly displays the glory of God to others. (2 Corinthians 3:13)

 ~Milton Vincent, A Gospel Primer, pages 16-17 (emphasis added)