Today I went out to lunch with several of the guys from work because today was Larry’s last day and we wanted to take him out to lunch. As we were driving in the car to the restaurant and I was listening to the other guys, the conversation was not as vulgar as it could have been, but it was pretty salty, as conversation among unsaved men tends to be. I was watching my tongue, but I was not being as careful as I should have been and I may have said something that a follower of Jesus should not say. I am fairly sure that no one else noticed anything at all, but it suddenly occurred to me that I am an ambassador for the Lord Jesus Christ wherever I am. Sitting in a car going to lunch is no different than sitting in church singing a hymn; I am a follower of the Lord Jesus and therefore have been appointed as His ambassador, and where I go, Jesus goes, and whatever I say and do, I say and do as a representative and ambassador for the Lord Jesus.

“Therefore we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” 2 Corinthians 5:20
(Other verses to challenge the believer in this regard: Matthew 5:13-16; Ephesians 5:27 “that he might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless”; Acts 1:8 “you shall be My witnesses”)

Here is the challenge for us as believers: After our conversion, we are ALWAYS ambassadors for Christ, wherever we are and with whomever we are, and we are therefore always to act like representatives for the Lord Jesus. There is no vacation and there is no day off. We are always accountable to represent our King to others. “We are His workmanship (Eph. 2:10).” We are the trophies in His trophy case and we are always to be living and speaking and behaving as befits one who has been redeemed by the Savior.

So when I am traveling to lunch with my co-workers, I am to let my light shine as a follower of Jesus and to let these others know that there is a difference between the redeemed and the lost. For we are members of a different Kingdom and we serve a different King. We are to walk as Jesus walked (1 John 2:6), so that we can adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect (Titus 2:10).

Since, then, we are ambassadors for Christ, we must live lives that are holy and blameless and undefiled, because the ambassador is the representative of the King in a foreign land and is therefore to show the foreigners the nature of the kingdom of his King.

The ambassador is conscious of the fact that he has been chosen by his King and also has been sent out by the King. So the ambassador must ask himself or herself, “What is my role as an ambassador to my King?” Since the ambassador serves the King, it is the King that gives the ambassador his assignment. And what is that assignment? The ambassador is sent out to represent the King and to carry out the business of the King. The ambassador is focused on the fame and prominence of his King. So we as ambassadors are aware that our King must increase and we must decrease (John 3:30). So we are sent out to tell of the glory of King Jesus and to tell of His deity, that He has always been and will always be.

But from the context of 2 Corinthians 5:20, the most important task that we have as ambassadors is to broadcast the Message of the King. We as ambassadors are to proclaim the message of reconciliation, a message that says that because of the sinless life of King Jesus and because of His sacrificial death on the cross and His glorious resurrection, sinners who are currently in the kingdom of darkness and who are currently enemies of the King can become citizens of His kingdom and can be adopted as sons of the living God. This message of reconciliation declares that those who are enemies of the King and who are under His wrath can have peace with the King and can themselves be made ambassadors of the King to carry the message to others. This is what it means to be an ambassador of the Lord Jesus.

SUMMARY AND APPLICATIONS:
Brothers and sisters, you and I are ambassadors for Christ, and we are always in the role of ambassador. Therefore we are always to be conscious of our role and we are to be intent on the accomplishment of our task as ambassadors and aware that we are always representing our King and are a reflection, good or bad, of our King and His Kingdom.

Here, then, are some questions to challenge us as ambassadors: (How am I doing as an ambassador for Christ?)

Do others know that you are a follower of Jesus and are a citizen of His kingdom? I am not asking if they SUSPECT you MIGHT BE a follower of Jesus. I am asking if you as an ambassador of the Kingdom have made your citizenship plain.
Based on YOUR behavior as an ambassador, do other people realize that there is a difference between those that follow Jesus and those who do not?
Do you live in a way that fits the citizens of heaven, in a way that is actively holy?
How often do you tell those outside Christ’s kingdom about your King?
Do you tell others how they can become citizens of Christ’s kingdom and how they can become beloved subjects of the King of all kings?
Do you tell people how they can be reconciled to God through King Jesus?

As ambassadors we each need to display the glory of the King by showing how He changes lives and declaring that He is able to reconcile the vilest enemy with a holy God. RMB 3/26/2015 #80

The prophet Jeremiah was perhaps the greatest of the “covenant prosecutors,” the men who were called to declare to ancient Israel their persistent disobedience of the covenant they had made with the Lord. In passage after passage in his prophecy Jeremiah testified of Israel’s flagrant violations of the Law of the Lord and urged them to repent of their evil and to turn back to the Lord. In chapter 13, Jeremiah again warns the nation of Judah that the Lord is bringing on them great punishment and judgment and that they need to return to the Lord immediately or they will be punished. The nation of Judah replies (13:22):

‘Why have these (terrible) things happened to me?’
Because of the magnitude of your iniquity
Your skirts have been removed
And your heels have been exposed.

Then comes one of the most beautiful and profound verses in this section of Jeremiah (13:23):

Can the Ethiopian change his skin
Or the leopard his spots?
Then you also can do good
Who are accustomed to doing evil.

I want to take a few minutes to meditate on this verse and to consider what it tells us about the condition and the nature of man. But first, we need to carefully understand what the verse says. “Can the Ethiopian change his skin or (can) the leopard (change) his spots?” Jeremiah gives us two graphic pictures of things that are impossible. First, he give the example of the Ethiopian’s skin. The Ethiopian was born with brown skin and the Ethiopian will die with brown skin. No matter his efforts or his will or his amount of hard work, the Ethiopian cannot change the color of his skin. The color of his skin is part of his most basic, most essential nature and unless somehow his basic nature is changed, his skin color cannot change. In other words, the Ethiopian does not have the power to change his skin color. The same thing can be said for the leopard and his spots. The spots on the leopard’s fur are part of the essential nature of the leopard and they cannot be changed. Nothing and no one has the power to remove the leopard’s spots. They are there to stay and are unchangeable. Clearly, then, Jeremiah has given us two things that are utterly unchangeable.

But the punch line is in the second half of the verse. “Then you also can do good who are accustomed to doing evil.” If the Ethiopian can change his skin and the leopard can change his spots, then it is possible for Judah to begin to obey the Lord and do good. But this analogy exposes the impossibility of their obedience. With the Ethiopian and the leopard, Jeremiah paints a picture of how impossible it is for Judah to obey the Lord and to pursue righteousness. Even if Judah had some desire for obedience, they have no ability to obey. By their fallen nature and by habitual behavior, they are bent toward iniquity and transgression and cannot do good nor can they obey. They do not have the ability. It is impossible. This is what Jeremiah is saying about the people of Judah.

But this verse in Jeremiah is profound because this description is not limited to those from ancient Judah. What the word of God is saying to us is that, just as it is physically impossible for an Ethiopian to change the color of his skin, so it is spiritually impossible for any human being to change his own moral condition. As the leopard is effectively trapped in his spots and is a slave to the pattern of his fur, so the natural man is trapped in his disobedience and is a slave to his sin. The natural man can no more stop his sin than the leopard can change the spots on his fur coat. By his very nature, the leopard has his spots and by his fallen nature, the natural man practices sin.

In one short and profound verse Jeremiah communicates to us vital theological truth that is expanded elsewhere in Scripture. The truth is that unconverted, unsaved man is a slave of sin and is unable to change himself and to escape from his prison of sin. In John 8:34 Jesus tells us that man is a slave of sin. In Romans 3:10 Paul quotes the Old Testament and tells us that there is none righteous. Later in Romans 6:17, 19, and 20 Paul tells believers that they were slaves of sin before their conversion. Also those who do not know Christ are spiritually dead (Ephesians 2:1) in trespasses and sins. In 2 Corinthians 4:4, we read that unbelievers are spiritually blinded by Satan so that they will not see the glory of Christ. Finally those outside of Christ are slaves of their own lusts and long to indulge their flesh. Again Paul writes that “we were once . . . enslaved to various lusts and pleasures (Titus 3:3).” The theological truth is that unsaved man is enslaved to sin and is as trapped in his sin and disobedience as the Ethiopian is trapped in his brown skin.

APPLICATIONS:
The first application begs the answer to the question, “Have you been set free from your slavery to sin?” Since we are all born into this world as slaves of sin, we must all be set free from that slavery. And who can set us free? The only one who can set us free is the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Jesus says in John 8:36, “So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.” Has He set you free?

The second application has to do with our evangelism. Understanding that all men and women are born spiritually dead and enslaved to sin, we must wonder how they can be made alive. If the natural man or the natural woman is unable to change their spiritual condition, then how do we evangelize them? If they are blinded by Satan and are spiritually dead, how are we to reach them? To this we say that the Bible makes clear that the preaching of the gospel has the power to bring about the salvation of all those who believe. In Romans 1:16-17, Paul says, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation for all who believe, to the Jew first and also to the Greek; for in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, ‘But the righteous man shall live by faith.'” The preaching of the gospel has the power in it to bring about salvation in anyone. So to those who are dead and who cannot do good, we preach the universal sinfulness of man, the righteousness and holiness of God and His wrath against sin, we proclaim the perfect sinlessness of Christ and His atoning death on the cross; we preach His resurrection and we preach that through faith in Christ anyone who believes in Him may have forgiveness of sins and eternal life.

The third application is one of praise from those who have been changed by Christ. If you were once dead in your sins and enslaved to sin and have been delivered and set free, you know that Christ has the power to do the impossible. You know that Christ has changed you and that you are free indeed. From this position there is praise to God for His deliverance and prayers to the Holy Spirit for greater holiness and greater sanctification in our daily lives.
RMB 3/22/2015

One of the most unsettling and surprising experiences of the new believer in Jesus Christ occurs when those who used to be their friends and who used to run with them into the same excesses of dissipation (1 Peter 4:4) begin to ridicule them and reject them and even attack them. The hostility and the venom that can flow from those who, until your conversion, seemed to be your best buds can be very confusing. It is confusing because you do not understand the reality of the cross-shaped target that is now etched onto your back. When you come to Jesus Christ, you die to the old life and you are born-again to the new, and in that moment of faith and repentance you are not only justified before a holy God, but you forever change kingdoms and become alienated from those who remain slaves of sin and death.

The New Testament has much to say about what I am calling “the cross-shaped target,” so much so that it could almost be a major theme of the Christian life. The believer is to expect rejection and persecution when they convert and begin to follow Jesus, because the believer is now at enmity with Satan. Prior to conversion, we walked according to Satan’s bidding and were sons of disobedience (Ephesians 2:2), but now we are Satan’s enemies and he hates us with an evil hatred.

Paul experienced the cross-shaped target. Before he came to faith in Christ, Paul was progressing in Judaism (Galatians 1:14) and was persecuting Christians (1 Timothy 1:13; Acts 8:1, 3; 9:1-2) and was enjoying the life of a fanatical Pharisee. Then he met the risen Christ on the road to Damascus, was radically converted, was baptized and immediately became a flaming torch for the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 9:20-22). What happened then? In Damascus right after his conversion, the Jews plotted to put Paul to death and he only escaped by being lowered over the city wall in a basket (Acts 9:23-25). Only days before Paul had been a hero among those who despised “the Way,” and now those same people are trying to kill him. Then he goes to Jerusalem where he was trained as a Pharisee and where he had been so zealous for the Law and what does he find there? When he argues with the Jews in Jerusalem, they want to kill him. Again, those who grew up with Paul and had long-term relationships with him suddenly turned on him because he now followed Jesus. What’s the point? The point is that Paul had changed kingdoms and he now had a cross-shaped target on his back.

Peter’s first epistle has much to say to the new believer about the reality of the cross-shaped target now carved into her back. These new believers may be “distressed with various trials” and be “tested by fire,” but they continue to “greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible (1 Peter 1:6-8).” The apostle Peter tells them, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though something strange were happening to you (1 Peter 4:12).” It is evident that suffering for the name of Jesus is an accepted and expected part of being a disciple of Jesus. “If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you (4:14).” Yes, the believer has become an alien and a stranger in this world (2:11) and has donned the cross-shaped target.

Probably more than anyone else, Jesus told His disciples about the hatred they would receive from the world when they chose to follow Him. In Matthew 12:30, Jesus says, “He who is not with me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.” In other words, the one who is not a follower of Jesus is one who hates Jesus and is one who seeks to destroy the kingdom of God. On the night that He was betrayed, Jesus taught His disciples much about what was to come and about how the world would respond to them when they followed Him. Jesus was not ambiguous, but was very plain. In the Upper Room Discourse, in John 15, Jesus said:

“If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. . . If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. But all these things they do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know the One who sent Me. . . He who hates Me hates My Father also. . . but now they have both seen and hated Me and My Father as well (15:18-24).” “They will make you outcasts from the synagogue, but an hour is coming when everyone who kills you to think that he is offering service to God (16:2).”

The spiritual reality must be grasped, so that we as believers will not be unsettled or confused or feel betrayed when our proclamation of the gospel or our life of living faithfully for Jesus is met with hostility and ridicule and rejection. The truth is that the believer has changed kingdoms and is now viewed by those who remain in the kingdom of darkness as a traitor and an enemy at worst, or as a fool and a fanatic at best.

MEDITATIONS AND APPLICATIONS:
Application 1: If the world opposes you and rejects you because of your testimony and your faith in Jesus Christ, you should see that as a source of great encouragement. Of course, no one likes to be rejected, but if you are rejected for Jesus’ sake, it means that He will reward you. Be encouraged, because this bears out the truths taught in Scripture.

Application 2: Paul said, “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted (2 Tim. 3:12).” Therefore, if you are NOT experiencing opposition and persecution from the world, you have reason for concern. Paul said “ALL who desire to live godly WILL be persecuted.” Not only are we to expect persecution, but we are to be concerned with its absence. Again, the reality is that we have changed kingdoms and are now opposed by Satan and his demons, and by the world and the world systems of this darkness. Jesus has told us that the world hates us and that the devil wants to kill us. If there exists that much opposition to the godly and I am not experiencing any opposition, it means either that I am not living boldly enough for Jesus to draw the enemy’s fire or it means that I have not actually changed kingdoms at all, but just think I have changed masters.

Application 3: When you have a cross-shaped target on your back, you should expect to be attacked. The believer must read their Bible and realize the spiritual realities of our warfare. We are at war with the forces of darkness and those forces want to take us down. Therefore, live with reckless abandon and boldness for Jesus Christ and when the fiery ordeals and the testings come, embrace them as proof of your value to the Master and your threat to Satan and his kingdom.
3/19/2015 RMB

When Satan and his demons gather to plan out their battle strategy and when they identify people who are dangerous to their evil kingdom, does your name get mentioned? Are you a threat to the kingdom of darkness such that the fallen angels plot how to take you down? How far up the chart do you rank on the devil’s most wanted list?

Although we are denied knowledge of the details of Satan’s battle plans, the Bible assures us in many places that the devil is determined to destroy those who follow Jesus. Peter tells us that the devil is our adversary and that he “prowls about like a roaring lion seeking someone he may devour (1 Peter 5:8).” Jesus Himself tells us that the devil comes to steal and kill and destroy (John 10:10) and that he is a murderer from the beginning (John 8:44) and we can be sure that those the devil hates the most are those who follow Jesus Christ. We are told not to be ignorant of his schemes (2 Cor. 2:11), and surely part of his schemes include making us useless for service to our Lord Jesus Christ.

So imagine that we are enabled to listen in on the strategic planning meeting of the forces of hell, with the prince of the power of the air (Eph. 2:2) himself leading the meeting. As they discuss their enemies and the people most dangerous to their wicked schemes, is your name mentioned? One of the goals of my own discipleship is to be a serious threat to Satan’s plans and a dangerous hindrance to Satan’s activities. In these imaginary meetings of the agents of darkness, then, I want my name often to be mentioned and I want to draw heavy fire from the enemy. I want them to be planning my demise, because that means that I am doing damage to their cause. If they desire to silence me, it means that my voice is bringing the words of life to some. Satan does not spend his firepower needlessly, and if he is directing his cannons at me, it is because he needs to stop what I am doing. As believers and followers of Jesus, do we live in such a way that Satan is staying up at night trying to figure out how to neutralize us? When he hears your name does he fly into a rage of hatred? Are the good works that I am doing (Eph. 2:10) giving him an ulcer? Will the devil throw a party to celebrate the day of your death? Will he breathe a sigh of relief the day your voice is finally silenced in the grave?

Brothers and sisters, let’s live in such a way that Satan is obsessed with our demise. RMB

There are times when I get discouraged and don’t seem to have the energy to even put up much of a fight. Can any of you relate to that? Do you ever feel that the world is winning every battle and the devil is pounding away at you and you can’t even offer much of a defense? I feel that way sometimes, but recently, when I was feeling especially down, the Lord gave me a vision and a different perspective.

When Satan tries to tell me that I am a failure and that I always will be a failure and he brings to my mind mistakes that I have made and tells me of all the times that I have failed and then tells me that I am therefore a failure, I will refer him to my Big Brother, Jesus. “You, Satan, are the father of lies. You are the accuser of the brethren. You are the one who hates me and who seeks to kill and to steal and to destroy. You intend nothing but my destruction and plan for nothing but my failure. But let me introduce you to my Big Brother, Jesus. I think you may have met Him before. Do you remember? He was the One who kicked you out of heaven and determined that you would crawl on the earth like a serpent. He was the One who defeated you in the wilderness and resisted every one of your temptations. You will remember that He is the One who drove the cross through your skull on Calvary’s hill and He is the One who said, ‘It is finished,’ from the cross. He is the One who has delivered me from the domain of darkness. He is the One who has destroyed your works. He is the One who has conquered death and He is the One who promises that I will never be condemned. He is the One who is at my side and has promised to never leave me or forsake me. Nothing shall be able to take me out of His hand and nothing can separate me from His love for me. He is the One who is in heaven interceding for me. He is the One who is with me like a dread champion. He is my Refuge and my Rock and my Redeemer. He is the One who will come from heaven with a shout and with the voice of the archangel to receive me into heaven and to give me a glorified body. And He is the One who will throw you into the lake of fire to be tormented forever. Don’t you remember Him? I think you do. He is my Big Brother. He is the One who will defend me from those too strong for me.

“So if you have something to say to me, Satan, and you have some accusation to bring against me; if there is some discouragement that you want to bring against me or if you want to remind me of some failure and if you want to tell me that I am a failure, you will need to speak to my Big Brother first and see what He has to say about it. The reality is that apart from Jesus, I am nothing and can do nothing, but because Jesus Christ is my King and because He died for me and because He is for me and because nothing can separate me from His love, I am destined for glory and my life is useful to the Master. I have been given a white robe and a ring. I have been washed in the blood of Jesus Christ so that I am whiter than snow. My frail efforts, when offered in the name of Jesus, are powerful for the destruction of all your fortresses. You, Satan, say that I am a failure, but Jesus Christ says I belong to Him, that he has bought me with the price of His own blood and that all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose. You, Satan, say that I will fail and that the future is bleak, but because you are the father of lies, I know that is a lie and that my future is, in fact, bright and that God will use me and that nothing can stand against God’s purposes to bring about His glory through my feeble efforts. So tell your lies to my Advocate and to my Intercessor and to my Redeemer and see what He has to say about them.”

Isaiah 64:4; Romans 8:31-39; John 19:30; 2 Cor. 5:2; 2 Timothy 2:21; Romans 8:1; Hebrews 13:5; Revelation 19:11-16; Matthew 4:1-11; Jeremiah 20:11; Colossians 1:13; 1 John 3:8; 2 Timothy 1:10; John 10:28-29; John 15:5; Isaiah 1:18; 2 Cor. 10:4; 1 Cor. 6:19-20; Romans 8:28; John 8:44; Isaiah 43:1-2; Revelation 20:10; Zechariah 3:1-7; Genesis 3:14-15.

One of my greatest strengths is my ability to plan. I love to create detailed plans that cover every contingency and in my mind and in my plan, carefully go from one level of achievement to another. And there are, of course, contingency plans along with the main thread of the central plan. O, it is a work of art! Yes, planning is one of my strengths . . . and it is also one of my most glaring weaknesses, because I fall victim to the notorious “planning trap.” This is that tendency to plan and plan and plan, and keep on planning until the perfect plan is constructed, only to find out the opportunity is gone. The planning trap is the pitfall of ever-planning, but never acting.

What I want to talk about is the ACTION STEP OF FAITH. That is to say, this must become the believer’s ongoing habit of life, to put their faith into practice by TAKING ACTION. Planning is good, but action is better. Kingdom work can take place without planning, but no Kingdom work can take place without action. In fact, nothing takes place without action. Therefore action is better than planning. Never confuse the two!

A perfect plan that is not executed is useless, whereas an imperfect action step can be directed by the Lord to bring about significant results. Action done in faith is much better than creating a detailed plan. The planning step, therefore, must have as its goal the creation of a tightly linked series of directed, intentional ACTION STEPS. DEFINITION OF A PLAN: A linked series of ACTION STEPS intended to achieve a worthwhile goal.

Ecclesiastes 9:4 says, “It is better to be a live dog than a dead lion.” Why is that? That is because a live dog can still take action and can still speak, but a dead lion, although regal and powerful in life, is impotent and silent in death. Therefore, while you have life and breath and health, SPEAK AND ACT AND DO! People are measured by what they accomplish, not by what they plan. In the parable of the talents in Matthew 25, the servants are rewarded and praised or condemned based on what they actually did, not on what they planned to do or intended to do. Action received praise from the King, “Well-done, good and faithful servant!” A lack of action received condemnation from the king.

This is not to discount planning or to say that planning is a useless activity, but it is to say that the plan is not the end in itself. Rather the plan exists to lay out the ACTION STEPS needed or projected to reach the GOAL.

Start with the GOAL. What is it that the Lord wants to accomplish through you? Or, what worthwhile goal do you want to achieve to fulfill God’s plan for your life? Start with a GOAL like that. The GOAL is needed because the GOAL motivates the ACTION. But then action is needed, because without action nothing happens. Planning is optional. There is no risk in creating a PLAN. Risk only appears when action begins. There is no accomplishment in planning, but only ACTION produces results and success.

In James 2 we find the famous passage about “faith without works is dead.” This passage is very appropriate to this discussion. The man of faith must demonstrate his faith in the Lord by the actions that he takes. If you only make plans, but never take action, how would anyone know that you had faith? Faith is demonstrated when the believer takes bold action in a God-honoring endeavor where the outcome is far from certain or even where success is unlikely. Trust in the Lord is not shown by a flawless plan, but is demonstrated by bold action in the face of doubts and unfavorable odds, believing that what the Lord will bring about the victory. This is the ACTION STEP OF FAITH.

APPLICATIONS:
Fear can lead to endless plans and to procrastination, but faith takes action in the face of uncertainty. Be careful that the effort to create perfect plans is not just fear disguised. Planning can actually become an idol, because you can believe that it is the plan that brings the results, rather than trusting that it is God who brings results. God is the one who brings the results that He desires.

Demolish perfectionism and the striving for perfect plans. (I am speaking to myself, even if I am speaking to no one else.) Replace “perfect” with “excellent” and replace detailed plans with ACTION plans. Force yourself to take action when it is time to take action, not when you have the “perfect” plan.

Planning should stop long before all the details are known. This is because we walk by faith, not by plans (sight). Sketch out a plan, then, if the Lord is leading you, GO! Watch what the Lord will do.

Doesn’t it seem that, since our God has declared and demonstrated that He can do all things and that there is nothing too difficult for Him, and He has declared that He is for us and will never leave us or forsake us, and that His ear is open to our prayer, that believers would take more risks and ask for things that were closer to impossible than we do? In other words, do I need a God who can do the impossible or can I get by with a God who will help me in my efforts to do the normal and the possible?

I explore these kinds of questions in a new page on the Web site called “Do I Deserve a God Who Does the Impossible?” Check it out and let me know what you think. RMB

In Psalm 115, the psalmist starts by saying that the nations question the existence and the power of God: “Where now is their God?” The psalmist replies, “But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases.” He then turns to observe the idols, the work of men’s hands, and the first attribute that he mentions is, “They have mouths, but they cannot speak.”
I thought to myself, “Why did the psalmist start here? Why did he mention first the fact of the muteness of all the idols?” Later the psalmist will talk about unseeing eyes and unhearing ears, unfeeling hands, and so on, but he starts with the unspeaking mouths. Why? He starts here because speaking is the most significant attribute of the living God. Speech is what most radically separates man from the animals and speech is what allows man to communicate with God. And the true and living God is a speaking God.
The idols have mouths, but they cannot speak. Is there one command, one idea, one thought that any idol has ever communicated to anyone? There is none, because the idols cannot speak. But the first thing that the Bible says about the living God is that He is a God who speaks, and when He speaks, He issues commands.
Genesis 1:3 – “Then God said . . .” and at the voice of God the universe came into being, but the idols of man’s hands have never said a word and have never created anything.
God has communicated to man His commandments and thus has revealed His holiness and His authority. God declares the future and then brings it to pass, but the idols have no voice to ever declare the future and have no power to bring anything to pass.
The Lord God expresses Himself in words that declare His love, His wrath, His blessings and His curses. The Lord declares with His voice that He will judge wickedness.
With His voice the Lord warns men and women of the judgment that is coming and that they must flee to the cross of Jesus Christ for rescue from the coming wrath, but the idols stand silent with no opinion on the matter. The idol cannot warn with their words and they cannot give blessing with their words, because they cannot speak. The strongest and clearest sign of the impotence of idols is their having no ability to speak. The idol is useless and dead; useless because it cannot speak, and its deadness is manifested in its utter muteness. The idol cannot threaten or command or call or summons or instruct anyone, but the Lord does all these things.
The living God of heaven has spoken long ago through prophets, declaring His glory and His holiness and issuing His commandments, but “in these last days (He) has spoken to us in [His] Son (Hebrews 1:1-2).” God has not only spoken to us through His prophets when countless times He said to them, “Thus says the Lord,” but God has now personally appeared to us and spoken to us in the Lord Jesus Christ, God the Son, who was manifested in human flesh (1 John 1:1-2; Phil. 2:6-8; Romans 3:21; Titus 2:11; 3:4). Here is the Word of God robed in human flesh (John 1:1-14), speaking to us the very words of God. God is a speaking God and He has spoken His final word of salvation through His Son Jesus Christ.
And still the silver and gold idols stand mute, having mouths, they still cannot speak. The living God constantly speaks, declaring His glory both by what He has made (Psalm 19:1-6; Romans 1:19-20) and much more powerfully by what He has said, but the idols stand silent, their closed mouths mocking them by their inability to utter a sound. No thought and no threat issues from their throat, while the living God has declared His word and has written down His word and has sent His Son, the living Word.
“They have mouths, but they cannot speak.”
Application 1: Since the living God has spoken to man His creature, the first mark of wisdom is to find out what God has said. God has given us His truth in the Scriptures (John 17:17), and in the Scriptures we can find “everything pertaining to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3).” Therefore the first thing we should do is take up the Bible and read. What does God say about this life? What does He say about death? How can we have a fruitful life? What happens when we die? What is the nature of man: is he basically good or is he bent toward evil by nature and from birth? What does it mean to be born again? Who is Jesus Christ? Aren’t there many ways to get to heaven? How can I know God personally? What is God’s plan for my guilt? Can I be forgiven for my evil deeds? What happens at the end of the world? The Bible is God’s love letter to all those who will follow Him. So the first application is to listen intently to the God who CAN speak, for He has spoken and every word that He says is important.
Application 2: The psalm declares that the idols are dead and have mouths but they cannot speak. But believers in America, the present author included, face another related danger. The danger is that it could be said of us, “They know the living God and they know His truth and they have been raised to newness of life (Romans 6:4) and have been given a charge to be His witnesses in all the earth (Acts 1:8). They have this incredible privilege and this awesome mission and yet ‘They have mouths, but they will not speak.'” The danger is that, even though we have strong voices and great knowledge of God’s truth, we are often silent when we should speak. What good does it do to have been given a voice if you never speak? If you have been saved from judgment by the grace of God, why will you not open your mouth and declare God’s praise? In Romans 10:14-15 Paul asks a rhetorical question: “How will they call upon Him in whom they have not believed, and how will they believe in Him whom they have not heard, and how will they hear without a preacher?” It is incumbent upon the believer to open his mouth and proclaim the good news. God has given you a voice and you cannot stand mute like an idol. God has saved you and has given you a voice to “proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light (1 Peter 2:9).”
Therefore, make it your ambition to always speak up and issue truth whenever there is an opportunity to do so. Never choose to be silent as an idol, who cannot speak and has nothing to say. If you can’t think of what to say, tell something about Jesus or the gospel. Do not be like the idols or like those who trust in them. Never let it be said of you, “He has a mouth, but he does not speak.” Never be like the idol-worshipper and be silent. We are to be Jesus’ witnesses (Acts 1:8) and that requires words.
We have mouths and we have the message of eternal life, so let us speak so that many will see and fear and trust in the Lord (Psalm 40:3). (See also 2 Corinthians 4:13)

Psalm 35 is a psalm of David in which David cries out to the Lord about the affliction that he is experiencing at the hands of the wicked. He calls for the LORD to contend for him and to drive away the wicked like chaff before the wind. David speaks of malicious witnesses and of those who rob the afflicted and the needy. These unrighteous men repay evil for good and rejoice at David’s calamity. As in so many of the psalms, the righteous are oppressed and afflicted by the wicked and turn to the Lord GOD for help. They cry out to Him for rescue from those too strong for them.
There are many things that we could learn from this psalm, but I am impressed with two key points. First, this psalm reinforces the idea that the believer can pray to the Lord for deliverance from his enemies. David represents every believer and here he models for us the privilege we have to come boldly to the throne of God, to His throne of grace. Regardless of what is afflicting me or who is afflicting me, no matter what is troubling me, I can seek a rescue from my God, who is omnipotent, who is sovereign, who is entirely righteous and who hates evil and injustice. More than that, this sovereign God has declared and demonstrated His love for me. This sovereign God loves me and His ear is open to my cry. So the first thing this psalm shows me is that I have the privilege to PRAY to God.
But secondly the psalm makes very clear that God allows the wicked to afflict the righteous and to test the righteous for His divine purposes. Now this idea is a little hard to grasp. “God ALLOWS the wicked to persecute the righteous? Why?!” The fact that God does allow the wicked to afflict the righteous is the other side of the coin of God’s sovereignty. If God is entirely sovereign over all of His creation, then we must accept the fact that what occurs is part of His plan, and that includes the affliction of the righteous by the ungodly. But then the question becomes, “Why does the LORD allow the wicked to afflict and to threaten the righteous?”
The following are some reasons that I discovered. God allows the affliction of the righteous:
A) To teach the righteous to trust only in the LORD in the face of threat, to choose to trust the Lord;
B) To remind the righteous of their dependence on the Lord and that we MUST have Him as our refuge and our strength. The world is too much for us by ourselves, but with the Lord, we can face life’s challenges
C) To draw attention to Himself when the righteous turn to Him in their affliction and declare their need of Him
D) To make a visible distinction between the wicked, who hate without cause (Psalm 35:19), and His people, who love despite circumstances (John 13:34-35)
E) To create a hunger for heaven in His people. Let them hunger for the place where there will be no evil and where perfect justice reigns
F) To develop prayer reflexes in His people, so that their affliction will result in prayer to God as an automatic response. Instead of complaint, there will be prayers of praise and prayers for deliverance
G) To establish the fact that man is naturally wicked (Genesis 6:5; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:10ff) and is bent toward sin. Man must be converted to Christ or man remains trapped in his fallen state as a slave of sin

H) To spur the righteous to evangelize the lost (Acts 24:24-25) and to pray for the salvation of those who hate them (Matthew 5:43-44). By revealing the ungodly, the Lord provides His people with clear targets for evangelism

I) For the righteous to identify with Jesus, for as He was hated, so are His followers hated (Matthew 5:11-12; 10:22, 25; John 15:18-25; Hebrews 13:11-13; Acts 5:41)

J) To prove His faithfulness when He comforts His people and delivers them from evil and from their enemies

K) To highlight the fact that His people have been converted and have been radically changed (1 Peter 2:11; 4:3; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; Colossians 3:1-17)

The conclusion is that God, for His own sovereign purposes, allows His people to suffer and be afflicted at the hands of the ungodly, but the believer can pray to God for deliverance and, with the right perspective, can see God’s hand even in this and can grow in sanctification through this experience knowing that it is allowed by the sovereign God who loves him.