The Voice: Part 12
It is good to hear His Voice, but even better to know His presence
Many years ago, I was an Anglican Minister. Part of my work was officiating at Baptisms, Marriages and Funerals, all of them major family occasions. One of the portions of Scripture that spoke into them all was Psalm 23. It thunders out across the running centuries, at once reassuring and challenging. Am I truly one of the Lord’s sheep that can lay claim to His protection and guidance? When He calls, do I hear His voice? When I hear His voice, do I respond? When I respond, do I follow? If I do, my Shepherd’s care and provision are assured. But absence from trouble is not assured..
Nestling in the heart of Psalm 23 is the extraordinary testimony, “He guides me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of deep darkness I will not be afraid, for You are with me; Your rod and staff, they comfort me.”
On some of our Bible Tours of Israel we take the ancient Roman road through the Wilderness of Judea and down toward Jericho. This is the old road referred to by our Lord when he related the parable of the Good Samaritan. The road snakes its way down hundreds of feet toward the Dead Sea and for much of its length follows the line of the Wadi Quelt, a deep, dark canyon that winds its way far below. Parts of it never see the sunshine and so are in permanent gloom. Nothing grows here but a few desert shrubs. The Wadi Quelt is not far from Bethlehem, where the young David grazed his father’s sheep. David must have known the Wadi Quelt although he would have known it as ‘the Valley of the Shadow’. Is this the featured valley of Psalm 23? Very possibly.
The psalm is saturated in word pictures from the world of shepherding, including this image of the sheep passing through a dangerous canyon, seemingly taken there by the shepherd. Very odd. Why would a responsible shepherd take his flock through such a threatening place with many dangers all around? He must have had a very good reason, but what? There is only one reason I can think of. The shepherd led them through the deep, dark gorge because it was the only way to take them to a better pasture. But note the wonderful fact that, although the members of the flock were exposed to awful dangers, the shepherd was with them, so the sheep could follow on full of hope that this too would pass.
We have entered dark days. Our Saviour spoke of them in Matthew 24. He also gave a clear warning when He said, “In this world you will have trouble: but take heart, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Such clear statements leave us in no doubt that, for true believers, suffering is definitely on the agenda and it is therefore of enormous comfort to know that, whatever we are called upon to bear, our Shepherd is with us in it and by His Spirit He is not going to leave us even for a moment. We have no cause to be afraid. We have a future and a hope. Believe it. Rest in it.
Noah and his family
When studying Genesis 6 recently and reading from the NIV, I was drawn to the wording of 6:1, “The Lord then said to Noah, ‘Go into the ark, you and your whole family, because I have found you righteous in this generation.‘”
There is another translation of the Lord’s opening command. The KJV has “Come thou and all thy house into the ark” and NKJV has “Come to Me in the ark!” It seems that the Hebrew word “bo” is better translated “come” than “go”! How wonderful is that! The clear meaning the writer (Moses) wishes to convey is that the Lord God had been inspiring Noah as he built the ark and that once built the Lord entered the ark ahead of Noah and was waiting for him. He was there with Noah for the duration of the Flood! Once the destruction was complete (Genesis 8:15) the Lord preceded Noah out of the ark and continued to be with him. So before, during and after the appalling catastrophe of the Great Flood, the Lord, Noah’s Shepherd, was with him. Isn’t that just wonderful? The Lord was with all who were in the ark, sustaining them, encouraging them, protecting them with His mighty presence! The joy of the Lord transformed their terror!
In Genesis 7:11-12, Moses describes the fusion of three unimaginably immense powers. First, the springs of the great deep burst forth, a description of subterranean volcanic upheaval causing tsunamis and scrunching the surface of the earth, twisting the rock strata into fantastic shapes. Second, he mentions the floodgates of the heavens coming open and collapsing onto the earth, the waters that God had created above the firmament, referred to in Genesis 1:7. Third, Moses describes thunderous rain deluging the earth for forty days and nights. Three unbelievably violent events combining to destroy every mortal thing on land and sea. The ‘Perfect Storm’ to end all perfect storms. We cannot imagine anything more overwhelmingly horrific.
But the ark, that might be expected to be thrown about in the Flood, as if it were a mere cork and crushed by gigantic forces, as if it were a mere egg, was now kept perfectly stable and utterly intact because of the presence of the Creator inside it. It seems like an odd thing to write, but in the midst of the great catastrophe, Noah and his family, together with the selected animals, could not have been safer! And all because the Lord God was with them and He brought them through!
Three Hebrew friends
Daniel 3 describes the fate of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, three Jewish men who elected to worship the Lord God of Israel instead of bowing to Nebuchadnezzar’s image which he had set up on the Dura Plain in Babylonia. Their punishment was to be thrown into a blazing furnace in which none could expect to survive. In fact, the fierce temperature to which the furnace was heated should have killed instantly. But, in this particular instance, it did not so much as singe their clothes for the simple reason that a fourth person was in the furnace walking around with the three friends. The text of Daniel 3:25 indicates that the fourth person was like “the Son of God” Himself.
Here is one of those glorious moments when the pre-existing Logos – God the Son – showed Himself, demonstrating His presence with His people when they are in trouble. The Lord was in the furnace with the friends and He brought His people through.
Daniel in the lions’ den
In Daniel 6 we are presented with the superlative adventure story to end all adventure stories! Daniel facing certain death at the paws and jaws of a pack of ravenous lions. Naturally speaking there was not the slightest possibility of survival. But Daniel not only survived – just like the three friends he was promoted to an exalted position in Babylonian/Persian society! How so? We are told in 6:21 that “the angel of the Lord” shut the lions’ mouths. Not “an angel of the Lord”, notice. In Scripture the angel of the Lord is a manifestation of the Second Person of the Trinity before His entry in this world as Jesus. The Divine Presence was with Daniel throughout his time in the den. The jaws of the lions were clamped shut by the mighty hand of God until Daniel was taken from the den. At that moment restraint was removed and the savage creatures instantly ripped apart those enemies who had accused Daniel.
Let’s be clear about this. It is very important to notice that Noah, the three friends and Daniel had to ‘face the music’. They were not spared big trouble but they were sustained most gloriously through it. Noah was not immune from the full fury of the Great Flood but he and his family were sustained through it; the three friends likewise experienced the nightmare of being picked up and hurled into the flames but they were quite immune from them. Daniel heard the rampaging and the roaring of those vicious beasts as his captors launched him into the lions’ stinking den, but all the beasts could do was to lick him and to stroke him with their paws!
That’s God! That’s Emmanuel! The Lord is with us and always will be. Discipleship requires a certain perspective. We need to see things through the prism of grace. Whatever may happen to me, my Shepherd is beside me. Is knowing that sufficient for me? … Now there’s a question.
The example of our Saviour
There is great need for us to face up to the clear warnings of Jesus. The Gospel accounts contain many of them. When He said, “In the world you will have trouble”, He actually meant it. To be forewarned is to be forearmed. But how can such awareness of trouble actually prepare me for it? I believe the answer is to be found in Hebrews 12:2-3, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”
Disciples are followers and learners. In our case we mould our faith and our life on Jesus Himself. He was prepared for the Passion by having “the joy” set before Him. That is to say, the revelation of His future glory. This will sustain us too in coming days. We have a future and a hope, we really do, and it is as bright as the promises of God. Utterly unshakeable, completely reliable, we are forever safe.