A family tradition
Notes
Transcript
Every family has their own type of family traditions. Marriage is a great way to learn about other family traditions. Because each spouse will inevitably learn of the unique traditions of their significant other's family.
Paige’s family and lottery tickets on Christmas
Our football watching traditions.
On a day where we honor grandparents and their relationships with their grandchildren, I thought what better time to speak about traditions. Various traditions are passed down from parents, to their children and their children's children. Today we are speaking about a family tradition which king David spoke about in one of his Psalms. The Psalm I am speaking about is found in Psalm 103, and what is this tradition David wants to establish. Let us read the Psalm to find out. I will be reading through Psalm 103. However rather than starting at verse 1 and working our way towards verse 18, we are going to start in verse 18 and work our way backwards. The reason why will become evident later on.
READ Psalm 103:15-18
As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more. But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children, to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments.
In this passage the benefit of this tradition is well established. If you embrace this tradition, receive the eternal steadfast love of God which is from everlasting to everlasting, in contrast to us who are like a flower quickly fading, here today and gone tomorrow. Within this tradition the steadfast love of God is passed on to children and their childrens, children. Aka from Parents to their kids, and eventually their grandchildren. While it’s good to know the benefits of this tradition, it doesn’t exactly tell us what it is.
READ Psalm 103:6-14
The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel. The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.
This passage provides more benefits of this tradition, however again we aren’t told exactly what this tradition is. However we can’t simply gloss over the benefits of this tradition. In verse 10 we are told God does not deal with us in accordance with our sin. Just in case we need reminding, this is a really big deal! This means more than we may ever realize. God’s grace is immeasurable! In verse 11 the passage mentions that as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. The wording of this is very intentional. If the passage said as far as the north is from the south our transgressions are removed from us, it wouldn't be nearly as effective. If you start going north, you will go far enough that north intersects with south, and you actually start going south. However if you start going east, you can span the whole surface of the earth and always be heading east. The same goes for the west. East and west are infinitely moving away from each other. The gap between east and west is eternal. It’s clear this tradition is something we want to be involved in, however we still don’t know exactly what this tradition is.
READ Psalm 103:1-6
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed.
The Tradition we want to pass from Grandparents, to parents, to children is the idea of Blessing God. Nice and simple right? All we have to do is be a blessing to God! Have you thought about what it means to bless God? We should, we sing the Matt Redmon song taken from this Psalm “Bless the Lord O my soul” as a worship song. During patriotic holidays people will sometimes invert “God bless America" to “Bless God America.” The more you think about this notion, the more absurd it may become. When you are a blessing to someone, it means you’ve helped improve their situation or helped lift them up. We are mere humans, flowers quickly fading. God is from everlasting to everlasting, we can’t possibly “improve” God. So how can we possibly be a blessing to God?
In the Old Testament the word for bless is a Hebrew verb called “Barak” which means to praise, honor, and worship. This is a good start, however I believe after Jesus the idea of “Blessing God” changes.
For us to bless God, we have to first consider one of the most important passages in the New Testament John 3:16
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
God so loved the world right? So obviously his hope is that we love him back right? Have you ever been in a situation where you loved someone, but that love wasn’t shown in return? How does it make you feel? Would you call that feeling a blessing? No, quite the opposite actually.
On the other hand we would regard it as a blessing to have love shown to us in return right? God works the same way. We blessed God by loving God.
We love God by embracing the salvation given to us through Christ. Jesus himself echo’s this in John chapter 6:29 Where Jesus says the work of God is to believe in the one whom he sent. We love God by embracing Christ and his salvation.
This makes sense because it’s clear that Jesus is the key to all of the benefits mentioned in Psalm 103. Who else is able to separate our sins as the east is from the west? Why is it that we are not dealt in accordance with our sin? What is the method of his compassion? How else is the steadfast love of God passed down from generation to generation? The tradition of blessing the Lord is rooted in Jesus.
Is this a tradition we are committed to passing down? Austrian composer Gustav Mahler once said that Tradition is not the worship of ashes, but the preservation of fire. This quote goes hand in hand with 2nd Timothy 1:6
For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands,
In this passage Paul talks about the importance that Timothy’s mother and grandmother had in developing his faith. Because of their role in his faith, Timothy was instructed to fan into flame the gift of God. Paul was encouraging Timothy to preserve the fire. Let us also be dedicated to preserving the fire, from grandparents down to children. Let us bless the Lord with all our souls, and fan into flame the gift of God, which is the Salvation of though Christ and Christ alone.
ADVERTISEMENT