Posted on by Rick Kirby

Praying Like David (Psalm 5)

Several days ago I heard the wise sage, Josh Enloe, declare, “We need, need.” Josh would likely confess that he heard the statement from someone else, but at least he recognized the insight of the claim when he heard it. Christians grow and mature only when pressure is applied (Philippians 3:10-11).

This morning I was reading Psalm 5 and I could not seem to shake the feeling of just how different the character of David’s prayers are in comparison to my own. “Give ear to my words, O LORD; consider my groaning…” (5:1). There certainly have been seasons of my own life in which the nature of my praying might be catorgized as “groaning,” but those seasons seem to be a faint memory at the moment. “Give attention to the sound of my cry… “ (5:2). When was the last time your praying could be described as groaning or crying?

As I read this Psalm this morning a question settled over my soul like a morning mist over an open field. Why does David’s prayer life look so different than my own? Two answers immediately came to my mind that I trust were supplied to me by the prompting of the Holy Spirit himself. These answers are my own and certainly may not reflect your own present state of prayer. But just maybe you will hear my confession and find in it some small thread of familiarity, and like me, be led to confess to the Lord your tipid, stale, prayer life while simutanously begging for more passion in praying in your pursuit of the Lord. 

What are the reasons that my prayers sound different than David’s? Is it possible that 1) I don’t know YHWH the way David did and 2) I am not aware of my own need to the degree that David was aware of his need? By giving careful attention to the body of Psalm 5 it is clear that David was fiercely aware of both the holiness of God and the depth of his own sinfulness as he came before God. Both of these realities shaped and fueled David’s prayers. 

On more than one occasion in the last few years I have called attention, though insufficiently, to the dilemma of the church in Laodicia (Revelation 2:15-22). Jesus brought an indictment against his church when he justly claimed, “You say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, NOT REALIZING that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked…” How much more diametrically opposed could these two views be? What the church thought of itself and what Jesus knew to be true of the church were not even remotely similar. They believed they were rich, but they were poor. They claimed they had no needs, but Jesus charged that they were wretched, blind AND naked! The most sobering part of this scenario was that the church “did not realize” (Rev. 3:17) its true condition. 

Revelation 3:20 is often misinterpreted and misunderstood as referring to Jesus knocking on the hearts of unbelievers hoping and pleading for permission to enter in. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Jesus needs no one’s permission to set into motion his cosmic rescue mission to take back what is rightfully his. In this passage Jesus is addressing his church whose devotion and delight in Jesus has dulled because of their own self-reliance and self sufficiency. And until they received a letter postmarked, “The Throne Room,” they didn’t even realize they had drifted so far. 

But for those of us who like the Laodcians find that we have somehow forgotten just how needy we are, or God forbid, how holy God is – there is hope. On the authority of the Eternal Word, himself, “be zealous and repent” (3:19). There is little doubt that the character of our praying will take on the very character of heaven when our view of ourselves are less earthbound. All of us have “fallen short of the glory of God” and our only hope in life and in death is that Jesus, who is the only faithful image of of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15) has “made peace by the blood of his cross” (Colossians 1:20). 

May our praying be transformed this day by a renewed awareness of our desperate need, and most of all may our prayers be ignited by this reminder: those of us who were once alienated and hostile toward God have now been “Reconciled” (Colossians 1:21). 

Posted on by Rick Kirby

Why I Do Not Observe Lent

From time-to-time people will direct questions to me regarding the practice of Lent and Ash Wednesday. In this short response I will attempt to offer a biblical summary of why I do not participate in this particular religious custom. 

The main reason that I have personally never adopted Lent as part of my own religious exercise is simply that I have never heard or read a legitimate biblical argument for why Evangelical Christians should adopt as their own, a tradition born out of Catholic ritual, which seems to place more emphasis on the form of worship than the heart. In other words, the burden of proof should rest squarely on the shoulders of those who maintain that Lent should have a place on the Christian church calendar. But alas, I am aware that this simple assertion will be less than satisfactory for most of you so let me lay a stronger foundation for my view. 

    To be fair, my contention here is directed more toward the practices of Ash Wednesday than the broader forty-day Lenten period itself. I will confess that I celebrate Christmas, and I can hear now some cantankerous soul saying, “How can you forbid the observance of Lent on the basis that the Bible doesn’t instruct or command it, while celebrating Christmas which the Bible also doesn’t instruct or command?” Most of you know the answer to this before it’s offered. I can justify Christmas because I like receiving gifts and I can easily dismiss Lent because I can’t think of a single vice that I feel good about giving up! 

    Let’s get serious for a moment. If you want to set aside a period for fasting and “giving up” certain things in preparation for Easter, which also is not instructed or mandated in the Bible, then be my guest. I can offer no reason why you shouldn’t give up your ice-cream, vape, or your nights watching Naked and Afraid in order to prepare you to celebrate the glorious resurrection of Christ. However, those who are deeply committed to the gospel need to think a little more carefully about why we do what we do as it relates to our church traditions. As I promised initially, allow me to offer more substantial reasons why I do not participate in Lent and Ash Wednesday. 

    • According to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, “During Lent, we seek the Lord in prayer by reading Sacred Scripture; we serve by giving alms; and we practice self-control through fasting. We are called not only to abstain from luxuries during Lent, but to a true inner conversion of heart as we seek to follow Christ’s will more faithfully.”[1]

    The Bible says that those who are in Christ are to “put off the old self with its practices” (Colossians 3:8). The Apostle certainly intends that such a “putting off” be more than a temporary or seasonal practice, but rather the ongoing pattern and lifestyle of a true child of God. What many give attention to each Spring, the Word of God calls the faithful follower to walk in daily. We are instructed to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17), while we are to “hide his Word in our heart” (Psalm 119:11). These and other Christian traits are to become enduring virtues rather than infrequent contemplations. 

    The temporary sacrificing of luxuries or other comforts seems to be the very opposite of God’s intentions for his people when the Bible declares, “Sacrifice and offering you have not delighted…” (Psalm 40:6), and “For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it…the sacrifices of God are a broken and contrite heart…” (Psalm 51:16). There can be no doubt that God is more concerned with true repentance and obedience than he is with heartless public expressions that likely do not reflect the true nature of the heart. 

    Once again, my most severe contention with Lent deals specifically with the practices associated with Ash Wednesday. I am sufficiently aware that in the Old Testament there are many occasions which reference the practice of wearing “sackcloth and ashes” as a demonstration of a person or nation’s grief, anguish, and contrition over sin (Isaiah 3:24; Esther 4:1; Jonah 3:5-6). However, the New Testament deals with the spiritual realities which the Old Testament practices only pointed to.

    In 1st Peter, the apostle addresses the conduct of believing wives. However, the principle which is evident here clearly must be applied to every believer not just wives. “Do not let your adorning be external – the braiding of the hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear – but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a quiet and gentle spirit…” (1 Peter 3:3-4). Though not innately evil in and of themselves, braided hair, jewelry, and even clothes can become prideful displays of perceived worth when obedience and humility are neglected. In the same way outward religious expressions which draw attention to man’s piety rather than the goodness and glory of God are repulsive in God’s eyes. 

    There seems to be something quiet contrary about making a public show (ash on forehead) of our repentance and self-denial when Jesus clearly warns, “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven” (Mathhew 6:1). How explicitly Jesus, himself, instructs us when he says, “When you fast…” (Matthew 6:16). Once again, hold tight if you will to your seasons of repentance and fasting as sincere and genuine attempts to renew your focus on Christ and his glory. But when those attempts become public exhibitions then we have very likely crossed a line. Jesus continues, “When you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you” (Mathhew 6: 17). 

    For too long the church in America has embraced shallow self-serving superstitions rather than sound doctrine which is able to save those who preach it and those who hear it (1 Timothy 4:16). We’ve obscured the gospel message and dismissed the power of the cross by the games we play in the name of religion. Rather than Lent, why not “present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, and acceptable to God which is your spiritual worship” (Romans 12:1).

    [1] https://www.usccb.org/prayer-worship/liturgical-year/lent