My friend Fraser, a Christian, would often discuss the faith with me; and Fraser was always right. Vehemently so. One time, I’d been mentioning what Christians should be doing for God. In Fraser’s opinion, my starting-point was nonsense. “Give me a brake so I can stop the car!” he denounced. “Don’t just do something: stand there!!!” Fraser was right again.
We Christians may have bright ideas, but without the proper starting-point, our actions on God’s behalf are (at best) useless. What’s the right starting-point?
“Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10)
In the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17), the first seven of seventeen verses are actually about our relationship with God; the remainder deal with what we should do. God begins the Ten Commandments talking about what he’s done for us, rather than the other way around.
“But I want to do more for God!” we might whine. “I’ve got some really spiffy ideas!” Well, if the Holy Spirit has been calling us to repent, spiffy ideas about repentance would be good. But our spiffy ideas might be about giving God a helping hand; or we might think our good deeds might get us a reward. But Paul says in Romans 11:35, “Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him?” Jesus tells us in Luke 17:10, “When you have done all that you were commanded, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.’” Stuart Townend says in his song, “Lord I’m Grateful”,
It’s grace
There’s nothing I can do
To make You love me more
To make You love me less than You do
Don’t just do something: stand there! “Be still, and know that I am God!” Even within the Trinity, we see this. Jesus said,
“I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.” (John 5:19)
Very often in the gospels, we see Jesus praying: Jesus, God himself, is being still and knowing his Father; and his Father’s will! Then he obediently fulfills the Father’s commands.
Since we’re living in Christ (Colossians 3:3-4), the second Person of the Trinity, that same sort of relationship between Jesus and the Father now applies to us; but with us, it’s being still and knowing that Jesus is God. Jesus says in John 15:5:
“Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”
“But how will we know the things we’re doing are what Jesus wants, and not just our own spiffy ideas?” Again, the Trinity will provide! The night Jesus said, “Apart from me you can do nothing,” he also said:
“When he, the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears… He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.” (John 16:13-15)
How does the Holy Spirit do this? He inspired the Bible which, when understood through prayer and Christian-fellowship, gives us a flawless testimony of who God is, what he’s done for us, and what we should (and will) do for him if we’re abiding in Jesus. But first and foremost,
Be still, and know that he is God!
-Andrew MacLeod
Prepare your heart for Sunday by reading the passage and listening to the songs we’ll sing.