Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in your eyes? Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the Lord. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the Lord. Work, for I am with you, declares the Lord of hosts, according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not.

Haggai 2:3-5

We are often preoccupied with big things: a bigger car, a roomier house, a more spacious yard. But God’s people often have to make due with less. Sometimes, in comparison to their unbelieving neighbors, Christians have more humbling circumstances and more limiting means. It was s similar situation with Israel after their seventy years of captivity in Babylon. About fifty thousand Israelites returned home. This might sound like quite an impressive number until you remember that Israel was six hundred thousand strong when they left Egypt, and this figure didn’t even include women and children (Ex. 12:37).

Israel had been reduced to a remnant. Upon returning to Jerusalem, they were charged to rebuild the temple, which turned out to be a fiasco. But it was eventually finished with the encouragement of Haggai and others. Once the construction was completed, some of the older Israelites who remembered the glory of Solomon’s temple, wept at the sight of it. In a similar way, we sometimes look at our efforts for the Lord and they don’t seem to amount to much in the grand scheme of things. Are we really making any difference? We seem so small and insignificant. As exciting as the growth here at Dulles is, our neighbors are not exactly flocking to our assembly. It can be discouraging when we compare our relatively small congregation to the well-funded, well-oiled machine that is our society.

Along with Haggai, God sent Zechariah to encourage Israel to finish the temple. “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also complete it. Then you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you. For whoever has despised the day of small things shall rejoice, and shall see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel.” (Zech. 4:9-10) They thought of their time as “a day of small things.” But God promised that joy would eventually overtake their grief. What seemed small and unobtrusive at the start would reach a glorious conclusion.

Around the same time, the returned exiles were rebuilding the broken walls and gates around Jerusalem and were being mocked for their efforts. “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones at that?…Yes, what they are building—if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!” (Neh. 4:1-3). Like Nehemiah, we’re sensitive to being despised by the world and we may pray with him, “Hear, O our God, for we are despised. Turn back their taunt on their own heads and give them up to be plundered in a land where they are captives.” (Neh. 4:4)

It’s easy to feel like we’re not accomplishing much, that we’re just a small, struggling band of saints hanging on by our fingernails. We may think, “Wouldn’t the Lord be better glorified if we were a bigger church making a bigger impact in the community?” We may even wonder if we’re doing something wrong. We might ask, “Why can’t we be a big church like the church in Acts 2?” But we deceive ourselves. The church in Jerusalem may seem large to us, numbering in the thousands, but this was only a small fraction of the Jews who had visited the city for Pentecost.

God often works through small things. Think of Gideon and his 300 men called out of 32,000 (Jdg. 7). Think of little David against Goliath with only his sling, a few stones and his faith (1 Sam. 17). Think of the widow and her two mites (Mk. 12:41-44). Think of Mary, a nobody, and her carpenter husband living in despised Nazareth (Lk. 1-2). Think of Peter, Andrew, James and John, fishermen all (Mt. 4:18, 21). Think of the Corinthians who were not wise, powerful or noble according to worldly standards (1 Cor. 1:26). Israel was, in comparison to the mighty empires of Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, a very small nation. Isaiah describes Christ himself as someone who you wouldn’t give the time of day based on appearances (Isa. 53:2): “is this not Jesus the carpenter’s son?” (Mt. 13:55)

God delights in choosing the foolish to shame the wise, the weak to shame the strong, the low and despised over the high and mighty (1 Cor. 1:27). Jesus likened the kingdom of God to a tiny grain of mustard seed. “But when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” (Mt. 13:31-32) Let’s not despise the small things.

Now Jericho was shut up inside and outside because of the people of Israel. None went out, and none came in. And the LORD said to Joshua, “See, I have given Jericho into your hand…”

Joshua 6:1-2a

The majority of scholars consider Joshua’s account of the battle of Jericho to be legendary. They infer this because excavations at Tell es-Sultan, the biblical Jericho, are dated as Middle Bronze Age instead of the Late Bronze Age which biblical chronology suggests the conquest of Canaan occurred. Thus, they conclude that the book of Joshua holds little historical value but is rather a bunch of nationalist propaganda spun by later kings of Judah who were trying to validate their territorial claims.

There are different arguments one could make in favor of the text’s historical value. One of which comes from archeology. There are three pieces of archeological evidence that affirm the details of Joshua’s account of the battle of Jericho (Joshua 6).

The walls fell down — Joshua 6:20 says, “So the people shouted, and the trumpets were blown. As soon as the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they captured the city.” The phrase “fell down flat” translates the two Hebrew words נָפַל (nâphal – to fall) and תַּחַת (tachath – bottom or below). Read literally, it could mean something like “the wall fell below itself.” Excavations at Jericho have revealed that this indeed was the case.

Jericho was built on a hill encircled by an outer wall and an inner wall. The outer wall was built atop a stone revetment wall making it even higher. Between the two walls was a sloped earthen rampart. When archeologist Kathleen Kenyon excavated the west side of the hill, she discovered, “a heavy fill of fallen red bricks piling nearly to the top of the revetment. These probably came from the wall on the summit of the bank.” Her theory was later proven correct; those red bricks were the remains of the inner wall that “fell down flat.” The bricks from the inner wall had tumbled down the hill and created a natural siege ramp that allowed the Israelites to go “up into the city” to capture it, just like Joshua 6:20 records.

But, as stated before, these walls were carbon dated to the Middle Bronze Age not the Late Bronze Age when Joshua and the twelve tribes were said to have begun their invasion. This would have Israel invading a city which had already been destroyed, invalidating the chronology. However, all a Middle Bronze Age date proves is that the walls were constructed during the Middle Bronze Age. It says nothing of when they fell.

The wall left standing — Joshua records that Rahab, who hid the Israelite spies and confessed her faith in the LORD (2:9-13), lived in a house “built into the city wall, so that she lived in the wall.” (2:15) When the walls came tumbling down, Joshua instructed those two spies to seek out Rahab and her family and bring them to safety, according to their promise (6:22). This implies that a portion of the wall was left still standing.

Excavations by a German team in the early 1900s discovered a section of wall on the north side of the city which had not collapsed. You can still see it today. What’s more, there were houses built on the rampart against the outer city wall. It is plausible that this was the location of Rahab’s home.

The jars of burnt grain — Kenyon also found storage jars filled with burnt grain. In fact, six entire bushels were discovered. Kenyon was persuaded that Jericho was destroyed by the Egyptians at an earlier date. Sieges usually lasted an extended period of time, months or even years in some cases. If Jericho was laid siege by an invading army, isn’t it odd to find large stores of grain? Wouldn’t the inhabitants have eaten it all? And if the siege was particularly short, wouldn’t the grain have been taken by the invading army as an important food source? Instead, we find numerous jars of burnt grain along with destroyed homes in the city.

This archeological evidence all agrees with the account in Joshua. The battle of Jericho occurred in the springtime (3:15; 5:10), which would have been shortly after the harvest. Full grain jars indicate that the city was destroyed during that time. Jericho was destroyed in seven days (6:4) so large grain stores indicate that there was no prolonged siege. Lastly, Joshua reminded the Israelites that God specified the city was to be “devoted to destruction” (6:21) and so it was “burned… with fire” (6:24). This explains why the grain had not been taken by the invading force.

While archeology can't prove the historicity of the Scriptures, it always affirms them as historically accurate. This consistency should build our confidence in the text, nourish our faith in God and help us persuade our neighbors that the Bible is worth believing in and following.

“Woe to you, when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets.”

Luke 6:26

Everyone wants to be liked. Just last week, I took the dog for a walk and gave a friendly greeting to my neighbor hoping to start a conversation. He dismissed me with a curt wave of his hand and turned away to cut off any chance of a dialogue. It was deliberate… and expected. There is a history there that I won’t bore you with but it amounts to this: a few years ago, he came to me for advice and my counsel displeased him greatly. I tried to explain the Lord’s way and it offended him because, I think, it involved his repentance. Ever since, our relationship has been frosty. But it got me thinking. I get along great with all my other neighbors and I was genuinely upset that I had made it on this guy’s hit list.

In my sulking I at least had the presence of mind to pray about it, asking the Lord to restore the relationship. But even my prayer worried me. Was I praying for restoration so that my neighbor and I might be chummy again or was I praying for restoration so that he might come to know the Lord? In the recesses of my heart, buried beneath layers of self-justification, I detected an unhealthy craving to be liked. By God’s grace, I’ve mostly rid myself of this thinking but there are still remnants of the “old man.”

I wonder, do you also struggle with this? Psychologists explain the desire to be liked as a natural tendency to strengthen bonds within a social group. Since rejection could mean ostracism, it’s in our best interest to be “liked” (accepted). A certain amount of this is certainly true and good. Nevertheless, it rankled because if this social pressure becomes the primary motivation for our behavior, it can lead to such things as great anxiety, conflict avoidance at all cost, the inability to face rejection and the weakening of conviction—all things which will destroy a society. It’s at this point psychologist say that the key to overcoming our need to be liked is to “connect with your own self-approval and be your authentic self.” This is, of course, utter hogwash. The answer lies above us, not within us.

If you are a Christian, you cannot expect to be liked by everyone. Paul said, “if possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” (Rom. 12:18) That is, don’t go out of your way to make enemies. Not only are we to refuse to repay evil for evil (Rom. 12:17; Prov. 20:22), but we must take the initiative in positive peacemaking (Mt. 5:9), even if, as the two qualifications indicate, this is not always possible. The truth is, some people are not willing to live at peace with us or they may put conditions on reconciliation which involve an unacceptable moral compromise.

We are called to suffer as Jesus suffered, innocently, peacefully and faithfully (1 Pet. 2:21-23), entrusting ourselves to a faithful Creator while doing good (1 Pet. 4:19). If you are not liked because you are a jerk, that’s something you’ve got to work on. However, if you are not liked because you told someone an uncomfortable truth out of your love and concern for him, you should expect as much. In fact, we’re in good company when we face social rejection for our commitment to the gospel.

This brings us to our Lord’s words in Luke 6:26, “Woe to you, when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets.” True prophets were hated and mistreated, some even tortured and killed (Heb. 11:32-38), because their message was unsavory. Those who tell people what they want to hear (modern analogues to the false prophets of old) are regarded with honor by society. People spoke “well” of them. We, on the other hand, are “the aroma of Christ”; to those who are being saved, we are “a fragrance from life to life,” but to those who are perishing, a stench “from death to death.” (2 Cor. 2:15-16) There’s bound to be tension when saints live “in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation,” shining as “lights in the world.” (Phil. 2:15)

Therefore, we ought rather to be suspicious (even mourn: "woe") when “all people speak well of [us].” A person is known by his enemies just as much as he is known by his friends. “Friendship with the world is enmity with God.” (Jas. 4:4) “If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (Jn. 15:19) When we seek the approval of the world, we are not seeking first the kingdom of God and his righteousness (Mt. 6:33)

We all face decisions between doing what is comfortable and easy and doing what is necessary and right. If we choose to do what is right we are going to get knocked down on occasion. But don’t fret. The Lord will get you back on your feet. He calls you “blessed.” So don’t go chasing after the affections of others. Stay in the company of the righteous (Psalm 1). The key to overcoming this unhealthy desire to be liked is to seek to please the one who made you (Gal. 1:10; 2 Cor. 5:9). If you make this your single desire, his peace will guard you (Phil. 4:7).

“Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for so their fathers did to the prophets.”

Luke 6:22

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

John 14:1-6

One reason people write off Christianity is because of the narrow claims it makes. For example, take Jesus’ claim above. In context, Jesus is headed toward the agony of crucifixion and is “troubled in heart” (12:27; 13:21). Yet on the eve of his execution, Jesus is the one comforting the “troubled” hearts of his friends (14:1a). But what did the disciples have to be troubled about? After all, they weren’t the ones rushing toward the pain, isolation and shame of the cross. They were troubled because they were confused and uncertain about what Jesus had been saying, namely, that he would be leaving them soon (13:33, 36). Therefore, Jesus comforted them by telling them to trust in him as they trust in God (14:1b)

There was no need to be troubled because his departure was actually for their benefit. True, he was going away, but it was to their advantage; he was going away to “prepare a place” for them so that he could return and gather them up to be with him forever (14:2-3). “My Father’s house” refers to heaven. In heaven there are many “rooms,” that is, there is plenty of space for all. Thomas was struggling to comprehend the meaning of Jesus’ words. He didn't even know where Jesus is going. Without knowing the destination, how could Jesus say that they know the way? But Jesus insisted they do know way because they knew him (14:6).

Notice three things about Jesus’ claim in John 14:6.

First, it’s an exclusive claim: Jesus is the only way to God. “No one comes to the Father except through me.” That’s exclusive language. He is not “a” way to God (one way among many other viable ways) but “the” way. This may offend our inclusive, pluralistic sensibilities which have been taught to respect all religions equally and to deny any religion that claims such exclusivity. This spiritual arrogance, it is thought, leads to extremism. Therefore, tolerance has become the highest virtue.

But each religion makes contradictory truth-claims which cannot be true simultaneously. Whenever a truth-claim is made, it automatically excludes its rivals. Even if a religion claimed that all paths lead to heaven then it would be asserting that those that claim only some paths lead to heaven or only one path leads to heaven are wrong. No matter how we phrase it, the very nature of a truth-claim excludes that which contradicts it. The better question is, who is Jesus to claim he is the exclusive way to God?

Next, it’s a personal claim: Jesus himself is the way to God. Jesus is not claiming to simply blaze a trail for others to come to God, nor is he claiming to simply know the way so as to point others to it. Rather, he himself is the way. No other religious leader, philosopher, sage or guru makes such an audacious claim. Yet Jesus is constantly turning our attention to himself as the answer to all our problems. Who does that?

The Bible teaches that Jesus entered the world supernaturally, accredited himself with unparalleled miracles, amazed crowds and baffled the wise with his teaching, was possessed of a perfect moral character, made claims befitting God himself, treated others with love and compassion, died for the purpose of redeeming humanity and was raised bodily from the dead to restore our relationship to God. Therefore, when Jesus speaks with such confident self-awareness of being the only way to God, he speaks with unique authority and heavenly credentials. Every other world religion, if you replaced its founder with someone else, would remain intact. But not so with Christianity because it is built upon him personally.

Finally, it’s a consequential claim: Jesus is the way to God for us. Exactly how is Jesus the way? All of this language about “the way” and “coming to the Father” assumes we are disconnected from God and that we need to be reconciled to him to be made whole. This is the core narrative of Scripture. God created a perfect world and human beings in his likeness but we have turned away from him and plunged into sin, ruin and death. There is something now fundamentally wrong with us. Jesus has come to redeem us from our sins and provide that bridge between ourselves and God. Therefore, Jesus’ claim is consequential. We are all made in God’s image but that image has been marred. We are, quite literally, “damaged goods” and the only one who can restore us is Christ.

The path to worship begins with a HYMN. Paul lists three types in Ephesians 5:19, “psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.” It is impossible for a congregation to worship without a prewritten hymn. God wants the church’s worship to be done “decently and in order” (1 Cor. 14:40). There’s nothing wrong with spontaneous worship but for it to be orderly there must be some structure to it. A hymn provides that structure. We can use readymade psalms from the Old Testament or write our own hymns with spiritual content. Hymns are the prescribed vehicle of expression in worship and provide the spiritual impetus and formal structure for worship because they are filled with biblical content that brings honor to God and exhorts the church.

Next, the hymn must stimulate the HEART of each worshiper. In the Bible, the “heart” is used to describe much more than how we feel. We can “know” with our heart (Deut. 8:5), “understand” with our heart (Deut. 29:4) and “wisdom” can dwell within the heart (Prov. 14:33). Our heart is where we think, making connections and discerning between truth and error (intellect). Our heart is where we make choices motivated by “the desires of our heart” (will) (Psa. 37:4; 2 Sam. 7:4). And of course, our heart is where we feel (emotion). Therefore, wisdom tells us to guard our heart “with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” (Prov. 4:23)

The rest of Ephesians 5:19 says that we are to sing and make melody “to the Lord with [our] heart.” In order to worship with our heart, we must engage the various dimensions of it. We engage the intellect by understanding what we are singing. Paul says we are not only to sing praise with our spirit but with our mind also (1 Cor. 14:15). Colossians 3:16 qualifies that our expressions of worship must be “with all wisdom,” suggesting a certain level of discernment when we sing. Without this comprehension, our worship is an empty exercise that fails to glorify God or benefit the church.

However, this doesn’t mean that our worship should be entirely intellectual. We can be thoughtful in worship and careful to consider every word of the song, but unless that understanding provokes emotions like joy, love and gratitude within us, it proves just as vain. Colossians 3:16 says we are to sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs “with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” The psalmist writes, “My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God.” (Psa. 84:2) We can’t directly hear emotion in worship (although we can guess at its presence or absence), but God knows if our heart is engaged (cf. Isa. 29:13).

When we sing with engaged hearts, our worship can glorify GOD. This is the primary goal of our worship. Romans 15:6 says that in unified worship the church “may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” God loves to hear his people express their praise to him when they do so in the proper way and with the proper spirit. He deserves our praise because of who he is and what he has done and promises yet to do. Let’s never forget that the main objective of our worship is to praise the Lord.

As we “make melody to the Lord with [our] heart” in our hymns (Eph. 5:19) we are simultaneously teaching and admonishing “one another” (Col. 3:16). Just as we sing to God, so too are we singing to the CHURCH. We need to be aware that our singing is also a means of teaching. Because there is a horizontal as well as a vertical direction to our worship, our singing must edify our brethren just as much it glorifies God.

But the language of Colossians 3:16 suggests a two-way street. We teach and admonish “one another.” That is, just as we want to sing in a way that builds up others, we want to learn to consider their voice too. This once again necessitates engaging our HEART. This “one another” aspect to our worship sets up a feedback loop. As we consider what our brethren are singing, it moves us emotionally and intellectually to take our praise to a higher level. As they listen to our heightened praise, they also worship more intensely. The reinforcement we receive from the church is a powerful tool we can use to make our worship more pleasing to God.

Thus, the path to worship can be summarized in this way: The spiritual thought of a hymn provokes our hearts, which then sings praises that are heard both by God and by the church. In turn, the church sings to us, which stirs our hearts again. This is the pattern for praise that is pleasing to God.

These points were taken from Matthew Bassford’s “The Path to Worship”