God's love gives us an equilibrium of joy that will give us peace in the highs and lows of life.
"The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” And [Jesus] said . . . “do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” Luke 10:17–20 (ESV)
On July 26, 1980, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones was near the end of his life. He had been the greatest preacher of the 20th Century in many people’s estimation. For almost 30 years, ‘The Doctor’s church’ was a destination for people from all over the world when they visited London. Eventually age and illness forced him to step down from the pulpit. When the Doctor met with his biographer Iain Murray on that July day in 1980, he had just spent 7 hours in the emergency room; yet, Murray found the elderly preacher in wonderful spirits. “I have no complaints,” he said.
When Murray said that it must be hard not to be able to preach anymore—his life’s calling for the past several decades—the Doctor responded by emphasizing the great importance of Christ’s command to His Disciples upon witnessing their first success in ministry: “do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” Lloyd-Jones followed up by saying solemnly, ‘Bear in mind that our greatest danger is to live upon our activity. The ultimate test of a preacher is what he feels like when he cannot preach.’
I know this is true not only for preachers but for all of our vocations. As a former lawyer in the Marine Corps, I was tempted to rejoice in the success of praise and promotions while despairing over criticism and failures to get the jobs I sought.
Instead, the Doctor and Jesus invite us to get off the roller coaster of worshiping at the altar of success—rising and falling with our circumstances—and to rest in the love of God the Father’s adoption of us as His children through faith in God the Son, Jesus Christ. Dwelling upon His love gives us an equilibrium of joy that will give us peace in the highs and lows of life.
Let’s consider two things that are “written in heaven” about us.
(1) The Christian’s name has been “written in the book of life from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 17:8) and our names will never be blotted out (Revelation 3:5). This means that God knew our failures and sins before we did, and He still chose to provide Christ’s suffering on the cross as an atonement for those sins for those of faith. We are surprised by our failures, but God is not, and His love will abide with us into eternity.
(2) A second thing recorded in His book are the trials and anxieties that keep us awake at night. King David was a ruler who knew the stress of having enemies, both foreign enemies and enemies in his own court. David took comfort in praying, “You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?” (Psalm 56:8)
This tells us that God knows your innermost concerns that fuel your anxiety and keep you awake at night tossing and turning. He keeps count of them in His book. God knows those sad and sorrowful things that grieved you to tears because He was grieved by them and recorded them in His book. And someday the Lamb will open that book and comfort us from it, perhaps explaining to us how He was watching over us (Psalm 139:15–16) and working all those very sad things for our good (Romans 8.28).
Let us hear the call of Christ to find our joy and peace in the adopting love of God that abides with us on the mountaintops and in the valleys—in our successes and failures.
Porter Harlow is the founding pastor of Christ Presbyterian Church in Burke, Virginia and an advisory board member of Ministry To State.
Comments