The Testimony of the Lord

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Testimonies

 

 

 

 

IMO no part of scripture more clearly reveals God’s character and heart than in the testimonies of the Lord and they are that division of scripture which has spoke the most to me lately.

 

The Testimonies of the Lord are those statements where God’s character is being addressed either directly by Himself or from those who knew Him well enough to offer a testimony of His character. In brief they are statements in which God defines Himself in some small way either directly or by way of example.

 

So much is missed when we fail to view scripture…all of scripture…as God’s unveiling of Himself to us. I think we miss the vulnerability of this because we often think of God as being beyond the ability to be vulnerable.

 

I mean, what would it mean for the Almighty to be vulnerable? How could He be?

 

This very thought reveals how little we understand of Him. God’s openness to us has been staggering from the beginning and I admit, that throughout the largest part of my past… I’ve missed it almost entirely.

 

He has revealed His heart as being able to be wounded by rejection and enraptured with reciprocated love, yet the traditional dogma of Christian teaching often anesthetized us against this reality.

 

When I consider the Testimonies of the Lord, they weaken my stalwart resistance and romance my heart to a God Who is at once, loving, vulnerable and knowable…and that is compelling!

 

Sadly through a lack of understanding that I find staggering, many Christians keep themselves from reaping the immeasurable benefits of the Old Testament because they have a fundamental misunderstanding between the Old Testament and the Old Covenant. Many treat the division of the old and new testaments as the dividing line in God’s character…as though the new covenant somehow changed the unchangeable God and not us in relation to Him.

 

There are several words used in the bible for divisions of scripture and they all have specific meanings.

There are…

  • The Testimonies of the Lord
  • The Statutes of the Lord
  • The Precepts of the Lord
  • The Judgments of the Lord
  • The Word of the Lord
  • The Commandments of the Lord
  • The Law of the Lord

 

Each of these are addressed in the 119th Psalm and they are mentioned in brief in Ps. 19:7-11.

 

“The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul; The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple; The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, Yea, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them Your servant is warned, And in keeping them there is great reward.” ~  Psalm 19:7-11

 

A New Testament example of a Testimony of the Lord is found in 1 John 4:16, and I’ve capitalized the words to point them out…

“And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. GOD IS LOVE, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.”

 

To the Jew, the ten commandments were viewed as God’s special revelation of Himself and in part are thus called ‘the Testimony’ in Exodus 31:8. I think if we realized this fact we’d approach scripture differently and discover revelations of Him more easily.

 

Anyway, my thoughts ran along this line today and I thought I would share them.

No one knows who wrote the 119th psalm though most scholars believe it was either David, Daniel or Ezra. I believe it was written by David for several reasons, but this verse in particular would seem appropriate to have been penned by…the one who God said was, “..a man after my Own heart.” (1Sam. 13:14; Acts 13:22)

 

“I have more understanding than all my teachers; for Your testimonies are continually the focus of my thoughts and my meditation.” ~ Psa 119:99

Pastor Mark

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Hi my name is Mark and though I am opposed to titles, I am currently the only Pastor (shepherd/elder) serving our assembly right now.

I have been Pastoring in one capacity or another for nearly 30 years now, though never quite like I am today.

Early in 2009 the Lord revealed to me that the way we had structured our assembly (church) was not scriptural in that it was out of sync with what Paul modeled for us in the New Testament. In truth, I (like many pastors I am sure) never even gave this fundamental issue of church structure the first thought. I had always assumed that church structure was largely the same everywhere and had been so from the beginning. While I knew Paul had some very stringent things to say about the local assembly of believers, the point of our gatherings together and who may or may not lead, I never even considered studying these issues but assumed we were all pretty much doing it right...safety in numbers right?! Boy, I couldn't have been more wrong!

So needless to say, my discovery that we had been doing it wrong for nearly two decades was a bit of a shock to me! Now, this "revelation" did not come about all at once but over the course of a few weeks. We were a traditional single pastor led congregation. It was a top-bottom model of ministry which is in part biblical, but not in the form of a monarchy.

The needed change did not come into focus until following 9 very intense months of study and discussions with those who were leaders in our church at the time.

We now understand and believe that the Bible teaches co-leadership with equal authority in each local assembly. Having multiple shepherds with God's heart and equal authority protects both Shepherds and sheep. Equal accountability keeps authority and doctrine in check. Multiple shepherds also provide teaching with various styles and giftings with leadership skills which are both different and complementary.

For a while we had two co-pastors (elders) (myself and one other man) who led the church with equal authority, but different giftings. We both taught in our own ways and styles, and our leadership skills were quite different, but complimentary. We were in complete submission to each other and worked side-by-side in the labor of shepherding the flock.

Our other Pastor has since moved on to other ministry which has left us with just myself. While we currently only have one Pastor/Elder, it is our desire that God, in His faithfulness and timing, may bring us more as we grow in maturity and even in numbers.

As to my home, I have been married since 1995 to my wonderful wife Terissa Woodson who is my closest friend and most trusted ally.

As far as my education goes, I grew up in a Christian home, but questioned everything I was ever taught.

I graduated from Bible college in 1990 and continued to question everything I was ever taught (I do not mention my college in order to avoid being labeled).

Perhaps my greatest preparation for ministry has been life and ministry itself. To quote an author I have come to enjoy namely Fredrick Buechner in his writing entitled, Now and Then, "If God speaks to us at all other than through such official channels as the Bible and the church, then I think that He speaks to us largely through what happens to us...if we keep our hearts open as well as our ears, if we listen with patience and hope, if we remember at all deeply and honestly, then I think we come to recognize beyond all doubt, that, however faintly we may hear Him, He is indeed speaking to us, and that, however little we may understand of it, His word to each of us is both recoverable and precious beyond telling." ~ Fredrick Buechner

Well that is about all there is of interest to tell you about me.

I hope our ministry here is a blessing to you and your family. I also hope that it is only a supplement to a local church where you are committed to other believers in a community of grace.

~God Bless!