Today's Worship: God's desires.

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in James 1:19-20,

 

"My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires."

We all have our own preferences and desires. Some prefer meat and potatoes while others desire the more exotic. Some love football and others baseball. Preferences and desires. We are all different and so we don't all share the same desires.

 

As we are made in God's image, it is not surprising for us to hear from James that God has his own desires. Due to our fallen nature, we discover that God's desires often do not coincide with our own. He is one way and we are another, hence the need for us to grow into the likeness of Jesus Christ as Paul mentions in Romans 8:29. Often our desires are contrary to God's desires.

 

Here is where James' introduction of himself at the beginning of this letter is more than mere window-dressing. He says of himself, "James a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ..." If we call Jesus Christ Lord, then we care about his desires. It may mean having to supplant our own desires, possibly spawned by our sinful nature, with his desires. Calling Jesus Christ "Lord" is not simply religious jargon, it expresses something that should be real and meaningful in our lives.

 

So, what are the desires that God has? I find this a fascinating question, because the answer tells us so much about him, what he is like, what kind of nature he has. It also reveals how well I know him. After all, if I can't articulate what those things are that the Lord desires, it may indicate I'm not that interested in him to find out - exposing no intention of bringing satisfaction to him by pursuing them. Even spouses purpose to know what their mate's desires are. One thing we do know of God's desires from James is that there is a "righteous life" he desires for us.

 

Here are a few others:

 

 In Hosea 6:6 the Lord says, "For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings."

 

Psalm 51:6 says, "Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place."

We read of God's desires in Isaiah 55:10-11, "As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it."

 

In Hebrews 10:5-7 we read, "Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: 'Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased. Then I said, "Here I am—it is written about me in the scroll— I have come to do your will, O God."'"

 

How many of the Lord's desires can you find in the Scriptures?

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com