Matthew Henry writes:

“That is best for us which is best for our souls, though it be unpleasing to sense.”

The verse he had in mind when he wrote that was Ecclesiastes 7:3:

Sorrow is better than laughter,
    for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.

I had to scratch my head at that verse for a little while before I grasped what was in mind when it was written. The English language really makes things confusing here. It almost seems like a paradox—a ‘sad’ face makes a ‘glad’ heart?

But the concept he’s touching on here is much bigger than it would seem at first.

Our physical, temporal appreciation for life and our heart-gut level appreciation for it do not necessarily line up all the time. If we allow ourselves to sink into old, sinful habits, we may enjoy the temporal experience. But our soul is wincing in pain.

The argument is being made that often temporal discomfort is much better for the soul than anything otherwise. And what is better for the soul will make us truly ‘glad’.

I think this is a concept Americans have difficulty grasping because in our society of the middle-class, there’s virtually always a way out of any kind of temporal discomfort. I imagine that few of us can really understand what these writers are saying.

Jeremiah 6:14:

They have healed the wound of my people lightly,
    saying, ‘Peace, peace,’
    when there is no peace.

The prophets in Jeremiah’s time had stopped preaching the word of God. Instead, they said the things that would bolster their esteem. They tickled the people’s ears with things they wanted to hear. “They healed the would lightly”.

Now, I know that Jeremiah’s time was a specific time in history and that we have to tread lightly over life applications from these pages. But I couldn’t help but see the parallel as I read across this verse.

The teachers, the prophets in our western church, many of them, have stopped preaching the Word of God. Or begun preaching it only in part—leaving the difficult or offensive topics and concepts untouched. Not just the prosperity-gospel church either. I mean many of the churches we attend on a weekly basis.

In the interest of creating a welcoming environment (and securing a mortgage payment), way too many preachers only teach the parts of the bible that can be understood without too much objection. And, without too much risk of scaring people away.

I can’t help but wonder whether or not God would say these same things to our church today that he said through the prophet Jeremiah in his day.

I just came across Jesus’ night in the garden before his crucifixion. I’ve read it a million times, but found a fresh point of relation to Jesus’ disciples. It’s a wonder I never saw it before.

Jesus had gone off to pray. He warned them to keep alert and pray that they would “fall into temptation”. But it doesn’t happen like that. Luke 22:45-46:

And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow, and he said to them, "Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation."

Anyone who has struggled with extended periods of emotional despair or depression knows that there is something inviting and releasing about sleep. Tons and tons of sleep. When I am in times like that I often find myself “sleeping for sorrow”.

But the temptations that accompany sadness are only puffed up by attempting to sleep away our problems.

Of course, like the disciples who know that they should stay awake and pray against their temptation, I too usually give into the easiest, most comfortable solution.

Sleep.

I came upon this today as I read in Proverbs. I absolutely love the ESV’s wording. Proverbs 23:17-18:

Let not your heart envy sinners,
   but continue in the fear of the LORD all the day.
Surely there is a future,
   and your hope will not be cut off.

Why would we envy sinners unless we feared we didn’t have a much better reward waiting for us? Our future in Christ is absolutely sure and it will not be cut off.

That’s very encouraging.

Proverbs 22:28:

Do not move the ancient landmark
   that your fathers have set.

One of the strangest proverbs. It comes in a string of commands that doesn’t lend well to understanding this specific verse. Over its interpretation, people are divided. The classic writer John Gill overviews the disagreement.

Some apply this, in a political sense, to laws of long standing, and customs of long prescription; and others interpret it, in a theological sense, of doctrines and practices settled by the fathers of the church; which, if understood of Christ and his apostles only, will be allowed;

I suppose in circumstances like these, it’s hard to really pinpoint the authors truly intended meaning. Although it’s probably not really built into this verse, something I glean from it is a looking foreword to Christ’s place in the Church.

The specific reference in Proverbs is almost definitely to Deuteronomy 19:14, which commands God’s people not to move the geographical boundaries that had already been set. Something that was apparently taken very seriously in early times.

It makes me think of the system that the early church fathers put in place; with Christ as the centerpiece—the non-negotiable element of our faith. Although Christ in himself sets us free, in the church he is also something of a boundary we’re forbidden to remove.

Ironically, in its attempt to grow in number and influence and relevance, a huge portion of the church also gradually removes that Landmark set up by the early church fathers.

Hebrews 4:14-16:

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.  Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

In every manner that we have failed, Jesus has succeeded. For this reason, among others, we can have confidence to expect grace through his work on our behalf.

That’s pretty encouraging.

Luke 21:12-15:

“…they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for my name’s sake. This will be your opportunity to bear witness. Settle it therefore in your minds not to meditate beforehand how to answer, for I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict.”

Settle it in our minds not to meditate on how to answer. I find it compelling that Jesus felt that it was important to include this. After all, he could have easily left it out without necessarily altering the meaning. But he didn’t. Which to me, means that it could really use some reflection.

I think that there’s a number of possibilities in there. Probably something about pride. Something about reliance on God. But the idea that keeps sticking in my mind right now is not convoluting the Spirit of God in us.

You get the impression from the full passage that the Spirit, in some sense, is going to kind of take over. It’s going to replace some natural capacity of ours with a supernatural one. The term knee-jerk reaction comes to mind. Perhaps it is that Jesus doesn’t want us convoluting the Spirit’s knee-jerk reaction in us with something contrived of our own minds.

Really any way you look at it, it seems bizarre to me. And in terms of language, there aren’t many times when we’re told not to think about something. But it sure says it here and that is worth thinking about.