Psalm 40.9-10 NIV
“I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly; I do not seal my lips, as you know, O Lord.
I do not hide your righteousness in my heart; I speak of your faithfulness and salvation. I do not conceal your love and your truth from the great assembly.”
When I was a child I loved playing hide-n-seek. I still remember the fun we had. All the neighborhood kids would gather in our yard in Greenville, Mississippi (somewhere around 1959) yelling “Not it!” The last kid was “it” and the rest of us would hide. Those who were not found eventually returned at the sound of “Olly, olly, in-come-free.”
Nobody kept their hiding place a secret. We couldn’t wait to astound our friends with the “best hiding place ever.” Somehow it never occurred to us not to reveal the location of our new hiding places. That was half the fun. We had to talk about it. What good was the discovery of a cool new hiding spot if you couldn’t share it with friends? Our neighborhood game should more accurately have been called “hide-n-speak.”
The author of Psalm 40, King David, discovered the Lord and had to tell others about it. He was compelled to share. He wanted his entire kingdom to know:
“I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly; I do not seal my lips, as you know, O Lord.
I do not hide your righteousness in my heart; I speak of your faithfulness and salvation. I do not conceal your love and your truth from the great assembly.”
When I was a child I loved playing hide-n-seek. I still remember the fun we had. All the neighborhood kids would gather in our yard in Greenville, Mississippi (somewhere around 1959) yelling “Not it!” The last kid was “it” and the rest of us would hide. Those who were not found eventually returned at the sound of “Olly, olly, in-come-free.”
Nobody kept their hiding place a secret. We couldn’t wait to astound our friends with the “best hiding place ever.” Somehow it never occurred to us not to reveal the location of our new hiding places. That was half the fun. We had to talk about it. What good was the discovery of a cool new hiding spot if you couldn’t share it with friends? Our neighborhood game should more accurately have been called “hide-n-speak.”
The author of Psalm 40, King David, discovered the Lord and had to tell others about it. He was compelled to share. He wanted his entire kingdom to know:
“I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly; I do not seal my lips, as you know,
O Lord. I do not hide your righteousness in my heart; I speak of your faithfulness and salvation. I do not conceal your love and your truth from the great assembly.”
A great find must be shared. It is not possible to keep it a secret. A child cannot not tell of the best hiding place ever. Nor can a child of God keep his faith a secret. People don’t talk when there’s nothing to talk about. But when there is, they do.
Religion may be a private matter, but a vibrant relationship with Jesus is not. Like a cool new hiding spot or great discovery, life in Christ was meant to be shared.
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The girl peering over the fence is a black and white/flipped version of a photograph from http://www.inventnow.org/.
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2 comments:
You have put words to a feeling I have had.
Wanting to give people the benefit of the doubt , I have always allowed for them being very private individuals, or not understanding of what it is they have. But I fear you are right and "they have no real religion at all".
THinking on it, even when I was new I could not wait to be educated , to talk about and better understand, this new me.
Thanks Larry, for your comment. I agree with you.
Dave
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