MAJESTIC IN PACE
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on June 12, 2022 under 2022 |
Bethany Bible Church Sermon Message; June 12, 2022 from Proverbs 30:29-31
Theme: As we maintain a close fellowship with Jesus Christ by faith, His majestic qualities become exhibited in our daily walk.
(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).
Click HERE for the live-stream archive of this sermon.
Click HERE for the audio version of this sermon.
We have been studying together from the words of a wise man named Agur. He was a man through whom God gave us great words of practical wisdom—words that the Holy Spirit has preserved for us in Proverbs 30.
In this morning’s passage—in Proverbs 30:29-31—we find four object lessons mentioned to us—three are among the animal kingdom, and one is a king among men. It says:
There are three things which are majestic in pace,
Yes, four which are stately in walk:
A lion, which is mighty among beasts
And does not turn away from any;
A greyhound,
A male goat also,
And a king whose troops are with him (Proverbs 30:29-31).
The comments Agur makes about these object lessons are few. He only mentions the names of some. We’re somewhat left to common sense to interpret their significance. But the key element that ties these three—yea, even four—object lessons together is their manner of walking or striding upon this earth. They are being called to our attention as things that demonstrate a majesty in their walk … a stateliness in their pace.
* * * * * * * * * *
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ; do you think about your own personal manner of walking? I don’t mean how you physically carry yourself from one spot to another in the course of a day. Rather, what I mean is the way in which you conduct your daily life.
In the Bible, a person’s “walk” is a figure of speech for the course of their daily conduct. Think, for example, of the first two verses of the Book of The Psalms. The psalmist wrote;
Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night (Psalm 1:1-2).
Obviously, the psalmist wasn’t speaking of our particular gait—how we put one foot in front of another. Rather, he was speaking of the direction we take, and the places we go, and the attitude of heart we bear within us, and the people we associate with, and the things we do and say along the way of our daily life and work. Is our practical manner of life—our walk—guided by God’s word, and by reverent delight in obeying Him? Or take the words of the apostle Paul in Ephesians 4:1;
I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called (Ephesians 4:1).
Paul wasn’t concerned about our physical act of walking either. Rather, he was concerned about our practical manner of living. Does the way that we live our daily lives match up with our profession of faith in Jesus Christ? Does our manner of ‘walking’ bear a true testimony to our faith in the Lord Jesus?
Now; I say this with the utmost love: Some people profess to have been saved by faith in Jesus and testify to having a personal relationship with Him; and yet, they call that whole profession into doubt by the way they ‘walk’. They let their feet take them to places that the Lord Jesus would never go; or they use words along the way that the Lord Jesus would never use; or they act in ways that the Lord Jesus would never behave. Very often, such professing Christians show dishonor to their Lord by the fact that—even though they say that they know Him—they fall repeatedly into the same old sinful habits and addictions that Jesus died to deliver them from; and they compromise their devotion to Jesus by being forced into the practices and values of the sinful people around them; and they allow the circumstances of life to habitually bring them into a state of fear and defeat—in spite of the majesty and victory that their Lord has promised to give them.
They say that they love Jesus—but you couldn’t tell it by looking at the way they ‘walk’.
Now; I’m very glad that the Lord Jesus forgives and redeems all those who sincerely trust Him—even if their daily life is a bit of a disobedient, disordered mess. But how does such a life commend the Lord Jesus to the people of this world? When they look at our daily ‘walk’, do they say, “I want to know more about the Lord Jesus that they trust”? Or do they say, “Why should I trust the Lord Jesus—since He hasn’t seemed to make any positive difference in their lives”? To put it as the apostle Paul has put it elsewhere, does our daily life ‘adorn’ the gospel … or does it bring discredit to the gospel in the eyes of this world?
Now; there’s a story in the Book of Acts that has always fascinated and inspired me. In Acts 4, we’re told about how the ruling Jewish authorities had brought the apostles before them because they had healed a man in Jesus’ name. They wanted the apostles to stop preaching about Jesus. Peter and John bravely stood their ground and told the rulers that the very Jesus that they crucified was alive; and that there was salvation in no one else, because there is no other name given under heaven by which we must be saved. Those were very courageous and bold words! And I ask you to pay special attention to what we’re told in Acts 4:13 about those Jewish rulers:
Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus (Acts 4:13).
Isn’t that wonderful? Their manner of behavior had a powerful impact on those leaders. And it wasn’t because they saw how Peter and John had stirred themselves up into a state of boldness and courage on the basis of their own human powers. Rather, it was because of the Lord Jesus. Those who saw them could tell—by what they saw of the majesty of their walk—that they had indeed been in close, personal fellowship with Jesus.
And dear brothers and sisters; there’s the key to it all for us. The secret to a truly Christ-like walk in life is not by going through some kind of ‘self-help’ program in which we stir ourselves up into Christ-like behavior and Christ-like character. The secret is by cultivating and maintaining a close personal fellowship with Jesus Christ by faith; and allowing His character qualities to become infused into us and reflected in our daily conduct.
* * * * * * * * * *
Now; with all of that in mind, look back with me at Proverbs 30:29-31. Here we see four creatures—three animals and one king—who are object lessons of what it means to have a majestic walk. Specifically, they demonstrate for us the practical life qualities of courage, endurance, stability, and victory. What great qualities these are! But we cannot work them up for ourselves. If we try to do so, we won’t be successful. And even if we are—to some limited degree—able to manufacture these qualities in our own lives, they wouldn’t bring any glory to Jesus Christ. They’d only be human products that bring a limited and fading glory to ourselves.
The four qualities we find mentioned and exemplified for us in this passage are perfectly demonstrated—and find their greatest expression—in the Person of our Lord Jesus Christ. He alone is the perfect example of courage, and endurance, and stability, and victory—and all in complete submission and obedience to His Father. And if we will maintain a close fellowship with Jesus Christ by faith, His majestic qualities will become exhibited in our daily walk.
* * * * * * * * * *
So then; what does the Holy Spirit teach us—through the words of Agur—about the truly ‘majestic’ walk? How is the truly ‘stately’ pace built into our lives through a close relationship with Jesus? The first thing that Agur described as ‘majestic’ in its ‘pace’ is …
A lion, which is mighty among beasts
And does not turn away from any …
And this teaches us that a ‘majestic pace’ means …
1. OBEYING WITH COURAGE.
A lion has always been symbolic of courage; hasn’t it? And for good reason. No one has to tell you that a lion is a creature to be reckoned with. You pretty much know it automatically whenever you encounter one. We often call the lion ‘the king of the beasts’; and just a lion’s confident and bold manner of walking—by the thunder of its roar and the shaking of its mane as it strolls along—validates that royalty. A lion doesn’t see a threat coming and then turn away to hide. No! Other things turn away and hide from the lion!
And that lion-like courage should characterize our walk as believers. Our obedience to God our Father should reflect the courage of Jesus. I love what it tells us in Proverbs 21:1;
The wicked flee when no one pursues,
But the righteous are bold as a lion (Proverbs 28:1).
Courage does not mean the absence of fear. Some of the bravest folks in God’s service are people who are naturally and sensibly afraid of what their obedience to God might cost them. But true courage means that, even though we’re afraid, we rise up with trust in God and obey anyway. The greatest example of this that we could ever find is the Lord Jesus Himself. Think of how it was for Him in the Garden of Gethsemane. Knowing that He was about to be betrayed and arrested, and knowing that He would be crucified, He nevertheless went with His apostles to the garden and waited for His betrayer to come. We’re told;
Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, “Sit here while I go and pray over there.” And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me” (Matthew 26:36-38).
I say this with all reverence: That does not seem like the absence of fear; does it? I believe that, in His humanity, our Lord’s spirit naturally recoiled from the horror and suffering of the cross. And more than that, His spirit sorrowed over the prospect of bearing the guilt of the sin of all of humanity upon Himself on the cross, and suffering the wrath of God in our place. And even more still, His spirit was horrified at the thought of being separated from His Father because of our sin, and crying out, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
But even though His spirit was in anguish over what lay ahead, look at what we go on to read:
He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will” (v. 39).
That’s what it looks like to obey with courage. And our walk in life needs to be characterized by that kind of lion-like courage—the courage that was demonstrated to us by Jesus—the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.
Such courage doesn’t come by working ‘strength’ up in ourselves through our own efforts. Rather, it comes through a close, personal relationship with Jesus through dependent faith. The apostle Paul once had an affliction of some kind—something that he called ‘a thorn in the flesh’. He asked the Lord three times to take it away from him.
And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).
So; let’s grow close to our courageous Lord Jesus. The more we do so, the more He will give us His own strength to face the trials of life … and the more we will become characterized by His own lion-like courage in obedience to the Father.
* * * * * * * * * *
Now; back again to Proverbs 30. The next creature that Agur mentions that demonstrates a majestic walk—according to the translation I’m using—is “a greyhound”.
Now; the Old Testament scholars who have studied the original language of this passage aren’t absolutely sure what animal this is. Some have interpreted it to be a greyhound. Some have interpreted it to be a war-horse. Others have interpreted it to be a leopard. And some have even interpreted it to be a rooster strutting among the hens. But all that we can know for sure about it—from the original language—is that it is something that is ‘girded in the loins’—something that is made by God with the ability to run long and fast.
And this teaches us that ‘the majestic stride’ means …
2. RUNNING WITH ENDURANCE.
If you were to look at Job 39, you’d find a couple of creatures that are ‘girded in the loins’. The ostrich, for example, is described as an animal that isn’t very bright. She steps on her own eggs. We’re told that God deprived her of wisdom. But in spite of that, we’re also told that …
When she lifts herself on high,
She scorns the horse and its rider (Job 39:18).
She may be dumb; but she’s very, very fast. She may not know where she’s going; but she gets there quickly. Or think of what it goes on to say about the horse—who definitely knows where it’s going;
“Have you given the horse strength?
Have you clothed his neck with thunder?
Can you frighten him like a locust?
His majestic snorting strikes terror.
He paws in the valley, and rejoices in his strength;
He gallops into the clash of arms” (Job 39:19-21).
So; whatever this creature is that Agur was describing, it’s meant to remind us that a majestic walk involves swiftly running the course that God sets before us with endurance. We must not weaken in the Christian walk. We must not quit. We must run swiftly where God commands us to run; and we must run with endurance in our devotion.
The author of the Book of Hebrews wrote a whole chapter of his letter—Chapter 11—about the great heroes and heroines of faith who ran the race of faith that God had set before them all the way to the end. And then, he tells us this in Hebrews 12:1-2
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebrews 12:1-2),
Do you know what the ‘joy set before’ our Lord was? It was your salvation and mine. It was the prospect of saving us from our sins and uniting us with Himself forever in heavenly glory. Even though it cost Him everything, He ran that race with endurance for you and me—all the way across the finish line. And if we’re close to Him as we should be, we too will ‘run with endurance’ the race He has set before us. As the apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 3:12-14;
Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:12-14).
Dear brothers and sisters; there’s nothing majestic about walking the Christian walk in an ‘on-again-off-again’ manner. There’s nothing stately or honorable about wandering on and off the race track, or starting in a race that we’re not committed to finishing. Let’s grow to be more like the Lord Jesus in our walk before Him. He ran with endurance; and as we grow in our relationship with Him, so will we.
* * * * * * * * * *
A third creature that we find Agur mentioning as an example of a ‘majestic walk’ is “a male goat”. A male goat is a sure-footed animal—a leader of its kind. It says in Psalm 104:18;
The high hills are for the wild goats (Psalm 104:18).
A male goat is able to look down on all that is below it; because it knows how to get up into the high-places without stumbling and tumbling down the cliff. It’s careful where it places its feet as it makes the upward climb. And this teaches us that the ‘majestic walk’ means …
3. CLIMBING WITH STABILITY.
I may be stretching the analogy a bit; but isn’t it interesting to think of how many times our Lord would climb up to ‘high places’ in order to pray to the Father? The Bible tells us that, before He chose His twelve apostles, He first went up on a high mountain and prayed all through the night. Before He walked on the water to His disciples in the boat out in the storm, He first spent the evening up on a high mountain by Himself and prayed. When He revealed His glory to them in the transfiguration, He took them with Him up a high mountain. Our Lord did a lot of climbing in His earthly ministry. He knew where the Father wanted Him to go and what He wanted Him to do; and He climbed the high places in obedience to His Father with the sure-footedness and majestic stability of a mountain goat.
And if we are close to our Lord as we should be, then we too will be climbing upward in our obedience to the Father with stability. The trials of this life will not cause us to tumble down the hill. As the prophet Habakkuk put it in a time of trial in his own life:
Though the fig tree may not blossom,
Nor fruit be on the vines;
Though the labor of the olive may fail,
And the fields yield no food;
Though the flock may be cut off from the fold,
And there be no herd in the stalls—
Yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
I will joy in the God of my salvation.
The Lord God is my strength;
He will make my feet like deer’s feet,
And He will make me walk on my high hills (Habakkuk 3:17-19).
May it be that, when the people of this world look at our lives, they see us walking with the majesty and stateliness of someone who is climbing upward alongside our sure-footed Lord.
* * * * * * * * * *
And Agur tells us about one more creature. This time, it’s not an animal—but it walks with a majestic and stately stride nevertheless. It’s “a king whose troops are with him”.
When a king has his troops on his side, he is a confident conqueror. He goes into the battle knowing that he can overcome every form of resistance that the enemy may set up against him. And this also teaches us that the ‘majestic walk’ means …
4. OVERCOMING WITH VICTORY.
Just before He went to the cross for us, the Lord Jesus told His disciples about the promised victory that His resurrection would bring. Glorious victory was ahead in the long-term—even though hard times and struggles might arise in the short-term. And He told them;
“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).
Dear brothers and sisters; we’re not like a human king. We don’t just have a human army with us. We have the Lord of the armies of heaven on our side! There is nothing in this world that is greater than Him. There is no force in this world that can resist Him. Even the devils of hell cower before Him. There is nothing that can come into our lives that we cannot gain complete victory over—no sinful habit, no addiction, no trial, no lack, no human limitation, no opposition of the devil—if we will simply trust our mighty, all-conquering Lord and do as He tells us. As the apostle John has put it;
For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith (1 John 5:4).
That kind of victory ought to be characterized in our daily practice of life—our daily walk. The apostle Paul was a man who had to face a great deal of obstacles in his life and ministry. But consider what he wrote in Romans 8:31-39;
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written:
“For Your sake we are killed all day long;
We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”
Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:31-39).
Our Lord walks in majestic victory. He overcomes all obstacles that He encounters victoriously. And if we will draw close to Him and keep our fellowship with Him strong, we’ll walk in victory right alongside Him.
* * * * * * * * * *
Through these illustrations of courage, endurance, stability, and victory, we’re encouraged to be majestic in our walk—stately in our pace. But not by our own power. We can only do it as we draw close to Jesus—who exhibits all these qualities perfectly.
As Paul put it in 2 Corinthians 3:18;
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord (2 Corinthians 3:17-18).
So then; let’s draw close to Jesus and keep our gaze upon Him. And as we do, may the watching world see the character of our daily walk and say, “These people have been with Jesus.”
AE
