Happy 255th Birthday to Bobbie Burns

Robert Burns, January 25, 1759 - July 21, 1796

 Man was made to Mourn: A Dirge


WHEN chill November’s surly blast   
  Made fields and forests bare,   
One ev’ning, as I wander’d forth   
  Along the banks of Ayr,   
I spied a man, whose aged step           
  Seem’d weary, worn with care;   
His face furrow’d o’er with years,   
  And hoary was his hair.   

“Young stranger, whither wand’rest thou?”   
  Began the rev’rend sage;           
“Does thirst of wealth thy step constrain,   
  Or youthful pleasure’s rage?   
Or haply, prest with cares and woes,   
  Too soon thou hast began   
To wander forth, with me to mourn           
  The miseries of man.   

“The sun that overhangs yon moors,   
  Out-spreading far and wide,   
Where hundreds labour to support   
  A haughty lordling’s pride;—           
I’ve seen yon weary winter-sun   
  Twice forty times return;   
And ev’ry time has added proofs,   
  That man was made to mourn.   

“O man! while in thy early years,           
  How prodigal of time!   
Mis-spending all thy precious hours—   
  Thy glorious, youthful prime!   
Alternate follies take the sway;   
  Licentious passions burn;           
Which tenfold force gives Nature’s law.   
  That man was made to mourn.   

“Look not alone on youthful prime,   
  Or manhood’s active might;   
Man then is useful to his kind,           
  Supported in his right:   
But see him on the edge of life,   
  With cares and sorrows worn;   
Then Age and Want—oh! ill-match’d pair—   
  Shew man was made to mourn.           

“A few seem favourites of fate,   
  In pleasure’s lap carest;   
Yet, think not all the rich and great   
  Are likewise truly blest:   
But oh! what crowds in ev’ry land,           
  All wretched and forlorn,   
Thro’ weary life this lesson learn,   
  That man was made to mourn.   

“Many and sharp the num’rous ills   
  Inwoven with our frame!           
More pointed still we make ourselves,   
  Regret, remorse, and shame!   
And man, whose heav’n-erected face   
  The smiles of love adorn,—   
Man’s inhumanity to man           
  Makes countless thousands mourn!   

“See yonder poor, o’erlabour’d wight,   
  So abject, mean, and vile,   
Who begs a brother of the earth   
  To give him leave to toil;           
And see his lordly fellow-worm   
  The poor petition spurn,   
Unmindful, tho’ a weeping wife   
  And helpless offspring mourn.   

“If I’m design’d yon lordling’s slave,           
  By Nature’s law design’d,   
Why was an independent wish   
  E’er planted in my mind?   
If not, why am I subject to   
  His cruelty, or scorn?           
Or why has man the will and pow’r   
  To make his fellow mourn?   

“Yet, let not this too much, my son,   
  Disturb thy youthful breast:   
This partial view of human-kind           
  Is surely not the last!   
The poor, oppressed, honest man   
  Had never, sure, been born,   
Had there not been some recompense   
  To comfort those that mourn!           

“O Death! the poor man’s dearest friend,   
  The kindest and the best!   
Welcome the hour my aged limbs   
  Are laid with thee at rest!   
The great, the wealthy fear thy blow           
  From pomp and pleasure torn;   
But, oh! a blest relief for those   
  That weary-laden mourn!”

From Bartleby. 

The sometimes-essential glossary for Burns is here.

I can easily imagine the old timers of my youth relating to the sentiment expressed in this work.  I can relate to it myself. 

Wait

Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD. -- Psalms 27:14, KJV

From Matthew Henry's Commentary on Psalm 27:7-14 --

... God's time to help those that trust in him, is, when all other helpers fail. He is a surer and better Friend than earthly parents are, or can be. What was the belief which supported the psalmist? That he should see the goodness of the Lord. There is nothing like the believing hope of eternal life, the foresights of that glory, and foretastes of those pleasures, to keep us from fainting under all calamities. In the mean time he should be strengthened to bear up under his burdens. Let us look unto the suffering Saviour, and pray in faith, not to be delivered into the hands of our enemies. Let us encourage each other to wait on the Lord, with patient expectation, and fervent prayer.

What is my strength, that I should wait?
And what is my end, that I should be patient? (Job 6:11)

If a man dies, shall he live again?
All the days of my service I would wait,
till my renewal should come. (Job 14:14)

Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame;
they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous. (Psalms 25:3)

Be strong, and let your heart take courage,
all you who wait for the LORD! (Psalms 31:24)

Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;
fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
over the man who carries out evil devices! (Psalms 37:7)

Do not say, I will repay evil;
wait for the LORD, and he will deliver you. (Proverbs 20:22)

In the path of your judgments,
O LORD, we wait for you;
your name and remembrance
are the desire of our soul. (Isaiah 26:8)

[B]ut they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31)

The LORD is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.
It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the LORD. (Lamentations 3:25-26)

So you, by the help of your God, return,
hold fast to love and justice,
and wait continually for your God. (Hosea 12:6)

For still the vision awaits its appointed time;
it hastens to the end—it will not lie.
If it seems slow, wait for it;
it will surely come; it will not delay. (Habakkuk 2:3)

And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” (Acts 1:4-5)

And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.  For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees?  But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. (Romans 8:23-25)

For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness.
(Galatians 5:5)

Witness Trees

Do not move an ancient landmark or enter the fields of the fatherless, for their Redeemer is strong; he will plead their cause against you. – Proverbs 23:10-11

A few years ago, an old gentleman passed on to his reward and left behind his farm of substantial acreage, divided roughly in half between two of his children.  There were fences that separated the man’s land from his neighbors’ properties.  There were also cross fences, for he had been a cattleman and kept various pastures and hay meadows for convenience and management of stock and grazing. 

Since the farm had been one prior to the man’s death, he had placed those cross fences to serve his particular purposes.  When the heirs received their divisions, there was some dispute over whether the division was based on actual acreage or the existing fences.  The parcels were not square but lay rather like one "L" nested against another.  To settle the controversy objectively, one heir hired a surveyor who, on an outside corner, located a “witness tree” with survey data inscribed.   The other heir was less than pleased with the results, but there was really no doubt left about where the dividing line between the properties fell. 

Cultures have their preferences and traditions, things that are done and things that are not done.  Like the cross fences on a piece of land, those cultural norms and ethics may be convenient and useful in context.  Individuals within a culture and outsiders may or may not abide by every local custom, depending on the situation and how willing one is to possibly offend those who hold to it.  

But there are absolute lines that may not lightly be transgressed.  These transcend cultures.  They are the morals and laws which define us as human.  The Decalogue did not create landmarks.  It merely uncovered those ancient cornerstones.  The Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights did not mark new witness trees but recognized and blazed again the existing ones.  The reality of the One True and Living God, the foundational nature of family, respect for the lives, liberty, and possessions of others, the need for both justice and mercy, these are the lines we cannot cross, the cornerstones we dare not move. 

A dark age, violence, and devastation threaten humanity in every time and every place where we begin to think that we know better than those who set those stones so long ago.    

Whoever Insults His Brother

Lift up your heads, O gates!  And be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. – Psalm 24:7

The Ark of the Covenant had been carried into battle by Hophni and Phinehas, the apostate sons of the high priest, Eli.  They had been killed and the Ark captured by the Philistines, who were, in turn, so afflicted with plagues due to its presence that they sent it back on a cart drawn by bawling milk cows (1 Samuel 4-7).  Some of the Israelites who were present to receive the Ark as it returned dropped dead when they attempted to examine it a little too closely. 

Thus we learn that the presence of the Lord, as represented by the Ark, will not be of benefit to a person who is, toward God, dismissive, disrespectful or antagonistic.  In fact, such a person, if it were possible, would be better off getting and staying as far from God as he could get.  It is not possible, not even in hell, to avoid God, as too many find out too late. 

So the Ark was left out in somebody’s field for decades.  When David became king of Israel, it was in his heart to bring the Ark to Jerusalem which, by that time, he had established as his royal city (2 Samuel 6).  Not without difficulty was it done for, initially, he attempted to carry it up on a cart, resulting in the death of a man named Uzzah who touched the Ark trying to steady it.  The next effort, however, followed the instructions given to Moses:  that the Ark should be borne on the shoulders of the priests.  It was successful.  David danced for joy before the Ark all the way up to the Tabernacle of David situated somewhere on the heights in the city. 

Our verse above reflects the joy that David felt, written by him or as if by him as he brought that symbol of God’s presence into ancient Jerusalem.  In Solomon’s time, the singers might have sung this psalm as the Ark solemnly entered its resting place in that newly finished and beautiful temple. 

The Ark itself was a glorious thing to behold, covered in gold, with golden cherubim on the top forming the mercy seat.  It’s funny, though, the gold was just a covering.  The Ark was made out of wood.  As impressive and potent as this container was, it was never more than a means of conveying to us the truth about ourselves.    

God does not dwell in temples.  His presence is not confined to ornate, golden boxes.  We have this treasure, Paul says, in earthen vessels – jars of clay (2 Corinthians 4:7).  By His Spirit, the Lord makes His home in the hearts of men.  Though unimaginable power is His, He will not force His way into our lives.  He will stand at the door of a person’s heart and knock (Revelation 3:20).  He waits.  All anyone has to do is lift the bar on the gate, the latch on the door. 

If the presence of God upon the inanimate, symbolic Ark was awe-inspiring, how much more deserving of respect and even reverence is His presence in the hearts of living men and women?  Be wise; be careful.        

Charging Station

And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.  And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, and they found him and said to him, “Everyone is looking for you.” – Mark 1:35-37

Some people follow crowds.  Some follow Jesus.  There may be times and places where Christ and the crowd coincide.  Not always.  We may, though, always find Him as Simon did in the haunts of the lonely, deserted and desolate places. 

The Lord ministered to the needs of the crowds.  He worked miracles, healed the sick, and drove out demons in broad, public daylight.  But the power to do that does not come from the crowd.  Performers say they draw energy from their audience.  Those who came in contact with Jesus drew from Him.  He knew that the woman with the issue of blood had touched the hem of His garment in faith because He felt “healing virtue” flow out. 

It was, however, when Jesus was alone with His Father that He renewed and refreshed His strength and understanding.  Christians often burn out, fail and fall because they are too eager to respond to the cry that “everyone is looking for you.”  Those who spend too much time with the crowds, no matter how well they begin, often end as frauds and fakes. 

We don’t have to retreat to the Mojave or the top of some remote mountain in order to be alone with God.  You can do it in an aluminum tube flying through the air in the middle seat between Mama Cass and Fat Albert, on a busy street, in a cube in a noisy office.  Sometimes you may have to retreat to the shower, the garage, a riverbank, the back of a bike, a woodland trail – whatever suits your nature, your situation, and your preferences.  Jesus is not particular.  He’ll ride in your car, follow you out to the deck, down in the basement or up on the roof.  He’ll run beside you in the park or sit beside you in a tree stand. 

People are always going to put demands on your time, the more if you are in any way wise or skilled.  The claims of family, friends, co-workers, and others are often legitimate.  The Lord does not ask us to refuse those who call to us for help.  He only points out that we need to first hear from Him, spend time alone in His presence, and discern His will.  No power flows from a dead battery.

Twisted Threads

Behold, it was for my welfare that I had great bitterness; but in love you have delivered my life from the pit of destruction, for you have cast all my sins behind your back. -- Isaiah 38:17

King Hezekiah was stricken with a disease to the point of death.  In affliction, as might be expected, he despaired.  No matter how harsh and hopeless we may find life from time to time, the thought of its cessation can be frightening and overwhelming.  There is an interesting metaphor in Job 7:6 -- My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle and come to their end without hope.  Matthew Henry comments on this verse, saying, “Our days are compared to the weaver's shuttle … passing and repassing very swiftly, every throw leaving a thread behind it; and when finished, the piece is cut off, taken out of the loom, and showed to our Master to be judged of.”

I had never thought of the “finished product” but always focused on the swiftness of the passing.  Each day, though, is a strand added to the tapestry of our lives.  Some are bright, others dark, forming a pattern and telling a story that can be seen and comprehended now only by the Weaver, the one who knows the pattern He follows. 

Hezekiah longed to live and for good reason:  that he might faithfully lead his people and serve the God of Glory.  The love and mercy of the Lord spared his life, yet there is a twist to this story.  Hezekiah lived fifteen more years, during which time the son who would inherit the throne was born.  His name was Manasseh, and he may have been the most wicked of Judah’s kings.  It is the sin and abominations of Manasseh that led to the eventual fall of Jerusalem and the deportation and dispersion of the Jews by the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar.

 A lot of my days are composed of black threads.  Many, many years ago, I was still a relatively young man, and I had a dream or perhaps a vision.  In it I saw a man clad all over in dark brown leather standing on a road.  His hands were gloved and balled into fists.  He extended his left hand and opened it to reveal something white and bright, like a large diamond, or a star.  The vision had a specific meaning for me at the time that doesn’t matter anymore.  I think there was also another interpretation in the longer term, that no matter how dark and muddy and colorless my life may appear, there is always some light.  It may illuminate my own path, or it may help someone else find their way. 

I don’t know.  I can’t know, any more than Hezekiah could know what his life or death would mean.  God responds to our cries and to our faith and makes that part of the picture.  Maybe He is making a rug that pulls the room together.  Hezekiah’s healing, by itself, was a good thing because Hezekiah was a righteous king.  Manasseh and his apostasy, taken in isolation, were unholy and unrighteous and evil.  But what are those threads laying side by side, the black mark on the white paper?  What is that message and what does it say?   In love you have delivered my life from the pit of destruction, for you have cast all my sins behind your back.  Or, as the final and ultimate Heir of the throne of David (and Hezekiah and Manasseh) said, For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

While We Are On the Subject

The time is always ripe for reunion.  Divisions between Christians are a sin and a scandal, and Christians ought at all times to be making contributions toward reunion, if it is only by their prayers.  I am only a layman and a recent Christian, and I do not know much about these things, but in all things which I have written and thought I have always been stuck to traditional dogmatic positions.  The result is that letters of agreement reach me from what are ordinarily regarded as the most different kinds of Christians; for instance, I get letters from Jesuits, monks, nuns, and also from Quakers and Welsh Dissenters, and so on.  So it seems to me that the ‘extremist’ elements in every church are nearest one another and the liberal and ‘broad-minded’ people in each Body could never be united at all.  The world of ‘broad-mindedness’ and watered-down ‘religion’ is a world where a small number of people (all the same type) say totally different things and change their minds every few minutes.  We shall never get reunion from them.  – C.S. Lewis

This is from Lewis’ “Answers to Questions on Christianity”, but, as it happens, it is also the January 16 reading from “The Business of Heaven” section of a collected works volume I bought recently.  

At first glance the fact that 'extremists' find more agreement than the 'moderates', or what we would call 'liberals' today, seems counter-intuitive.  I refer back to my post from yesterday about the cone.  The closer we get to Christ, the closer we are to one another.