See the heaven and the earth, see all living things, see yourself (Poem 19)

the Grand Master

When everyone sees this title, I believe they will think of the movie "The Grandmaster". In the film, Zhang Ziyi (Gong Er) and Tony Leung Chiu Wai (Ip Man) said: "There are three stages for people who practice martial arts: seeing themselves, seeing the world, and seeing all living beings..." How to become a grandmaster? "Seeing oneself" means knowing one's own aspirations; "seeing heaven and earth" means seeing the vastness of heaven and earth; "seeing all living beings" means enlightening others with what one has learned, which are the three realms of being a "guru". The movie is about martial arts and martial arts, but it is also about life. "Life is like a chess piece, you have no regrets when you make a move", "It is better to think about progress than to think about stopping", "If you never forget it, there will be echoes, and if there is a lamp, there will be people"... These philosophical dialogues all make people have different feelings. Lenovo.

Today is the third Sunday of the Great Lent, and Psalm 19 is a Psalm lesson. CS Lewis called it "the greatest poem" in the Psalms. While reading the scriptures, the dialogue from "The Great Master" came to mind, so I copied it into the title of the sermon. Of course, the focus of this psalm is not about how to become a great master. There are 14 verses in it. Bible scholars divide it into three parts: verses 1 to 6 are about God’s creation; verses 7 to 11 are about God’s law. And verses 8 to 14 are David’s self-examination. These three parts correspond to the three realms of "seeing the heaven and the earth, seeing all sentient beings, and seeing oneself", giving us something to learn and remind us during the period of pre-suffering.

See the world

Let’s look at the first realm first: seeing heaven and earth. “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament declares the work of his hands” (19:1) is a familiar scripture. Think about when we have read it unconsciously? Maybe when you are in Taiwan, or recalling being in a country park in Hong Kong, or even traveling to other countries, you can't help but admire the beauty of nature from the bottom of your heart.

If you like to write poems and lyrics, you will be able to write poems and be inspired. Everyone has heard that " the sun sets over the mountains and the Yellow River flows into the sea." This is the scenery that poets in the Tang Dynasty saw when they climbed up the stairs. The next sentence "If you want to see a thousand miles away, go to a higher level." The poet wanted to peep into more and wider landscapes, so he decided to climb to a higher place.

The same was true for David in the past. The difference was that when he saw "Shu Tian" and "Virume of Heaven", he connected them with Jehovah, the Creator of heaven and earth. Not only that, although "the sky" and "the firmament" were silent, David did not respond with "the silence is better than the sound at this time". Instead, he heard "words" and realized "knowledge" from it. Whose words are these? What kind of knowledge is it about? In David’s mind, of course, it was Jehovah. He used the heat emanating from the sun as a metaphor for the glory of Jehovah, which is "spread throughout the world" and "to the ends of the earth" where "nothing can be hidden."

Yes, different people see the same scenery. Some people only appreciate the beauty of nature, but others praise the Lord who created heaven and earth. The key point is whether there is God in people's hearts. If the Creator is received knowledge, it is natural to understand the world from this perspective. However, even so, the belief that you have always believed in will inevitably be shaken sometimes due to different reasons. If God is truly the Creator of heaven and earth, why does he allow evil in it? "Lord, wake up, why do you sleep all the time?" (Psalm 44:23a) The poet couldn't help but ask: Is the Lord asleep? Even people with faith have to issue "God's alibi"...

Or, the landscape remains the same, but due to the different state of mind, a different image can be read. For example, Empress Li of the Southern Tang Dynasty experienced the subjugation of the country and wrote: "When did the spring flowers and autumn moon come? How much do you know about the past? There was an east wind in the small building last night, and the homeland cannot bear to look back at the moonlight! The carved lanterns and jade bricks should still be there, but the beauty has changed. Question How much sorrow can you have? Just like a river of spring water flowing eastward!" The moon is still rising, and the spring water is also flowing eastward. However, compared with the current situation when the country is destroyed and the family is destroyed, there is only unbearable nostalgia and hatred for the country's subjugation. At this moment, what state of mind do we have when we come to "see heaven and earth"?

I wonder if you have heard of "Seeing a mountain is a mountain, seeing a mountain is not a mountain, seeing a mountain is still a mountain"? This Zen saying points out the three stages of life experience. First, "seeing mountains are mountains" means looking at the world from the surface and believing that what you see is its true nature; then "seeing mountains is not mountains" means facing the complex world. , experiencing the disintegration of beliefs, the reversal of black and white, the confusion of right and wrong, and began to fall into loss and doubt; in the end, "seeing the mountain is still a mountain" is a kind of understanding after gaining insight into the world. Thinking back on our faith and our relationship with the Lord, have we ever experienced these three realms? Perhaps, it is only after experiencing "seeing the mountain that it is not the mountain" that we can re-understand faith.

When we say: "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament proclaims the work of His hands," are we stuck at the stage of "seeing mountains as mountains"? Or after experiencing the struggle and loss of "seeing a mountain, it is still a mountain", and finally realizing that "seeing a mountain is still a mountain"? In anticipation, let us learn to "see heaven and earth." Standing between heaven and earth, we will undoubtedly face many challenges, but we can still declare like a poet: "I want to lift my eyes to the mountains, where does my help come from? I Help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth” (Psalm 121:1-2).

see all living beings

The second part of Psalm 19 (verses 7 to 11) centers on the law of the Lord. Why do we praise the Creator in verses 1 to 6, but suddenly turn to the law in verses 7 to 11? Why did David describe the law as "more desirable than gold" and "sweeter than honey"? In school, no student should like school rules! Today, we don’t treat external rules as “gold” and “honey” and cherish them, right?

In fact, when reading the Old Testament, you must understand the importance of the law in the nation of Israel. The law is the commandment issued by Jehovah to the chosen people, witnessing God’s salvation and covenant. Today’s Old Testament lesson is Exodus 20:1-17, which is the promulgation of the Ten Commandments. Before stipulating the content of the Ten Commandments, God first said, "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery" (Exodus 20:2). It can be seen that behind the law, what is more important is "relationship" - "I am Jehovah - your God." Therefore, Psalm 19 clearly states that the law is “the law of the Lord (testimonies, precepts, commands, and ordinances)” (7-9a).

It is worth noting that David described Jehovah’s law as “complete”, “certain”, “upright”, “pure” and “true”, and pointed out that the result of obeying the law is “reviving”, "To make wise the simple", "to cheer up the heart", "to enlighten the eyes", "to be completely righteous". In fact, the point is not the law, but the relationship with Jehovah, the One who created the heaven and the earth and gave the law. Because of Jehovah's redemption, the people must "fear" Jehovah and by obeying the law, their lives will be awakened and renewed. They will have the wisdom and bright eyes to discern good and evil. They will no longer be blinded by evil but will be happy and satisfied, and be convinced of true justice. Righteousness must be manifested. Because we fear the pure Jehovah and value our relationship with Him, we obey the law and become a lesson for servants to observe and be vigilant.

Paul said: "The law was for the knowledge of sin" (Romans 3:20b). From this point of view, "seeing the law" means "knowing sin" between ideal and reality, seeing good and evil, loss and awakening, wisdom and ignorance, happiness and pain, clarity and blindness, righteousness and unrighteousness. Isn’t this the realm of “seeing all sentient beings”? Only with Jehovah as the center can we understand how all sentient beings are controlled by sin, and hope that we, all sentient beings, can walk together, watch each other, and embark on the road to redemption. Brothers and sisters, is the Lord who created the world also the God who redeems “us”? From praising the Creator to fearing the Lord is the process of "seeing the heaven and the earth" to "seeing the law" and then "seeing all living beings".

see myself

Finally, enter the realm of "seeing yourself".

In the last section (vv. 12-14), David focuses on self-reflection. He specifically touches on sin, including "hidden transgressions" and "willful sins." On the surface, these seem to be two different types of sins. The former is committed without one being aware of it, while the latter is committed knowingly. In fact, "hidden transgressions" do not refer to sins that one does not know he has committed, but rather refers to sins that are "hidden" and unknown to others. Therefore, "Who can detect his own mistakes?" It does not mean that he is not aware of his own problems, but that he knows it but is unwilling to face and admit it. He even hides it well in front of others without being noticed by others. Of course, no one knows, and they pretend not to know, but how can they escape the Lord? He is like the light of the sun, invisible in all hidden places; the laws He promulgates are clearly visible commandments. Do we really not understand?

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, a famous dissident intellectual in the former Soviet era, famously said: "We know they are lying, they know they are lying, they know we know they are lying, and we know they know we know. They are lying, but they are still lying." It can be rewritten as: I know that I am lying, but others (do not) know that I am lying, and I pretend not to know that I am lying, but God knows that I have been lying.

From this point of view, there is no difference at all between "hidden transgressions" and "willful sins." People who are numb to their own evil deeds and sanctimoniously deceive the whole world are essentially "willful sins" and are the result of being controlled by sin.

Since God is the Creator of heaven and earth, man’s sins cannot escape His eyes. But if the heart is hardened, the law is regarded as nothing, unrepentant, the heart is blinded, the eyes are dim, and the crooked are regarded as straight, how can we ask God for forgiveness? Only when we truly face our true nature, that is, the self controlled by sin, and deeply repent for our evil deeds and harm to others, and fully realize that we cannot save ourselves, can we cry out to the Lord for forgiveness. At the same time, just because we know the horror of sinful nature, we must be more sensitive to the existence of evil, not only the power of sin on the outside, but also the sinful nature hidden deep in our hearts. "Prevent your servant from the sin of presumption, and do not let this sin have dominion over me." Just like the Lord Jesus taught us to pray: "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one" (Matthew 6:13). Not to sin or fall into temptation is a determination and vigilance after knowing oneself, and it is the state of "seeing oneself". David's goal of "I will be perfect" does not mean that he can become a "perfect" person who is essentially free from sin, but that he can only admit that he is a sinner, be willing to ask the Lord for forgiveness, resolve to stay away from evil deeds, and walk in the right way. Only those who are in the way of the Lord are “perfect”. Therefore, "I am perfect" does not mean "completed perfection" but "being perfected." We still need to be honest about our weaknesses, and although we are not “perfect,” we still aspire to live a blameless life.

Master Gong in "The Grandmaster" used his lifelong secret skill "Old Ape Hanging Seal" to remind the disciple (Ma San) who had gone astray in detail: "Old Ape Hanging Seal" looks back, the pass is not there , and looking back." He advised him with a double entendre that although he was on the wrong path, the most important thing was to know how to "turn back (to the shore)". But is it really that easy to "turn back"?

David, the author of Psalm 19, also wrote the confessional psalm of Psalm 51 (repentance means "turning back"). This is his remorse for his sin after he committed adultery with Bathsheba and killed Bathsheba’s husband with a sword: “For I know my transgressions; my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned, and done this evil in your sight, so that you may be righteous when you rebuke, and innocent when you judge.” (3-4) After sinning, David prayed to the Lord. Forgive and resolve to “turn back”: “O God, please create in me a clean heart and restore a right spirit within me.” (10) "Upright spirit" is also referred to as "steadfast spirit", which corresponds to Psalm 19 describing Jehovah as "my rock and my redeemer". The foundation of a pure heart and an upright (firm) spirit is in the Lord. "O Lord, my rock and my redeemer, may the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart be accepted before you." I deeply hope that my heart and thoughts can be accepted by the Lord.

Therefore, "seeing oneself" is not only David's introspection, but also understanding and knowing himself from the relationship with God. This is exactly what theologian John Calvin famously said: “To know God is to know yourself, and to know yourself is to know God.”

a road not finished

After Zhang Ziyi and Tony Leung pointed out in "The Grandmaster" that "seeing oneself, seeing the world, and seeing all living beings" are the three stages that martial arts practitioners must go through, she went on to say: "I have seen myself, and I have seen the world, but unfortunately I can’t see all sentient beings. I haven’t finished this road, I hope you can continue it.” In the film, Ip Man, played by Tony Leung Chiu-wai, even though he settled in Hong Kong, in the end he still achieved the career of a great master and carried forward Wing Chun.

However, whether it is martial arts or martial arts, it is always full of differences between sects, intrigues, and competition for hegemony and power. This is a reflection of human nature (as long as you have read Jin Yong, you will understand). Even a generation of masters cannot change it. In fact, the church is not a pure land, and many figures of Yue Buqun have also been seen. Today’s Sunday Psalm lesson does not give us a shortcut or secret on how to become a “generation of saints”, but it sincerely reminds us that we must learn the lesson of “seeing the heaven and the earth, seeing all living beings, and seeing ourselves.” No one can be self-righteous and boast that they have "completed" this road, because bumps and falls on the road are the true portrayal. Standing between heaven and earth, you will see the glory of the Creator, and at the same time you will see the raging power of sin, and you will even question whether God is still in control of all things? The law allows us to see sentient beings living between good and evil, but it also tells us to refuse to do evil and live out another kind of value centered on God. During this process, we must be more sensitive to the sinful nature in our hearts, and with God’s reminder and forgiveness, we must strive to live a life in line with God’s will. Walking on the road of life, are we like Zhang Ziyi, regretting that "I have not finished this road"? Or should we rely on the power of God to continue walking on this unfinished road?

"Strive for one breath and light a lamp. You must know that if you keep thinking about it, there will be echoes. If there is a lamp, there will be people." This is another philosophical dialogue in "The Grandmaster". It means that we must hold on to our faith and never forget our original intention. As long as our people's hearts are not dead, our faith is like an undying light that can continue and "must have an echo." The church history of more than two thousand years is this "echo". Don't give up, don't forget - the lesson of "seeing heaven and earth, seeing all sentient beings, and seeing yourself". This is not only the key point to learn during the pre-hardship period, but also a road that needs to be taken throughout life and will never be completed.