My two very special crowns

I am almost half way through reading the book of Ezekiel. It has not been an easy read. There are lots of visions and allegories all seemingly saying the same thing. God seemed relentless in punishing the people he had chosen to carry his name. Chuck Swindoll wrote an overview that was quite helpful. Hopefully I can get more out of the rest of the book and draw application from it. Chuck Swindoll concluded in his overview: "The book of Ezekiel reminds us to seek out the Lord in those dark times when we feel lost, to examine our own lives, and to align ourselves with the one true God. Will you consider doing so today?"

As I was thinking what else to write about this week, it occurred to me that the two psalms in scripture that had meant a lot to me have one special word in common:

In Psalm 8: "You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor." (verse 5), it speaks of God's special creation - human, whom he made in his image, and whom he crowned with glory and honour. I call this the Crown of Creation.

In Psalm 103: "who (the Lord) redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion," (verse 4), it speaks of God's redemptive plan which not only rescues us from the pit, but also crowns us with love and compassion. I call this the Crown of Redemption.

The NIV translation of the bible mentions the word "crown" 71 times. The majority of the time it is used in the Old Testament to mean an ornamental head gear to represent kingship, or royalty, to identify the person as the supreme ruler, or a symbol of being honoured (interestingly it appears 4 times in the book of Ezekiel!). In the New Testament, we remember immediately the crown of thorns that was put on Jesus as a ridicule to his kingship (mentioned in all four gospels). The apostle Paul used it multiple times to mean some kind of reward or prize which awaits us if we run the course God has prepared for us. James reminded us in times of trouble that "Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him." (James 1:12). Likewise, Peter encouraged us to look to the glorious future "And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away." (1 Peter 5:4).

But I like my two special crowns in Psalms 8 and 103 the best! God has created me something wonderful. Although sin has entrapped me, through Jesus I am redeemed and the external beauty of glory and honour is replaced by a loving relationship where I experience his compassion new every day.

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
    for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
    great is your faithfulness.
(Lamentations 3:22-23)