Psalm 56 has the characteristics of both a lament & a psalm of confidence. Here within these first few verses David expresses both fear & faith…trouble & trust…horror & hope…with faith prevailing in the end. Anxiety & fear will visit all of us at one time or another, so our response to it is important. David writes, “When I am afraid, I will trust in You.” First, he not only acknowledges the cause of all his distress, but then addresses the elephant in the room…”I’m really afraid & anxious right now God!” But rather than wallowing in the fear, David makes a conscious decision of the will and determines to trust in God for his deliverance. That’s because faith must be exercised in times of fear…and when it’s applied, the result is the resolve to trust…which overcomes any fear.
Month: August 2023
Proverbs 3:21 “My son, preserve sound judgment and discernment, do not let them out of your sight.”
Having godly wisdom is the key to this Scripture, especially when faced with questionable & misleading words or actions. Charles Spurgeon once wrote, “Discernment isn’t knowing the difference between right and wrong. It’s knowing the difference between right and almost right.” Now the devil has only two Modus Operandi…two methods or patterns of operation…them being deception & discouragement. And over the ages he has perfected the art of twisting the truth, tweaking it just a bit, and spinning it in his favor… so for the causal listener it sounds right. But when placed up against the Word of God, it reeks of trickery & deceit. If you’d stop someone on the street and ask if they know the difference between right & wrong, most people would say yes. But it’s that gray area, that almost right area, where most get sucked in and taken advantage of because they lack wisdom. But the good news for us all is, God will gladly give you wisdom if you just ask! (James 1:5)
John 11:41 ” Then Jesus said, ‘Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.’ “
Do you ever feel like your prayers hit the ceiling & fall back to the ground, or that the prayers you’ve been praying for years & years still go unanswered…to the point you’ve become discouraged & defeated? It happens to all of us! But let’s look at this Scripture for a minute to gain context. Two things we see right away about this prayer is that Jesus starts out grateful for the opportunity to pray to His Father, but He also is boldly confident & rock solidly reassured that His Father not only hears, but accepts, and will answer His prayer. So, when Jesus prays – God always hears His prayers…so if the Son of God has been formed in me – the very image of Christ impressed on my heart, (Galatians 4:19) it goes to reason that my Heavenly Father will always hear, accept, and answer my prayers. But I must see to it that He is exhibited in my human flesh in a correct & righteous way, since my body is the “Temple of the Holy Spirit. (I Corinthians 6:19)
Romans 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him…”
Other manuscripts show this verse as reading, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God…” and “Things work together with those who love Him to bring about what is good…” Only God can work good out of evil…for only God’s sovereign overruling of wicked human work can accomplish His Divine & Ultimate purpose. In Genesis 50:20, we see the evil the brothers of Joseph attempted to do God turned around to save not only them but many more during the great famine. “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” So when hard things come into our lives we need to remember that the purpose of God guarantees “good” for His people – God’s providence rules in such a way as to ensure that everything that happens to us is working for our ultimate good & His glory.
Habakkuk 2:18-19 ” Of what value is an idol, since a man carved it? Or an image that teaches lies? For he who makes it trusts in his own creation; he makes idols that cannot speak. Woe to him who says to wood, ‘Come to life!’ Or to lifeless stone, ‘Wake up!’ Can it give guidance? It is covered with gold and silver; there is no breath in it.”
These Scriptures denounce idolatry…the worship of false gods. Back in Biblical times, idols were carved, casted, or cut from gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone. Today, our idols may look different, but this idea of placing something higher than God and thus taking His place is still considered forbidden involvement that is both futile & foolish in His eyes. Paul reminded the Church in Corinth that as pagans they were influenced and led astray by mute idols. (I Corinthians 12:2) And that can just as easily happen to us today…though our idols might look something like the latest IPhone, a Designer Purse, or a large Instagram Following. I Samuel 12:21 spells it out to all of us, “Turn from useless idols. They cannot do you any good, nor can they rescue you.”
Proverbs 30:7-9 ” Two things I ask of You, O Lord; do not refuse me before I die: Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown You and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the Name of my God.”
The request made here in Proverbs is brutely honest and shows our true human nature. It is asking for a sufficiency that avoids both extremes of acute poverty and unnecessary riches. Both of which can take us places we don’t want to go. When we have an excess of material things… first, we want more & more, and all these things can cause us to forget Who gave them to us in the first place. Secondly, we start depending on ourselves rather than God to supply our needs…to the point we forget God, hence the question, “Who is the Lord?” But at the opposite end of this request we find severe poverty…where our possessions have been taken away by fire, hurricane, tornado, flood, or some other disaster and we are left with nothing. Being penniless & destitute can push an otherwise law-abiding citizen do things they’re ashamed of just to feed their kids. That’s why the Writer of this Proverb asks for just enough for the day…a regular allotment of not too much & not too little.
Luke 18:31 & 34 ” Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, ‘We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled.’ The disciples did not understand any of this.”
The call of God on our life…it is bewildering and never fully understood or explained. It’s a call only known by our true inner nature and may be difficult to verbalize to others. But the real test for us is to truly believe & trust that God really does know what’s best for us. We then must rest in the thought that God sovereignly works out His own purposes in each one of our lives…for our good & His glory. If we’re in fellowship & oneness with God, we’ll realize that as we grow in our Christian walk we’ll be less & less inclined to say, “I wonder why God is doing this?” For we’ll begin to see that the purpose of God in our life is everything that happens, not just the big & important things. We may not fully understand what’s going on…but what we do know is that the Master Potter is divinely shaping & molding our life into His perfect masterpiece.
I Peter 3:15-17 ” Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.”
We know that when we suffer for the Truth we will be blessed and that ultimately our unjust suffering is for our good & His glory. So part of this includes readiness in confessing Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior…even when affronted by hateful accusations when we do stand firm in our confidence. But we must do so, as it says, with gentleness – (the inwrought grace of the soul, not in weakness but in power & strength of character) and in respect – (integrity & moral conduct, knowing the difference between right & wrong.) For it’s by our good, upright conduct it will be shown that all their nasty & spiteful smear tactics will be revealed as unfounded.
Luke 10:3 ” Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. “
As Believers we all have been called to a Missional purpose here on earth…an Ambassador for Christ to the unsaved. But Jesus warned the seventy-two He was sending out, and us, to be careful. We must be wary of two things that can hinder and stymie our effectiveness in sharing the Gospel Message with others…one being fear of man, the other being fear of failure. When our mind is on what other people think or say about us, rather than obeying God, we can become wishy-washy and discouraged very easily. So just be prepared, alert, and vigilant every time you venture outside the four walls of the Church…for you will be met with harsh criticism, mocking, and ridicule for proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ…so stand firm.
Matthew 25:21 ” His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come share your master’s happiness!’ “
Do you have a heart for missions? You’ve envisioned yourself spreading the Gospel Message in some far flung part of the world…maybe you’ve even picked a particular country you want to travel to. And when a visiting Missionary comes to visit your Church, you’re the first one down at the Altar…accepting the call with all the fervor & enthusiasm you can muster. But all that ardor & eagerness is sadly left at the Altar when you return to your seat. You want God to supernaturally plop you on the Mission Field without you needing to do anything. But it doesn’t work that way as the Scripture above shows. We have to be faithful in the small stuff in order for God to work in the big stuff. Or as the old saying goes – Yes, God feeds the birds, but He doesn’t dump food into their nests. And being faithful in the small stuff starts with serving where you are. For if volunteering at Vacation Bible School, helping at the Church Work Day, or Greeting is a waste of your Spiritual Gifts & beneath you…God will never trust you with the many big things He has planned for you. In other words…if cleaning the Church’s toilets is unworthy of your time…you have become unworthy of God’s time.
Safetypinlove 