NO ROOM FOR PRIDE, BUT HUMBLE WORSHIP!

THERE WILL NEVER BE AN ETERNAL ATHEIST

Psalm 8

O LORD, our Lord,

how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory above the heavens.

Out of the mouth of babies and infants,

you have established strength because of your foes,

to still the enemy and the avenger.

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,

what is man that you are mindful of him,

and the son of man that you care for him?

Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings

and crowned him with glory and honor.

You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;

you have put all things under his feet,

all sheep and oxen,

and also the beasts of the field,

the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea,

whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

O LORD, our Lord,

how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Should a man ever rebel against God? Should a man ever be disappointed with God? Should a man ever utter words of complaint against God? As you read this psalm, you see that the answer needs to be absolutely “NO!”

The majesty and glory of God, Himself, is beyond our comprehension. When we look at the heavens, the stars and the moon, we should be amazed. Only the fool has said in his heart there is no God. Only the fool forgets the distance between man and God.

As His created beings, we should be utterly amazed that God even thinks of man, and cares for him.

We so quickly forget the majesty of God and so quickly neglect to remember our place, in comparison to the rest of God’s creation.

Even the enemies of God will one day bring glory to Him! God, in His sovereignty and dominion, proves His complete control over every man, from infants to His most stubborn enemies. There will never be an eternal atheist. On earth some can suppress the reality of God, but in eternity they will be well aware of the glory of God, though surrounded by dark desperation.

Romans 1:18-21

        For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

One day, every man will answer for his suppression of truth and lack of gratitude.

Man should be grateful, not only for the care he receives from God, but also for the position he has been given on earth.

We so often marvel at the many and varied abilities of man. Yet, how quickly we forget that it is God Who has given him these abilities. Man has dominion over the animals. I have sometimes wondered what would happen on earth, if all the animals rebelled against man and attacked us. Man would have no chance! But God has ordained order and consistency within His creation, for which we should be continually thankful.

God created me! God revealed Himself to me! God sustains me! God gave me an intellect capable of understanding! God has preserved me! God has created my body that functions in an intricate and perfect way! God has given me the ability to communicate with other men! God has created in me a desire to love! God has done everything that has to do with me! Apart from God I would have no purpose!

We tend to forget how impossible life would be on earth, if God was not constantly attentive and active on our behalf. Even our difficulties have a purpose: to drive us to Him and make us more aware of our dependence upon Him.

What an illusion, for man to even think he can rebel against His powerful Creator God! God will, in the end, receive glory for Himself from every action of man.

How often do we allow our discontented thoughts to turn against God? We complain for what we do not have, instead of being amazed at all we have received. We rebel against our circumstances, thinking that we would be wise enough to make them better for ourselves. We have disdain for other men, forgetting that who we are and what we are capable of doing are gifts of God. We show no compassion to a sinful world, even though we have undeservedly received great grace from God.

As this psalm recounts the wonder of God’s love and grace to us, our outlook should be dramatically changed. May my own attitudes and actions be improved today because of a refreshed and humble appreciation for God’s awe-inspiring creation and His astounding providence for man!

       

WHAT CAN I DO WHEN EVEN FRIENDS MISTREAT ME?

LET GOD VINDICATE YOU!
Psalm 7:1-2
O LORD my God, in you do I take refuge;
save me from all my pursuers and deliver me,
lest like a lion they tear my soul apart,
rending it in pieces, with none to deliver.

In the Book of Psalms, the titles are part of the inspired text. In this case, the title is: ‘A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the LORD concerning Cush, a Benjamite. We really don’t know what a Shiggaion is, but scholars believe that it must be a musical term. We also don’t know what event David is referencing. It seems that Cush must have accused David of something he had not done. It is clear that this accusation was tearing David apart, and he was distraught that others were uniting against him because of it.

Psalm 7:3-5
O LORD my God, if I have done this, if there is injustice in my hands,
If I have rewarded evil to my friend, or have plundered him who without cause
was my adversary,
Let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it;
Let him trample my life down to the ground and lay my glory in dust. Selah.

David knows that if he were guilty, he would have to take care of seeking forgiveness and making restitution. So, He remits himself to the judgment of God.

Psalm 7:6-7
Arise, O LORD, in your anger;
lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies;
awake for me; you have appointed a judgment.
Let the assembly of the peoples be gathered about you;
over it return on high.

David knows the character of God and knows where he stands:
Psalm 7:8-11
The LORD judges the peoples;
judge me, O LORD, according to my righteousness
and according to the integrity that is in me.
Oh, let the evil of the wicked come to an end,
and may you establish the righteous—
you who test the minds and hearts,
O righteous God!
My shield is with God,
who saves the upright in heart.
God is a righteous judge,
and a God who feels indignation every day.

God is righteous, and He will save those who are upright. It is striking that although men might think that God is unaware of, or does not care about, the evil done in the world, He is not only judging all, but He is also filled with indignation over the sin of men. God’s judgment of men comes because He has tested their minds and hearts, and found them to be evil.

It seems that it would be impossible for a man to profess his own righteousness. David did not believe that he was righteous on his own. But it does seem clear that, in this case, he did not think he was at fault, even though the next verses show his understanding that repentance from sin is what causes the Lord to withhold His judgment.

Psalm 7:12-16
If a man does not repent, God will whet his sword;
he has bent and readied his bow;
he has prepared for him his deadly weapons,
making his arrows fiery shafts.
Behold, the wicked man conceives evil
and is pregnant with mischief
and gives birth to lies.
He makes a pit, digging it out,
and falls into the hole that he has made.
His mischief returns upon his own head,
and on his own skull his violence descends.

David knows that God is willing to forgive those who are willing to repent, but for men who persist in their evil ways, there will be no mercy.
Psalm 7:17
I will give to the LORD the thanks due to his righteousness,
and I will sing praise to the name of the LORD, the Most High.

It brings great peace to know that God is in total control, that He is aware of every motive and thought behind every action. We do not have to defend ourselves; we have a God Who will defend His own. Those same truths must also produce sober fear of the Lord, for those same reasons: His omniscience regarding every motive, attitude, and action we do. Our repentance should not, cannot, be superficial, when we realize that God is deeply aware of all.

My responsibility is to check my own life continually and repent of whatever sin I’ve found. I need to ask God for forgiveness and believe that, in His mercy and grace, He will forgive me. I should rest in God’s perfect righteousness when others are attacking me and accusing me. It is interesting that in verse four, it is implied that it could even be a friend who is accusing us!

In all cases, God is the One Who vindicates His own.
May our lives rejoice in the mercy and grace of our righteous God.

IS GOD OFFENDED BY OUR TEARS?

DON’T LET YOUR TEARS BLUR YOUR VIEW OF GOD!

Psalm 6
O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger,
nor discipline me in your wrath.
Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am languishing;
heal me, O LORD, for my bones are troubled.
My soul also is greatly troubled.
But you, O LORD—how long?
Turn, O LORD, deliver my life;
save me for the sake of your steadfast love.
For in death there is no remembrance of you;
in Sheol who will give you praise?
I am weary with my moaning;
every night I flood my bed with tears;
I drench my couch with my weeping.
My eye wastes away because of grief;
it grows weak because of all my foes.
Depart from me, all you workers of evil,
for the LORD has heard the sound of my weeping.
The LORD has heard my plea;
the LORD accepts my prayer.
All my enemies shall be ashamed and greatly troubled;
they shall turn back and be put to shame in a moment.

It is strange that the choir would sing a psalm with a tone of such great desperation. Grief has filled the mind and the soul of David; his tears are profuse! Both his circumstances and the behavior of the wicked are relentless and overwhelming.

Can a person who knows God really be in this kind of despair? Will God be offended by it? Does it expose lack of faith and trust in God? If we ever find ourselves this low, what are we expected to do? Are we supposed to cover it up? Are we supposed to repent?

David realizes that God has a right to rebuke him. The Lord has the right to discipline him. He is totally dependent on God. The psalmist never loses sight of the fact that God has the right to deal with his life in any way He wants.

David seeks for grace and appeals to God’s steadfast love. Yes, David is overwhelmed by his problems, but yet he is totally dependent on God. God has never asked us to pretend that our situations are easy or pleasant, but He does expect our trials to drive us to His loving and gracious arms.

It is important that we keep this in mind, also, when we are called to comfort fellow believers who are in distress. We are not called to rebuke them for the reality of their distress, but rather to guide them to recognize that God is behind the events.

David asks a very simple question: “How long?”. There is no sense that he is rebelling; he is asking for grace, reminding himself and God of His steadfast love. This love is undeserved, it was set upon man before the foundation of the world, it never changes, and it is eternal. Steadfast love drives us to humble dependence upon the God Who so surprisingly has set His love upon us!

It’s interesting that David reminds God that he will not be able to praise Him when he is dead. The implication is that he was doing it and had no intention of stopping. The situation David is facing is bringing nights of great sorrow and tears, but it’s not stopping him from public worship. We cannot forget that he is writing a song to be sung in public to the praise of his Lord.

Under the inspiration of God, David is publicly establishing the reality of true difficulties, real sorrow, and vivid hope. David’s grief is exhausting but not hopeless; he knows that the LORD is hearing both his tears and his worship.
David knows that God is going to respond and that, at the end, the Lord will prevail and God’s enemies will be put to shame. His prayer is accepted by God, not on the basis of perfect behavior or because of the extent of the pain, but as he has clearly stated, because of the steadfast love that drives the grace of God.

This psalm gives me great comfort. I know that God is not surprised or offended by my tears. I know that pain and suffering is common to man, even those whom God loves. I am reminded that God hears our prayers, and will respond on the basis of His love and grace.

Yes, we will suffer, but in the suffering, let’s not lose sight of God!

GOD IS AS REAL AS THE PROBLEMS WE FACE!

YOUR FOCUS WILL PRODUCE YOUR REACTIONS

Psalm 5:1-3

Give ear to my words, O LORD;

consider my groaning.

Give attention to the sound of my cry,

my King and my God,

for to you do I pray.

O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice;

in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch.

David, in his great distress, is calling out to his LORD, King, and God. The word ‘groaning’ is defined in the dictionary as: making a deep, inarticulate sound in response to pain or despair. Here, both actual words and sounds of pain are being uttered by David. Although we do not know at what time in his life this psalm was written, we do know that David had many moments of great distress: some caused directly by his own actions, some indirectly, and some because of the evil of men he encountered.

David, in these first few verses, reminds himself of some very important things. He is addressing the LORD: the self-existing God, the One who is, and has always been, far above anything else. He also remembers that He is his God and King; there is personal attention, personal ownership in his relationship with his Sovereign God. His distress is great, but there is a resolve to begin every day with a fresh view of his personal relationship with and dependence on God. The day begins with appropriate worship and trust, resting in God as he waits upon Him to do His work.

David knows that he can count on the integrity and purity of God.

Psalm 5:4-6

For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;

evil may not dwell with you.

The boastful shall not stand before your eyes;

you hate all evildoers.

You destroy those who speak lies;

the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.

Although God uses the evil of man for His purposes, He is never the author, nor is He pleased with it.

James 1:13

            Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.

God is totally aware of all!

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

            The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.

           

One of my greatest concerns when I see evil is not that God will judge it with perfect justice, but that I will not allow my own heart to cause me to sin.

James 1:14-15

            But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

No sin or behavior of others can justify in any way a response that is less than godly in me. Yet I am still prone to let other people’s sin provoke a sinful response in me.

David knew that he needed to guard his heart and life.

Psalm 5:7-8

But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,

will enter your house.

I will bow down toward your holy temple

in the fear of you.

Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness

because of my enemies;

make your way straight before me.

He knew that he needed to enter into the courts of the Lord with purity; his only hope, in approaching God, was the steadfast and eternal love of God. David knew so well that only God could guide him in righteousness and that he needed constant direction from His King.

Our hearts are so deceitful that we cannot trust them to correctly evaluate the events that may cause us to react in an ungodly fashion. Only God’s word, His truth, can illuminate our path of behavior.

As David describes those he is dealing with, see how similar is the world we live in today:

Psalm 5:9-10

For there is no truth in their mouth;

their inmost self is destruction;

their throat is an open grave;

they flatter with their tongue.

Make them bear their guilt, O God;

let them fall by their own counsels;

because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out,

for they have rebelled against you.

Nothing that comes out of their mouths is worthy of attention! David’s indignation is clear. We know that David realized that it was a grace of God that he could approach his King in righteousness. He knew that it was God’s steadfast love that gave him that possibility.

Psalm 5:11-12

But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;

let them ever sing for joy,

and spread your protection over them,

that those who love your name may exult in you.

For you bless the righteous, O LORD;

you cover him with favor as with a shield.

There is a true sense of peace and security, as David finishes this psalm. He has found refuge in the Lord. He is secure in the protection that God has set over him. There is a shield that the LORD provides for His own. The groaning has turned to a song. The difficulties have produced joy. The darkness of his situation has turned into a time of exultation. The reality of evil has been turned into an opportunity for blessing God.

As we read this psalm, we have no indication that the circumstances or the people have changed. One thing we know for sure: that the awareness of God’s position and care have become the focal point of the writer’s thoughts.

We know that, as we deal with the difficulties of life, we have two alternatives: to concentrate on the evil we encounter, or on the God who controls our future. Problems are real and people are bad, and this world is marred by the consequences of these facts, but God is very real and we are blessed by His care and love. May we choose our focus well, as David did, during our own difficulties! 

YOU PROBABLY NEED TO READ THIS NOW!

YOU CAN REST AT NIGHT!

Psalm 4

Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness!

You have given me relief when I was in distress.

Be gracious to me and hear my prayer!

O men, how long shall my honor be turned into shame?

How long will you love vain words and seek after lies? Selah

But know that the LORD has set apart the godly for himself;

the LORD hears when I call to him.

Be angry, and do not sin;

ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent. Selah

Offer right sacrifices,

and put your trust in the LORD.

There are many who say, “Who will show us some good?

Lift up the light of your face upon us, O LORD!”

You have put more joy in my heart

than they have when their grain and wine abound.

In peace I will both lie down and sleep;

for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.

David knows that any rescue of him by God will be based solely on the righteousness of God and not his own. The work and care of God is certainly a gracious act and in no way deserved. As David seeks God’s help, he also calls men to look to His LORD and not to their own human understanding. The psalmist knows that God has set His own apart and that He will hear their call.

I love the way David goes to bed:

Be angry, and do not sin;

ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent.

In bed at night, when all is quiet, our thoughts can run wild. Loneliness, despair, bitterness, and many more negative thoughts surface. It is in those moments that our hearts can express rebellion to God. Our bitterness or outright anger demonstrates that we feel that we deserve something different or better.

David says to be quiet and think. He is watching his thought life, and the center of his thinking is God and not himself. He is rehearsing the character of God and His righteousness. The psalmist chooses to trust in the Creator and sustainer of the universe. He knows that he can trust his sovereign God and not himself.

In those moments some are tempted to question God, but not David, he is confidently, waiting upon God to show Himself faithful. He knows where the light of God’s tender care will come for those dark moments.

David is not dependent on material things to produce joy, for he has seen that even men who have abundance do not experience the amount of joy that he has in his heart. The reality of his enemies and the difficulty of his situations might not change, but he will find rest in the LORD.

Worry keeps so many people awake, but those who trust Him can rest at night in the midst of the difficulties of life.

I think of many who are going through physical difficulties: friends who are struggling through broken marriages or difficult relationships with children, others who are looking for jobs or are having difficulties in their place of employment, some who are struggling in churches that are in turmoil, others who are missing some loved one. Where can they find peace? Where can I find peace in my own difficulties? The same place where David did: in the arms of our providential, wise, omnipotent, and loving God.

Relief and hope cannot be found in our ability to change situations, or even in the change of circumstances or people. We lived in a fallen world, populated by fallen people. Our hope is in the LORD!

Stop looking down, stop looking around, certainly stop looking at yourself! Look up, and through God’s Word, look at your heavenly father! Let the peace of God guard your heart.

Philippians 4:6-7

            …do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

THERE IS HOPE IN EVERY CIRCUMSTANCE

SALVATION BELONGS TO THE LORD!

Psalm 3

O LORD, how many are my foes!

Many are rising against me;

many are saying of my soul,

there is no salvation for him in God. Selah

But you, O LORD, are a shield about me,

my glory, and the lifter of my head.

I cried aloud to the LORD,

and he answered me from his holy hill. Selah

I lay down and slept;

I woke again, for the LORD sustained me.

I will not be afraid of many thousands of people

who have set themselves against me all around.

Arise, O LORD!

Save me, O my God!

For you strike all my enemies on the cheek;

you break the teeth of the wicked.

Salvation belongs to the LORD;

your blessing be on your people! Selah

This psalm of David was probably written as he was fleeing from his son, Absalom, and the many others who had risen up against him. 2 Samuel 13 and the following chapters are certainly an account of sin and its consequences. But through the whole situation, David relied on God to deliver him.

 Since the days he was a shepherd, David had learned to trust his God. He had fought against Goliath, he had dealt with the envy of Saul, he fought against multiple enemies, and he knew that, in spite of the words of those around him, his hope was only in the LORD.

David had also experienced the reality of sin and God’s forgiveness. He knew that he could still go to the Lord and find refuge and help. Not only was the LORD his shield of protection, but also the One who would lift his head when he was discouraged.

David had found rest in God; despite danger, he could sleep and rise in the morning, knowing that his life was in the hands of his Lord. His enemies had no power to touch him, as long as the Lord would protect him.

Things seemed bleak, but David was sure that his God would protect him. He had no doubts that God had the power to stop his enemies. At the end of the day, he knew that his salvation depended upon the Lord. He was sure that God would do what was right for him and his people.

As we rehearse these truths, we are reminded that we, too, should recognize the sovereignty of God in our lives, and should rest in His arms. God is aware and can powerfully accomplish His will in any situation. We need to recognize that He is in control and simply trust Him, as David did.

David had learned to depend on his LORD; we also need to learn also. As we learn more and more to trust in God, our words and actions will reflect this dependence, and in that way, God can use us to lead others to trust Him, too.

I am glad for this lesson that God is showing me through David’s life: that each day I can trust Him more and more.