HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT THE IMPLICATIONS OF COMPLAINING?

A LIFE OF WORSHIP BEGINS WITH SINCERE APPRECIATION OF THE LORD

Psalm 95:1-2      

Oh come, let us sing to the LORD;

let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!

Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;

let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

Take time right now to worship God! Take time to reflect upon Jehovah. Think about His character; remind yourself of who God is. As you are refreshed and sobered by these thoughts, meditate on the fact that He is your firm foundation and Savior. The most holy God has revealed Himself to you, changed your heart, and brought you from darkness to light. Taking time to think on these things will produce gratefulness in us. Take time to thank God specifically for His many attributes, especially His astounding grace. Having then prayed, our joy should be full and we should be heartily praising God by now!

Did you do it? Did you take time to go through these steps?

The writer goes on to remind us that God is the Creator.

Psalm 95:3-5

For the LORD is a great God,

and a great King above all gods.

In his hand are the depths of the earth;

the heights of the mountains are his also.

The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land.

We need to remember that God has created all, that there is nothing that is not His, and that He is sovereignly in control of all. God’s creation culminated with the creation of man.

Psalm 95:6-7

Oh come, let us worship and bow down;

let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!

For he is our God,

and we are the people of his pasture,

and the sheep of his hand.

In worship, we recognize who God is and we remember who we are. These truths should produce worship. The normal reaction should be to bow down in respect and awe over our privilege. The God of the Bible is OUR God! Does it make a difference in your life? We are His sheep, He has promised to provide our needs, and He cares for us personally, for He holds us in His hand!

John 10:14-15

I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.

We are privileged to have an intimate relationship with Christ, and we are His beloved.. The one who did not spare His Son to purchase us - will He not have special care for those who cost Him so much?

Does our reaction to these truths concern God?

        

Psalm 95:7-9

Today, if you hear his voice,

do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah,

as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,

when your fathers put me to the test

and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.

The Israelites questioned the love of God when they were in the desert without water, and their complaining angered God. In fact, another passage of the Bible explains that their complaint, in actuality, was questioning the presence of God in their midst.

Complaining is the result of a hardened heart: a heart that has grown cold to the truths that this psalm has presented to us. God punished the children of Israel because they saw the works of God and doubted Him.

Has your heart grown cold or bitter? Are you testing God with your behavior? When this psalm was written, God’s intention was that we would not repeat the same sin. Maybe you have grown accustomed to complaining, assuming that it was really not a big deal. The reality is that God views complaining as sin. Complaining questions not only God’s sovereignty but also His love for us.

I know I have been guilty of this from time to time, but have found that thoughtful meditation on who God is, His salvation, and His continual care for me are the best deterrents to my disgruntled attitude, turning it into a properly thankful one.

Let us go out today with grateful praise on our lips! 

FOOLS FORGET THAT GOD IS WATCHING!

LET GOD BE YOUR AVENGER

Psalm 94:8-11

Understand, O dullest of the people!

Fools, when will you be wise?

He who planted the ear, does he not hear?

He who formed the eye, does he not see?

He who disciplines the nations, does he not rebuke?

He who teaches man knowledge—

the LORD—knows the thoughts of man,

that they are but a breath.

        

Certainly, the psalmist is exposing the foolishness of the wicked, who think they are getting away with their sin.

What a description of the world we live in! Man apart from God is truly arrogant and wicked. He boasts in his evildoing, while he thinks he is in total control of his life and destiny. Meanwhile, God is completely aware of his every sin.

Sometimes we feel that we are victims of people who are getting away with their sins, but Paul reminds us that it is not true.

Romans 2:1-11

Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God's righteous judgment will be revealed.

He will render to each one according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. For God shows no partiality.

        

Many times, as I have counseled people who have been hurt by others, I would point them to these words. Our desire for vengeance will not produce godliness. Although man seems to be able to live unpunished, God is aware and will make all things right. God’s wrath will be severe, just, timely, appropriate, and sure.

But for now, God is giving man time for repentance. As we reflect on this truth, does it not warm your heart that God did not repay us for our sin? Don’t we rejoice in the grace God has shown us? Immediate wrath would not have allowed us this merciful opportunity!

As the psalmist asks the question:

Psalm 94:20

Can wicked rulers be allied with you,

those who frame injustice by statute?

He knows that God is on his side and not on the side of the wicked, and that He uses even the wicked in our lives, to mold us and change us.

There are no victims! Those who have received evil treatment are being pushed into the arms of God. Those whom God is not immediately punishing are being given time to repent. And those who will be judged for their sin by the wrath of God will receive the righteous deserved punishment.

As we daily live in a corrupt world, God wants us to find our rest in Him. The psalmist reminds us that God does not forsake His own. His justice will not abandon His children. Without God’s care, we would surely fall.

What beautiful words we find here:

Psalm 94:19

When the cares of my heart are many,

your consolations cheer my soul.

If we are not finding consolation, it’s probably because we are looking for the wrong things, in the wrong places.

We know what the end result is: God will win! In the meanwhile, rejoice in the grace you have received and leave it in the hands of God to judge the evildoers. Rejoice in the fact that you know where to find peace and rest!

Psalm 94:22

But the LORD has become my stronghold,

and my God the rock of my refuge.

God is holding you in the palm of His hand. Let His word warm your soul, let His truth lighten your troubled time; let His perfect timing give peace during your difficulties.