Peace on Earth - Part Three

”That's what it's all about, isn't it? That's what it's always been about. Gifts, gifts, gifts, gifts, gifts, gifts, gifts. You wanna know what happens to your gifts? They all come to me. In your garbage. You see what I'm saying? In your garbage. I could hang myself with all the bad Christmas neckties I found at the dump. And the avarice... The avarice never ends! ’I want golf clubs. I want diamonds. I want a pony so I can ride it twice, get bored and sell it to make glue.’ Look, I don't wanna make waves, but this whole Christmas season is stupid, stupid, stupid!” … The Grinch “How The Grinch Stole Christmas”

The presents have all been opened and the boxes and pretty papers have all been thrown away. The last of the leftovers from a family feast are now tucked away in the refrigerator for late night snacks. Friends and family that we haven’t seen since last year are now on their way back to their respective homes with memories of the fond times that have been spent together and planning for next year’s trip. The holiday is over…

Now that Christmas ’08 is officially in the books do your thoughts echo that of our green friend? What was your Christmas about? Have the dinner conversations been about how this person gave more than that person? Are we spending time comparing what Uncle Fred gave us this year to what he gave in years past? If that is the case then I would have to agree with our green friend. Christmas isn’t worth the headache if it is all about out-doing the relatives and complaining about what we received.

Christmas is about a gift, a gift so extravagant and wonderful that there is nothing to compare it to. A gift that the entire world is searching for but most have not found. This gift is Jesus Christ our Savior. We celebrate Christmas to bring to remembrance this most beautiful gift. And like most of the other good things in the world, this celebration has been corrupted and twisted by the Adversary into something that distracts us from the truth of the Father.

Look at what Isaiah says:

”For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

”Unto us a Child is born”… To us!?!?!? Unbelievable! We are liars, murderers, thieves, and adulterers. All of us have black hearts and there is none righteous, not even one! Unto us? Did you buy a present for someone who hates you this year? Would you give that person your child?

That is the message of the angels on the night that Christ was born, the amazing message of “Peace on Earth, goodwill to men”. It is because of God’s willingness to be at peace with man that Christ came to us. It is because God has goodwill toward man that we are given the Son. Never forget that we are God's enemy because of our sin, that is what makes our salvation so amazing!

The gift that Christ brings us is peace with God! Hallelujah! We are not lost and dead in our sins! We can be reborn again! Christmas is not about simply loving your fellow man, it is about coming to the Father to accept the wonderful gift of the Son.

Coming to Him is both the easiest and the hardest thing that you’ll ever do. It is hard because you first have to admit that you need Him:

Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

It is hard because you must repent of your sin:

Acts 3:19 “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,

It is hard because you have to believe that Jesus is who He said He was and did everything He said He did:

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

It is hard because you must confess Him as Lord:

Romans 10:9-10 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

It is easy because God gives you the faith to do these things if you’d only believe Him:

Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.

Don’t let another Christmas season go by without accepting the gift of Jesus Christ. Let us all enter 2009 with a new zeal to serve our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

Grace and peace to you all…

Peace on Earth - Part Two

This post was originally published back on October 5th while we were discussing Psalm 90. It bears repeating because it says everything I wanted to say today about the cry of the angels from Luke. We are at enmity with God because of our fallen state and we need a Savior. The angels are announcing God's peace on earth and His goodwill toward men on the night that Jesus stepped into our world...

More on the gift of Christmas tomorrow...
Praise God for His forgiveness today.

Jeff

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Psalm 90:7 7 For we have been consumed by Your anger, and by Your wrath we are terrified.

Can you imagine a world without sickness and death? I have to admit that I cannot. I would argue that every aspect of our lives is tainted by our desire for self preservation. We work so that we can have food/clothing/shelter and we take medicines/vitamins so that our bodies can fight off the effects of disease. How much energy (both mental and physical) could we devote to other causes if we didn’t have to devote so much to these causes?

That world existed once and we can get a glimpse of what it must have been like. Go to the front of your Bible and look at this world described in Genesis 2:

8 The Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed. 9 And out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

It must have been a wonderful place! God could have put Adam anywhere but He chose to put him in a place where every tree was “pleasant to the sight”. Drab trees would have been fine for Adam, he wouldn’t have known any better after all, but God chose to put him in a place of beauty. We can glean from Genesis 3 that God regularly walked in the garden in the cool of the day, what a wondrous thing!

Can you imagine it? Man and woman in the most beautiful place in the world having direct contact with God every day. No worry about food because every tree has some. No worry about clothing or shelter because the weather is always perfect. No worry about disease – what’s that? And the icing on the cake – God is there with you every day!

But…

We all know what happens in Genesis 3. Sin enters the world through Adam and everything is changed. Look at the curse from God to Adam in Genesis 3:

17Then to Adam He said, “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’: “Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life. 18 Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, and you shall eat the herb of the field. 19 In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; For dust you are, and to dust you shall return.”

Everything changed because of sin. Death enters the world. Everything in creation begins to die. Everything. Even as I type this I am dying. Don’t feel too bad for me because as you read this you are dying as well. Our bodies are winding down and like a wind up toy with broken works these bodies will cease to function.

Why would I say that? Look at our verse from today ,”For we have been consumed by your anger”. Moses could apply that verse to himself in a very special way. Because of Israel’s disobedience the entire generation that came out of Egypt was going to die in the wilderness. The only two to be spared were Joshua and Caleb (See Numbers 14). What must that have been like for Moses? He had to watch an entire generation die because of their disobedience. He himself would also be denied entrance into the promise land because of his own sin (See Numbers 20). No wonder he uses a word like consumed!

The verse contains application for us as well. None of us escape the effects of sin because all of us are sinners. Look at a couple of verses here:

Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. Who has sinned? All of us.
Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death…” A wage is something you earn for a job.

What is the job that we accomplished? Sin…
Who has done this work? All…
What is the payment for this work? Death…

When we come to this realization we too should echo Moses’ next words, “and by Your wrath we are terrified.” There’s an understatement if I ever heard one. Think of how God dealt with His people in the Old Testament. God’s judgment showed up in mighty ways; an entire generation dying in the wilderness, fiery serpents, the ground opening up and swallowing dissenters, etc. It is a fearful thing to fall in the hands of a living, holy God when we come to understand the depths of our sin. We should be thankful that we live in an age where God is showering His people with abundant grace and mercy.

I don’t want to leave us at this place of judgment though. Let’s look at the back half of Romans 6:23 “…but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”. It is true that we deserve death and separation from God because of our sin but it is also true that we can have eternal life through God’s great mercy.

Accept that gift of eternal life given through Christ Jesus. If we have learned anything from this Psalm so far it is that we can come face to face with the Father before we are ready. Let us not waste our energy worshipping those things that will return to dust. Let us instead worship the Father and work to bring as many into the Kingdom as we can.

Mercy and grace to you all…

Peace On Earth - Part One

Luke 2:7-14 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: 14 “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

Do you recognize the scripture from above? It’s the shout of the angels on the night of Jesus’ birth. “Peace, goodwill toward men!”- a glorious promise. With Christmas right around the corner I thought we’d spend a little time talking about the peace of Christmas.

Ever hear the song “I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day”? Me too… Did you know there was a story behind it? Me neither… Gather round children and let me tell you a tale…

The song that we are all familiar with is based on a poem written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. As the story goes he wrote it on Christmas Day in 1863 after hearing the church bells ring out. Does that date buzz in your head at all? That puts the penning of this poem right smack dab in the middle of the Civil War, one of the bloodiest times in our nation’s history. As if the war wasn’t enough, Mr. Longfellow also had recent personal tragedies to cope with. His wife had died in a fire in 1861 and he was left with scars on his hands and face from trying to put the fire out. He also had the stress of two sons in the war – one of which had been injured.

Put yourself in his shoes as you read the words he has penned. Look for a moment at the sixth stanza “And in despair I bowed my head”. He was going through a time of darkness in his own life and the joyous sound of the bells on Christmas day seemed to be mocked by the world that he was living in. He was living through a time of personal and national turmoil. From his vantage point he saw only hate.

But take a look at the last stanza of the poem - you can almost see the poet lifting his eyes to Heaven as the bells rang. No matter how bad the circumstances of his life were he had the hope of Christmas to cut through the blackness of the day with the cry of “PEACE!” “PEACE!” “PEACE!”.

Would that we would catch that same message today… No matter how bleak things are God has not forgotten us! Our hope is not in Presidents, the banks, the auto makers, or our military strength. Our hope is in Christ! Let us remember that the things that we endure in this life are only for a short time. Let us listen for His cry of “PEACE!” in our lives and hold onto that during the darkness…

We’ll close for today with Mr. Longfellow’s poem. Let the cry of the angels and the thought behind the poem digest overnight and we’ll come back tomorrow to continue our discussion about the peace of Christmas.

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Christmas Bells
By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old, familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Till, ringing, singing on its way,
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime,
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Then from each black, accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South,
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent,
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And in despair I bowed my head;
"There is no peace on earth," I said:
"For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!"

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
"God is not dead; nor doth he sleep!
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men!"


Check out www.hwlongfellow.org for more information on the poet.

Worth the Trip

This is worth a read. I'll wait for you to get back...

When you hear the words "biblical definition of marriage" what do you think it means?

On a completely different subject I also want to apologize for my recent lack of posts - no excuse but sloth.

Check back next week - I've got some stuff I want to share with you about the gift of Christmas and then back to Psalm 92...

Jeff

Psalm 91:14-16

Psalm 91:14-16 14 “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name. 15 He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. 16 With long life I will satisfy him, and show him My salvation.”

We turn a bend here in the Psalm. In the previous verses the psalmist talks of what it means to trust God completely. He tells us of his protection and provision and reminds us that when we stand in God’s will we are invincible. Now the speaker changes to God Himself. Look at where He starts - Because he has set his love upon Me. What does it mean to set our love upon God? Let’s look at what Jesus says about loving God in Matthew 22:

36“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” 37Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38“This is the first and great commandment.

We are to love Him with all of our heart, soul and mind. The Hebrews looked at the heart as the core of one’s personal being, the soul as emotion, and the mind as our mental endeavor and strength. Jesus is telling us that we are to love God with everything that we are. That’s a pretty consuming proposition, isn’t it?

But look at the reward of setting our love upon God. Look at all the “I wills” that God promises in the verses that follow:

I will deliver him
I will set him on high
I will answer him
I will be with him
I will honor him
I will satisfy him
I will save him

That’s pretty wonderful, isn’t it? We become the focus of God’s attention simply for loving Him with everything that we are. Remember the theme of the Psalm up to this point however. God is not in the business of making us comfortable. The honor and deliverance that He promises is ultimately answered in the next life and not this one.

I think it’s beautiful that the last verse says "With long life I will satisfy him, and show him My salvation". Are you satisfied with God? Is He perfect in your eyes? Does He provide for your every need? Does He answer you when you call upon Him? Are you satisfied with Him?

Notice I didn’t say “Is your life satisfying?”. As I write this post several things about my life come to mind that I am not satisfied with but I can honestly say that I am satisfied with Him. He continues to love me in spite of all my failures. He is patient with me as I struggle with my inability to love Him with everything that I am (there’s a topic for another post). But I am completely satisfied with God. I also long for the day when I see His salvation.

Love God… Be satisfied with Him.

Grace and peace to you all…

Psalm 91:13

Psalm 91:13 You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra, the young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.

Our verse for today talks of the protection that a Christian has when he is acting in God’s will. Remember Paul and the viper on the island of Malta (see Acts 28)? He had washed ashore after a shipwreck and a snake crawled from the pile of wood he had gathered and bit him. The locals were convinced that Paul’s time was short because they recognized the snake as poisonous, but Paul didn’t die. Why? Because God wasn’t finished with him.

Our verse for today carries that same thought. Look at the things that are listed: lion, cobra, serpent. All of these can kill, all of these are in dangerous places. What does that tell us? God is going to send us to places that the world would call dangerous, but if He has sent us, it will be the safest place for us.

Look at your Old Testament. Remember Daniel and the lions den? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace? Both of these situations should have killed and yet in both of these God protected His people. When God gives us a direction we should act! You shall trample underfoot , what a wonderful thought! The dangers of the earth are nothing when we are acting for God. They are things to be trampled under our heels!

Dean Martin once said “Show me a man who doesn’t know the meaning of fear and I’ll show you a dummy who gets beat up a lot.” I’m not asking us to run off willy-nilly believing that God is going to preserve us (read the last post) what I am asking is that we should not let our fear in a situation get in the way of our service to God.

Do not run from adversity Christian. It is the crucible in which God builds the saints. Praise him in whatever storm you are enduring.

Grace and peace to you all.

Psalm 91:11-12

Psalm 91:11-12 11 For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways. 12 In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.

Does this piece of scripture sound familiar to you? If you’ve read Matthew then it should because it’s the same piece of scripture that Satan used to tempt Jesus. Look at Matthew 4…

5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’and, ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’ ” 7 Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’ ”

Let’s look at what the verse means in context and then let’s look how it was misused by the adversary.

What ground have we covered so far? A quick re-cap is in order:

*We live inside of God. We are in His presence constantly (vs 1)
*We are ultimately protected by God. (vs 2-4)
*We have nothing to fear from this world (vs 5-6)
*We have nothing to fear from death (vs 7-8)
*We have nothing to fear from evil (vs 9-10)

Let me ask you a question based on these truths? If you are on a God appointed task what can stop you? Nothing.

Noah should have been stopped by the flood.
Samson should have been stopped by his blindness.
Moses should have been stopped by the Red Sea.
David should have been stopped by a giant named Goliath.
Elijah should have been stopped by a wicked queen.
Jonah should have been stopped by a fish.
Paul should have been stopped by a snake.

In each of these cases God had a task for them to complete and nothing was going to stand in His way. The verses today talk about that same thought. There is nothing that can stand against us when we are on a mission from God. We are unstoppable. ”He shall give His angels charge over you” our verse says. One angel was enough to strike blindness to a city of perverts in Sodom, imagine how much more secure we are with several. “To keep you in all your ways” the psalmist continues, they watch over our footsteps making sure that we continue on the path that God has chosen for us. Isn’t that a wonderful thought?

Now comes the tricky part – Jesus’ temptation. Satan takes Jesus to the top of the large temple and asks Him to jump off. After all it is God’s plan for Christ to go to the cross and there is nothing to stop it, why not test the Father just to make sure? Do you see the difference between how the Father intended the verse to be used and the way the adversary twisted it?

How can we be sure that we are acting in God’s will and not testing God’s provision? I don’t know but I think the clue lies in the examples of the men that I’ve listed above. You know what Noah, Samson, Moses, David, Elijah, Jonah and Paul all have in common? They all trusted God. They lived their lives in front of Him aware of His presence. They did not seek to display or flaunt their standing with God. They simply lived their lives by faith simply serving God when He called.

I believe that’s the difference. We must simply live our lives mindful of His presence at every second. Do you think Stephen went into his sermon knowing that He was going to be stoned at the end? I don’t. But what did he do as they gathered up rocks to bludgeon him to death? He asked God to forgive his murderers. That kind of faith doesn’t come from man.

Trust God. Live your life in front of Him. Do not fear the path that He has set before you. Trust that he will bring you through to the end. Who knows, one of us may be the next Paul?

Blessings and peace to you all…

Quote For The Day

“God’s goal is not to make sure you’re happy. No matter how hard it is for you to believe this, it’s time to do so. Life is not about your being comfortable and happy and successful and pain free. It is about becoming the man or woman God has called you to be. Unfortunately, we will rarely hear that message proclaimed today. All the more reason for me to say it again: Life is not about you! It’s about God.”

Charles R. Swindoll, Paul: A Man Of Grace & Grit, p. 102

Psalm 91:9-10

I really enjoyed this entry for Psalm 91:9-10 from The Treasury of David so I thought I’d share it with you…

I’ll be back at the end of the post to say a few words - Jeff
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Before expounding these verses I cannot refrain from recording a personal incident illustrating their power to soothe the heart, when they are applied by the Holy Spirit. In the year 1854, when I had scarcely been in London twelve months, the neighbourhood in which I laboured was visited by Asiatic cholera, and my congregation suffered from its inroads. Family after family summoned me to the bedside of the smitten, and almost every day I was called to visit the grave. I gave myself up with youthful ardour to the visitation of the sick, and was sent for from all corners of the district by persons of all ranks and religions. I became weary in body and sick at heart. My friends seemed falling one by one, and I felt or fancied that I was sickening like those around me. A little more work and weeping would have laid me low among the rest; I felt that my burden was heavier than I could bear, and I was ready to sink under it. As God would have it, I was returning mournfully home from a funeral, when my curiosity led me to read a paper which was wafered up in a shoemaker's window in the Dover Road. It did not look like a trade announcement, nor was it, for it bore in a good bold handwriting these words: —

Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. The effect upon my heart was immediate. Faith appropriated the passage as her own. I felt secure, refreshed, girt with immortality. I went on with my visitation of the dying in a calm and peaceful spirit; I felt no fear of evil, and I suffered no harm. The providence which moved the tradesman to place those verses in his window I gratefully acknowledge, and in the remembrance of its marvellous power I adore the Lord my God.

The psalmist in these verses assures the man who dwells in God that he shall be secure. Though faith claims no merit of its own, yet the Lord rewards it wherever he sees it. He who makes God his refuge shall find him a refuge; he who dwells in God shall find his dwelling protected. We must make the Lord our habitation by choosing him for our trust and rest, and then we shall receive immunity from harm; no evil shall touch us personally, and no stroke of judgment shall assail our household. The dwelling here intended by the original was only a tent, yet the frail covering
would prove to be a sufficient shelter from harm of all sorts. It matters little whether our abode be a gypsy's hut or a monarch's palace if the soul has made the Most High its habitation. Get into God and you dwell in all good, and ill is banished far away. It is not because we are perfect or highly esteemed among men that we can hope for shelter in the day of evil, but because our refuge is the Eternal God, and our faith has learned to hide beneath his sheltering wing.

"For this no ill thy cause shall daunt,
No scourge thy tabernacle haunt."

It is impossible that any ill should happen to the man who is beloved of the Lord; the most crushing calamities can only shorten his journey and hasten him to his reward. Ill to him is no ill, but only good in a mysterious form. Losses enrich him, sickness is his medicine, reproach is his honour, death is his gain. No evil in the strict sense of the word can happen to him, for everything is overruled for good. Happy is he who is in such a case. He is secure where others are in peril, he lives where others die.

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Can you picture the scene Spurgeon describes above? People dropping dead left and right around him and in the middle of it his faith in God is bolstered by a verse scrawled in a window. Talk about God's Word never returning void! It is my prayer that we would have that kind of faith when calamity strikes.

“The most crushing calamities can only shorten his journey and hasten him to his reward”, Spurgeon says. I say “Amen”. Let us live our lives with eternity in mind. We are not to live our best life now, our best life awaits us in Heaven. Let us present ourselves to the Lord at the end of our life as a drink offering completely poured out for His glory!

To the work!

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Well now you can! He has opened the vault and you can download any sermon that you would like. Simply click here. I've also added a link over in the "Links" section for your future use.

Download a message. Open your Bible and take plenty of notes! His ministry has been a blessing to me over the years. I am sure it will be to you as well...

Psalm 91:7-8

Psalm 91:7-8 7 A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; But it shall not come near you. 8 Only with your eyes shall you look, and see the reward of the wicked.

In our previous post we talked about how we should not fear death because we are secure in God and we continue on in that same vein today.

But it shall not come near you our verse for today says. What does that mean? Does that mean that we have a shield around us protecting us from problems? Don’t you believe that lie for a second. Were the disciples protected? No, eleven out of the twelve died horrible deaths. Was the apostle Paul protected? No, he lost his head to an executioner’s sword. I could give you a laundry list of martyrs who died in the early church. They were not free from physical harm.

Let’s not limit our talk to martyrdom. Saints and sinners die alongside each other every day. We die together in disease. We die together in war. We die together in earthquakes. We die together in hurricanes. We die together in accidents.

So what is the Psalmist saying? I think the clue is in the reward of the wicked portion of the verse. What is the reward of the wicked? Let’s look at a couple of verses. First let’s look at Matthew 13:

41 “The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, 42 “and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 43 “Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

Now let’s look at Job 19:

25 For I know that my Redeemer lives, And He shall stand at last on the earth; 26 And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, That in my flesh I shall see God, 27 Whom I shall see for myself, And my eyes shall behold, and not another...

The reward of the wicked is Hell and we will be there to see that reward handed out with our own eyes. Man is an eternal creature in the sense that we have a beginning but we do not have an end. We will spend all of eternity in one of two places. We will either be in the presence of God enjoying His blessings in Heaven or we will be forever separated from Him in a place of judgment.

It is that thought that is brought to mind with today’s verse. I have heard it said of the final judgment that it will be a great and terrible day. It will be great because God will finally be revealed to all of existence in all of His glory. It will be terrible because there will be many condemned to Hell because of their unwillingness to accept Jesus. Can you picture that scene in your mind? Thousands of people condemned at the same time you are entering into God’s glory. Amidst all of the weeping and wailing you will not be touched because of your allegiance to the Christ.

Let us never forget that the only thing separating the saint from the sinner is God’s mercy. Let us remember that is was nothing special in ourselves that drew us to Him. It was only because of God’s mercy that any of us will spend eternity with Him.
Let us rest in the security that nothing can separate us from Him however let us not rest until the gospel message has been preached to every person. God has commissioned us to send His message to a lost and dying world. Get to the work…

Psalm 91:5-6

Psalm 91:5-6 5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that flies by day, 6 Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

I really enjoy the ”Pirates of the Caribbean” movies. One of the things that you discover about the main character, Jack Sparrow, is that he’s looking for a way to cheat death. He makes a deal with Davey Jones to get a boat that no-one can catch, his crew mutinies against him on the way to a treasure that gives it’s bearer eternal life (albeit cursed), he considers a plot that will allow him to live forever as the captain of the Flying Dutchman as a type of "cosmic cabbie", and the series ends with him pondering a map to the Fountain of Youth. All of these things he does to cheat death from his prize.

It’s a common quest for all of man – cheating death. There are pills, potions, and programs all guaranteed to extend your life. In the words of Kenny Chesney “Everybody wanna go to heaven but nobody wanna go now”. Death is scary for the common man because it is unknown.

We could try to spiritualize the verses for today but I think if we take these verses at face value we see that the Psalmist is simply telling us not to fear death. See if you agree - we just finished up talking about the safety that comes from being in God’s presence. We talked about how we are surrounded by the prickly hedge of His word and are doubly protected by the covering of His wings. If we are indeed protected by God what do we have to fear from death?

Death is not a mystery. It is clearly explained to us in scripture. We should not look at it as a loss - look at the apostle Paul’s words from 1 Corinthians 15:

50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. 51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” 55 “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

Isn’t that wonderful? Death has no victory over the Christian – to be sure we all die but Heaven awaits! There is no better place for us to be!

Look at the verses for today – they all talk about ways to die. Death by the unknown, death by attack, death by disease and death by calamity; none of these have any power over us because we serve the one who cannot die. We are immortal brothers and sisters! We will live forever in the presence of the Son!

When we are in God’s presence we have nothing to fear. Stand in that place of shelter. Let us stop looking for maps that lead to the empty treasures of this world. Let us instead keep a weather eye on the horizon focused on the Son. He has given us the map of His word and has promised us a seat at His heavenly table.

I’ll close with Jesus’ words from the gospel of Matthew 28… “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”

Amen and amen…

Psalm 91:4

Psalm 91:4 He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.

Today we’ll be talking about seeking refuge with the Father. The Psalmist has given us some pretty clear illustrations to consider. Let’s start with the easy one – chickens.

We raised “free-range” chickens when I was a youth. One of my chores was to gather the eggs and I’d notice that a hen would go missing for a time. When she’d show up again she would usually have several “beeblees” in tow (that’s my grandmother’s word for baby chicks). One of the things I always thought was pretty neat was the way that the hen would call the little ones to her for protection. When myself, a hawk, or anything else she perceived as danger would appear she’d cluck in a certain way and the beeblees would come runnin’. She’d hunker down under a tree or a bush and puff out her feathers until she appeared twice her size and the chicks would all run underneath her. She’d settle down upon them and from all outside appearances you would never know she had those babies with her. If you approached her during that time she’d puff up and growl (yes chicken’s growl) and if you continued to come closer she’d fly out of that position and flog you, always returning to gather her chicks underneath her. You could always count on seeing the chicks underneath the hen because that was the safest spot for the beeblees to be.

It’s that thought that the Psalmist is talking about today. We are helpless to defend ourselves from the attacks of the adversary. We have no choice but to run to Him for protection. And once there we are hidden – safe from all attacks.

Look with me at a piece of scripture from 2 Kings concerning Elisha and the King of Syria:

2 Kings 6:13-18 13…And it was told him(the King), saying, “Surely he is in Dothan.” 14Therefore he sent horses and chariots and a great army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city. 15And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” 16So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 17And Elisha prayed, and said, “Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. 18So when the Syrians came down to him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, and said, “Strike this people, I pray, with blindness.” And He struck them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.

Elisha’s servant was worried because they were surrounded by an army that there was no escaping from. Elisha prayed to God for the young man to see what he saw and the young man came to realize that they were not alone because they were surrounded by God’s army. I would argue that more of our days are like this then we tend to believe. There is an unseen battle going on around us all the time and the resources of God are brought to bear in our lives to defend us in ways that we will never know this side of heaven. We are like the chick, we are oblivious as to whether the danger is from the hawk or the rain, it is simply enough for us to know that we are safe under His protection from whatever is going on around us.

Look at the last part of verse ”His truth shall be your shield and buckler”. “Sword” and “buckler” come from Hebrew words meaning “a large shield (as if guarding by prickliness)” and “something surrounding a person”. Those are two beautiful thoughts to consider when we think about God’s truth. First it is something that completely surrounds us – protecting us from all sides. There are no chinks in God’s protection – it is complete. Not only is it complete protection but it damages (prickles) those who would attack us. God’s word is wonderful – we are safe from all attacks in the “briar patch” of His word. You can try to come after us but you’ll only end up bloodying yourself and if you could get through that you have to face the protection of the Father Himself as we stand under His wings.

Rest in the comfort that God stands with you. Remember that the cares of this world are but for a moment. Keep your eyes upon heaven and trust completely in the Father.

Blessings and peace to you all…

Read This...

This is worth a read.

Its something for us all to keep in mind after the election - no matter who wins.

What are we doing to change the culture?

Psalm 91:3

Psalm 91:3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the perilous pestilence.

Anyone know what a fowler is? Okay – anyone other than the lady with the glasses? I didn’t have the slightest idea so I had to look it up. Turns out a fowler is someone who shoots or traps birds. Now this verse becomes a whole lot easier to understand, doesn’t it?

One of the truths that we should have learned from Psalm 90 is that we are weak. Why one could say that we were as frail as birds. We go through this life flittering around oblivious to the dangers around us waiting for the adversary to ensnare us. Look at these verses concerning the fowler:

1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
2 Corinthians 11:3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
2 Corinthians 11:14 And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.

Satan hates us and desires our destruction. Despite what Ulysses Everett McGill says Satan isn’t red and scaly with a bifurcated tail any carrying a hay fork. He is evil through and through and his desire is to see us destroyed. He has all manner of pits, snares, and traps at his disposal having had thousands of years of practice.

Isn’t it comforting to know that God is watching over us as we flitter about? He sees every tripwire, no matter how fine. He recognizes every snare and steers us away from them. And when we find ourselves caught in the fowler’s trap he gently removes us from it, heals us and teaches us to fly again. God is pretty cool isn’t he?

But that’s not all - look at how our verse for today ends, ”He shall deliver you…from the perilous pestilence”. All of us have a disease that we inherited from our father Adam. Sin. This disease has many different and varying symptoms but the end result is always the same – death. It kills us. It is not something that we should trifle with or allow in our lives. Once it takes hold in a body it spreads like cancer polluting the mind, body and spirit. It also is not something that man can cure on his own. To be sure that are many powders and remedies out there that do nothing but treat the symptom relieving us of our pain for a small time. The disease is still there however – it runs deep and there is no human cure.

But do not despair – God has the power to deliver us from this disease. When we come to Christ in repentance and faith He heals us. We are given the cure in His Son Christ Jesus! 1 John 1:9 tells us that if we continue to come to him every time that we start to show a symptom of the disease that he will heal us! Isn’t that wonderful?

Take some time today to praise God for the snares that He has kept you out of today.

Take some time today to praise God for the way that He has gently removed you from the trap that you were caught in.

Take some time today to praise God for the way that He has healed you from your sin sickness.

Seek forgiveness and healing from the Lord… Jeff

Psalm 91:2

Psalm 91:2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.”

How often do you mention God in the course of a day? When the conversation turns toward Him what do you say? What would you say if given the chance? Let’s look to the Psalmist as a guide as to what to say the next time it comes up.

Look at the first thing he says,He is my refuge, and because I’m all about the definitions:

ref•uge
noun
1. shelter or protection: a sheltered or protected state safe from something threatening, harmful, or unpleasant
2. sheltering place: a place, or sometimes a person, offering protection or safe shelter from something

[14th century. Via Old French from Latin refugium, literally “place to flee back to,” ultimately from fugere “to flee” (source of English FUGITIVE).]
Encarta ® World English Dictionary © & (P) 1998-2004 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

I especially like the etymology of a “place to flee back to”. If we continue in the thought of the last post about God being the place that we live it also seems fitting to think of Him as the place that we return to when we are threatened.

What does it mean for God to be our place of refuge? Does it mean that we will not suffer harm as a Christian? Look at the examples from our Bible; several of the prophets in the O.T. were murdered, David was pursued by an insane king, Samson died in a building collapse, Stephen was stoned, etc. Doesn’t sound like a very “safe” place to be, does it? To quote Obi-Wan ,”It all depends on your point of view”.

What enabled these people in history to stand for God no matter what the outcome? They all had the Holy Spirit whispering in their ear that their enemies may be able to kill the body but God would preserve their soul. Look at this stanza from A Mighty Fortess Is Our God by Martin Luther:

That word above all earthly pow’rs,
No thanks to them, abideth;
The Spirit and the gifts are ours
Thro’ Him who with us sideth:
Let goods and kindred go,
This mortal life also;
The body they may kill:
God’s truth abideth still,
His kingdom is forever.

It is upon the heavenly that we must focus. Go and read the back half of Romans 8 and see what can separate us from the Father - nothing (yes I’ve sent you there before and I’ll probably send you there several more times). When we understand that God is our refuge we know that there is nothing anyone can do to separate us from Him. The worst thing that can happen to us is that we die but to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.

He goes on to call God a fortress, an impregnable place, a place that armies could not bring down, a place of security where you cannot be harmed. Isn’t it comforting to think of Him in that way.

But I’d be selling you short today if all I left you with is the thought of God being a place of refuge and safety. Look at what is dancing around in our verse today that you may just miss if you don’t look close. It’s a small word but it means so much – the word my. The psalmist says God is “my refuge”, “my fortress”, “my God”. He is his! Do you understand how wonderful that thought is?

It would be enough if we were to be simply included in the corporate protection of God wouldn’t it? Simply to have the blessings of being “one of His children” or “a part of the kingdom” should be enough for any of us. But we can claim God as ours! How much more precious is something to you when you refer to it as “mine”? Doesn’t that put it in a different realm? Doesn’t it carry much more weight when we claim that personal tie?

Look at how the psalmist closes – “in Him I will trust”. That’s pretty dogmatic isn’t it? No wavering there at all. He simply is going to trust in God. He knows that God is above everything, he knows that God can protect him from those that seek to destroy him and he knows that God is his. Why wouldn’t he trust Him? I hope we catch a little bit of that as we walk with Him. Trust God – he loves you and will ultimately preserve you.

God is yours! The next time that someone asks you about Him I hope the conversation starts with “My God is…”

Grace and peace to you all...

Psalm 91:1

Psalm 91 1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

This makes two psalms in a row that start off with the notion of dwelling with God. Psalm 90 starts with “LORD, You have been our dwelling place…” and Psalm 91 starts out with ”He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High”. Do you think that God is trying to tell us something here? This must be an important concept for us to catch so methinks we will dwell here for a bit.

Here are a couple of definitions. English is from Encarta and Hebrew is from Strong’s:

Psalm 91:1
dwell – to live and have a home in a particular place.
yashab> yaw-shab to sit down (specifically as judgment in ambush, in quiet);by implication to dwell, to remain; causatively to settle, to marry: -dwell (437x), inhabitant (221x), sit (172x), abide (70x), inhabit (39x), down (26x), remain (23x), in (22x), tarry (19x), set (14x), continue (5x), place (7x), still (5x), taken (5x)

Psalm 90:1
dwelling - a house or other building or place in which somebody lives.
maiyn maw-een an abode, of God (the Tabernacle or the Temple), men (their home) or animals (their lair); hence, a retreat (asylum):-habitation (10x), dwelling (4x), den (2x), dwelling place (2x), dwellingplace (1x)

What does it mean to live with God? First let’s start with how we envision Him (I’m assuming that you already know Him as Savior and Lord or we’ve got bigger issues to discuss). Do you picture Him as your friend, someone you can confide in with anything? Maybe He’s the fireman ready to save you whenever you are in danger? Or is He the policeman watching over you insuring that you keep the law? Father? Protector? Provider? Teacher? Healer? He is all of these things to be certain, but how many of us picture him as a roommate? Can you even wrap your head around the thought of God being your home?

Look at all of the meanings of yashab and maiyn above. Try to think of your relationship with Him using these two words. Makes the phrase “walk with God” take a whole new meaning doesn’t it? Look at our Savior’s words from John 17:

20“I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; 21 “that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. 22 “And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: 23 “I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.

We are united with God through Jesus! We do not simply walk with God, we are one with Him! Words escape me as how to explain this. Our relationship with God is not like anything that we have experienced on this world. It is more intimate, more involved, deeper than anything that we can imagine.

How should that truth change how we relate to Him? For starters we should realize that we have a very privileged position. Go back to your O.T. – do you remember who got to go into the Holy of Holies in the temple? The High Priest. How many times could he go? Once a year. For what reason? To offer sacrifices for the sins of Israel. Compare that to our relationship with Him. Because we live in Him we have access to Him at any time for any reason. Do you understand what a wonderful thing that is? You have access to the creator of everything anytime you desire. Doesn’t that thought in of itself make your head spin?

Second it should make us more mindful of the way that we live our lives. Everything that we do, we not only do in His sight but in His presence. Does that truth make you want to stare long and hard at your shoelaces? Doesn’t that make His grace and mercy all the more beautiful? If we catch nothing else from this today let it be that we should live every second of our life aware of the fact that God is always there.

Finally let us look at what the Psalmist says about dwelling in the place of the Most High – it is a secret place. While access to God is freely offered it is not freely accepted. The world offers many false paths and substitutes. Look at what Jesus says in Matthew 7:

13“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14“Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

I may be pessimistic but I believe the sad truth is that Hell has a more numberous population than Heaven.

The path to God is not secret because it is hidden from man it is secret because man does not want to look for it. Man at his very core is depraved, there is nothing good in him. He rebels against God, he runs from Him, he defies Him and hates Him at his very core. It is only by the working of the Holy Spirit in the sinner’s life that the “secret” is revealed. If you’ve read Pilgrim’s Progress you’ll remember that it wasn’t until after Christian became aware of his impending judgment and doom because of his sin that Evangelist revealed the way to the gate. It is the same for every man and woman that comes to God. They must be made aware of their sin and their need for a Savior before they can enter the dwelling place of the Most High.

The last thought that I want to leave us with today is the shadow of the Almighty. How close do you have to be to someone to be in their shadow? Pretty close. Let us all choose to live in the shadow of God. There is no better place for us to be in the entire universe.

Peace and comfort to you all.

Psalm 91: An Introduction

Today we start a series of posts on Psalm 91. I thought I’d share an excerpt from C. H. Spurgeon’s commentary, The Treasury of David, as a matter of introducing us to the Psalm.

May God guide our path as we travel through His Word – Jeff
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This Psalm is without a title, and we have no means of ascertaining either the name of its writer, or the date of its composition, with certainly. The Jewish doctors consider that when the author's name is not mentioned we may assign the Psalm to the last named writer; and, if so, this is another Psalm of Moses, the man of God. Many expressions here used are similar to those of Moses in Deuteronomy, and the internal evidence, from the peculiar idioms, would point towards him as the composer. The continued lives of Joshua and Caleb, who followed the Lord fully, make remarkably apt illustrations of this Psalm, for they, as a reward for abiding in continued nearness to the Lord, lived on "amongst the dead, amid their graves." For these reasons it is by no means improbable that this Psalm may have been written by Moses, but we dare not dogmatize. If David's pen was used in giving us this matchless ode, we cannot believe as some do that he this commemorated the plague which devastated Jerusalem on account of his numbering the people. For him, then, to sing of himself as seeing "the reward of the wicked" would be clean contrary to his declaration, "I have sinned, but these sheep, what have they done?"; and the absence of any allusion to the sacrifice upon Zion could not be in any way accounted for, since David's repentance would inevitably have led him to dwell upon the atoning sacrifice and the sprinkling of blood by the hyssop.

In the whole collection there is not a more cheering Psalm, its tone is elevated and sustained throughout, faith is at its best, and speaks nobly. A German physician was wont to speak of it as the best preservative in times of cholera, and in truth, it is a heavenly medicine against plague and pest. He who can live in its spirit will be fearless, even if once again London should become a lazar-house, and the grave be gorged with carcases.

DIVISION. On this occasion we shall follow the divisions which our translators have placed at the head of the Psalm, for they are pithy and suggestive.

Psalm 91:1-2 —The state of the godly.
Psalm 91:3-8 —Their safety.
Psalm 91:9-10 —Their habitation.
Psalm 91:11-13 —Their servants.
Psalm 91:14-16 —Their friend; with the effects of them all.

Psalm 90:16-17

Psalm 90:16-17 16 Let Your work appear to Your servants, and Your glory to their children. 17 And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands for us; Yes, establish the work of our hands.

Work – we all have to do it. Some of us get paid to work and some do not. Some of us work with our hands and some with their minds. Meals need to be cooked, bills need to be paid, laundry needs to be done, grass needs to be cut, etc. How many of us enjoy work? Why even I myself have been accused of being afraid of work but that isn’t true, I’m not afraid of it at all. I can lie down right next to it and go to sleep (badumbum).

Is it the futility of work that we find so unpleasant? Bills keep coming, grass keeps growing, no matter what we do we will always have to work. But what if I were to tell you that your work could really count for something? Would you be interested? That’s what I want to talk about today. First we’ll talk about the work that God does and then we’ll talk about our work.

Moses says Let Your work appear to Your servants. Remember where we’re at in the Psalm. Moses understands that Israel is enduring God’s judgment because of their sin. He knows that it is right, good and just. In the midst of it he is calling for God to be merciful and restore their fellowship with Him. He asks God to work amongst His people again. But isn’t God appearing to them daily as both pillars of fire and smoke? Isn’t God still providing manna for them every day? Isn’t God still bringing water out of rocks? What is Moses asking for?

I think he’s asking for God to move mightily among them as He did when the nation was delivered from Israel. They need to be delivered but instead of a cruel Pharaoh they need to be delivered from their sin. He’s asking God to display His glory among His people in such a way that even the young ones would look around any say “That’s Jehovah working! Praise Him!” I believe that Moses wanted God’s people to be God’s people. He starts off this Psalm with the phrase “Lord you have been our dwelling place in all generations”, he wants nothing more than for Israel to realize that they are God’s and that they should live lives that are pleasing before Him. He wants Israel to get to a place where they are not living in judgment but instead living in a place of fellowship and that can only happen if God changes something inside of them.

Don’t we fall into that same category today? How often do we ask God to “work” in our lives? Don’t we realize that He is keeping us right at this very moment? Have we too forgotten that in Him we live and move and find our being (Acts 17:28)? Let us find time today to praise Him for the way that He is delivering us. When you go home today and pray with your family around the dinner table praise Him that He kept you from harm and from sinning worse than you did. Tell your children of how you saw God’s glory displayed in the sky or in a song or just in a bird sitting on a telephone wire. Let everything that has ears know that you serve the Holy One of Israel!

How about that promise that I made that your work could count for something? Look at what verse 17 says – did you catch it? The only work that is worth anything at all is the work that God establishes. If we truly want our work to endure than we must work for God.

Everything that we do should bring glory and honor to Him. Look at John 15:5:

“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.

Do you catch what Jesus is saying there? When we are not in His will and working in our strength what can we accomplish? Nothing…. If that is true than the opposite must also be true, if we are in His will and working in His strength what can we accomplish? Everything! Has anything that God has ever done faded away? If we want our work to mean anything that we must work for God!

What do I mean when I say work for God? Would it surprise you if I said I don’t mean teach a Sunday School class? Everything that we do we should do for God. Go read Ephesians 5-6, we can serve God in our marriage, as parents, in the workplace, etc. Every aspect of our lives should be lived knowing that we live inside of God.

“And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us” Moses closes with. If you want to find meaning and purpose in this life – serve God. When He is in the front of our thoughts we are better husbands, wives, fathers, sons, employees, employers, etc.

We’ve covered a lot of ground in this Psalm. We started off with the thought of living inside of God and we end there too. I love how Moses closes this psalm with the double cry to God to establish the work of his hands.

I want to leave us with that thought as well. It is my prayer for all of us that we realize that we are with God every second of our lives and that we are to live those seconds serving Him. Serve Him today by living your life for Him and in that place allow Him to use you to draw others to Himself.

Blessings and peace to you all…

Alzheimer's Stamp

On October 17th the United States Postal Service will issue the "Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Stamp" pictured above. It will be a good way to raise Alzheimer's awareness as these start showing up on our mail.

The USPS press release is here and you can order them here. I would imagine these would also be available at your local post office where you can contact your postmaster for information.

Alzheimer's is a terrible disease. It is important that we watch ourselves and watch our loved ones because early detection is important in combating the disease. Please pray for all of those who have it and for those who take care of them.

Yours in Christ,
Jeff

Psalm 90:14-15 ****UPDATED****

Psalm 90:14-15 14 Oh, satisfy us early with Your mercy, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days! 15 Make us glad according to the days in which You have afflicted us, the years in which we have seen evil.

What does it mean to be satisfied? You should know by now that if I ask a question like that I’m about to give you a definition :) - here’s the one from Encarta:

1. make somebody feel content: to do or offer enough to make somebody feel pleased or content
2. fulfill need: to fulfill a need or gratify a desire
3. resolve doubts: to convince somebody by resolving questions or doubts
4. be good enough to meet condition: to achieve or be of sufficient standard to meet a requirement or condition
5. MATHEMATHICS solve mathematical problem: to make both sides of an equation equal by finding the quantities of the unknown variables
6. LAW pay debt: to pay a debt in full
7. compensate somebody: to compensate somebody for an injury or loss

That’s a lot for one word too mean, that being said God fulfills each one of Encarta’s definitions.

Definition 1 – contentment. Look at the apostle Paul’s words from Phillipians 4:

11…for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content:12 I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Paul did not live a life of luxury. His physical life was hard and yet he was able to say that He found contentment in Christ. Not only that but he found that the strength that he needed to live this life was given to Him by God himself. When we have God we come to understand that He is enough.

Definition 2 - need fulfillment. That is what God is ultimately about! Go and read Matthew 6:25-34. In these verses Jesus explains to us that God is aware of our everyday needs. My pastor use to tell me that is part of what God was trying to convey to Moses when he asked what God’s name was. In your good old King James the reply from God was “I AM THAT I AM”. In essence God was telling Moses – “You tell the people that I AM whatever it is that they require. If they need a savior – I AM that. If they need a protector – I AM that. If they need a deliverer – I AM that, if they need a provider – I AM that. Whatever it is that they need – I AM that.” You Hebrew scholars out there are going to correct me and tell me that this verse probably refers more to God’s eternal state and I won’t argue that fact. However, I would also argue that whatever it is that we require in this life, if we turn to God and ask Him if He is what we need the reply would be “I AM”.

Definition 3 - resolve doubts. Are you worried? Turn to God. Do you need comfort? Turn to God. He is completely truthful. His words always come to pass. If you have a question simply ask Him but be ready for the answer. It may not always be what you are prepared to hear.

Definition 4 - sufficient standard. God always provides exactly what we need exactly when we need it. Look back at the events of your life. Which worked out better for you? The plan you came up with to get out of a situation or God’s provision?

Definition 5, 6 & 7 - equality, law and compensation. God is all about equality. Because of our sin there is an “unknown variable” that has separated us from God. He Himself solves the equation with the work of Jesus on the cross. It is in that place that are accounts are made equal. Christ solved our equation! In Christ now we all have an equal share of Heaven. We are adopted into the family of God and are joint heirs with Christ! What a wonderful thought.

Christ now stands as our mediator. The scenes of our final judgment in front of the Father always bring courtroom imagery to my mind. We have our accuser laying out all of our sins before us to which we can only hang our head and reply “guilty”. But we have this wonderful mediator in Christ who says to the Holy Judge. “True, but I have paid that one’s debt and now no one can lay a charge against him. He also stands in the breach for us daily as we lift prayers up to the Father (see Romans 8)

God is pretty awesome! He completely satisfies us if we will just seek Him. Why do we waste time chasing the things of this world? They all pass, the recent stock market roller coaster should be enough of an example for us. Look at what Jesus says about looking for satisfaction in the things of this world

Matthew 6:19-21 19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal;20 “but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.21 “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Matthew 16:26 “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

The things of this world will always let us down. God knows that we will only ultimately find happiness and contentment in Him. Which brings us to Psalm 90:15 – Moses is asking God to restore their joy so that they can spend as much time with Him in gladness as they did in sorrow for their sin.

That’s a nice thought, isn’t it? Asking God to give them as many blessed years as they had years of judgment.
I hope that the majority of the years that I have left to serve Him on earth are spent walking in fellowship. But even if I have to endure a season of judgment for my sin I know that I have all eternity to spend with Him glorifying His name. I like that thought better.

My prayer for us today is that we will stop looking at the things of this world to satisfy us. Let us instead look to God.

Grace and peace to you all…

****UPDATED 10/14****

I was asked if Moses was being selfish in asking for judgment from God to be lifted. I beleive the answer to that question lies entirely in his motive for asking. If he was asking simply so that judgment would be removed then I would say "yes". I do not believe that this is his motive. Moses understood that to be out of fellowship with God is far worse than any judgment that can be poured out. He wants the relationship to be restored and not simply the removal of judgment.

All the penitent wants is for the Father to look upon Him with forgiveness and mercy because he cannot bear to see God upset with him over sin. It is not simply the judgment that the penitent wants removed, he wants the lover of his soul to find him pleasing again. It is in that sense that I believe Moses is asking and I would not consider him selfish at all.

Isn't it wonderful to know that Christ always stands in the breach for us and when the Father looks upon us He sees His own righteousness reflected back through the blood of Jesus? Praise God for the Son!!!

Psalm 90:13-14

Psalm 90:13-14 13 Return, O Lord! How long? And have compassion on Your servants. 14 Oh, satisfy us early with Your mercy, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days!

Ever made a mistake? Has that mistake made someone angry? So angry that they wouldn’t talk with you? So angry that they couldn’t even bear to be in the same room with you? How did you feel during that time? What if this person that you’ve made upset is someone you love, someone very dear and close to you? How did you feel at that time? Didn’t you long for reconciliation? Wouldn’t you do anything to restore that relationship?

That’s where Moses is at in Psalm 90. An entire generation was going to fall in the wilderness due to their sin. They had repeatedly experienced God’s righteous judgment upon them as they rebelled in the wilderness. Moses is pleading with the Lord to “return” to His people.

Did God leave Israel while they were in the wilderness? No. They had His visible presence with them each day as they wandered. He continued to provide manna for them every day. So what is Moses saying when he asks Him to return? Let’s take a look at Isaiah 59:1-2:

Isaiah 59:1-2 1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; Nor His ear heavy, that it cannot hear.2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear.

Did you catch what Isaiah is saying? It is not that God can’t hear us but that He won’t. It is our sin that has separated us from God. It is never His fault.

God is completely holy, he never winks at our sin. Habakkuk tells us that God is of “purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on wickedness”. When we sin against God it is a huge thing – sin makes Him angry, so angry that He cannot be in our presence when we practice it. That is why it is so very important for us to repent and confess our sin so that our fellowship can be restored with him (1 John 1:9).

Moses is asking God to be compassionate on His people and restore His relationship with them. They are living in that place under God’s wrath and separation and it is more for them to bear. ”Oh satisfy us early with Your mercy, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.” Look at who Moses calls to for mercy – God. Look at what the outcome will be – gladness of His people. He also calls for it “early”, he does not want the day to grow long waiting for God’s compassion and mercy to be poured out upon him. Look at what else he says – “satisfy us”. Moses knows that He can only find fullness within God.

That is the heart of the penitent. He knows that he righteously deserves God’s wrath. He knows that it is his own sin that has separated him from the Holy One. He longs for that relationship to be restored because oneness with God is the only thing that can truly bring him happiness. He wants that relationship to be restored sooner than later because he understands that He has brought pain to the one that loves him above all. He also knows that restoration can only come on God's terms and not his.

It is my hope that we find ourselves in that place. When we call for mercy we acknowledge that there is one greater than us. Let us be quick to call upon the Father to show mercy to sinners such as ourselves. Let us not spend our lives wandering in the desert of judgment – let us instead repent of our sin and cross over into the blessed rest of the promised land. Let us find our lives in Christ, it is only in Jesus that we can be truly satisfied. He is the true bread from Heaven and the water of eternal life.

Mercy and grace to you all.

Psalm 90:12

Psalm 90:12 12 So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

So is an interesting word. When used at the beginning of a sentence, as in our verse for today, it marks a pause for us to consider. It’s an “IF-THEN” statement in the English language (a little for the geeks out there). IF the preceding is true THEN the next statement is true also. Methinks it is time for a recap of the preceding verses so we can understand the coming truth:

God is eternal-vs 2
Man is not – vs 3
Time is meaningless to God – vs 4
Time means everything to man – vs 5-6
God judges all of man’s sin – vs 7-9
Man’s life is short – vs 10
None of us understand God’s wrath toward sin – vs 11

Does that sum it up for us? Our lives are short and marred by the effects of sin and at the end of our lives we still face a judgment that none of us can comprehend. You with me so far? IF this statement is true (and it is) THEN what should our reaction be?

The answer is our verse for today, “So teach us to number our days”. We should be mindful of the time that we have left because it is quite possible that the days that we have left are fewer than the days that we have spent. Every second that we are given is precious because our eternity is based on how we spend them.

IF our time spent here on Earth is so important (and it is) THEN what should we do with it? ”That we may gain a heart of wisdom” our verse concludes.

What is wisdom? Is it being simply being smart? Is it simply being experienced? Look at Proverbs 9:10:

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding”

I like that verse. If we want wisdom and understanding then we simply have to explore God. By coming to know Him more we can understand everything in this universe more. That’s a wonderful thought, isn’t it? Getting back to our verse today – our very hearts are to be filled with the Lord’s presence. The heart is considered to be what motivates us and gives us life. Can you think of a better place for God to be? What would our lives look like if everything about us was driven to glorify God?

Let’s recap today’s truths. But before we do – some more for the geeks. I’ve been talking in a few IF-THEN statements today. Let me introduce you to one more - IF-THEN-ELSE. What’s the ELSE? The ELSE is what occurs if the THEN statement is false.

So here’s our recap…

IF our lives are short and we will be judged for our sin THEN we should treasure the time that we are given and spend it glorifying God ELSE we will spend eternity separated from Him in a place of punishment.

We leave off in the same place that we did last night (isn't it funny how it works out that way?). Repent from your sin and follow the Christ. Don’t waste the time that God has given you. Use it to glorify Him.

Grace and mercy to you

Psalm 90:11

Psalm 90:11 11 Who knows the power of Your anger? For as the fear of You, so is Your wrath.

What is your concept of Hell? My guess it has been tainted by pop culture. You might have images of red devils with bifurcated tails and pitchforks running amok in the fire. Perhaps you have images of a never ending party because all of the fun people are there.Both of these images are lies – caricatures of the real thing to keep mankind from fearing it.

Perhaps you even have a biblical image of God pouring out His righteous anger for all eternity. What kind of punishment awaits those who die without accepting Christ as Savior? How bad a place is it? Whatever your image is – it falls short of the actual truth.

“Who knows the power of Your anger?”, Moses states in today’s verse. Moses saw firsthand some very direct displays of God’s wrath. He lived every day knowing that an entire generation was going to pass away because of their sin. Even after experiencing everything that he had, he still understood that he could never comprehend the full expression of God’s righteous anger. Look at this passage from Hebrews 10:

26 For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. 28 Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

We understand punishment for wrong doing. We have an expectation that the authorities will round up the bad guys and make them pay for what they have done. We experience indignation when this is not the case. Why then would we expect the Father to do any less?

Hell is a real place. It is a place where the Father pours out His righteous judgment upon those who deserve it for all eternity. Below you’ll see an outline of scripture references concerning Hell that I’ve pulled from the topical index of Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance. Take some time to check the references

Hell-the place of eternal torment
A. Described as:
   Everlasting fire.............Matt. 25:41
   Everlasting punishment.......Matt. 25:46
   Outer darkness...............Matt. 8:12
   Everlasting destruction......2 Thess. 1:9
   Lake of fire.................Rev. 19:20
B. Prepared for:
   Devil and his angels.........Matt. 25:41
   Wicked.......................Rev. 21:8
   Disobedient..................Rom. 2:8,9
   Fallen Angels................2 Pet. 2:4
   Beast and the false prophet..Rev. 19:20
   Worshippers of the beast.....Rev. 14:11
   Rejectors of the Gospel......Matt. 10:15
C.Punishment of, described as:
   Bodily.......................Matt. 5:29,30
   In the soul..................Matt. 10:28
   With degrees.................Matt. 23:14

I know I’ve given us a lot of verses to chew through today but I wanted to make sure that we bathe this topic in Scripture. I want to make sure that we walk away from today’s message with a clearer view of this place.

“For as the fear of You, so is Your wrath”, Moses also writes. While it is true that none of us can fully comprehend Hell it is also true that it’s reality fundamentally changes the Christian. We may not understand the pain and hopelessness of that place but we all should fully understand that it is a place we should be.

Why would I say that? Isn’t being Christian holding hands around a campfire and singing “I’ve got this Joy, Joy, Joy, Joy down in my heart!”?That too is a lie… We all “start” being a Christian by coming to the realization that we have sinned against a holy God. We come to the place where we know that we are unrighteous, dead things before Him and we are incapable of pulling ourselves from our graves. We put all our hope in Jesus accepting the fact that if He either can’t or won’t save us – we are lost. We then give Him the rest of our lives.

It is not a bad thing to fear God. Yes - He loves you more than you can comprehend. Yes – He desires an intimate relationship with you. Yes – He will pour more blessings into your life than you will know this side of heaven. But it is also true that He is completely holy. He does not wink at sin. He is angry with sinners every day. I think the combination of the truths of God’s attributes is why Paul tells us in Philippians to “work out our salvation with fear and trembling”.

Hell is real. It is a place to be feared. It is a place to be avoided. Best news is – you don’t have to go there.

Repent from your sins before it’s too late. Accept Christ as Savior and Lord while you still have time. Remember that it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of a living God.

Psalm 90:9-10

Psalm 90:9-10 9 For all our days have passed away in Your wrath; We finish our years like a sigh. 10 The days of our lives are seventy years; And if by reason of strength they are eighty years, yet their boast is only labor and sorrow; For it is soon cut off, and we fly away.

Let’s put ourselves in Israel’s shoes during Moses time, shall we? You have witnessed first hand the wondrous events that brought you out of Egypt. You walked through the dry bottom of the Red Sea with a mountain of water stacked high on either side. You have had your food provided for you every day. You have had the visible presence of Jehovah with you every moment, either displayed as a pillar of fire or as a pillar of smoke. You have seen God’s love demonstrated to you in ways that you could have never dreamt.

You have also seen His wrath. You have watched the ground open up to consume those that had forgotten God on the day that Moses brought His word down from the mountain. You have been in quail piled up to your hips because you dared to grumble against God because of a lack of meat. You have lost loved ones to the fiery serpents that were sent because you were discontent. To top it all off you heard these words from God when you refused to trust Him and enter the land of Canaan that He had promised you:

”The carcasses of you who have complained against Me shall fall in this wilderness, all of you who were numbered, according to your entire number, from twenty years old and above…you shall by no means enter the land which I swore I would make you dwell in. But your little ones, whom you said would be victims, I will bring in, and they shall know the land which you have despised. But as for you, your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness. And your sons shall be shepherds in the wilderness forty years, and bear the brunt of your infidelity, until your carcasses are consumed in the wilderness. According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, for each day you shall bear your guilt one year, namely forty years, and you shall know My rejection. I the LORD have spoken this; I will surely do so to all this evil congregation who are gathered together against Me. In this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die.” (Numbers 14:29-35)

”For all our days have passed away in Your wrath” Moses sighs. Remember where we left off in yesterday’s post? We were talking about how God lays all of our sin before Him for viewing. How bitter were the tears that were cried in the wilderness march of Israel? Do you think perhaps that both the young and the old brought to mind God’s word each time someone passed on the trail? What must it be like to be confronted every day with the guilt and consequence of your sin?

“We finish our years like a sigh” Moses continues. What must it be to finish your life knowing that you’re life was more difficult by the making of your own hand? ”Yet their only boast is labor and sorrow”, that’s a depressing epitaph to be printed on your tombstone? Wouldn’t you rather it read “He lived a life of joy and peace”?
I believe these verses are given to us to remind us what the life lived outside of God’s will is like. We live in an age where God is displaying His grace and mercy in great abundance. I am very thankful that God does not deal with me today in the same way that He dealt with Israel.

Think for a moment of what it must be like to come to your end outside of God’s will. What do you have left? You work your whole life to what end? How many families have we seen torn apart at the end of a life as those who survive battle over the scraps left behind? “Labor and sorrow” – another understatement for the life outside of God’s will. Much like Israel in Moses time we live our lives underneath the visible presence of a Holy God. Unlike Israel – most of us are unaware of our sin and simply think we’re getting a “raw deal”.

Contrast that with the life of the Christian. We live and move and breathe inside of God! Every moment of our life should be guided by His will. Every thought, word and deed should be to the glory of God the Father! No matter whether we are prince or pauper a life lived in service to the Father is never one that ends defeated. Look at Paul’s words from Philippians 3:

7But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. 8Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.

Do you catch what Paul is saying here? He tells us that no matter what we have to endure in this life it is all worth it because of Jesus.

To be sure we may look back on our lives and be sorrowful because of the blessings that we have missed because of our sin. But what a wonderful thought to know that we do not have to live in that place! What a wonderful truth it is to know that if we confess and repent from our sin we can once again walk with the Father!

Let’s also make sure that we don’t paint the picture of a completely miserable Israel. They continued to see God’s mercy during their wanderings. He continued to provide for them even in their rebellion. How happy do you think the people were when they crossed over the river on dry land under the leadership of Joshua? They also understood that God was a God of grace and mercy who would never deny His covenant.

Spend some time today praising God for His mercy. Spend some time today thanking Him for the work of His Son. Spend some time today praising Jesus for His sacrifice in our place.

Let us not end this life defeated beloved. We serve a risen Savior and if He is for us who can be against us?

Grace and peace to you all…