Psalm 103

1 Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.

2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:

3 Who forgives all thine iniquities, who heals all thy diseases.

4 Who redeems thy life from destruction, who crowns thee with loving-kindness and tender mercies.

5 Who satisfies thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

6 The Lord executes righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.

7 He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.

8 The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.

9 He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger forever.

10 He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.

11 For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.

12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

13 Like as a father pities his children, so the Lord pities them that fear him.

14 For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.

15 As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourishes.

16 For the wind passes over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more.

17 But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children.

18 To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.

19 The Lord hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom rules overall.

20 Bless the Lord, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word.

21 Bless ye the Lord, all ye his hosts; ye ministers of his, that do his pleasure.

22 Bless the Lord, all his works in all places of his dominion: bless the Lord, O my soul. (KJV)

Reading the verse, I realized that it is in all my daily activities that I should praise the Lord. As I praise the Lord, I must not forget all his benefits to me. The psalmist list a few of these benefits in this psalm: forgives all my sins, heals all my diseases, redeems my life from the pit (grave), crowns me with love and compassion, satisfies my desires with good things so that my youth is renew like that of an eagle.

As I did a Google search on the phase “Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being” I was amazed at the number of hits (2,510,000) I received from this phrase. This made me realized that one common theme that all Christians share is their desire to praise the Lord. It is this one common, however very diverted way that we have to worship the Lord. When we get to heaven it will not be a time that we as believers finally realize if our plan of salvation was the best way to present the gospel to others. It will not be a time to exalt our good works. But it will be a time when we praise and worship God. The great secret is that some believers realize that praising the Lord does not have to wait till we get to heaven.

Probably one of the best commentaries on this psalm was written by Charles Spurgeon:

Our attempt at exposition is commenced under an impressive sense of the utter impossibility of doing justice to so sublime a composition; we call upon our soul and all that is within us to aid in the pleasurable task; but, alas, our soul is finite, and our all of mental faculty far too little for the enterprise. There is too much in the Psalm, for a thousand pens to write, it is one of those all-comprehending Scriptures which is a Bible in itself, and it might alone almost suffice for the hymnbook of the church.

So, as we embrace this psalm remember that within these words is the golden thread that will bring together all believers when we get to heaven “praise the Lord”.  The phase in verse eight “The Lord is slow to anger” is highlighted in II Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” as to the true goal of the Lord’s second coming.   We must remember that John 3:16 was addressed to who-so-ever which includes all of the human race.  Sometimes I wonder why the wicked person lives to a very old age and the answer here seems simple, the Lord is not willing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.   However, there will come a day when this repentance will not be available for those who reject Christ, as Peter writes in verse ten “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up”. 

This psalm starts out with us blessing the Lord and not to forget none of his benefits.  The next three verses give us these benefits: pardons all of our iniquities, heals all our diseases, redeems our life from the pit, and crowns us with loving-kindness and compassion satisfies our years with good things and our youth is renewed like the eagle.  It ends with the phase “Bless the Lord, O my soul”.  As believers we have the Lord’s loving-kindness for everlasting to everlasting for those who fear him.  This psalm represents what a personal relationship with the Lord is like. Read this psalm slowly and let the words speak to you as a believer on how important you are to the Lord.

Psalm 102

1 Hear my prayer, O Lord, and let my cry come unto thee.

2 Hide not thy face from me in the day when I am in trouble; incline thine ear unto me: in the day when I call answer me speedily.

3 For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are burned as an hearth.

4 My heart is smitten and withered like grass; so that I forget to eat my bread.

5 By reason of the voice of my groaning my bones cleave to my skin.

6 I am like a pelican of the wilderness: I am like an owl of the desert.

7 I watch and am as a sparrow alone upon the house top.

8 Mine enemies reproach me all the day; and they that are mad against me are sworn against me.

9 For I have eaten ashes like bread and mingled my drink with weeping.

10 Because of thine indignation and thy wrath: for thou hast lifted me up, and cast me down.

11 My days are like a shadow that declines; and I am withered like grass.

12 But thou, O Lord, shall endure forever, and thy remembrance unto all generations.

13 Thou shalt arise and have mercy upon Zion: for the time to favor her, yea, the set time, is come.

14 For thy servants take pleasure in her stones and favor the dust thereof.

15 So the heathen shall fear the name of the Lord, and all the kings of the earth thy glory.

16 When the Lord shall build up Zion, he shall appear in his glory.

17 He will regard the prayer of the destitute, and not despise their prayer.

18 This shall be written for the generation to come: and the people which shall be created shall praise the Lord.

19 For he hath looked down from the height of his sanctuary; from heaven did the Lord behold the earth.

20 To hear the groaning of the prisoner; to lose those that are appointed to death.

21 To declare the name of the Lord in Zion, and his praise in Jerusalem.

22 When the people are gathered together, and the kingdoms, to serve the Lord.

23 He weakened my strength in the way; he shortened my days.

24 I said, O my God, take me not away in the midst of my days: thy years are throughout all generations.

25 Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the earth: and the heavens are the work of thy hands.

26 They shall perish, but thou shalt endure: yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; as a venture shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed:

27 But thou art the same, and thy years shall have no end.

28 The children of thy servants shall continue, and their seed shall be established before thee. (KJV)

When I read verses 1-11, I am reminded of the opening verses of Job. These could have been the words of Job after Satan put forth his hand against him. When these events happened Job’s, wife said to him “Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still hold fast your integrity? renounce God and die.” His answer to her was like verses 12-28 of this psalm “Thou speak as one of the foolish women speak. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?” Job’s view of God was solid which caused him to be blameless in the eyes of the Lord ” In all this did not Job sin with his lips”.

How does a person measure their relationship with God? The answer to this question varies on your beliefs about the character and attributes of God. Over the past several years that I start my journey of reading five psalms a day to help my prayer life I have seem that both my beliefs about God’s character and his attributes change. This is because my relationship with Him has changed. God is now not someone who I turn to in my time of need but is now someone who I desire to fellowship with daily. The events in my life are not always characterized by the first opening verses of this psalm; however, I have learned that God’s character is unchanging. Verse twelve states that the Lord sit enthroned forever, his renown endures through all generations. God will always be God. By staying daily in the psalms, I have realized that my knowledge of God grows daily and with this my relationship with him becomes deeper. To those who state that you cannot know God, fail to heed Christ’s words found in Matthew 11:29 “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls”.

Verses 25 through 27 are used by the author of the opening chapter of the book of Hebrews in verses 10-12. Verse eighteen “Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the LORD” points to the coming salvation from God that is available through work of Christ.

Psalm 101

1 I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O Lord, will I sing.

2 I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.

3 I will set no wicked thing before my eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me.

4 A forward heart shall depart from me: I will not know a wicked person.

5 Whoso privily slanders his neighbor, him will I cut off: him that hath an high look and a proud heart will not I suffer.

6 Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walks in a perfect way, he shall serve me.

7 He that works deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that tells lies shall not tarry in my sight.

8 I will early destroy all the wicked of the land; that I may cut off all wicked doers from the city of the Lord. (KJV)

This Psalm written by David reflects the way in which he tried to rule as King of Israel. The key to the way he ruled and lived his life was to live a blameless life.  I use the word blameless as it is found in verse two of the NIV instead of the word perfect as found here in the KJV.  The word blameless can be defined as free of guilt, not subject to blame, of irreproachable character, an unimpeachable reputation. Blameless does not mean sinless, nor does it imply perfection. A blameless lifestyle is a characteristic of one’s life that others encounter during our daily activity. Living a blameless life before others is not easy and usually is very difficult. Because the perception of living a blameless to others is viewed by our actions and not our motives a blameless lifestyle is very difficult to show to others. Unlike our physical appearance which people can see, our motives are not visible and must be weigh over time. So how do I groom my life to be blameless? The key is like the way I get my physical body ready every day. As I must get up each morning and make my physical appearance presentable before I venture out of the house each morning, I must also examine my heart to make sure that is it blameless before God and man. As you read this psalm considered the following examples that are in the Bible for us to model our walk after:

This is the account of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God. (Genesis 6:9)

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless. (Genesis 17:1)

I (David) have been blameless before him and have kept myself from sin. (II Samuel 22:24)
In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil. (Job 1:8)

Studying these four men, I realized that their blameless lifestyle is the result of a living a life of integrity. One key to this is to eliminate anything that causes me to harm others in a deceitful way. In our process of communicating with others we usually try to filter out the differences between what the other person is saying and that they really mean. In our process of communication, we must stop and examine the true motive behind our words and actions. Is what I say really what I mean, or is there a hidden agenda behind my words? So, one of the first steps in living a blameless life is the process of eliminating all secret motives from my words and my actions and be trueful in the way I communicate.  There are hundreds of verses from the New Testament that would reinforce this in the Christian life.  However, I Peter 2:1 is probably one of the best verses to consider as it states we are to lay aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies and all evil speaking.

Another step would be to remove all the vile things from my life. The word vile is defined as loathsome, disgusting, unpleasant, or objectionable. It is also used to describe behavior as contemptibly, miserably poor and degrading, wretched, morally depraved and wicked. In Psalm one this is one of the two steps in living a blessed life. The first step is to move toward God and seek him, and the second step is to stay away from those things against God’s way (vile things).   When you are with those that do not fear God and do not love the Bible you conversation changes to either not discussing the things of God or defending your belief in the personal relationship you have with the Lord.  The key in any walk is found in the book of III John.  We are to love the truth, walk in the truth, be fellow helpers to the truth, and having a life that bears witness that we walk in the truth.  We are not to follow after that which is evil, but that which is good. 

The final step is to read and mediate on God’s Word daily. Just read Psalm 119 for this truth to set in. The Word of God will lead you to live a blameless life.  In II Timothy 3:16,17 we are instructed to study the scriptures for doctrine (teaching), for reproof, for correction, and for instruction for righteousness so that the man of God will be perfectly furnished to provide good works for God.  The more we study the scriptures and apply them to our everyday living the more we will be able to give to the Lord a vessel meet for the master’s use.  

Psalm 100

1 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.

2 Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.

3 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him and bless his name.

5 For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endures to all generations. (KJV)

This is one of the first psalms (along with psalm 23) that we teach our children. Yes, it was from the King James Version that most of us remember. As we read the truths found in this psalm, we must also ask how much we apply these truths to our daily routine. Do we truly worship the Lord with gladness, or do we question His actions or lack of actions in the affairs of man? Do we come before him with joyful songs or does our praise seem to focus on the deeds of fallen man whom we have elevated above the common man? Do we look to him as creator when we look at the world around us, or do we try to explain the existence of this universe to other forces? When we said the phrase “we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture” does our daily activity reflect his righteousness and truth in every aspect of our labor? The phrase “the sheep of his pasture” should reflect a total guidance of our daily activities being led by him. Do we even in the darkest of times know that the Lord is good, and his love endures forever? When we consider the phase “and his truth endures to all generations” do we stop and reflect upon this truth? In John 14:6 Christ states that He is the way, the truth and the life and that no one comes to God, but through Him.

One of my many ready made for the moment sermons is found in I John chapter five.  The words found in this chapter is like this psalm, in that all you have to do is read it and the message is clear and does not need any explanation.

I. Witness of Victorious living found in verse four. For whatsoever (our faith) is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith.

II. Witness of men found in verse nine.  If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God.

III. Witness of God in you found in verse ten. He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself.

IV. Witness of answer Prayer found in verses fourteen and fifteen. And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.  And if we know that he hears us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.

V.  Witness of a clean life found in verse eighteen. We know that whosoever is born of God sins not:  but he that is born of God    keeps himself and that the wicked one touches him not.

VI. Witness of true love found in verse twenty-one. Little children, keep yourselves from idols.

Summary verse twelve.   He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath   not life.

By knowing the Lord, we can fulfill the first two verses “make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands. Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.”  This gives the believer the peace that passes all understanding.

Psalm 99

1 The Lord reigns; let the people tremble: he sits between the cherubims; let the earth be moved.

2 The Lord is great in Zion; and he is high above all the people.

3 Let them praise thy great and terrible name; for it is holy.

4 The king’s strength also loves judgment; thou dost establish equity, thou executes judgment and righteousness in Jacob.

5 Exalt ye the Lord our God, and worship at his footstool; for he is holy.

6 Moses and Aaron among his priests, and Samuel among them that call upon his name; they called upon the Lord, and he answered them.

7 He spake unto them in the cloudy pillar: they kept his testimonies, and the ordinance that he gave them.

8 Thou answers them, O Lord our God: thou wast a God that forgave them, though thou took vengeance of their inventions.

9 Exalt the Lord our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the Lord our God is holy. (KJV)

One of the first areas that I must address in my study of philosophy (the rational investigation of the truths and principles of being, knowledge, or conduct) is to define God. This Psalms gives these attributes of God (our Lord):

• The Lord reigns
• he sits enthroned between cherubim
• he is exalted over all the nations
• his name is great and awesome
• he is holy (use three times in this psalm)
• he is mighty
• he loves justice
• he has established equity
• he answers whose who call on him
• he is the God of Jacob and of Israel
• he spoke to Israel
• he gave them statutes and decrees
• he answers them and forgives them
• he punished their misdeeds
• he is to be exalted and worship.

This psalm gives us this list of the above attributes that those who walk in the way of the Lord see in their God.  May I be like those who make up the group that includes Moses, Aaron and Samuel.   This is not so for the ungodly.

I love the phase from verse six “he answers whose who call on him”.  It is amazing how much technology was developed in the last twenty-five years.  We can speak to a phone and will connect us to anyone in the world.  So when those around us question our prayer life, we can reply back “he answers whose who call on him” and I have had my request answered.  I John 5:14 “And this is the confidence we have before Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” informs me that God answer prayers long before we had the technology to communicate with others across the world.  Man can marvel in the achievements that he has created in the world around him, however, when compared to the creation of God, who just spoke and the universal was created, they are just a reflection of the godlike nature that God instilled in man when He created him. 

Psalm 97

1 The Lord reigns; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof.

2 Clouds and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne.

3 A fire goes before him and burns up his enemies round about.

4 His lightnings enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled.

5 The hills melted like wax at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.

6 The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory.

7 Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods.

8 Zion heard and was glad; and the daughters of Judah rejoiced because of thy judgments, O Lord.

9 For thou, Lord, art high above all the earth: thou art exalted far above all gods.

10 Ye that love the Lord, hate evil: he preserves the souls of his saints; he delivers them out of the hand of the wicked.

11 Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart.

12 Rejoice in the Lord, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.  (KJV)

As I researched the phase “righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne” this morning I realized that righteousness and justice have very different meanings to a wide vary of people. The more I researched the more complicated the definitions of righteousness and justice became. Righteousness is simply defined as an attribute that implies one’s actions are justified. It is a term in theology that is used to describe a person who is in a right relationship with God. Justice is simply defined as the concept of moral rightness. However, in my research I quickly came to the realization that the definition of moral rightness is really based upon the person’s view in which you are having a conversation with at the time. Of course, the definition of moral righteousness would change with every conversation. However, the book of the Psalms makes it clear who defines righteousness and that is the LORD.

As we go about the process of living in this world, we seem to have a misunderstanding of the order in which we place your priorities. It is His righteousness that should be the main priority that we seek and not our daily needs. In Matthew 6:33 the Lord states “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you”. As we consider our daily conversations with friends and family the topic of the problems in the daily events in our live usually rise to the surface and can become a major part of the conversation. Yet we must realize that this topic should not really be a concern for the believer. If we seek God’s righteous and justice, then all the things we need will be provided to us. Therefore, our priority in life should be living a blameless life seeking the kingdom of God, and not worrying about tomorrow.

As I look at the opening statement of this psalm it reads “The Lord reigns” I am reminded of the song I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day and recall some of the words of this song that Henry Longfellow wrote during the time of the Civil War:

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.”

As I look around me with all the wars and evils in this world today, I can see why people can ask “with so much evil how could God be in control?” Yet one hundred and sixty years ago Henry Longfellow had the answer. His answer “God is not dead, nor doth He sleep; the wrong shall fail, the right prevails”. The foundation of God’s throne is righteousness and justice. Paul declares this righteousness of God as a righteousness that comes through faith in Jesus Christ. We need never to forget this important fact of God’s righteousness. He did not just forgive our sins because he felt sorry for us; our sins were forgiven because they were atoned by the cross. Oswald Chambers writes about this forgiveness of God in his November 20 devotional:

“Forgiveness is the divine miracle of grace. The cost to God was the Cross of Christ. To forgive sin, while remaining a holy God, this price had to be paid. Never accept a view of the fatherhood of God if it blots out the atonement. The revealed truth of God is that without the atonement He cannot forgive— He would contradict His nature if He did. The only way we can be forgiven is by being brought back to God through the atonement of the Cross. God’s forgiveness is possible only in the supernatural realm.”

We must not forget that even though the foundation of God’s throne is righteousness and that justice had to be satisfied. It took the cross to make our unrighteousness right before God. This cost of this price to God can never be fully understood by us, but we can delight in it, and I believe that this delight brings pleasure to God.

Psalm 96

1 O sing unto the Lord a new song: sing unto the Lord, all the earth.

2 Sing unto the Lord, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day.

3 Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people.

4 For the Lord is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods.

5 For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the Lord made the heavens.

6 Honor and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

7 Give unto the Lord, O ye kindred of the people, give unto the Lord glory and strength.

8 Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name: bring an offering and come into his courts.

9 O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.

10 Say among the heathen that the Lord reigns: the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously.

11 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fullness thereof.

12 Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice

13 Before the Lord: for he comes, for he comes to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth. (KJV)

This is a psalm that proclaims the gospel of the Lord to the world.  It reveals a time that the Lord will come, he will come to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in his truth. Jesus spoke of this time in Matthew 25:1-13 where the Lord liken the kingdom of heaven to ten virgins, five of them wise and five of them foolish. Looking at verse 13 of this psalm, I reflect on these verses in Matthew 25 and ask the question “which description of the wise virgins would I fit into”.

Questions to ask yourself in self-examination:

• As I read this psalm about the Lord does my daily walk reflects the truth of God’s future judgment that I see in this psalm?
• Do I take lightly the salvation that God has provided for me in Christ?
• Do my daily actions proclaim this great salvation to those around me?
• Can those around me see the glorious work of transformation that God is performing in me daily to make me more Christ-like?
• Do I truly worship him with the glory due his name?
• Do I truly view him as creator of heaven and earth and worship him as creator?
• Do I truly fear the Lord?

I use three difference versions of the Bible in my studies of the Bible.  These versions are King James Versions (KJV), New American Standard Bible (NASB), and the New International Version (NIV).  In the NASB version verse two and three of this psalm reads, “Sing to the Lord, bless His name; Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.  Tell of His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.” These verses reflect on how important the proclamation of the gospel of the Lord is in our life.  In my daily conversation I realized how little the world in which we live in gives God the glory he desires. In Job chapter thirty-eight records God’s answer to Job “Who is this that darkened counsel by words without knowledge? Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee and answer thou me. Where was thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.”. There will be a day that the Lord will demand of us for the actions and deeds in our life. With this realization I ask, “who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge in this world today?”.   We are living in a world that needs to hear the gospel since almost all their desires are nothing but a love for the mere idols of the world and these in the end will be worthless.  So, as you read with psalm you must decide if you want to be a witness that darkens the knowledge of the Most High or if you want to be the one that daily proclaim the gospel of God to a world in need of a Savior? 

Psalm 95

1 O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.

2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.

3 For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods.

4 In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also.

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

6 O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker.

7 For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. Today if ye will hear his voice,

8 Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness:

9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work.

10 Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways:

11 Unto whom I swore in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest. (KJV)

Today as I was reading Oswald Chambers’ devotional for October nineteen, I could not help seeing how true his observations of the Christians of his day are also true in the society in which we live in today.

“The great enemy of the Lord Jesus Christ today is the idea of practical work that has no basis in the New Testament but comes from the systems of the world. This work insists upon endless energy and activities, but no private life with God. The emphasis is put on the wrong thing. Jesus said, “The kingdom of God does not come with observation . . .. For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:20-21). It is a hidden, obscure thing. An active Christian worker too often lives to be seen by others, while it is the innermost, personal area that reveals the power of a person’s life.”

Reading this Psalm, I picture the churches of my youth, churches that came together for a worship service. As I reflected on these services, they were services that meet the need of a young growing Christian who loved the Word of God. As a young Christian I was interested in reading and studying God’s Word and learning more about Jesus and his message. Today however, the message is having a Purpose in life, a system for living a productive life. This is the great enemy that I believe that Oswald Chambers is writing about in his devotion.

Instead of using God’s Word to defend the activities of the church and make God’s Word fit into the mold the church needs we should let the Bible speak to us on an individual basis. Today it seems that the light in the song “This Little Light of Mine” focus more on the activities that leads on how to live a purpose driven life instead of being the light of Christ that abides in me.

Reading this Psalm, I realized how the fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom. In verse eleven the Psalmist writes “So I declared on oath in my anger, “They shall never enter my rest” as a warning to us if we reject ways. This Psalm is tied to the very first three commandments “Thy should not have any God before me. Thou shall not make unto thee a graven image, nor any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shall not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them, for I Jehovah thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, upon the third and upon the fourth generation of them that hate me, and showing loving-kindness unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.” This same fear is what the author of Hebrews wrote about in Hebrews chapter four. With salvation comes a change. We turn from the lord of this world to the Lord of Creation. Therefore, keep your focus on Him.

Psalm 94

1 O Lord God, to whom vengeance belongs; O God, to whom vengeance belongs, shew thyself.

2 Lift up thyself, thou judge of the earth: render a reward to the proud.

3 Lord, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked triumph?

4 How long shall they utter and speak hard things? and all the workers of iniquity boast themselves?

5 They break in pieces thy people, O Lord, and afflict thine heritage.

6 They slay the widow and the stranger and murder the fatherless.                  

7 Yet they say, The Lord shall not see, neither shall the God of Jacob regard it.

8 Understand, ye brutish among the people: and ye fools, when will ye be wise?

9 He that planted the ear, shall he not hear? he that formed the eye, shall he not see?

10 He that chastises the heathen, shall not he correct? he that teaches man knowledge, shall not he know?

11 The Lord knows the thoughts of man, that they are vanity.

12 Blessed is the man whom thou chastens, O Lord, and teaches him out of thy law.

13 That thou may give him rest from the days of adversity, until the pit be dug for the wicked.

14 For the Lord will not cast off his people, neither will he forsake his inheritance.

15 But judgment shall return unto righteousness: and all the upright in heart shall follow it.

16 Who will rise up for me against the evildoers? or who will stand up for me against the workers of iniquity?

17 Unless the Lord had been my help, my soul had almost dwelt in silence.

18 When I said, My foot slips; thy mercy, O Lord, held me up.

19 In the multitude of my thoughts within me thy comforts delight my soul.

20 Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frames mischief by a law?

21 They gather themselves together against the soul of the righteous and condemn the innocent blood.

22 But the Lord is my defense; and my God is the rock of my refuge.

23 And he shall bring upon them their own iniquity and shall cut them off in their own wickedness; yea, the Lord our God shall cut them off. (KJV)

The cry for vengeance started back in Genesis 4:10 “The LORD said, ‘What have you done?’ Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground” or as stated in Hebrews 11:4 “By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead”. When studying the events in Genesis chapter four one will notice that when God did not look with favor on Cain’s offering that Cain became angry.  However, God still came to him and offered him a way back. “If you do what is right will you not be accepted”.

But if Cain did not want to do that which was right when then God stated “but if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.  However, Cain did let sin master him and in his angry killed his brother. Wickedness has a way of controlling us, but God has provided a way out and that is through Christ.

In I John 3: 11-12 “For this is the message which we heard from the beginning that we should love one another: “not as Cain was of the evil one and slew his brother. And therefore, slew he him? Because his works were evil and his brother’s righteous” reveals the difference between the way Cain lived and the way Abel lived. This difference of the two ways has been with us from the beginning of time. The only difference between these two different ways or walks is their relationship with God. The ungodly way can be characterized as godless, in other words it is a way that does not include God at all. The godly way is the walk that is pleasing to God and seeks to know him as the Lord of the believer’s walk. In this psalm we see examples of God’s judgment on both ways. In verse 23 God repays the wicked for sins by destroying them. In verse 12 the way of the righteous is blessed by God’s discipline which teaches them his law. Your walk then is determined by whether you include God in it or whether you chose to keep God out of it. This is your chose. However, the end of your walk and the reward that you will at the end of this walk will be determined by God. So, choose wisely.

Verse eleven “The Lord knows the thoughts of man, that they are vanity.” reflects the words of the Preacher found in Ecclesiastes 1:2 “Vanity of vanities, said the Preacher, vanity of vanities, allis vanity”.  God has given us the Holy Scriptures to answer all the of the many questions we should ever face in life.  As I read verse eleven to and reflected on the words of Ecclesiastes 1:2 I decided to read all twelve chapters of this book that was written by Solomon.  Having studied the life of Solomon in great detail, I believe that he wrote this book late in life after the Lord revealed to him that He would take away his kingdom from him except for the tribe of Judah for David’s sake. Reading the Book of Ecclesiastes, it is clear that as we reason about the journey of life that we pursue in this life is just vanity of vanities.  It is only when we truly apply Ecclesiastes 12:13 “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:  Fear God and keep his commandments:  for this is the whole duty of man.” that we can live a life that is truly fulfilling.