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our responsibility in our spiritual battle

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Meditation Journey Day 51      

Hi Friend,

King David’s response to seeing evil is:

Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God! Men of blood, depart from me! They speak against you with malicious intent; your enemies take your name in vain!  Psalm 139:19

We have seen how David has been made aware of God’s loving kindness in verses 1-18 of Psalm 139, and he has embraced the precious thoughts God has about him. Now he sees the evil in and around him in vivid colors. His first reaction was to expect God to destroy them; his second response was to simply expect them to leave. God wants us to do more in a battle with evil.

God wants us to do more in a battle with evil.

In verse 20, David turns to God and petitions Him once more; this time for God to defend God’s good name.  “They speak against you (God) with malicious intent; your enemies take your name in vain!” David is still expecting God to do what only David can do, which is take the responsibility for the sin he has in his life.

rosevelt(Please note, I know the battle is the LORD’s and it is His power that defeats the enemy, but there is a personal responsibility in our spiritual battles that we must accept. It is not that we must pay for our sin because we cannot. Jesus Christ is our Redeemer and justifier.  Our responsibility is to accept our choices and to bring them to God in humility. The battles are allowed so that we might seek His grace and power to work through us. Our spiritual battles are allowed by Him to transform us, not just to change our circumstances. Romans 8:28-29)

What David is saying is true; the enemy does speak against God. Satan always wants to malign the character of God. People that speak maliciously about God or the Bible do have evil thoughts working in their minds. They ignore that God’s word judges them, they do not judge it!

God’s enemies do take His name in vain. When we think ugly thoughts about God we concur with the evil of this world. If we allow the thoughts of the wicked to become our thoughts, we set ourselves against God.

God wants David to understand that the evil facing him in his spiritual battle will only be changed as David makes the internal decision to be in total agreement and dependence on God. God never makes anyone believe in Him. God always honors our freedom to choose.  He allows the wicked to be wicked, and He gives us, His Beloved, opportunity to become Christ-like as we take ownership of our behavior.

“God wants David to understand that the evil facing him in his spiritual battle will only be changed as David makes the internal decision to be in total agreement and dependence on God.”

What David is doing up to this point in the process is typical of human nature. We think God or someone else will be the solution to our problems. That is not how God wants to relate to us. He wants us to trust Him by faith, therefore, giving us the spiritual tools to allow Him to work through us. Spiritual transformation is always from the inside out. We must receive God’s life in our human spirit and grow Christ’s nature in us through faith and obedience.

Our natural thinking is to ask God to change our circumstances to our liking, and if God does not do what we think is right, we typically resent His decision.  However, God has another agenda for us. He redeemed us to transform us internally by way of our trusting and obeying Him. We are naturally on a track to be conformed externally to our surrounding environment. But the Holy Spirit wants us to be spiritually transformed by God’s word internally (Romans 12). It all depends on whether or not we turn to God and humbly take responsibility for the choices we make.

Observation: In verse 20, David continues his typical human response to the problem of evil. He is expecting God to remove it. Only this time He is appealing to God’s honor as the basis of why God must act. However, God has an eternal desire for His Beloved to be transformed from the inside out to become Christ-like. 

Interpretation: When we see God’s goodness and kindness, as we observe in Psalm 139, the evil in the world and in our lives challenges its veracity. We naturally hope God will remove it or that it will just go away. God in His perfect wisdom designed us not just to know the truth but to become like Christ. That only happens as we are transformed internally by His eternal power. This happens as we nurture the new nature of Christ in us by engrafting His word and yielding to His Spirit.

Application Prayer: Father God, Thank you for insisting I grow in my faith by making me take responsibility for the evil in my life. Give me the grace to trust your word and to yield to your Spirit as I fight the good fight of faith. … in Jesus Name, Amen.

What is your take away?

 

 

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the spiritually normal response

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Meditation Journey Day 50       

Hi Friend,

What is the spiritually normal response to truth?

We are now in the Valley of Victory of Psalm 139:19-22. These verses are a pattern and process of how we gain Victory over evil and sin in our own life. They come after we have seen the beauty of the LORD in the preceding verses 1-18. David is displaying what our hearts will do when we have seen the Lord’s loving-kindness and gracious mercy.

This is the process of repentance and it is the spiritually normal response.

Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God! Men of blood, depart from me!

What David is saying is, LORD I see your truth and hold your thoughts precious in my change-1heart. Now I know the wickedness around me and in me and I do not like it! Turning towards God, David asks, “God, can you please change my circumstances?” Then David turns towards the evil and says, “Men of blood, depart from me!” David is sick of the sin his eyes see and his heart is burdened by the evil associations he has accepted. His expectations are that God will remove them and change the circumstance. David then turns to the men of blood and hopes that by simply telling them to leave the problem will be solved. It won’t.

The wicked and the men of blood, while they may have been real people to David, are metaphors of the lies and half-truths we believe.

The wicked and the men of blood, while they may have been real people to David, are metaphors of the lies and half-truths we believe. The wicked thoughts that we believe have been leading us to rebellion and darkness. They are the seeds of bitterness and rejection that tell us God does not love us. The evil thoughts are lusts of all kinds that sell us pleasure as a sanctuary of false peace. The men of blood are demon’s lies that murder our hope and slaughter our purpose. Friend, they will not go away simply because we ask.

The Holy Spirit is powerful enough to destroy them all independently of us, but He does not always choose to exercise His power.

repent-turnaround1Why, because He wants us to gain the victory from the inside out. He wants us to “stand strong in the Lord and the power of His might” with an internal confidence in God. How we stand in the Lord’s power will come clearer as we proceed on this journey. Just remember what you have learned to this point. The Holy Spirit has given us God’s precious thoughts in Psalm 139 and now He wants us to receive it, believe it and obey it. This is the only path the world, sin, and Satan will be defeated in our lives.

Observation: David sees the wickedness around him and he responds in the spiritually normal way of wanting freedom and change. His first two responses to the realization he needs change are typical and non-productive. David was expecting God to change his circumstances or he hoped they would just go away on their own accord.

Interpretation: The road to spiritual victory starts with the Holy Spirit revealing to us God’s loving kindness. He leads us to the foot of the cross to see the grace poured out on us. That is what we have been receiving through Psalm 139:1-18. Jesus Christ’ sacrifice on the cross obtained all the blessings we have received from God. As we become alive in Christ, the wickedness of this world becomes more uncomfortable. Our response typically is to expect God to change our circumstances. He could but He does not because He wants an internal and everlasting transformation of our hearts.

Application Prayer: Father God, Thank you for your gracious mercy revealed in Jesus Christ dying for me. I know all your grace freely flows to me through His death, burial and resurrection. As I receive your precious thoughts and obey them the sin in my life becomes more obvious. It challenges your word and resists your truth. Help me to take the responsibility to internally allow you to change me. … in Jesus Name, Amen.

What is your take away?

Slay the wicked, O God!

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Meditation Journey Day 49     

Hi Friend,

Have you ever felt like David did in Psalm 139:19? He cries out, “Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God!” God, will you please get rid of the evil around me?

That cry begins the process for David to gain a victory in his spiritual battle. It is where we begin too! Keep in mind while David may have been thinking of literal bad people in his world whereas our spiritual battle is not against flesh and blood. Our battles are against the lies and half truths pressed upon us by the world, the devil, and our own sinful nature.

Keep in mind while David may have been thinking of literal bad people in his world whereas our spiritual battle is not against flesh and blood. Our battles are against the lies and half truths pressed upon us by the world, the devil, and our own sinful nature.

David has journeyed through the wonderful truths of verses 1-18 in his song of praise to God, Psalm 139. As he becomes aware that all the heavenly blessings are true he also realizes the wickedness he has accepted in his life. He has internalized God’s loving kindness, and it has changed his perspective of The LORD, himself and the evil around him. He now understands he has been living by Satan’s thoughts and the world’s values. Radical change is coming to David; he is beginning to be transformed as he puts off the lies of Satan and puts on the truth of God. This is also our first step to being transformed. When we see God as He really is and ourselves through the lens of His precious thoughts, we will change our direction and perspective to His way. The Bible calls this repentance.

Anytime we read, hear or see the kindness of God and do not breathe a prayer repentof humble thanks for His mercy; we are not receiving His truth into our hearts.

Repentance always happens in our lives when we receive God’s kindness and embrace His goodness revealed in Jesus Christ. Listen to what Paul wrote about repentance, “Do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?” All the truth of the first eighteen verses of Psalm 139 is God’s kindness to us. It was given by the Holy Spirit to lead us to change our direction and repent. Anytime we read, hear or see the kindness of God and do not breathe a prayer of humble thanks for His mercy; we are not receiving His truth into our hearts. We would then be presuming on God’s grace. The Holy Spirit is trying to transform us through God’s thoughts, and we resist Him by thinking they are not important! We assume God is not speaking about me, or we consider the Bible as a book just written by man and doubt its truthfulness. You may be presuming at this very moment I am not in need of this message! Remember the first step in receiving God’s Word is to realize it is a personal word from God to us (Proverbs 2). All our negative presuming about God’s Word is just a form of arrogance and pride.

David did receive God’s thoughts as precious, and now he sees the wickedness all around him. The prophet Isaiah experienced the same repentant attitude when he saw the Lord high and lifted up in the temple. He cried out, “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” All through the Bible, we have accounts of people who saw the Lord’s grace and kindness and they melted into a new perspective of God and themselves. It always happens when we encounter the Living God! I pray it begins to happen to you as you humbly receive the precious thoughts in Psalm 139:1-18. 

You will know you have begun to transform when you become aware of the lies you have accepted about God and yourself. David cried, “Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God!” He was saying, God, please get rid of the evil I now see in me and around me! Are you beginning to experience a changing attitude toward God and yourself as you journey through Psalm 139?

This is the point where the spiritual battle rages all the time. What we believe about God and ourselves is the critical point of us gaining freedom. Psalm 139 paints a grace-filled picture of Father God’s love and kindness. The more that becomes clear the more we can see the evil we have believed and accepted into our hearts. Then we too will become very uncomfortable with the world’s evil that we accept and the secular thoughts we embrace. We will also begin to cry out, O God take away the wickedness in my heart and in my world!

Observation: Verses 19 is David’s cry as he becomes aware of the evil around him. This is the first step of transformation when we have actually received and internalized God’s precious thoughts.

Interpretation: Verses 19-22 are a model of the process of repentance. It may be somewhat different for each person, but it contains the basic process to walk us through repentance. Each step is another layer of transformation in our walk of faith. If this process of internal change is not happening in us; then we are assuming that the message is not true or not for us. We are probably not nurturing our spiritual garden. Have you hidden any of Psalm 139 in your hearts ?

Application Prayer: Father God, I see you in a different light through the words of Psalm 139. I view myself different too. I am ashamed of the lies I have believed, and I pray that you will remove the evil from my life. Please slay my sinfulness and the wickedness in me  … in Jesus Name, Amen.

What is your take away?

How to win the Spiritual War!

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Meditation Journey Day 48              

Hi Friend,

Today we begin a very practical and critically important section of Psalm 139. At first look verses, 19-22 do not feel like they should be in this Psalm. Up till now, we have received one gracious blessing after another.

Through Psalm 139:1-16, we learned God esteems us worthy of His constant attention and time. He never leaves us, His Beloved, because He cares so deeply about our welfare. He chose us and created us for a glorious purpose. Then in verse 19-22 the tone changes and the air is charged with anger and hate. The vitriol is not God’s attitude towards David, but it is David’s feelings toward the wicked.

Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God! Men of blood, depart from me! They speak against you with malicious intent; your enemies take your name in vain! Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD? And do I not loathe those who rise up against you? I hate them with complete hatred; I count them, my enemies! Psalm 139:19-22

What is curious about the passage is that it is mostly a discussion between David and God. David only gives one negative sentence to the bloody men; the rest of the passage is David speaking to God and himself.

hit-1This is a model of how to win the spiritual warfare that every Christian faces. Over the next several days we will dissect this passage to learn the course of action we must take to resist Satan. The Holy Spirit wants us to understand this because He desires to destroy the Enemy’s strongholds in our minds.

Jesus said He came to give us abundant life, yet many Christians walk in defeat. Every day they are badgered by guilt, shame or fear. If we personally receive God’s thoughts about us in Psalm 139 and obediently believe them we can experience what Jesus promised. We need to trust His word and believe it is possible for us to continually experience the abundant life Jesus promised.

Here are some basic facts about this war. The spiritual battle of a Christian’s life is unavoidable. Our primary enemy is Satan, he hates God and all God has created and loves, therefore, he hates us. Jesus described Satan clearly when He said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy” (John 10).

The devil and his minions are the enemies; not any person in your life. Paul made it clear in Ephesians 6 that “we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” When we are mentally fighting with people we are losing the battle and Satan just laughs.

The battlefield of this continual war is in our minds. The weapon we use to defend ourselves and destroy Satan’s strongholds is the Word of God. The power of this lethal weapon is the Spirit of the Living God. Our role in this fight is to yield to God’s Spirit and engraft His word into our hearts and minds. As we humble ourselves to God, He gives us the grace to resist Satan and causes him to flee. (James 4).

Our role in this fight is to yield to God’s Spirit and engraft His word into our hearts and minds. As we humble ourselves to God, He gives us the grace to resist Satan and causes him to flee. (James 4).

The Christian life does not work for many people because they do not yield to God’s Spirit and obey God’s word. Learning how to resist Satan and his deadly temptations is a major step in living a healthy spiritual life. If you embrace the truth of this Psalm you will have a solid framework to nurture your faith in God and experience a confident relationship with Christ.

Please notice I never said you would have a pain free, struggle free, or conflict free life. SurrenderThat is heaven’s reward. What God gives to us here is a joyous life filled with His presence and peace.

The battle is raging. I pray you will put on the armor of God’s precious thoughts and stand against the enemy.

Observation: In verses, 19-22 David’s tone has changed from praise and wonder of God’s blessing to anger and hatred towards God’s enemies. We are in a spiritual war with evil and we must learn how God designed us to win. Remember we wrestle not against flesh and blood!

Interpretation: Through this section, we begin to see the battle in which we are engaged. This passage is a model of how we defeat sin, Satan and the lies of the world. Many Christians are defeated by the Enemy because they do not yield themselves to God’s Spirit and believe His precious thoughts.

Application Prayer: Father God, Teach me to fight the good fight of faith. I chose to humble myself to your gracious thoughts revealed in Psalm 139. I believe you see me worthy of loving. I believe you are always with me and have created me to be a blessing. Help me to resist Satan’s lies and keep me close to you. … in Jesus Name, Amen.

What is your take away?

 

Spiritual Battle: The Eternal Perspective!

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Meditation Journey Day 47

These two verses give us the strategy we need for our daily conflict with sin and Satan.

Hi Friend,

spiritual-warfareSoon we will enter the Valley of Victory, verses 19-22 in Psalm 139. Those verses describe our spiritual war zone. In preparation for the battle ahead, we need to continue unpacking verses, 17-18, “How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with you.”

These two verses give us the strategy we need for our daily conflict with sin and Satan. The three main points of these verses are:

1) Our proper attitude toward God’s word: It is the only way of truth and it is a precious treasure.

2) Our confidence in God’s Love: It is sustained by the vast amount of His blessings.

3) Our commitment to persevere: He is with us whatever the outcome of a battle might be.

 

We have already looked at the first two points; today we need to grasp the third critical element.

In light of all, God had revealed about His love for us; David concludes: “I awake, and I am still with you.”  Remember King David was a warrior. His conclusion is not just a sweet thing to say about God, but a part of the strategic thinking we need to have if we are to defeat the evil in our earthly nature (Col.3). We think of David as the boy who slew Goliath with a sling, but he fought many battles in hand to hand combat. As a grown man who has survived a war and been hunted by King Saul, he had a great appreciation for God keeping him alive. However, this statement goes beyond being safe in this world. David is revealing the eternal perspective a victorious person must have to win. This eternal perspective says no matter what the enemy does to me I know God will take care of me and I will emerge victoriously.

This eternal perspective says no matter what the enemy does to me I know God will take care of me and I will emerge victoriously.

This was the confidence the three Hebrew men had when the Babylonian King tried to firey-furnacemake them worship the golden statue of his image. If they refused to obey King Nebuchadnezzar then they would be thrown into a fiery furnace. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego confidently refused to disobey God and gave this reply to the pagan King, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up” (Daniel 3). The three men had a faith that was totally confident in the outcome of their standing for truth. This is what David is implying when he wrote, “I awake, and I am still with you.”  No matter what I will face God, I know you are with me and you will sustain me.

To face our spiritual battles we too need to have the ultimate confidence in God’s truth. If you learn to meditatively engraft God’s word into your heart you will grow in your confidence of His love and care. This is the way to walk in victory; trusting in His word and relying on His Spirit.

 

Observation: David was so confident in God’s love that he could trust Him whatever the outcome of a battle might be.

Interpretation: To face the giants in our lives we need to have a deep conviction that truth will win. God’s thoughts are precious because they reveal the vast love God gives to us. Knowing this is true gives us a strong confidence that we can stand with truth in our lives no matter the cost.

Application Prayer: Father God, help me to engraft your word into my heart. Infuse into my mind the precious thoughts you revealed to David in Psalm 139. Help me to trust your word in all circumstances no matter what the cost maybe. … in Jesus Name, Amen.

What is your take away?

You are Wonderfully Made!

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Meditation Journey Day 42                         

Hi Friend,

Did you know you were intricately woven in the depths of the earth? I did not either until I read verse 15 of Psalm 139. David is writing beautiful Hebrew poetry about our prenatal development: “My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth.” In these words of wisdom the Holy Spirit is revealing another facet of our unique purpose.

Shine 3The “depths of the earth” is our mother’s womb. The term “frame” does not just describe our skeletal structure. It is metaphor for the frame in which a beautiful tapestry is woven together. Medical science tells us that each person has between twenty to thirty thousand genes that determine everything about their physical make up. Our genes are like the strands of fabric that, in the secret place of the womb, God wove our being together as an artist would weave a masterpiece. Each strand of fabric He chose is of a different color and strength. We are uniquely made and created by God for our moment on the stage of life. He “intricately” wove into our makeup just the right strengths, weakness, talents and abilities to give us an exclusive way to glorify Him and serve others.

The application of this truth to our lives is immensely important. All too often we disregard our uniqueness and compare ourselves to others. The Bible says comparison thinking is unwise “We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise” 2 Corinthians 10.

When we compare ourselves to others it is easy to come to the conclusion we are deficient in some way.  Or just the reverse happens. We compare ourselves to others, and we assume we are in some way superior. Both are traps of Satan and lead to rejecting ourselves or rejecting others. God says, in Isaiah 45, that when we reject ourselves we reject Him. When we reject other people on this criterion we are assuming a position of arrogance that is unwise.  We must stop comparing ourselves to other people, because God has really made us all different. There is no one like us and there never will be anyone just like us!

By design, He created us to reveal His workmanship. This is exactly what Paul wrote: “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” Ephesians 2. How could we compare ourselves to anyone when we are all designed differently to glorify God in distinctive ways?

It is also unwise to compare yourself to any one because God is the only one that knows all the twists and turns your life will take. He designed us to shine for Him in the mist of darkness, trials and tribulation that we cannot imagine. We may envy someone’s strength or beauty thinking they are so healthy looking not knowing they are filled with cancer! Only He knows the health issues we will experience. Only He knows the people we will meet and places we will go. There are no circumstances we will encounter that God does not know. He prepared us in advance to face all of life with His grace.

This is the key to appreciating our individual differences. Every strength, weakness, talent Shine 2and ability God has “intricately woven” into our being was given to glorify Him through His grace and strength.  We fulfill His purpose for our lives when He is living and loving through us. We are like light bulbs of different shapes, sizes and colors that only glow when the electricity of His Spirit radiates through us. If you think you have limitations, flaws or special “birth marks”, commit all your weakness to Him and allow them to become reminders of His design. Do not be distracted from His grace by comparing yourself to others. Allow the strong points and the weak points of your humanness to turn your heart to Him in humble gratefulness. We need to remember He works all things together for our good and His glory Romans 8. Then we will sing with David the song of the redeemed, “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.”

Walk in peace today knowing your Father prepared you in advance to glorify Him in the mist of your joys, trials, and struggles. Pray for others too and share this post; we all need this encouragement.

Observation: David wrote a beautiful poetic description of our prenatal development in verse 15. We are uniquely created. We show how unwise (ignorant) we are when we compare ourselves to others.

Interpretation: This verse reveals how God wove into our lives all the special strengths and weakness that makes us unique. We are designed to glorify Him at all times and in all places. We need to allow our strong and weak points to remind us He especially created us.

Application Prayer: Father God, thank you for making me. I do appreciate and thank you for designing my strengths and weaknesses. Help me to turn my focus to you every time I am tempted to compare myself to others. Help me to allow the electricity of Your Spirit to flow though me so that I can shine Your light into the darkness of this world. I am grateful for the way you wove me together. I accept myself as a gift from you. … in Jesus Name, Amen.

What is your take away?

 

Who are You???

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Meditation Journey Day 40                            

Hi Friend, ready to break camp and move on? This meditative journey into Psalm 139 has been exciting to me even though I have been walking through it for many years. This is true of all God’s Word. It never becomes boring when He walks us through His beautiful Kingdom of grace.

Ahead on our journey, in verses 13-16, are the  majestic mountains

VLUU L200 / Samsung L200

Majestic Mountains of Purpose

of Purpose. From their heights we will see the amazing and wonderful way God made us. David, the author of this psalm, will break into spontaneous praise and thanksgiving as he marvels at God’s creative work. I pray that we too will have eyes to see God’s beautiful purpose in us. God, help us to have ears to hear the whispers of Your joy in us in the gentle breeze of the Holy Spirit.

Today, please pause and read through these four verses of Psalm 139:13-16 several times. Allow the Holy Spirit to begin to engraft them into your soul.

 “For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.  I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.  My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth.  Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”

The world says we are simply biological accidents that emerged from the slime; just smart Hex coil 1germs. God says we are His beloved children made for a holy and high purpose. We have been formed to be His instruments of grace and love.

Remember, God’s word is “living and active.” (Hebrews 4) As you humbly receive His word you allow it to work in your heart. Receiving the truth that God has a divine and unique purpose for some people is very hard to believe. Please pray with me that each of us reading this today will began to see the distinctive and very special person God created us to be.

Observation: David gives us the revelation of how and why God created us in verses 13-16. He is overwhelmed by the purpose and plans of God for his life.

Interpretation: Knowing we are created by God with purpose is a powerful understanding. The world says people are just naked apes that come and go like any other animal. God’s word shatters that lie as we receive and believe the truth through Psalm 139.

Application Prayer: Father God, Thank you for making me. I am in awe that you take such interest in me. I am sure I will never fully understand why you saved me, but please help me to glorify you each day. Please help me to fulfill the purpose you created me for in this world. … in Jesus Name, Amen.

What is your take away?

Does God Dance with you?

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Meditation Journey Day 38

Hi Friend,

Psalm 139 is a very condensed communication of God’s mercy and loving kindness to each of us. It is reasonable to believe God loves me when I am doing well, but to think He still loves me at my worst stretches my faith.

Consider verses 9 & 10 in our journey: “If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.” They tell us of the tender and reassuring love of God even when we are very sinful and rebellious. It is reasonable to believe God loves me when I am doing well, but to think He still loves me at my worst stretches my faith. In Psalm 139 this is exactly what David, the writer f this Psalm, is reporting.

First, I need to tell you why I can say God’s love is so consistent even when we are willfully disobeying Him. The very simple answer is Jesus’s sacrifice. Jesus Christ died for all our sin; all our past rebellion, present willfulness, and even our future wickedness. Trusting His sacrifice pays for all the moral debt we owe. When we put our faith in His righteousness we also receive His merit of goodness. From the moment we exchange our rags of self-righteousness for His moral purity, God looks at us differently. Paul said it this way,

“What this means is that those who become Christians become new persons. They are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone. A new life has begun! All this newness of life is from God, who brought us back to himself through what Christ did…  For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.” 2 Corinthians 5

Now read the verses again, “If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.” David is remembering times when he willfully and rebelliously ran from God. He wanted to fly away and find a place where he could live his own way. No matter where David went he found God there! What is remarkable to David and should be to us, is God’s attitude and actions towards David. Notice God’s one hand is leading David and the other, God’s right hand is holding David. Allow me to suggest this is a dancing position. God is facing David looking at him directly in the eyes and God’s left hand is holding David’s right hand. God’s right hand is around David’s waist and holding him.

Knowing more about the hands is very important in our meditation. The right hand is a term in scripture that refers to the power and might of a person.  The right hand of God is a metaphor for all the power of God! Consider with me the placement of the hands in these verses.  David’s right hand, all his human strength, is being held and directed by God’s left hand. It is when David’s strength is finally rendered powerless that he realizes he is in the hands of God. He is at the end of his rope and yet God is leading him. God’s right hand, His power and might, is holding David. Just like David, at our most wretched moments when we are in rebellion to God, he is still holding and leading us. This is hard to Dance 3imagine but the placement of Father God’s hands resemble the placement of someone dancing! Is it possible that when we are at our worst God posture is to dance with us!!!  Grace says this is true, but our minds resist this kind of grace.

That my friend is the kind of love I need and have found in Jesus Christ. I find this overwhelmingly kind and precious of God to be so patient with my failure and sin. This Psalm made it real to me at my worse moments, and God will reveal the depth of His great love for you as you fill your mind and heart with His Word.  Remember Proverbs 2, “My, Child if you will receive my word…”

Have you taken the wings of the morning? Do you wish to run away from life and are you struggling against the grip of God? Know that at your worse He is still dancing with you. Please turn to Him now and trust Him so the dance can be enjoyed by both of you!

My your day be filled with grace and peace…. from the Lover of your soul…Jesus!

 

Observation: David finds even when he willfully runs from God, The Lord never leaves him. He also realizes that when he is in rebellion God is still holding him.

Interpretation: God’s attitude and actions at David’s greatest failures is pure grace and love. The way God is holding David appears to be a loving and kind posture. This is a picture of great grace and mercy at our lowest moments.

Application Prayer: Father God, thank you for sending Jesus and covering my sin. I was so afraid that when I chose my own way you would leave me in my brokenness. Knowing that you are always there holding me helps me trust you and relax in your faithful love. … in Jesus Name, Amen.

What is your take away?

Does Jesus Know You?

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The Meditative Journey has been on hold as I went through knee surgery and recovery for the last month. We are now back on track.

Meditation Journey Day 34                          

Hi Friend,

One last thought about knowing Jesus Christ. It is not enough for us to think we know Him; what is critical after we die is that He knows us. In Matthew’s gospel, chapter seven, Jesus responds to some people with one of the scariest replies in the whole Bible.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

This is very unsettling because the double use of the word “Lord” indicates they thought they were close to God. They also believed what they accomplished for Him was very impressive. These deceived people really thought that just performing religious works was all God was expecting from His followers.

When David wrote that the LORD knew him it was in a very personal way. It is more than God knowing everything about every person at all times. That is what the Bible describes, and theologians teach, as the omniscience or all-knowing of God. What David means when he discovers that the LORD has searched him and knows him was that God knew him in a personal way.

RelationshipThe meaning behind the phrase, “the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” is achieved when we love Him with all our hearts and love others as He has loved us. The ability to obey God comes from a loving relationship with Him. David had that relationship with God in an intimate and interactive way. It is only as we have a personal close relationship with Jesus that we will actually do His will and not just follow man’s religious dictates.  

David knew God and God knew him because David was dependent on God. He knew that without the Living God being with him, he had no spiritual life. Jesus taught this in John 15 when He said, “I AM the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” We can do much religious activity, even impressive sacrifices, but God wants our undivided love. Paul wrote: “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.” 1 Corinthians 13

Jesus wants a genuine relationship with us. In John 15, He called this abiding in Him. “Abiding” is a very dependent relational term that reveals a living connection that is continually nourished through interaction. It means to dwell with God.  I may visit many places to sleep and eat, but I dwell at my home. Does Jesus dwell with you continually? Do you interact with Him on a personal intimate basis or is your relationship formal and religious? Is God personally with you all the time or does He just live at some building we call church? The people Jesus rejected and declared He did not know had the attitude that you left God at the building. They had a formal relationship with God that only functioned within their set of rules.

Relationship 1David realized The LORD is the living God with whom we enter into a relationship of love on a personal basis. This relationship is illustrated by a godly marriage where the man and wife relate to each other in a continual and intimate way (Ephesians 5). Jesus doesn’t want to just date you. He wants to take you home and be your husband!!! You may think you know Him, but does He know you?

You can be sure He knows you, if you have a continual humble dependent attitude towards your Loving Savior and His Word.

He said it clearly in John 15:7. “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” Then when we cry Lord, Lord, He will be attentive to our call.

Observation: God wants to know us personally.  He knows everything about everybody, because He is omniscient. What He created us for is to have intimate personal fellowship with us. The question is not do we know Jesus, but have we yielded to Him in humble love so He can know us?

Interpretation: Religion can deceive people into thinking God just expects us to keep righteous rules. Jesus died on the cross and rose again so we could know Him and He could know us…in a personal and close relationship. Do you have that kind of a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ?

Application Prayer: Father God thank you for sending Jesus to become The Door to Heaven and open fellowship with You. I want to know you and I want you to know me. I yield my heart to you and humble myself to your Word.…in Jesus Name, Amen.

What is your take away?

 

 

 

EUREKA!

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Meditation Journey Day 32

“Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain unto it.” Psalm 139:6

Hi Friend,

We now have journeyed through the first five verses of Psalm 139. It is a gold mine of God’s wisdom and truth about us. I am praying for each of us to have the EUREKA moment that King David did as he considered how God thinks of him and cares for him. David was transformed by the truth that the Great I AM valued him so highly. He was overwhelmed and amazed, probably on his knees, with a mixture of joy and holy reverence towards God.

2planting seedsFather God deeply desires that we will realize the depth of His love and how highly He values us too!!!  My Friend, the process to know God this way is revealed in Proverbs 2:1-5.  As we receive His Living Word, Christ Jesus, continually eating the Bread of Life and surrendering to The Holy Spirit, the reality of His grace will bloom in your heart! We can receive the eternal life of Christ and be born again in a moment, but the growth and transformation process to be formed into the image of Christ is like growing a garden. It takes time and patience.

Note how David responds to this gracious knowledge of God’s love. To him it is “too VLUU L200 / Samsung L200wonderful”, “it is high” and David acknowledges its comprehension is beyond him. He is humbled by the treasure he has found in Christ; over joyed by the realization that Father God, The Great I AM, is so close, so concerned and ever caring of him. At the same time he understands that there is much more, and he is only touching the very bottom, not the top, of God’s mountain of love! His cries are full of profound humility as he recognizes the greatness of God’s mercy and love. David is blessed by the assurance of God’s love, but he is also humbled that he has just beginning to comprehend how highly God values him. 

God also tells us this in Isaiah 55.

“My thoughts are not your thoughts and your ways are not My ways”, declares the LORD! “For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so are my ways higher than you ways and My thoughts than your thoughts”

For us to believe what God says about us begins in a moment of faith, but the reality of that belief only grows and blossoms as we tend the garden of our hearts. I urge you to read Proverbs 2:1-5 today and humble yourself to God asking Him to lead you deeper into His heart.

                                   

Observation: David is overwhelmed by God’s gracious loving kindness and how he is valued by Him. He has just beginning to see himself as God sees him.  

Interpretation: What David experienced we too can experience. God has revealed the truths of Psalm 139:1-5 because He loves us each just as He loved David. The real question is will we plant the seeds of truth, God’s Word, in our hearts and tend it with humility and obedience so that it can yield the fruit of the Spirit in us? Then we can cry out with joyful praise: “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain unto it.”

Application Prayer: Father I want to know you and receive Your eternal life and grace. Today I choose to accept The Living Word into my heart. Forgive me of all my sin and fill me with your Holy Spirit. I need to know your great love for me and to live in the peace and joy of your Presence. Give me grace to walk in your truth. …in Jesus Name, Amen.

What is your take away?