God Delights in Relationship

Psalm 147:10 His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of a man; 11 the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.

What a creator God we have! He is so unlike ourselves.

When we create something--a machine, a work of art, a sport's team, an army, a corporation, a "10" body for fitness, any social group, a computer chip, a fast car, a powerful rocket, a new culinary dish--we mostly find our pleasure in the function performed--the specs, the accomplishments, the records broken, the utilitarian aspects.

Not so God. He who created the universe, the earth and all it contains--the planet itself in all its related physical systems, the super-fantastic, abundant diversity of animal and plant life--this God has every reason to take pleasure and delight in the physical performance, beauty, and functionality of all He has created. But He takes no pleasure in the strength of a horse, nor does He delight in the legs of a man.

Where does God find His pleasure and delight? In relationships of humans with Himself--"the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love."

To "fear" God in this sense is to have a right knowledge of who God is and to put ourselves in the right context beside Him--we are very small and unworthy next to God. To fear God is to respect, love, and obey Him. God finds pleasure and delight in men who know and hope in His character, knowing that He is love itself.

God finds His pleasure and delight in relationship with man. No one who has read and understood this verse can ever say and believe, "Deos ex machina." No, God loves His creation and sent His Son to die on the cross to bring all men back into right relationship with Him. Not the strength of a horse, nor the legs of a man, but the souls of men who receive His Son--this is what God delights in.

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Father, thank You for the fantastically, gorgeously beautiful world around us! But more than this, thank You for loving us whom You created for Yourself, for Your pleasure! Help me, Lord, to bring You delight in my worship and obedience of You. In Jesus' name, Amen.


auntpreble_blog@yahoo.com

God Instructs Sinners in His Ways -- Psalm 25:8

Psalm 25:8 Good and upright is the LORD; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.
 

Students of universities find out that a sure pathway to receiving a good grade is to find out what the professor wants and expects and then to do it.

Employees also do well to know what the boss wants and then to do it in a very exemplary way.
 

Runners plot out the course of their race, knowing what the goal is, how far away it is, and they plan their race accordingly, taking account of all the variables available to them.
 

Contestants in judged performance contests of all kinds study the rubric to discover what are the categories and qualities that will be judged, and what the standards of performance.
 

Life is more difficult. When a child is born, no one hands him or her a plan, saying, "This is exactly what your life is all about. This is what you must do to win."
 

But God does have a plan and purpose for all. The standards of His final judgment are clearly written in His word. He is good and upright, a kind, purposeful master, an excellent teacher. He gives each one of us a detailed description of His "syllabus", and He provides teachers and helpers along each of our paths.

Hebrews 9:27 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment,
 

Proverbs 1:20 Wisdom calls aloud in the street, she raises her voice in the public squares; 21 at the head of the noisy streets she cries out, in the gateways of the city she makes her speech:
 

Many men and women have lost their lives in the faithful transcribing, translating, publication, and ministry of God's word of wisdom, our Bible. Countless others who have not lost their lives physically, have given themselves completely and devotedly, so that God's wisdom might be available to all, in the public squares around the whole world.
 

God's word, His standards and expectations, are not hidden. To anyone and everyone with a hungry heart, God will provide and feed. Praise God for His goodness to sinners, such as we all are.
 

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Father, thank You for placing Your word in my life and in my heart. Thank You for Your salvation to me and for the gift of Your Spirit within me. By Your Spirit You opened Your word of life to my understanding. Before You interceded in my life, I did not understand Your word. But when You saved me from my sins, You gave me the ability to read and understand Your word, and now I esteem it very highly, as the great treasure and source of guiding light that it is. Thank You and praise You, oh God my Father. In Jesus, Amen.

auntpreble_blog@yahoo.com

Psalm 114 The Joy of Salvation

Psalm 114:1 When Israel came out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of foreign tongue,

2 Judah became God's sanctuary, Israel his dominion.

3 The sea looked and fled, the Jordan turned back;

4 the mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs. 

5 Why was it, O sea, that you fled, O Jordan, that you turned back, 

6 you mountains, that you skipped like rams, you hills, like lambs? 

7 Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob, 

8 who turned the rock into a pool, the hard rock into springs of water.

This is a joyful psalm celebrating Israel's deliverance from its long slavery in the land of Egypt in Old Testament times, during the early days of Moses. 

It is also a type of any person's salvation in Jesus Christ, that is, their deliverance from slavery to sin and death. Just as Israel never returned to Egypt, a believer who has received a new nature in Jesus Christ never returns to his former bondage to corruption.

God, as creator, became Israel's Savior. All nature was His servant. The waters of the river divided, half continuing downstream, the other half turning back upstream. The Israelites crossed the once formidable river on dry ground.

The mountains and hills, here anthropomorphized, saw, reflected and participated in the joy of the former slaves' deliverance to freedom. 

Later in the people's history with God in the wilderness, He turned a hard rock into a pool of water, and on another occasion, the flinty rock into a flowing spring! Such power over nature!

If God can do such miracles with unyielding, natural rock, think what He can do with a human heart! He turns a dead heart of stone into living flesh. Such is the miracle of the new birth, being born again, salvation. What joy and gladness! All nature celebrates over the birth of one child of God.

How does anyone get this new birth? By humbly asking God for it--

Joel 2:32 And everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved...

Acts 16:30 He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" 31 They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved-- you and your household."

What a gracious God we have! His habitation is not limited. The size of His household knows no bounds. Any and all who desire to know Him, to find the path of His salvation, to be born again, need only ask in humble sincerity of heart. Whatever else is lacking in knowledge, the Lord Himself provides. 

Why wait? There is joy in the land!

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Father, I thank You for the day that You humbled my heart, bringing me to my knees to cry out to You. Not even knowing for sure if You existed, You lifted me from the dust, and journeyed with me into all truth. You stayed by my side for the whole year it took me to ask, "Why Jesus?". And You showed me in the most loving way that He indeed is Savior and Lord.

Father, I don't know if anyone will ever read this, but even if not, Lord, there is surely some heart somewhere who is now as dead and lost in sins as I once was. I pray, most gracious heavenly Father, that You would call this person by name, and reveal Yourself to her or him, just as You so kindly and benevolently did to me. May there be great joy in the land today over the salvation of one lost sinner's soul.

Thank-You, my Father. In Jesus' awesome name, Your daughter Christina, Amen.

auntpreble_blog@yahoo.com

Buy the Truth

Proverbs 23:23 Buy the truth and do not sell it; get wisdom, discipline and understanding.

Truth is for a lifetime. Truth is precious beyond all else. This proverb teaches that truth is to be the focus of all one's endeavor. Truth is of such high quality that it should never be sold nor gotten rid of. No matter what poverty befalls a man, he must not give in to the temptation to sell the truth nor trade it for anything of lesser value.There is nothing of greater value, says the proverb.

Jesus spoke of truth the same high way--

Matthew 13:45 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

Pilot asked of Jesus, "What is truth?"

 

Anyone who had truth would not need to ask, since once obtained, it is immediately apparent what it is. Implicit in the parable of the merchant is his great joy!

And yet, our parable warns, there is danger that some people might let truth go. There is always danger of backsliding and idolatry. King Solomon himself, who penned many of the proverbs, is a great example of a man, who once owning the truth, sold it for lust.

Oh, that I would ask the Father always to protect me from myself!

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Father, What is truth? Jesus Christ! Him Whom Your grace revealed in my heart. Thank-You, always, Father. Though I have given up all I have for the truth of Christ, knowledge of Him came as a gift, Your gift of grace to my heart. I worship and praise and thank You eternally for this gift of truth, this pearl of great, great price. In Jesus, Amen.

auntpreble_blog@yahoo.com

Psalm 50:14

Psalm 50:14 Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High,

Although part of a larger context, this verse tells me to offer thank offerings to God and to fulfill my vows to Him. Other translations insert the word "and" before fulfill.

As I read this verse in the NIV, I get the meaning that I am under vow to God to thank Him. When did I place myself in a vow of thanksgiving to God? Not being one to offer "bargains" when I plead for blessing, I don't remember having made a vow of thanksgiving to God.

But God remembers! The very fact that I am in relationship with Him places me under vow to Him. When He offered me salvation and eternal life in Jesus Christ, entering into a promise of eternal relationship with me, I agreed by acknowledging this same Christ as Lord and Savior of my heart.

As my Savior, my Lord, my source of life, blessing, and all that is good, I have entered into a legally binding, covenant relationship with God the Father. By agreeing to such a binding relationship with my creator God, I have implicitly taken a vow of eternal thanksgiving to Him, He being who He is, and I being the mere recipient of all that is fine, lovely, wholesome, and good.

I am under vow to my Savior to thank Him at all times, whether hard-pressed or no, whether feeling fine, or feeling quite sick, whether all is going well, or nothing is going well. God does not require much of me; but His word says that I must thank Him.

The saddest thing of all is that I must be reminded to thank Him. But the happiest thing of all is that He does remind me, because thanksgiving and praise of the Most High is a good, bright, and inherently cheerful thing to be doing! Thanking God for who He is is good medicine for my soul!

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Thank-You, Father, for this verse of scripture which has stuck in my heart and refused to budge until I have given it its proper due. I love You, Lord. Please forgive me for being so ungrateful, as though You needed to twist my arm to tell You, "I love You." Thank-You, Lord, for all You are to me--everything!! Forgive me for having other gods before You. I look forward to being in heaven with You, when You will have my full, undiluted, unpolluted, joyful, thanksgiving and praise forever and ever. Thank-You my gracious, kind and loving Lord for loving me. In Thee, Amen.

Zealous for the Fear of the Lord

Proverbs 23:17 Do not let your heart envy sinners, but always be zealous for the fear of the LORD. 18 There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.

John Wright Follette authored a piece titled, "Others May, But I May Not" [perhaps a slight paraphrase]. For many, that almost seems to be the theme of the Christian life.

But Proverbs teaches us to adjust our focus, shift our gaze, change our world view significantly. One who envies sinners is fixed upon the "I cannot," whereas the steadfast gaze of one who is zealous for the fear of the Lord is fixed on Him, the strong hope, and the bright, eternal future.

Often I find that I believe in God without really believing in Him, in the sense of utmost confidence and trust. For example, when I am on a trip with my husband, I know that he is there. I know that he is with me. I know that he is driving the car and guiding our trip. But if I have no confidence in his abilities, I will fret and worry the whole time, missing the wonderful things we came out to see and enjoy.

It is like that with our heavenly Father. We know we believe, but do we truly rest in our confidence in Him? When I look at the sinners and judge my life according to the standard of whether or not I measure up to them in terms of possessions, relations, or abilities, I am bound to fret and worry always. Of course I do not measure up! No one ever does. Eternal jealousy is the punishment of the damned.

But when I rest and trust in the Lord, I enjoy the future eternity in the now. I relish a quick and ready fellowship with Christ my Savior; I hear His voice often and feel His comfort in my heart.

And God never changes. The life of the world gives and the life of the world takes away. But blessed be the name of the Lord! What He gives, He never takes away.

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Father, it is so easy for me to be completely unaware of where my focus is at any given time. Help me to zealously guard and protect Your word in my heart, the promise of the hope that You have given me in Christ Jesus; and help me, Lord, always, to keep my judgments and interpretation of all that is around me centered in You and in Your law. I ask this by the grace of the beautiful name, Jesus. Thank-You, Father, for loving me, in spite of me. Amen.