Tag: Continual and Continuous Holy Spirit

Serving God and Blessing Neighbors, Should be a Family Affair. Psalm 128

Psalm 128 Amplified Bible

Blessedness of the Fear of the Lord.

A Song of [a]Ascents.

128 Blessed [happy and sheltered by God’s favor] is everyone who fears the Lord [and worships Him with obedience],
Who walks in His ways and lives according to His commandments.
2 
For you shall eat the fruit of [the labor of] your hands,
You will be happy and blessed and it will be well with you.
3 
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
Within the innermost part of your house;
Your children will be like olive plants
Around your table.
4 
Behold, for so shall the man be blessed and divinely favored
Who fears the Lord [and worships Him with obedience].

5 
May the Lord bless you from Zion [His holy mountain],
And may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life;
6 
Indeed, may you see your [family perpetuated in your] children’s children.
Peace be upon Israel!

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

Psalm 128 tells us, “Blessed are all who fear the Lord.”

And then it uses the picture of an ideal family to teach us about that blessing.

The ideal family in Psalm 128 is similar to the ideal man in Psalm 1, the ideal wife in Proverbs 31, and ideal love as described in 1 Corinthians 13.

We sometimes read these passages and are tempted to say, “Get real!

That’s not the way life is.”

Well, perhaps nowadays that is stating a more contemporary truth, it may not be the way life is, but these passages tell us it is the way life can be – with God!

In other words these passages of the ideal man, the ideal wife, the ideal family with the ideal children and with the ideal love are not meant to discourage us as being unachievable, unrealistic, but rather to inspire us to greater possibilities.

And so Psalm 128 paints the picture of a happy home and presents the home as the center of God’s blessing.

Who doesn’t want a happy home?

Happy and God-fearing, God Loving, God Serving, Neighbor Serving Homes and Serving communities too are, according to Psalm 128 an essential part of edifying, building up God’s kingdom right where we are, here on our earth.

So let’s get into the Psalm now.

Psalm 128 breaks into two main parts.

The first part is a statement of blessing.

The second part is a prayer of blessing.

I. Blessed are all who fear the Lord (1-4)

Psalm 128:1-4 English Standard Version

Blessed Is Everyone Who Fears the Lord

A Song of Ascents.

128 Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord,
    who walks in his ways!
2 You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands;
    you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.

3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine
    within your house;
your children will be like olive shoots
    around your table.
4 Behold, thus shall the man be blessed
    who fears the Lord.

Let’s take a look at the statement of blessing first in verses 1-4:

“Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in his ways.

2 You will eat the fruit of your labor; blessings and prosperity will be yours.

3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your sons will be like olive shoots around your table.

4 Thus is the man blessed who fears the Lord.” (Psalm 128:1)

The psalmist begins by stating the theme of the psalm: “Blessed are all who fear the Lord.”

To fear the Lord does not mean to be afraid of God so we run away from him.

Rather it means to be in awe of God’s majesty so that you approach him with great reverence and respect.

It means you take God seriously, and you put him first in your life.

After stating the theme, the psalmist then further defines it: those who fear the Lord are those who walk in God’s ways.

In other words a right attitude towards God leads to right actions in your life. Jesus said something similar in John 14:21:

“Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.” (John 14:21)

God has laid out his ways for us in his Word.

Do you and I want to understand how life works?

Then we read the instructions!

God has laid it all out for you in His Word.

John Phillips calls this the center and the circumference.

First put God at the center of our life.

That’s the fear of the Lord.

And then let God’s law mark the circumference of our life.

Let God’s Word mark the limits of what we will and will not do.

And if you do that, if you put God at the center of our life and make his law the circumference of our life, then God will take care of everything else in between.

You and I will be blessed by God in all that you and I do.

The word blessed means happy.

In fact in the Hebrew the word is in the plural, so you could even translate it, “Happy, happy!” True happiness, Real happiness in life is found only in those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.

As Charles Spurgeon says: “We must reverence the ever-blessed God before we can be blessed ourselves.”

This blessing from God is not for everyone, but only for a certain subset of people: those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.

However, although God’s blessing is not for everyone, it is for everyone within that subset.

“Blessed are all who fear the Lord.”

There are no exceptions here.

If you will fear God in your life and walk in his ways, you will be blessed.

Psalm 128 gives us the example of a father and husband in the following verses, but verse one tells us up front that this psalm applies to us all who fear the Lord.

So whether you are male or female, married or single, with or without children, know this blessed truth – blessed are all who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.

We find this truth confirmed for us in other Scriptures as well.

For example compare the opening verses of two other wisdom psalms:

Psalm 1 and Psalm 119.

Psalm 1 says: “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.” (Psalm 1:1-3)

Psalm 119 says: “Blessed are they whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord. Blessed are they who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart.” (Psalm 119:1-2)

“Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in his ways”

This is the foundation on which to build a family life that is blessed by God.

A. God will bless your work.

And then Psalm 128 goes on to share specific examples of the ways God will bless you as you fear him and walk in his ways.

First of all, God will bless your work and your service.

Look at verse 2: “You will eat the fruit of your labor; blessings and prosperity will be yours.” (Psalm 128:2)

This does not necessarily mean we will become wealthy or rich, but rather we will find fulfillment in our work and that our work will provide for our needs.

God’s promise to bless our work is especially striking when we recall God put a curse upon human work and labor after Adam and Eve sinned back in Genesis.

Too often in life we work hard but we still don’t seem to be getting anywhere.

Is it because we are not fearing God and walking in his ways?

It is certainly something to consider.

The prophet Haggai in the Old Testament warned the Jews who returned to Jerusalem:

“Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.” (Haggai 1:5-6)

The Jews were working hard but not getting anywhere.

That is the opposite of the blessing God offers to those who fear him and walk in his ways.

God wants you and me to enjoy the fruit of our work.

That was his plan from the start.

We read in Genesis 2:15: “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” (Genesis 2:15)

Before Adam and Eve sinned they worked the garden and knew God’s blessing on their work.

It was good work with good rewards.

Psalm 127 English Standard Version

Unless the Lord Builds the House

A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon.

127 Unless the Lord builds the house,
    those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
    the watchman stays awake in vain.
2 It is in vain that you rise up early
    and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil;
    for he gives to his beloved sleep.

3 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
    the fruit of the womb a reward.
4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
    are the children[a] of one’s youth.
5 Blessed is the man
    who fills his quiver with them!
He shall not be put to shame
    when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.[b]

Psalm 127, without God work becomes toil.

We will not find true blessing or satisfaction in your work apart from God.

As Ecclesiastes 2 says: “A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment?” (Ecclesiastes 2:24-25)

B. God will bless your marriage.

So first of all, God will bless your work.

Secondly, he will bless your marriage.

Look at verse 3: “Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house.” (Psalm 128:3a)

This speaks of both fruitfulness and faithfulness.

The vine is a picture of fruitfulness.

Remember God’s initial blessing on Adam and Eve when he first created them? 

Genesis 1:28 says: “God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.’” (Genesis 1:28)

God’s blessing is related to productivity and fruitfulness.

And this doesn’t just mean bearing children, but it means having a full and productive life.

The picture here is of a beautiful vine that is thriving, flourishing, fruitful and productive.

And then there is faithfulness.

The fact that the vine is “within the house” speaks of faithfulness in marriage.

This is in contrast to the adulterous wife described in Proverbs 7 who is never at home: “She is loud and defiant, her feet never stay at home; now in the street, now in the squares, at every corner she lurks.” (Proverbs 7:11-12)

What’s the sign of a happy marriage? Fruitfulness and faithfulness. Who could ask for anything more?

Marriage is one of God’s great blessings in life. 

Proverbs 18:22 says: “He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord.”

(Proverbs 18:22) We could also turn that around and say: “She who finds a husband also finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord.”

Marriage is a blessing from God, but God also wants to bless your marriage.

Husbands and wives, how you live your life has a huge impact on whether you will know God’s blessing in your marriage.

Blessed are all who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.

C. God will bless your family.

God will bless your work.

God will bless your marriage.

And then thirdly, God will bless your family.

Look at verse 3 again: “Your sons will be like olive shoots around your table.” (Psalm 128:3b)

The olive tree is a basic part of agriculture in Israel.

In the Bible it is also a picture of productivity and blessing.

For example we read in Isaiah 52:8: “But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God’s unfailing love for ever and ever.” (Isaiah 52:8)

Images of olive shoots around the table is the picture of a mature, established olive tree with young shoots springing up out of the soil all around it.

This was a common sight in Israel.

The olive shoots represent youth and energy and, above all, promise.

When you sit down to eat with your family, your children are the hope and promise of the future sitting around your table. 

Psalm 144:12 offers a similar image when it says:

“Then our sons in their youth will be like well-nurtured plants, and our daughters will be like pillars carved to adorn a palace.” (Psalm 144:12)

The olive is a slow growing tree.

It can take ten to fifteen years before it bears any fruit, but once established the olive tree needs little maintenance or supervision, and it will produce fruit for decades to come.

It’s the same way with your children.

It will take some time before they grow to independence and maturity.

As parents we need to be patient with our children as we raise them in the training and instruction of the Lord.

But all our discipline and training will pay off. 

Proverbs 22:6 tells us: “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.” (Proverbs 22:6)

I love that Psalm 128 uses the image of the table for the family.

The family table or mealtime is especially important for us as families.

It’s where the family gathers together and shares about their day, where stories and experiences and values are passed on.

It seems it’s getting harder and harder for families to get together even for a few meals a week these days.

I would encourage you, no matter what the age of your children, no matter what the makeup of your home, carve out the time in your schedules and make family mealtime a priority in your home.

This first section of Psalm 128 paints a beautiful picture for us.

A godly husband, a faithful wife and eager children full of promise – all this is a great sign of God’s blessing in the home.

Once again, what more can we ask than God’s blessing on us and those we love?

Notice this first section of Psalm 128 highlights God’s blessing on our work, our marriage and our family.

All three of these were God’s provision for us in creation.

All three of these were also cursed by God following our fall into sin.

But now here in Psalm 128 we see God reverse the curse and bring blessing in all three of these areas when you fear the Lord and walk in his ways.

These verses do not mean that God grants marriage and family to all, but rather this is one of ways he blesses the godly.

“Make [God] your home, and He will make your home a happy home.” 

Psalm 128:4 says: “Thus is the man blessed who fears the Lord.” (Psalm 128:4)

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

II. A prayer of blessing for those who fear the Lord (5-6a)

The first part of Psalm 128 is a statement of blessing for those who fear the Lord.

The second part is a prayer of blessing for those who fear the Lord.

Look at verses 5-6 with me now: “May the Lord bless you from Zion all the days of your life. May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem. And may you live to see your children’s children. Peace be upon Israel.” (Psalm 128:5-6)

The first part of Psalm 128 presents God’s blessing as his reward for those who fear him, but this second part reminds us that God’s blessing is not automatic.

We do not earn it from our obedience.

Even God’s rewards are all gifts of his grace.

God’s blessing must be received as a gift from God.

And we receive things by asking for them in prayer.

A. May God bless you all the days of your life.

There are three parts to this prayer of blessing.

First of all, may God bless you all the days of your life.

Verse 5: “May the Lord bless you from Zion all the days of your life.” (Psalm 128:5a)

This is a prayer of blessing not just for a time or a season, but for the duration of your life.

It picks up the language of Psalm 23 which says: “Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” (Psalm 23:6)

God is the source of all blessing, and this prayer is a reminder that every blessing comes from God

Notice the psalmist prays for the Lord to bless you “from Zion.”

Once again Zion is the place where God dwells.

It is the place where God meets with his people.

Blessing in your life comes as you meet daily with the Lord in his presence.

Psalm 48:1 says: “Great is the Lord, and most worthy of praise, in the city of our God [that is, Jerusalem], his holy mountain [that is, Mount Zion].” (Psalm 48:1)

It was a blessing for the Jews to be in Zion for the feasts, but Psalm 128 asks for God to bless you from Zion all the days of your life.

It’s a peek ahead to the very last psalm of triumph in the Psalms of Ascent –

Psalm 134 which says: “May the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth, bless you from Zion.” (Psalm 134:3)

For God to bless you from Zion means that God’s blessing extends to you wherever you go.

This is fulfilled in the gift of the Holy Spirit for the believer today.

As Jesus said in John 14: “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever – the Spirit of truth.” (John 14:16-17)

God the Father and God the Son are present with you through God the Spirit at all times wherever you go.

B. May God bless you within the community of his people.

So first of all, may God bless you all the days of your life.

And then secondly, may God bless you within the community of his people.

We see this in the second half of verse 5: “May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem.” (Psalm 128:5b)

God is not only concerned with individuals.

He is concerned for all his people.

And therefore so should we.

One of the greatest blessings for the believer is to see all of God’s people prosper.

The church is bigger than you, and God’s blessing on the church is your blessing as well.

This part of the prayer looks back to Psalm 122 and its particular focus on the gathering of God’s people.

We read in Psalm 122:

Psalm 122:6-9 English Standard Version

6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!
    “May they be secure who love you!
7 Peace be within your walls
    and security within your towers!”
8 For my brothers and companions’ sake
    I will say, “Peace be within you!”
9 For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,
    I will seek your good.

This is not only a prayer for Israel and Jerusalem.

We need to be praying for Israel and Jerusalem, but it is also a prayer for all of God’s people – it’s a prayer for the well-being of God’s church.

Psalm 122 was the first of the psalms of triumph in the Psalms of Ascent.

Psalm 128 is the middle of the psalms of triumph.

We see how Psalm 128 looks ahead to Psalm 134 which is the last of the psalms of triumph.

And so this middle psalm of triumph looks back to the first psalm of triumph in Psalm 122 and also looks forward to the last psalm of triumph in Psalm 134.

C. May God bless you with a long and fulfilling life.

May God bless you all the days of your life.

May God bless you within the community of his people.

And then thirdly, may God bless you with a long and fulfilling life.

Look at verse 6 now which says: “. . . and may you live to see your children’s children.” (Psalm 128:6a)

In the fifth commandment God promised a long life and a good life to those who honor their mother and father.

Now here in Psalm 128 the blessings of the fifth commandment are applied to all those who fear the Lord.

These prayers of blessing for those who fear the Lord not only stretch outward to the community of God’s people but also onward towards future generations of children.

Verse 6 is a prayer both for long life and the continuation of your family.

This is part of God’s blessing or reward for those who fear him. 

Proverbs 10:27 says: “The fear of the Lord adds length to life, but the years of the wicked are cut short.” (Proverbs 10:27) 

Proverbs 17:6 says: “Children’s children are a crown to the aged.” (Proverbs 17:6)

Many of you know the blessings of having grandchildren.

Psalm 128 reminds you that they are God’s blessing on your life!

So make sure you tell others not just “I love my grandchildren!” but also, “I thank God he has blessed me with my grandchildren.

I thank God that he has blessed me with length of life to see and know my children’s children.”

Also make sure that you pass on your faith to your children and grandchildren.

The apostle Paul writes to Timothy in 2 Timothy 1:5: “I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.” (2 Timothy 1:5)

What a rich blessing you leave for your children and grandchildren when you live a godly life in fear of the Lord!

What a blessing to pass on a godly heritage to your children’s children!

Proverbs 22:4 says: “Humility and the fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life.” (Proverbs 22:4)

And so we find this beautiful prayer of blessing in Psalm 128 for those who fear the Lord.

May God bless you all the days of your life.

May God bless you within the community of his people.

May God bless you with a long and fulfilling life that you may live to see your children’s children.

In Conclusion … Our Actions Will Speak Louder Than Our Words

Psalm 128 is a beautiful psalm that speaks of God’s blessing on all those who fear the Lord, and it describes this blessing in terms of the ideal family.

You might be wondering this day or season, “That’s all well and good, but what if I don’t have an ideal family?”

Well, first of all, welcome to the club!

But secondly, in holding up the ideal family, the psalm points beyond our broken, sinful families here on earth to the beauty and perfection of God’s family in heaven.

None of us have a perfect family here on earth, but we will all experience the blessing of an ideal family in heaven.

God may or may not bless you with marriage or children in this life.

But either way the promise of this psalm remains.

Blessed are all who fear the Lord. God has promised to bless all those who fear him and walk in his ways.

When you long for the same things God longs for, you will see you desires fulfilled.

Psalm 128 teaches us that there is a direct relationship between your attitudes and actions and God’s blessing in your life.

God’s blessing is available to everyone.

You can choose to either welcome God’s blessing in your life or you can choose to chase it away – it all comes down to fearing the Lord and walking in His ways.

Psalm 128 teaches us that how you live your life matters, both for you and for so many other people in your life.

There is a ripple effect in each of our lives that flows outward.

Your attitude and actions have an impact not only on your personal life, but also on your family, on your community and on future generations.

Psalm 128 teaches us that the influence of the godly person is great, that God’s blessing flows outward from the individual, to your family, to your church, to the whole people of God.

The Bible tells us that Jesus Christ became a curse for us, so that we might receive the blessing of God. (Galatians 3:13-14)

Jesus died on the cross for our sins.

He took the penalty that was due us.

He took the curse of God for sin upon his own flesh.

He paid it in full so that we could come and know God’s blessing.

So don’t miss out on God’s blessing!

Fear God and walk in his ways that you may know the fullness of God’s blessing in your life.

Blessed are all who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Heavenly Father, You are my God and my Savior. Thank You for your free gift of grace, which I receive by faith. Thank you for my family. May we reverence Your name forever and walk in Your ways all the days of our lives. All our blessings are permanently rooted and grounded in Christ Jesus my Lord, in Whose name I pray.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen

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Fresh Fire: Becoming the Person God Has Called You to Be. 1 Corinthians 2:12

We sometimes get frustrated when people outside of Christ do not seem to be able to understand the teaching of Scripture.

However, we must not forget that there are two realities to the truth of Scripture that non-believers do not experience. 

First, the Holy Spirit, who inspired Scripture and uses Scripture to form us, also helps followers of Jesus understand the truth that God has given us.

Second, the truth of Scriptures often becomes more understandable as we obey it. The Holy Spirit is at work helping us understand the Scriptures he inspired!

Whether we might be rookies or veterans, let’s never approach our time in Bible study without asking for the Holy Spirit to make God’s truth known unto us!

Years ago, I remember hearing Campus Crusader founder Bill Bright teaching on the Holy Spirit. In his message, he talked about a man to whom he had been in the throes of witnessing to. One of the “Problems” with the Christian faith was he had tried to read the Bible several times but could not “figure it out.”

Then the man received Jesus Christ as his personal Savior and went back to talk again with Dr. Bright about one week later. He had an amazing story to tell him.

During that weeks’ time, he said, it was as though somebody had re-written his Bible. Suddenly, he said, the Scriptures came alive to him. The understanding of them had broken into his thoughts as when quick lightning strikes the ground.

How had it happened? The Teacher – the Holy Spirit, had taken up residence in his soul. What had once been obscure and confusing drivel was now pulsating with most profound degrees, measures of meaning, encouragement and hope.

1 Corinthians 2:6-12Amplified Bible

6 Yet we do speak wisdom among those spiritually mature [believers who have teachable hearts and a greater understanding]; but [it is a higher] wisdom not [the wisdom] of this present age nor of the rulers and leaders of this age, who are passing away; 7 but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the wisdom once hidden [from man, but now revealed to us by God, that wisdom] which God predestined before the ages to our glory [to lift us into the glory of His presence]. 8 None of the rulers of this age recognized and understood this wisdom; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; 9 but just as it is written [in Scripture],

“Things which the eye has not seen, and the ear has not heard,
And which have not entered the heart of man,
All that God has prepared for those who love Him [who hold Him in affectionate reverence, who obey Him, and who gratefully recognize the benefits that He has bestowed].”

10 For God has unveiled them and revealed them to us through the [Holy] Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things [diligently], even [sounding and measuring] the [profound] depths of God [the divine counsels and things far beyond human understanding]. 11 For what person knows the thoughts and motives of a man except the man’s spirit within him? So also no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the [Holy] Spirit who is from God, so that we may know and understand the [wonderful] things freely given to us by God.

The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.

To be the person God has called you to be.

And that got me thinking. Yes dangerous, I know.

You see I believe that the Holy Spirit does do amazing things in people today.

I believe that right now He is doing stuff in each of us, to refine us, to change us, to bless us.

What I started thinking about was,

what if instead of becoming the person God has called me to be,

I had become the person I myself desired to be?

What kind of person would I be today if the Holy Spirit had not led me?

Where would I have been this morning if I had chosen not to allow the Spirit to lead me?

If God were not guiding you according to His plan, and His purpose, who would you have followed?

Who would have been your role model?

What would you be like if you could become anyone you could want to be?

Would you be a scientist or an artist?

Would you be a musician or a mime?

Would you be a best selling author or a teacher?

Would you be a butcher, baker or candlestick maker?

Would you be a politician?

Would you be a professional sports athlete?

Would you be a banker, an industrialist, a world leader?

Would you have been like some Greek mythological hero born of Hollywood?

If you could desire above all other possibilities to become anyone, would you be willing to become the humble servant person that God has called you to be?

Let’s face it, you are who you are, for a reason today you are you because you are you.

But, are you, all the you, you can be today?

Are you allowing the Spirt to work in you today?

What would your life be like if you allowed yourself to fully be the person God wants you to be?

What differences would there be in your life tomorrow if you allowed the Spirit to work in you today?

Today as part of this seasons Pentecost experience I want to encourage you, to genuinely challenge you, to examine where you are where you really want to be.

The verse I want you to focus on this day is

1 Corinthians 2:10-12 (NIV) which says:

“God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way no-one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.”

The NLT translates this verse:

It was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.

For so many people in the world today there are times in life that nothing seems to happen, then times where everything is boring without sense or meaning.

So many people want to be someone else simply because they feel their own life is empty.

Be honest, in your own spiritual walk, have there been times when you have complained that everything is the same, no growth and no direction, yet when you have felt the Spirit prompt you to do something, you have chosen not to?

Maybe there have been times in your life when doubt has stopped you moving forward.

Stopped you from allowing the Holy Spirit to work in your life.

Maybe there have been times when you have asked why?

Maybe there are times when you have refused to ask yourself why?

So, let me ask you why.

From our text, let me form a question for you from the bible verses we have read.

Why when, we have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us – why do we choose to accept less than God has freely given us?

Why do we spend so much time desiring to be like someone else and ignore who God is calling us to be?

How can we move past the feeling that something is wrong and allow God to work in our lives today?

How can we have greater joy in our lives?

How can we be satisfied?

How can we be the people that God has called us to be?

The simple answer is we must allow the Spirit to work in our lives so that we can become the people God has called us to be.

Do you allow the Spirit to work in your life?

Are you thankful for the blessings God has freely given you to enjoy everyday?

When was the last time you thanked God for the beauty of His creation?

When was the last time you thanked God for what He is doing in your life?

When was the last time you thanked God for what He provides you with everyday? Your bed, your food, your clothes.

When was the last time you thanked God for His love, His grace, His Mercy?

When was the last time you allowed the Spirit to work in you and through you for God’s glory?

When was the last time you thanked God for the work of the Holy Spirit in your life?

When was the last time you asked the Spirit to work in your life to help you be the person God has called you to be?

It is true to say that God knows your past, God knows your today, and He knows your future.

You know your past, you are living in your today, and I’m sure you have a hope for your future.

Does your plan for the future align with God’s plan for your future?

Actually, does your plan for today align with God’s plan for you today?

So often we try and prepare for things in our own strength, and too often we wonder why things didn’t go according to our plan when we never stopped to find out what God’s perfect plan for us was.

The past, the present and the future belongs to God and we need to be willing to allow the Holy Spirit to lead us into our destiny.

We must be open to the leading of the Spirit.

Are you willing to become the person God has called you to be by allowing the Spirit to work in you today?

Are you willing to give control of your life to God?

Are you willing to allow the full power of the Holy Spirit into your life, in your home, in your family, in your workplace.

We will never experience the full joy and contentment that God wants us to have if we do not allow the Holy Spirit to work in us.

We all need the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.With His power our life can become a blessing to others.

With His power others will see and experience the love of Jesus Christ through us.

Today, do you consider your life to be a living witness for Christ?

Today, would you allow the Holy Spirit to help you share the truth of Jesus with others?

Friends, you may look at others as role models, as people you aspire to be like, are you willing to be the person God has called you to be?

Are you willing to allow God to use you to bring glory to Him?

Are you willing to open your life to the Holy Spirit and be a blessing to people you meet?

Remember we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.”

As Christians we received the Spirit who is from God and not of the world, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God

So that we might use the gifts and talents God has given us, so that we can be the People that God has called us to be.

God has called us to communicate the truth with others, are you sharing the truth?

You can do it verbally, you can do it in the written word, you can do it on Facebook or Twitter, but are you doing it?

Are you allowing the Holy Spirit to work through you today?

Are you allowing the Holy Spirit to work in you today to become the person that God has called you to be?

Let me encourage you to become the person God has called you to be.

Allow the Holy Spirit to work in you today.

Share the Good News of God’s Saving work in your life.

Allow the Holy Spirit to help you become the person God has called you to be.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Jesus, Giver of peace, I so easily get distracted when I’m trying to focus and hear your Holy Spirit. Help me quiet my mind in the middle of my busy life. Help me to pause and to make space to listen to the most important voice of all.

Empower me to be a good listener to the gentle whispers of your Spirit. Help me follow the example of Jesus, who would slip away into the evening or the early morning to be alone with you. Teach me to abide in you. Amen.

Savior Jesus, you sent the Holy Spirit to your disciples so they would have a helper and a guide at all times. I pray that you send to me your Holy Spirit to be my helper. May your Spirit pour light into my heart and make my spirit glow in your glory. I seek to understand and to stay in your word, oh Lord. Illuminate my heart with your Spirit. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.

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In the Pit with the King: Persistence, Patience and Purpose |Psalm 40:1-3|

Some roads to healing and wholeness are rather long journeys. Even though we live in a quick fix, microwave fast sort of world, we don’t always see the results we desire immediately. When results are slow in coming, we need to be both patient and persistent in our pursuit of bringing our concerns before the Lord. We know that He hears us and that His heart is to bring us up out of the dark pit we’re currently enduring, but the question remains, why is there a delay.

Perhaps, like Job the angel assigned to respond to you is being delayed or maybe there’s a divine timing and alignment of circumstances that needs to happen first. It’s OK to bring this concern over delay to the Lord and ask Him to show you why there is a delay. Is there a specific need in your life where it feels like you just aren’t getting an answer to your prayers? Are we extending our arms upward? Are we keeping our arms extended until we feel the presence of God?

Even strongest and mightiest of arms gets tired trying to stay raised. It is true also that even the strongest most mature of souls get tired of waiting upon the Lord!

Psalm 40:1-3 NRSV

Psalm 40

Thanksgiving for Deliverance and Prayer for Help

To the leader. Of David. A Psalm.

1 I waited patiently for the Lord;
    he inclined to me and heard my cry.
2 He drew me up from the desolate pit,[a]
    out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
    making my steps secure.
3 He put a new song in my mouth,
    a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
    and put their trust in the Lord.

The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.

One of the great benefits of reading the psalms is that they present us with patterns of life that the godly go through in every age. And in doing that they encourage us that we are made of the same stuff as the saints of old, and they give us guidance how to follow the pattern of godliness through to the end.

One of the cyclical patterns of life recurring in the psalms is getting in the pits, staying there for a time and a season and getting out again. And my favorite statement of this pattern comes from David’s experience found in Psalm 40.

We are going to focus only on verses 1–3.

We will read the whole psalm so not to miss any insight the context might give.

Psalm 40 (New Revised Standard Version)

Thanksgiving for Deliverance and Prayer for Help

To the leader. Of David. A Psalm.

1 I waited patiently for the Lord;
    he inclined to me and heard my cry.
2 He drew me up from the desolate pit,[a]
    out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
    making my steps secure.
3 He put a new song in my mouth,
    a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
    and put their trust in the Lord.

4 Happy are those who make
    the Lord their trust,
who do not turn to the proud,
    to those who go astray after false gods.
5 You have multiplied, O Lord my God,
    your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
    none can compare with you.
Were I to proclaim and tell of them,
    they would be more than can be counted.

6 Sacrifice and offering you do not desire,
    but you have given me an open ear.[b]
Burnt offering and sin offering
    you have not required.
7 Then I said, “Here I am;
    in the scroll of the book it is written of me.[c]
8 I delight to do your will, O my God;
    your law is within my heart.”

9 I have told the glad news of deliverance
    in the great congregation;
see, I have not restrained my lips,
    as you know, O Lord.
10 I have not hidden your saving help within my heart,
    I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;
I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness
    from the great congregation.

11 Do not, O Lord, withhold
    your mercy from me;
let your steadfast love and your faithfulness
    keep me safe forever.
12 For evils have encompassed me
    without number;
my iniquities have overtaken me,
    until I cannot see;
they are more than the hairs of my head,
    and my heart fails me.

13 Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me;
    O Lord, make haste to help me.
14 Let all those be put to shame and confusion
    who seek to snatch away my life;
let those be turned back and brought to dishonor
    who desire my hurt.
15 Let those be appalled because of their shame
    who say to me, “Aha, Aha!”

16 But may all who seek you
    rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who love your salvation
    say continually, “Great is the Lord!”
17 As for me, I am poor and needy,
    but the Lord takes thought for me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
    do not delay, O my God.

Verses 1–3 present a pattern of life at least part of which every Christian knows about firsthand. My goal today, though, is that we all be enabled to follow the whole pattern all the way through to its exciting conclusion.

David leads us through six stages of his experience, and I want us to follow him closely.

First, David is in a muddy pit;

Second, he cries to God for help;

Third, he waits for the Lord;

Fourth, God draws him out of the pit to safety;

Fifth, God gives David a new song to sing (probably the one we are reading);

Sixth, many others come to trust God when they see this pattern of life.

The king’s pit, the king’s cry, the king’s patience, the king’s rescue, the king’s song, and the king’s influence. Here is King David, a man after God’s own heart.

Let us see if we can make his pattern part of our life.

David Is in the Pits

First, the king is in the pits (v. 2).

What is this experience? What are we supposed to feel with the king when we read that it is like being caught in a desolate pit and in miry clay?

I looked up this word translated “destruction” in the NASB and “horrible” in the KJV and “desolate” in the RSV.

What I found was it refers elsewhere to roaring or tumult, like stormy waves.

When you consider that the usual meaning of “pit” is a well or a cistern, the image you get is striking. It is as if David had descended into a deep, dark well and plunged not into a clean, placid pool but a roaring storm like Hurricane Katrina, only all dark and underground.

Then alongside that picture is the image of mire and mud. The two don’t seem to go together. But don’t forget these are images that are supposed to make us feel what David was feeling. “Feeling” what David “feels” we are stirred to live.

They are not photographs.

It helped me to get a picture of this mud to read what King Zedekiah did to Jeremiah when he wanted to get rid of him.

It says in Jeremiah 38:6, “So they took Jeremiah and cast him into the cistern of Malchiah, the king’s son, which was in the court of the guard, letting Jeremiah down by ropes. And there was no water in the cistern, but only mire, and Jeremiah sank in the mire.”

There is one other time David wrote about an experience similar to the one here in Psalm 40, and there, too, he combined the images of mud and flood. 

Psalm 69:1–2 says, “Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my soul. I have sunk in deep mire and there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters and a flood overflows me.”

So perhaps what we are to most likely to imagine is our falling into a well and sinking deep in the smelly sludge at the bottom and going deeper every time we try to do what comes naturally to us: to lift a foot and then all of a sudden there is roaring water coming from somewhere and it rushes around us in the dark.

And then comes the sense of helplessness and desperation, and all of a sudden air, just air, is worth a million dollars, worth more than all the world’s money.

Helplessness, desperation, apparent hopelessness, the breaking point for the overworked businessman, the outer limits of exasperation for the mothers and fathers raising their children, their special needs children, it is the impossible expectations of too many classes to finish in school for graduation, the grinding stress of a lingering illness, the imminent attack of a vastly powerful enemy.

It is good that we don’t know what the experience was. It makes it easier to see ourselves in the pits with the king. Anything that causes a sense of helplessness and desperation and threatens to ruin life or take it away—that is the king’s pit.

David Cries Out to the Lord

Now the king’s cry (v. 1):

“I waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry.” One of the reasons God loved David so much was because he cried so much. 

Psalm 6:6, “I am weary with my mourning; every night I flood my bed with tears; I drench my couch with my weeping.” 

Psalm 56:8, “Put my tears in thy bottle; are they not in thy book?” Indeed, they are, because, “blessed are they that mourn.”

It is a beautiful thing when a broken man genuinely cries out to God. Not like the athlete who gets a cramp while swimming but struggles to get to shore unassisted lest he appear to be weak, but like the little child who wanders too far out in the surf and starts to get taken out by the undertow and cries out immediately, “Daddy! Daddy!” God loves to answer all our childlike prayers.

But make sure the cry is to God and for God, not to man. Notice the inference David draws in verse 4: “Blessed is the man who has made the Lord his trust and has not turned to the proud.” Some are willing to say they need help but will seek it anywhere but from the Lord.

But God is very displeased with such behavior.

A good example is King Asa. God punished him for relying on Syria as an ally instead of relying on God. But Asa refused to learn his lesson and at the end of his life, it says in 2 Chronicles 16:12, “In the 39th year of his reign, Asa was diseased in his feet, and his disease became severe, yet even in his disease he did not seek the Lord but sought help from physicians.”

The point here is not that doctors are bad, but that it is bad to make a doctor your God . . . to think that with him alone is healing.

Whatever benefit comes through physicians comes from the Lord and therefore his help is to be sought. 

Psalm 118:8, 9: “It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man; it is better to take refuge in the Lord than to take trust in princes.”

Or as one of my favorite passages puts it: “Do not trust in princes, in mortal man, in whom there is no salvation. His spirit departs, he returns to the earth; in that very day his thoughts perish. How blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is the Lord his God!” (Psalm 146:3–5).

Therefore, when we are in the pit, we don’t just cry out to anybody, cry to God.

David Waits for the Lord

And then—and then is a very important part of the pattern—you wait. Verse 1: “I waited patiently for the Lord.” Or more literally, I waited intently for the Lord. The reason this is so important for us to hear is that it guards us from slipping into unbelief (Mark 9:23:24) when God’s help seems long in coming.

We can draw no deadlines for God. He hastens or he delays as he sees fit.

He knows the time for joy and truly
Will send it when He sees it meet,
When He has tried and purged thee duly
And found thee free from all deceit.

Waiting for the Lord is a great part of the Christian life.

There are at least two essential elements in the way we should wait with the king: humility and hope.

Look upon the words of the Psalmist Psalm 37:9, “Evildoers will be cut off, but those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land.” Then in verse 11 the same promise is repeated, but in the place of those who wait it is the meek or the humble: “But the humble will inherit the land and will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.” Those who wait are the humble.

Have you ever been in a large waiting room at a doctor’s office when the doctor is late returning from a call and the patients are stacked up?

Who are the ones who get feisty with the receptionist, grumble to everybody?

Not the meek, not the humble. Humble people can wait. They are not so presumptuous about their rights. So, it is in waiting for God. We simply show how badly we need the chastisement of his delay when we do not wait patiently.

Secondly, those who wait patiently hope in God. 

Psalm 39:7, “And now, Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in thee.” 

Psalm 130:5, “I wait for the Lord, my soul does wait, and in his word do I hope.”

The soul of one who waits for God is not listless. It is not like a weathervane pointing this way, then blowing that way as the winds blow through it.

But it is like a hungry animal straining toward his food, longing for his food.

“As a deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for thee, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God” (Psalm 42:1, 2). Those who wait like David strain toward the moment when God will come, and they hope in him. When will he come? At the right time. That is all we can know. And that is enough.

The Lord Delivers David

When he comes, he will lift us out of the pit.

Verse 2: “He brought me up out of the pit of tumult, out of the miry clay; and he set my feet upon a rock making my steps firm.”

There is a world of difference between quicksand and rock.

God moves, stirs us, when he comes, from a sense of desperation to a sense of security. In the pit we had not forgotten God, but our sense of his presence and comfort was not nearly as lively as when he rescues us. In fact, the essence of the rescue is the restoration of that strong feeling of God’s nearness and help.

For David, the rescue may have been the healing of some disease as well.

This was the case in Psalm 30:2, “O Lord, my God, I cried to thee for help, and thou didst heal me.”

Or it may have been deliverance from his enemies as in Psalm 69, “Save me, O God . . . those who hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head; those who would destroy me are powerful.”

Or it may have been deliverance from the oppressive guilt of the great sin he had committed as in Psalm 51, “Be gracious to me, O God, . . . wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.”

The Lord Gives David a New Song to Sing

God can deliver from every sort of pit and mire and will deliver his servants from any plight that would destroy their faith. And when he does, we will sing.

Verse 3: “He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God.” People who never sing, at least in their heart, are people who do not cherish anything very deeply, or feel intense gratitude for anything. They are the sort of people who take all of life for granted. They never soar with a sense of joy in their heart.

In tines and seasons of life, all of us gravitate to that condition because of our fallen nature. And one of the ways God keeps us awake is by letting us hit the pits, leaving us there for a time and a season and then bringing us out into the fresh air of his unconditional forgiveness, his grace and his mercy again.

Do you know of any other way to get someone to love air besides letting them almost be suffocated and breathe again?

During Navy Basic Training, I was ordered to step off a high diving platform into pool one time, about ten feet deep. I do not like going underwater for fear of drowning. Still, I had to obey orders and off the platform I stepped plunging all the way to the bottom of the pool. As I submerged underneath the water – fear instantly arose. I was in a state of panic feeling certain my life was over.

In a matter of seconds air was almost all I cared about. I was almost good for about fifteen more seconds, before one of the divers grabbed me and brought me back to the surface so I could take a breath and feel like I was going to live. I had to feel what it was like to be drowning so I could then discipline, train my mind and my body to literally struggle and fight for every last breath of my life.

I cried out to God, and he set me upon the concrete deck and put a new song in my mouth, a hymn to air, precious air, sweet air, priceless air, and unto God.

That is the kind of love God wants from us for himself. And if he must, he will get it by hiding himself for a time and a season, until we finally crave him like a drowning person craves air. And when he shows himself again and we come up gasping for life into his presence, we will surely sing like never before. All the old songs will become new. And if they are not adequate, we will write our own.

Others See and Are Saved

Who knows how many people might see, fear and put their trust in the Lord?

That is the end of verse 3, and the final step in the pattern of life described in these three verses. Isn’t it tremendous that whenever God gives us deliverance from the pit and puts a new song in our mouth, his aim is not only our benefit but also the benefit of others through us?

Let us never view our own song as the stopping place of God’s mercies. God aims for us to sing others into the kingdom. How does this happen?

They see, fear, and put their trust in God. What do they see?

They see a person who, contrary to human nature, was humble in distress and who never lost hope, banked on God and who when he was delivered gave God the glory.

They see something real, genuine, authentic, something that rings true in the human heart.

As the conviction starts to build, to grow and to mature in the aching unbeliever that there is truth and reality in the life of the godly, the soul begins to fear, fear the implications of his own unbelief: “What if nothing is done about this fear?”

If God is exactly that real and can be depended on to help those who hope in him, then probably those who disregard him and pin their hopes on all sorts of other things are in trouble (cf. Philippians 1:28).

And by the grace of God many will make the final move and put their trust in the Lord. The music of the rescued saints is a tremendous means of evangelism.

What a surprise!

The whole story turns out to be a lesson in personal evangelism.

How shall we win others to Christ?

In that time and in that season, when you are in the pits with the king, cry out to the Lord like a helpless child; then humbly and hopefully wait patiently for the Lord; and when he comes in his own time and makes you secure, then sing a new song to his grace so people can see and fear and put their trust in the Lord.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us now pray,

Heavenly Father, thank you your name is powerful. At your name, mountains shake and seas roar. At your name, all of creation sings with joy. At your name, demons flee. At your name, every knee will bow, and every tongue confess that you are Lord. In your powerful name, I offer my prayer for breakthrough. Give me assurance that there is no power greater than your name. Work your power in my life. Through Jesus Christ, our Lord, Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.

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Come! Let us Be Continuously Joyful in Hope. Come! Let us be Continually Patient in Affliction, Come, Let us be Continually, Continuously Faithful in an Attitude of Prayer—Romans 12:12

How can we keep our circumstances from determining our mood? How can we free ourselves from the continuous limitations that life continually deals us? This wondrous trio of commandments opens the door for the other two to be true — we can rejoice in hope, and we can be patient in affliction because we have been faithful in prayer. No matter what our situation is, we can pray with joy because of our hope in Christ no matter what our current situation is. We can remain patient, persevering through affliction, by presenting our requests and intercessions to God with thanksgiving. Prayer is God’s gift to us so that we can be surely patient and joyful, even when things don’t appear to be going well.

Romans 12:10-13 New American Standard Bible

10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; [a]give preference to one another in honor, 11 not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; 12 rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, 13 contributing to the needs of the [b]saints, [c]practicing hospitality.

The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.

Apostle Paul composed a lengthy and weighty letter to the Roman Church that addressed every issue which is so vital to daily living the normal Christian life, in this post-cross era. His extensive epistle is written in such a wise way as to provide us with a wonderful understanding of all church-age doctrines and how to properly apply them in our 21st century lives today, so that we are enabled to live a victorious Christian life – the life that God intended for all His children.

Just as the main body of Romans is lengthy and weighty, so his final remarks are by contrast are succinct yet compelling. In a few short, crisp verses Paul sums up all that is necessary to live a life which is fully pleasing unto the Lord. In verse 12 we are challenged and encouraged to continuously Rejoice in hope, be continuously patient in tribulation, and be in a continual attitude in prayer.

To continually rejoice in hope is to have that unfaltering assurance in God’s Word as a continuous source of wisdom and truth – knowing that our hope of glory is secured for us in heavenly places for the eternal ages to come, simply because God’s Word is continuously true and cannot be broken. Our hope is built on nothing less than our own continuously trusting in the cross of Christ, continually taking God at His Word. We are continuously giving God a chance.

To be continuously patient in tribulation is to continually know and accept that in this world we will have constant tribulation – but to wait patiently in our suffering, without murmurings – and to be of good cheer, knowing that His strength is sufficient to see us through every difficulty of life, because He has already overcome sin and death – and we are united with Him and His victory.

To be constant in prayer is to recognise that prayer, is one of the chief weapons of the spiritual warfare in which all Christians are engaged. As saints of God, we should all be instant in prayer – constantly lifting our hearts and voice unto the Lord in prayers of thanks and praise and intercession and requests – and laying them before the throne of God’s Grace, in the name of JESUS – knowing that so much infinitely greater is He that is continuously within us that He who is in the world. It is this continuous connection and continuous conversation with God which serves to continually keep our hearts and souls and hands on God.

Come! Let us work out with God a plan to continually exercise all Paul’s short, crisp instructions for godly living which are found in this final section of His epistle to the Romans as well as taking time to study this lengthy and weighty letter that has been written for our learning – so that we too may live a life that is pleasing to the Lord – so Christ can be continually seen in me and in you too!

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Father, I thank you, because no matter what struggles I face, you assure me of your ultimate victory. I thank you, dear God, because no matter the hardship or burden, I know you will help me through it and bring me to your presence with great joy. Until that day of ultimate victorious joy, please ransom my heart from discouragement by the power of your Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ name. Alleluia! Amen.

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