Solid by the Stream
(Psalm 1)
“He is like a tree planted by streams of water, that yields fruit in his season and its leaf does not wither.” (Psa. 1:3)
There is nothing more satisfying to a gardener than to see his hard work come to fruition…to look over the field of his labor, the sweat of his brow, the strain of his own hands to see a green field of corn, the flowering blossoms of beans, and the ripe fruits for his store. He stands satisfied as he gazes across the landscape of plow furrows, plants, and produce knowing that God gave the increase, but he gave the water.
Water is a vital ingredient in the existence of any flora because without the essential element of water there can be no strength. To constantly and nursingly give the life ingredient of hydrogen and oxygen to a plant is to have no doubt about the outcome of the harvest. There will be no disappointment when a seed is planted and given the proper nourishment. It will “yield its fruit in its season.” (Psa. 1:3). The stem will be strong, the growth will increase day by day, and the end thereof will be immensely rewarding.
Equally so, will be the way of the righteous. The righteous will refuse the mindset of the world, refuse the way of sinners, refuse the seat of pomp and pride because the upright soul only delights in the law of the Lord day and night. By soaking up the pure water of the Lord…the soul is constantly given the ingredients of eternal life. Through the ceaseless stream of the Most High God the tree of the soul flourishes and soars toward the heavens.
There is nothing more satisfying to our soul than to see our hard, spiritual work come to fruition…to look over our life lived, to remember the sweat of our brow, the strain of our labor and to see fruits worthy of repentance, blossoms of blessings, and other souls brought for God’s eternal store. We stand satisfied as we gaze across the landscape of Heaven, see the mansion that stands ready, and our fellow spirits waiting to praise the Lord for eternity…knowing that God gave the increase, but we drank the water.
Whilst we go through this life there are many streams and rivers we can choose to plant ourselves near. As David states, we could plant ourselves beside the counsel of the wicked, the river way of sinners, the stream of ridicule…but the only flow of water that gives us increase is the one that is found in God’s Word. The only stream that gives us strength to overcome and stand is the river that flows with inspiration from above: the Living Oracles of God.
Spiritual strength is stalled when our souls find other sources to drink from. Our soul’s stem becomes increasingly fragile and weak from the stagnant, reservoir waters of the world. “Therefore, the wicked will not stand in judgment…” (Psa. 1:5). “The Lord knows the way of the righteous.” Which stream are you drinking from? Lord, help us all to be planted by the Living Water of Your Word. Amen.
Picturesque Pottery
(Psalm 2)
“Why do the heathen rage; and the people imagine a vain thing?” (2:1).
Why do souls search for Christ everywhere else but in the place where God said He would be? So many times people restrict and confine God to what they think He is, or what they think He should say. The words and actions of men will come to nothing, but God’s words and actions will never return to Him void. Even if the whole of the pagan and heathen world were set at variance against Christ…the Lord would simply laugh at their foolishness and cause them to divide. If the united world were to turn against the only solitary, righteous soul on the earth…that single soul would overcome the world through the power of Christ.
Christ is King! He is crowned with many crowns, and all the nations of the earth shall flow unto Him. He will redeem His people! Christ was born of a woman, begotten of God (v.7), so that He might be the first-born of many to come in the future. The marvelous foretold purpose and the plan of God by the pen of David!
Not only is Jesus Christ the Savior, but He has been given the nations and “uttermost parts of the earth” as His present possession. He rules them, molds them, and dashes them to pieces like an Eternal Potter with earthly clay. Under the power and rule of Christ souls are to be transformed into picturesque pottery that the world sees as wonderful. God’s children aren’t merely lumps of unformed Christianity, but they are uniformly obedient pieces of His kingdom.
All Christians have their place in the true building of God. Stones out of the depths of sin…stones from Samaria and the uttermost parts of the earth, stones snatched from the fires of hell itself! These stones, small and great, are shaped and changed so that they can be fashioned like the first. The Gospel cuts, slashes, and pricks and all the while the pillars of the kingdom of God can be seen rising and rising…each stone leaning wholly on the massive Cornerstone. Every stone depending on the blood sacrifice! Each stone finding strength and security in Christ! Ah! The picture God paints in Scripture of the building…the kingdom…the church…rising to meet the Lord (Rev. 21). How He speaks of how closely those stones are knit together as members (Eph. 2). How each brick, each stone, bears the burden of the other fulfilling the law of Christ. How the kingdom is joined together at the Cornerstone, and then each is bound to the next, and to the next, and to the next…until all the parts are made into one glorious habitation of God! The structure of Christ’s kingdom rises and rises and rises! The kingdom is the perfect plan of God. Hear Him. Trust Him.
Yet, David warns that iniquity will always be widespread, men will always rage against righteousness and set themselves in opposition to God. Yet, the world’s idea of righteousness and decency will only be a vain idea. God will laugh at their contempt and disrespect for His will: for God has set up His truth and His Christ, and against Him nothing will stand.
The answer to pleasing God always lies in our obedience to the Son. We are to know our duty! We are to do our duty! We are to serve the Lord with fear and joy “lest He be angry, and we perish from the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little.” (v. 12) The slightest lash of Christ’s rod of justice is enough to “dash to pieces” all the sin of the world. This is our solemn warning. Today is the day of salvation! Today, if you will hear His voice, harden not thy hearts!
Complaining With Confidence
(Psalm 3)
“Lord, how are they increased that trouble me!” (3:1)
There are swords that fly against you, blades that are unsheathed to cut you, and a son that is covetous of your throne. A son, a flesh and blood offspring, which now desires to come and take your very life! Comfort is absent from the day. Love flies away like a feather on the air! Trust is betrayed! Countless tears make your bed during the night, and immeasurable dejection is your only friend. Lightning bolts of sorrow begin to pierce the hours of darkness within your soul. Depressing floods and hammering rains seem to wash away all happiness and cheer. “LORD! How are they increased that trouble me! Many are they that rise up against me! Many there be which say to my soul, ‘There is no help for him in God.’” (3:1)
How the times fly across our memory when we have been overwhelmed with fear, overcome with sorrow, or plagued by difficulties; when the distresses of living in this world have made us feel as if we were careening off course towards a bottomless pit of pain. Oh, the times of sadness and despair that we all have encountered along our yellow-brick roads of life. It may be that a son has turned his rebellious arm against you, as David’s own Absalom turned against him (II Sam. 15-17). Perchance the situation in life is due to trust being broken by friends, angry words being spoken by once caring lips; but no matter what the struggle there is always a God to “lift up mine head.” (3:3) No matter if obstacles come with the veracity of lions, regardless if they number as the sands of the sea or the stars of heaven…there is always a God who is our Shield (3:3). Whether standing in the stormy winds of life or in the calm eye of relief…the Lord is always our glory and admiration.
The Lord sustains His people! Though the cries of the entire world drown the air with despair and anguish…the Lord hears the still, small voice of your heart. While the thunders roll, while the earth quakes, while the world around us rages…the Lord lays us down to sleep and sustains us through the night (3:5). “I will not be afraid of tens of thousands of people that have set against me round about.” (3:6) Though the angry surges roll…though the mightiest men in the mightiest lands come in the mightiest ways the Lord will hear my call: “Arise, O Lord, save me, O my God!” (3:7) And as the words of the wicked may pierce my ears, as their tongues continue to lash and mock, as their hands beat against my broken body…God smites the enemy “upon the cheekbone; and breaks all the teeth of the ungodly!” (3:7) The Lord sustains His people!
“Salvation is of the Lord: blessings belong to His people.” (3:8) Mark this: Salvation is of the Lord, and it will be found nowhere else! Deliverance comes from above…not from the feeble attempts of mortality and flesh. Showers of blessings fall from the Father of Lights to illuminate and applaud His children; for blessings are only found in God’s people. Lord, may we all be Thy people! Amen.
Safety in Slumber
(Psalm 4)
“I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep; for thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety.” (Psa. 4:1)
Hours of sleep bring little comfort if the soul awakes to find itself alone and without God. The refreshing sensation the body experiences after a night’s rest has little value unless the Lord is in the heart. How amazing it is to open our eyelids to another day and know that the Most High God walks before us each step of the way…knowing that with each passing instant we are closer than the last to seeing Him face to face. What a magnificent dream for some, but what a reality it is for those whose hearts have been captured by Christ and saved by grace. This truth is quickened by our gracious gift of being able to call out to the Father of heaven and earth.
The Lord needs to hear the cries of His children in the night! A mother will hearken to the whimper of her hungry child, and so will a heavenly Father answer the shout of His own children in distress. Nevertheless, the Father will only react when He hears an importunate voice. A father needs to hear, in the voice of His children, a trusting that is unfeigned and honest.
Time and again the plenteous field found in the ear of the Almighty One remains fallow and unturned by the plow of prayer. The bountiful bequests of God lay open for the taking! The harvest blessings from above are ripe for the reaping! The granaries and storehouses of the gifts heaven are open, and God waits for our call. We could be offering the most luscious fruits of our lips…the most celebrated “sacrifices of righteousness” by trusting the Lord, yet, frequently, we find ourselves in transgression against Him when we don’t stand in awe of His showering and sheltering strength.
God is good, is He not? He provides rain for the just and unjust. He makes the sun to shine of the good and the evil. Yet, “there be many that say, ‘Who will show us good?’” (4:6) And the answer comes by the pen of David: “Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance.” More than the times overflowing with corn and wine…more than all the blessings of the most bountiful harvest of the earth…more than all the riches of all the fields of the world, the Lord’s presence is the paramount prize! The countenance of God is the greatest “gladness in my heart.” (4:7)
A soul’s serenity comes not from the passing things of earth…a soul’s spiritual calm and quiet comes from being safely harbored in God’s tranquil, eternal waters. Peace is given when God silences the troubles of the day with His reassuring hand. Otherwise, the noisy echoes of sin drown out the tranquility of God’s truth. May we all “stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still;” for the Lord provides us with safety in slumber (4:4,8).
Now I lay me down to sleep…
A Morning Mercy
(Psalm 5)
The sun ascends upon the landscape of another day as its rays cover the floor of the earth like frost on an early winter’s morn. The leaves of the trees awake from their night’s slumber and the grasses open wide their blades to soak in the sun’s luminosity. The land starts to stir with life…the orchestra of the morning begins to rise with the low tones and bellows of the breeze through the tops of the forest. The sweet tenor of the lark’s voice, the percussion of insects as they beat their wings all create the hum of nature brought about by the morning glow.
Regardless of how grand the wake of nature might be…however beautiful the music of the earth…there is a voice heard in the morning that is exceedingly greater: the voice of prayer. “My voice shalt Thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning I will direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.” (5:3) Though all the utterances of nature were to chant together the praises of God…those voices could never be as striking as the voices of God’s children. A loyal Christian’s voice is like Paul’s Epaphroditus to God; “a sweet smelling sacrifice, acceptable and well pleasing.” (Phi. 4:18) “For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness…” (5:4)
Infinitely more than the sun will burn an object that comes into its presence, so the Lord will “destroy them that speak falsely; for the Lord will abhor the bloody and deceitful man.” (5:6) As the sun rages with devastating heat, so does the hand of the Lord toward the “workers of iniquity.” (5:5) BEHOLD THE GOODNESS AND SEVERITY OF GOD! The sun provides life and verve for the planet, but its power is never to be trifled with; for even at a vast distance its rays scorch and singe. Likewise, God’s power is never to be disbelieved, “for whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap.” (Gal. 6:7) The foolishly impenitent and fickle will never stand in the face of the Lord’s preeminence. “Let them fall by their own counsel…for they have rebelled against Thee.” (5:10).
“But as for me, I will come into Thy house in the multitude of Thy mercy; and in Thy fear will I worship…” (5:7) To be able to understand that each breath inhaled and exhaled…that each passing moment felt…that every instant of life is graciously granted by the power of God is to dreamily comprehend the immensity of His worship. Souls that grasp this logic will never be absent from the worship of the Almighty God; for in His house there are multitudes of mercy that are to be found nowhere else besides. Countless souls fail to remember that blessings come from the presence of God, and if souls never draw close to the Lord in reverence and adoration…then mercies cannot be imparted. “In thy fear will I worship...lead me, O Lord, in Thy righteousness…make Thy way straight before my face.” (5:8)
In the presence of the Lord there is righteousness…away from the Lord there is not. “The Lord will bless the righteous!” (5:12) The Lord “defends” those who trust in Him. (5:11) He surrounds them, as Elisha of old, with His mighty heavenly hosts and chariots of fire. The righteous are hedged round about like Job, and there are none like them: “…with favor wilt Thou compass him as with a shield.” (5:12)
For the righteous…mercy comes with each morn.
Divine Displeasure and Deliverance
(Psalm 6)
To the son that fractures a father’s trust, there is no greater pain than having that same father’s hot eye of displeasure burning into his own. When confidence and trust have been betrayed…and actions have led to the gravest of disappointments; when a father’s heart is shattered by the disloyalty of his own flesh and blood…and the heart stings with deceit…David would plead with his Heavenly Father: “O Lord, rebuke me not in Thine hot anger, neither chasten me in Thy hot displeasure. Have mercy upon me…” (6:1-2a)
The anger of God…something a soul never wishes to think about nor ponder. The chastening rod of God’s hot displeasure…something a soul desires to vehemently avoid. Eternal, Omnipotent fury unleashed reminiscent of the flaming swords of Eden, the flood waters of old, the excruciating plagues of Egypt, or the raging waters of the Red Sea as they overwhelm the armies of Pharaoh…a form of God’s force that none wish to encounter nor suffer. “For the Lord thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God.” (Dt. 4:24)
Nevertheless, the Lord has compassion upon His exhaustedly disobedient children, if they will but move toward Him. Can God refuse a blessing to His child who has saturated their pillow with penitent tears and prayers of sorrow? Will God renounce the face that has so long wept for forgiveness that its eyes have sunk into their sockets with anguish? Can God decline to have sympathy upon those who implore for Divine deliverance? “Return, O Lord, deliver my soul: oh save me for Thy mercies sake! I am weary with my groaning: all the night make I my bed to swim: I water my couch with my tears. Mine eye is consumed because of grief!” (6:4, 6-7) The Lord certainly hears the supplications of sinners, or He would hear none at all (6:9).
The delight of the sinner is forgiveness, and the wonder of the Lord is that He bestows it. The God of Heaven takes the weeping cheeks of His children and holds them close to His breast. He takes the drenched pillows of penitence and turns them into peace. He wipes tear-dimmed eyes and makes them again see the joy of His countenance. With His mighty arm unveiled He will not rage against the repentantly sinful, but He will resuscitate their souls and revive them again unto Himself. “The Lord hath heard my supplication; the Lord will receive my prayer.” (6:9)
While souls are weak, God is strong. “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.” (II Cor. 12:10) “Depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity; for the Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping.” (6:8) Replacing the thorns of Christ’s crown with the diamonds of sinner’s tears… producing strength out of difficulties… administering affection by grace when justified to slay…God may be displeased with our sins, but He will deliver us from evil.
Saving Swords and Bent Bows
(Psalm 7)
A breeze gently blows through the deadened grasses of an open countryside as a hunter crouches into position. A mammoth giant moves leisurely from the lining of the trees out into the open plain. With each step the creature makes…its awesome weight shifts back and forth flowing like liquid from one side to the other. The hunter takes aim as, all the while, the colossal bear has picked up his scent on the gentle breeze. The bullet sounds through the air and pierces the giant’s hide, but it’s not enough to bring down the magnificent beast. Thousands of pounds of tearing teeth and rending claws are now storming toward the hunter as he tries to reload his only hope of survival. Forty yards…thirty yards…twenty yards…there’s no time for another shot! Trust.
“O Lord my God, in Thee do I put my trust: save me from all them that persecute me, and deliver me: lest he tear my soul like a lion, rending it in pieces...” (7:1-2) This is David’s epic battle as sin rears its hideous head on the plains of life, and he looks to God for rescue and release. Sin is upon him, and with every second of existence sin charges nearer and nearer to his heart. The bear of sin, the Devil, is dashing toward David with vicious teeth of torment and claws of corruption!
David knows the threat that is upon him: “O Lord my God, if I have done this; if there be any iniquity in my hands; if I have rewarded evil unto him that was at peace with me…let the enemy persecute my soul, and take it; yea, let him tread down my life upon the earth, and lay mine honor to dust.” David knows that sin is treacherous and carnivorous towards the soul. He knows (as we must) that iniquity cannot be slain by any arrow of his own…but confidence in God must be behind the shot. “He hath also prepared for him the instrument of death; he ordained his arrows against the persecutors.” (7:13)
“My defense is of God!” (7:10) Who can rise above the massive strength of God’s arm? Who can penetrate His shield and shelter? Who can break the wing that harbors His children? Is any influence greater than God? “And the Lord brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with great terribleness, and with signs, and with wonders.” (Dt. 26:8) “The Lord hath made bare His holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.” (Isa. 52:10) “A mighty fortress is our GOD!”
Though tempest follow tempest, storm follow storm…though waves upon waves crash onto the beaten beaches of the heart until serenity soars away on a distant star…God will defend against the fall. When daylight fades and darkness comes into the soul…when the enemy advances at the weakest point of the spirit “God will whet His sword, He hath bent His bow and made it ready.” (7:12) God will plunge into the depths…God will save to the uttermost…God will walk through the valley of the shadow of death, but His children must have confidence in His ammunition. “I will praise the Lord according to his righteousness: and will sing praise to the name of the Lord the most high.” (7:17)
Standing in Awe of Adonai
(Psalm 8)
Stars move about the night sky in flawless flight as they spell out the Lord’s name in fiery glitter. Galaxies of heaven in all their vastness…innumerable stars in their furious motion are all mere mechanisms of the fingers of God. Within the cosmic coliseum of animation seen at each fall of the sun the tips of Adonai’s fingers begin to emerge on the dark tapestry of the firmament…guiding the spheres…stirring the moon…lighting the sky with brushing streaks of radiance. With each stroke of His divine touch the heavens declare, “O Lord our Lord, how excellent is Thy name!” (8:1)
Behold the magnificent energy that comes from the fingers of God! Nahum declares, “The clouds are the dust of His feet.” (Nah. 1:3) Job extols, “How can man be just with God…which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and all the rooms of the south?” (Job 9:1,9). David takes up the Divine query: “When I consider Thy heavens, and the work of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which Thou hast ordained; What is man that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man that Thou visitest him?” (8:3-4)
In the face of such starry splendor…in view of the grandeur of creation…in light of the beauty and brilliance of God’s lighted universe: What is man? What is man? Aware of the reality that man is mortal…that man is corruptible…why would a glorious God prize such lowly creature as these? The Lord says Himself, “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isa. 55:9) Adonai has crowned man with honor and privilege! Man, whom God “hast made a little lower than the angels,” now has dominion over the works of Jehovah’s mighty hand; “and hath put all things under his feet!” (8:5-6).
“O Lord our Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth!” (8:1)
Singing Praise to the Stronghold
(Psalm 9)
A colossal mass of swords and spears advance towards a stronghold hungry for flesh and blood…boldly they draw closer and closer to the gates of the fortress with fatal fury and weapons unsheathed. Again and again they assault and swarm, beat and batter…beat and batter, but each time the immense army is repelled by the broad walls. The foes are turned back like waves crashing against the rocks of the sea. The gates stand solid with each surge…the defenses hold, and the “enemies are turned back.” (9:3) The adversary cannot overcome the mammoth resistance which the barrier provides and they dash themselves to pieces. “They fall and perish at Thy presence.” (9:3)
“The Lord will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.” (9:9) No other fortress is so mighty…no other wall is so great…no other refuge is so secure. Though torrential waves of persecution smash against it, though piercing arrows of accusations fly above it, though Satan himself unleash the armies of hell they could not conquer this Stronghold. As temptations may show their teeth, so the Lord will break them; as lust may beguile with pleasure and satisfaction, so the Lord will destroy their lure and charm. “Thou hast rebuked the heathen, Thou hast destroyed the wicked, Thou hast put out their name forever and ever.” (9:5).
Is there a soul in trouble? Is there a spirit in anguish? Go to the Stronghold! Journey to the Fortress of Heaven! Come before the Lord of Safety and cry out, “Have mercy upon me, O Lord; consider my trouble which I suffer from them that hate me, Thou that liftest me up from the gates of death. That I may shew forth Thy praise…” Sins may encompass thee…iniquities may lie in wait for thee…Satan’s evil may darken the day, but “the Lord is known by the judgment which He executeth; the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands.” (9:16) Evil cannot overcome! Evil cannot overcome! “The heathen are sunk down in the pit that they made: in the net which they hid is their own foot taken.” (9:15) Evil cannot overcome, for “the wicked shall be turned into hell, and the nations that forget God.” (9:17)
Find a lost pebble in the countless sands of the sea... discover the perfect shining star in the galaxies above…and so it is to find the glow of righteousness in this present world. To see the needy not forgotten, and the poor not perishing is to almost see a dream. To be able to see those that give praise with their whole heart (9:1), those who extol the Lord’s name in song (9:2), and put their complete trust in God (9:10) is uncommon indeed. To see God become the center of a nation’s prominence and power is almost fictional. “Arise, O Lord, let not man prevail: let the heathen be judged in Thy sight. Put them in fear, O Lord, that the nations may know themselves to be but men. ” (9:19-20)
“They that know Thy name will put their trust the Thee, for Thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek Thee.” (9:10)
The Malice of the Hardened Heart
(Psalm 10)
There he stands with the face of an angel…with the beauties and wonders of heaven opened to his eyes…with cherubim and seraphim opening their arms in welcome to his departing soul. Stones continually fall like raindrops upon his broken body as he falls to the earth, “and they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” (Acts 7:59) There lay the mangled corpse upon the blood saturated ground…there lay the lifeless lips once filled with words of forgiveness and mercy…there lay the finest martyr save the Lord Himself. “Why standest Thou afar off, O Lord? Why hidest Thou Thyself in times of trouble?” (10:1)
Through the blood and broken bones of life…through thunderstorms and tempests that overwhelm the soul…God watches and remembers; “for Thou beholdest mischief and spite to requite it with Thy hand…” (10:14) When “the wicked in his pride doth persecute the poor,” when “the wicked boasteth of his heart’s desire, and blesseth the covetous, whom the Lord abhorreth,” when “his mouth is full of cursing, and deceit, and fraud; and under his tongue is mischief and vanity” the Lord commits these things to His memory (10:2-3,7). Though the earth stands for millennia upon millennia, and though age follows age…the fiendish, impenitent evil committed on the first day will be remembered upon the last. The Lord will never forget! He will “break the arm of the wicked and the evil man…till He find none. The Lord is King forever…” (10:15-16a)
“Lord, Thou hast heard the desire of the humble: Thou wilt prepare their heart, Thou wilt cause Thine ear to hear.” (10:17) The plea of the humbly righteous will extract a quick answer from the Divine lips of God. The soul that implores before Jehovah’s throne in simple, heart-wrenching appeals can by no means be rejected. The Divine reaction will be delivered in His time, and the “heathen will perish out of His land.” (10:16)
Wicked Arrows upon the Wind
(Psalm 11)
Danger lurks behind…before…and beside, as fiendish arrows fly above my troubled soul. “O safe to the Rock let me fly!” Let me find my Shelter…my Haven…my Rest from the entrapments of this wicked world. Let me “flee as a bird to Your mountain. For, lo, the wicked bend their bow, and make ready the string!” (11:1-2) Lord, be my Sanctuary…be my Shield from the barrage of Satan’s darts besieging my soul. Keep my feet firm on the upright path, and set me upon Thy righteous foundations that I may praise Thee before Thy throne. Be ever present in each stride and step…each heart beat and breath…let my soul sing of Thy guiding hand and gracious relief!
“The Lord is in His holy temple” (11:4) where safety resides…where the arrows of the wicked are broken by the intensity of God’s glorious presence. “The Lord is in His holy temple,” and I will neither be fearful nor anxious; for I am in the company of a Power beyond comparison…a Love beyond thought…and a Righteousness beyond man. “The Lord is in His holy temple,” thus I will rest in awe…I will sleep in peace…and I will praise His marvelous Spirit with each morning breath imparted to my feeble body.
As He looks upon my soul with eyes of mercy, He condemningly melts away the wicked with rains of “snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest.” (11:6) His eyelids flash, and the entirety of the world is judged in an instant. With fury unrivalled He takes His vengeance on rebellious hearts who defy His words. He will purge and cleanse “the wicked and him that loveth violence” with eternal fires of unparalleled degree. Their arrows of unkindness…their spears of immorality…their sharpened tongues of persecution will pierce their own flesh forever. “This shall be the portion of their cup.” (11:5)
“For the righteous Lord loveth righteousness: His countenance doth behold the upright.” (11:7) Ah! To see the Lord…to behold Him face to face…to be blessed with the sight of perfection is wonderful indeed. Yet, this wonder is reserved for the upright, and the upright alone. “The ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.” (1:5). On the Lord’s mount the birds of obedience abide. The righteous fly to the throne of Mount Zion, and there they adore the One who gives life and keeps it.
Silver Words and Sighs
(Psalm 12)
The monstrous waters churn and roll...churn and roll…and with devastating force wave after wave surges over the massive rocks on the verge of the sea. Boulders (that appear as if they could stand until the heavens pass away) slowly deteriorate and fall into the deep. Gradually the water assaults their foundations with almost undetected precision. Those massively fortified stones are no match for the relentless attacks of time.
“Help, Lord; for the godly man ceaseth; for the faithful fail from among the children of men.” (12:1) With assault after assault upon the foundation of a righteous soul…there are some foundations that fail. As each wave of temptation surges, a minute (almost unseen) amount of the base crumbles away. In the midst of each passing attack more of the support collapses, as the danger of falling into the depths of sin grows. The fallacy of self-assurance brings a sense of false peace and serenity…all the while iniquity is working death through the waters of time.
“For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the Lord; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.” (12:5) While the most forcible of tempests is severe, the Lord’s shield is greater to protect. Although persecutions may last for years…the Lord’s blessings are greater at the last, but safety is only afforded when souls cry out. While waves of temptations can be frustrated by the power of God, their sway is only thwarted when God hears pious appeals. “Thou shalt keep them, O Lord, thou shalt preserve them from this generation forever.” (12:7)
God avows deliverance for the oppressed; “for the words of the Lord are pure words; as silver tried in a furnace of the earth, purified seven times.” (12:6) Though the wicked walk on every side and the vilest men are exalted, “the Lord shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things.” (12:3) Jehovah will avenge the oppressed and cover the honest, but the wicked He will purge in His time.
Singing Sorrow Graciously
(Psalm 13)
Is God like the clouds that rush across the azure blue…untouchable, yet glorious to behold? Is He like the wind gliding gently along our faces like an unseen hand of comfort? Can He reach down from the heavens with His mighty hand to encourage the weakened soul? Does He ever overlook the cries of His own? “How long wilt Thou forget me, O Lord? Forever? How long wilt Thou hide Thy face from me?” (13:1)
Picture a Deity so perfectly pure…so uncontaminated by sin…One not tainted by fleshly lusts or evil iniquities; ponder on the subject of flawlessness… infinite righteousness…a goodness so immaculate that perfection does not define. Can such a Divinity even bear to gaze upon immorality and vice? Can such an Eye ever be focused on the iniquitous? “How long wilt Thou hide Thy face from me?” (13:1) How long can perfection bear to look at imperfection? Can infinite purity and light abide in the presence of pollution and darkness? Never! A web consisting of darkness and light cannot exist! There can be no latticework of both perfection and imperfection; for the composition will either be conclusively perfect or utterly deficient. A soul lives and thrives in the radiant presence of God, or a soul declines and dies while serving the father of darkness.
“How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? How long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?” (13:2) The eclipse of the soul by sin may darken a heart for scores of years, and even though the clouds of contravention seem to prevail during those moments…the Light can still come to wash away the shades of sin. “Consider and hear me, O Lord my God: lighten my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death…” (13:3)
Though the eyes may dim, though the darkness of death encompass, though “those that trouble…rejoice when I am moved” there is joy nonetheless. “I have trusted in Thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in Thy salvation.” (13:5) Rays of light are most resplendently observed out of the darkest depths. Beams of luminescence are most appreciated in the darkest nights.
The brightness of the Lord comes into a sin-filled, nocturnal humanity like an upsurge of generous grace. He comes with plenteous blessings…He comes to save His own…He comes with sword in hand, not to slay, but to save! With the skill of a surgeon’s scalpel, He cuts through the nightfall of iniquity, and makes the healing sun to rise upon the hearts of men. His breath chases away the death clouds of sin, and He brings about life and light once again. “I will sing unto the Lord, because He hath dealt bountifully with me.” (13:6) Bountiful with His grace! Liberal with His mercy! Plenteous with His love! Frequent in His pardon! Copious in His good blessings imparted! Relief is coming…stay strong.
Shaming and Seeking God
(Psalm 14)
“The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.” (14:1) What do the eyes of the Lord fail to observe? Does Omniscience or Omnipresence ever leave an action or object undetected? “Whither shall I go from Thy Spirit? Or whither shall I flee from Thy Presence? Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, Thou understandest my thoughts afar off.” (139:2,7) As measureless as the azure blue that stretches across the sky…so is the Lord’s gaze upon the expanse of mankind. The incalculable recesses of time, the most unfathomable of depths, the farthest reaches of human power and expertise are altogether taken in by a single glance of the all-seeing Jehovah God.
“The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.” (14:2) The Lord’s grand gaze still absorbs every movement, word, and thought that proceeds from the children of men, and even now the reasoning behind His omniscience is unchanged: “to see if there are any that understand and seek God.” Jehovah looks upon the world with the wisest of eyes to see whether His Name is scorned or praised. He emerges into the congregations of His people to see if they are unified by faith or divided by strife. He looms in the streets as a common beggar to see if man understands compassion. He appears in every house and observes if the old proverb lives there: “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15)
Scores of souls claim to be Christian in nature…many profess to understand salvation and deliverance from sin by God. However, when God enters their hearts and minds does He find them seeking? Does He find compassion and mercy upon others being accomplished through benevolence? Does He find forgiveness in the face of ridicule and hate? Does He find love for all, even for enemies? “They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy, there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” (14:3) Is this the cry of the Lord today? Is this what bellows from heaven to earth? “Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge? Who eat up My people as they eat bread, and call not upon the Lord?” (14:4)
“Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion!” (14:7) Oh that the iniquities of the world were passed away, and all things were new! Oh that God were to free His people from the shades of sin in eternal Radiance, and destroy the rebellious in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone. Oh that His people were purified perpetually! Oh that His own were ceaselessly cleansed! Oh for “faith to be lost in sight,” and darkness to be lost in His Light…for such would be joy beyond compare, beauty beyond the stars, and grace beyond all degree. Praise the Lord!
Dwelling in the Holy Hill of God
(Psalm 15)
“Lord, who shall abide in Thy tabernacle? Who shall dwell in Thy holy hill?” (15:1) To reside in the presence of God…what a fine thought to consider! To “abide” in the Lord’s comfort! To “dwell” in His majesty! To be located in His mercies and loving-kindness! What glorious imaginations of the furthermost delight! But these pleasures do not exist in a distant land of far away myth or in an age of man not yet seen…these elated contemplations settle in them “that walketh uprightly, worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in heart.” (15:2)
How great are the promises which instill strength in the children of God! What euphoric words Jehovah speaks to them who are under His righteous wing: “He that doeth these things shall never be moved.” (15:5) The supreme forces of Father God surround His family like a great “cloud of witnesses.” The muscle of His arm upholds the upright, strengthens the weak, and gives shelter to the innocent. The Lord will not suffer His own to be moved! No man shall ever pluck them out of His hand! (John 10:28) His children that dwell in the holy hill shall stand longer than time…stand higher than the mountains…stand stronger than all the forces of the earth; for these stand with God!
“I shall not be moved!” (16:8) The Lord is the forefront and rearward…He is the east and the west! “I shall not be moved!” Though Satan incessantly hurls his “fiery darts of the wicked”…though “principalities and powers” threaten to extinguish life…though death ravages through every portion of family and body… “I SHALL NOT BE MOVED!” The Lord has grounded His chosen in love deeper than death! His Spirit has immersed them in mercy more intense than hell! His Son has submerged their sins in a limitless flow of blood, wider than the sins of the world. “I shall not be moved!”
Children of God, those that walk upright (“who take no reward against the innocent”)…rejoice; for thy dwelling-place is in the holy hill of God! Be glad in view of the fact that God encircles you with love, encloses you with grace, and besieges you with mercy. “Lord, who shall abide in Thy tabernacle? Who shall dwell in Thy holy hill?”
I will!
God’s Presence on the Righteous Path
(Psalm 16)
How can one define trust? What language can so inclusively grasp the sensation of voluntarily, yet absolutely, placing confidence in a person or ideal? What word can the human tongue offer to depict such an awesome feature? Webster may attempt to give definition, scholars may well seek the grandeur of its meaning…but ‘trust’ is better experienced than defined. Man’s words rise and fall like the shades of the day…his terms and phrases may perhaps invoke zeal and passion, but to be subjected to the spiritual emotions of a word like ‘trust’ is to completely take in the midnight oil of all written antiquity in a single instant. If the stars above could be changed into words…if the earth were wrapped with rays of sunlit parchment…if all men were learned in the most intellectual of prose, the pen would never suffice to define ‘trust.’ This word must be felt in order to be realized.
“Preserve me, O God, for in Thee do I put my trust.” (16:1) Countless souls say that they trust in the Lord…many profess to have assurance in the promises of Jehovah, but how many souls can say they have lived trusting in God? How many say, “Thou art my Lord,” and commit their lives to His control (16:2)? How many parents give a “godly heritage” to their children above all else besides (16:6)? How many hearts have “set the Lord always before them” saying within themselves, “The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup; Thou maintainest my lot.” (16:5)
To trust in the Lord with heart, soul, mind, and strength is more than a few confessed words…it’s more than shedding convicting tears of penitence. To trust in the Lord is to place family members in His care…it is to lift up the associations of friends to the throne-room of the Most High…it is to give each step of life to Him, each breath of air to Him, each beam of light that crosses the eye. It is to give God the glory and praise for every second of life given! It is to remember that “every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of Lights…” (Jas. 1:18) It is to grasp the logic that the Lord (who clothes the lilies of the field with splendor greater than that of King Solomon and all his glory) walks beside His children every step of the way. “Therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.” (16:9)
The greatest encouragement that is gained by the children of righteousness is not that God walks alongside them through the light of life…it is that God walks with them through the shadows of death. “For Thou wilt not leave my soul in Hades; neither wilt Thou suffer Thine holy one to see corruption.” (16:10). As Jesus was never left in the grave to suffer corruption, neither shall the righteous be forgotten by the Holy One of heaven. As the darkness of death will bind each body to the grave, so the pleasures of God will encircle the upright soul in eternal pleasures unknown to this physical world.
“Thou wilt show me the path of life; in Thy presence is fullness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” (16:11) God awaits the hand of His children to stretch toward Him in eagerness, so that He can show them the pathway to take through life. He eagerly watches afar off at the gates of Paradise for His prodigal children to return. He is, even now, on His heavenly throne waiting for that moment (that He alone knows) when His family will be at His right side for ever. In the same way that words fall short in defining ‘trust,’ so do words lack in explaining the eternal reward of those who trust in Jehovah God. Heaven is better experienced than defined.
An Unfeigned Prayer for Protection
(Psalm 17)
“Hear the right, O Lord, attend unto my cry; give ear to my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips.” (17:1)
Genuine righteousness is hard to find indeed. To observe a person perform wonderful works and speak with flattering words in the public eye is an everyday occurrence…but to witness those same works and words being communicated in the privacy of the home or the solitude of the closet is certainly atypical. These days it appears as if sincerity in secret has been overshadowed by the glory of the limelight. For one to carry out a good deed there must be the satisfaction of a newspaper heading, or a camera flash, or a featured report on the six-o’clock news, or at least a pat on the back. Has the meaning of “unfeigned” been lost when it comes to things done or said in secret?
“Thou hast proved mine heart; Thou hast visited me in the night; Thou hast tried me, and shalt find nothing [evil]: I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.” (17:3) This is a statement of the boldest kind! This is an avowal that only the “unfeigned” can speak without Divine reproach. These words are on the tongues of those that have been tested in the fires of the Almighty…those who have been purified with the flames of heaven’s furnace…those who have been searched within and without out…those who have been weighed by Omniscience and are not found wanting! Are there any of these courageous souls to be found…souls that can broadcast on the celestial bandwidths of heaven that “my mouth shall not transgress!” (17:3) Has any heart the boldness to say, “VISIT ME! VISIT ME, O GOD! TRY ME! PROVE ME! TEST ME! Whether Thou visit the chambers of my heart or the chambers of my house…it matters not; for all that I am and all that I do is for Thy glory!” Can any soul say these things without fear of Divine admonition? Only if that soul is “unfeigned” both civically and secretly.
“Hold up my goings in Thy paths, that my footsteps slip not.” (17:5) Being “unfeigned” comes not from self-righteousness, but from God’s righteousness. This authenticity can never come from self…for it is the operation of God (Col. 2:12). “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” (51:10) When a child of God walks in the Lord’s path…that child’s footsteps will be firmly planted on the righteous road. Jehovah will keep them from the “wicked” and from the “deadly enemies who compass…about.” (17:9) God will incline His ear and hear their speech.
God’s protection surpasses all illustration, and yet David has exemplified this Divine defense in a way that all can capture: “Keep me as the apple of the eye; hide me under the shadow of Thy wing.” (17:8) When an object moves toward the pupil of the eye…the eyelid almost instantaneously locks around the eye shielding it from danger. David prays that the Lord will be his eyelid (as he is the pupil), so that when peril comes…David will be gently shielded in the nurture of the Lord. This promise is also to us and our children.
“As for me, I will behold Thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness.” (17:15) A soul will by no means see God unless that soul is upright. A camel will sooner “pass through the eye of a needle” before the wicked are given Divine approval (Mt. 19:24). “Let my sentence come forth from Thy presence; let Thine eyes behold the things that are equal [upright].” (17:2) May all be found “unfeigned” before the great judgment seat, so that all may behold His face without fear.
The High Tower and the Horn
(Psalm 18)
The thanks that all men ought to express to the Lord should surpass the grandest compliment…exceed the greatest tribute…and be superior to any honor given in the whole of creation. As marvelous as the shades of the sunset may be…God is more. As beautiful as the mirrored treetops on the most tranquil of lakes may be…God is more. The most eloquent prose in the finest of romantic poems can never exceed the words that fall from the lips of man toward the Savior of the world. Even the honey-filled mouth of Apollos could never exact appreciation to God for all He has done and continues to do.
“I will love Thee, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my Rock, and my Fortress, and my Deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my Buckler, and the Horn of my salvation, and my High Tower. I will call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.” (18:1-3) Oh how inadequate the words to use in light of the glorious redemption of God, that even the pen of David cannot transport such beauty to the page. As fluent as the pen of Paul might have been, as great as the delivery of Peter…the trust…the deliverance…the grace…the adoration…all of these items fall short in the describing. All of these things are lost in mortal translation.
“The sorrows of death compassed me, and the floods of ungodly men made me afraid. The sorrows of hell compassed me about: the snares of death prevented me. In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried unto my God…and my cry came before Him, even into His ears.” (18:4-6) What a multitude of burdens throng the way of man! What sorrows pierce the soul! What snares are laid to discourage even the mightiest of spirits! Who can stop the arrows of maltreatment tipped with the poison of discouragement aimed towards the righteous heart? What can shelter the soul from raging storms of uncertainty and fear? How can any heart find the peaceful bay of God when the waves of apprehension and doubt drive the soul’s ship past the harbor? (Hb. 2:1) CRY OUT TO GOD! CRY OUT TO GOD! His ears wait to hear the distressing cry! He awaits the shout of the righteous!
“Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations also of the hills were moved and shaken, because He was wroth. There went up smoke out of His nostrils, and fire out of His mouth devoured; coals were kindled by it. He bowed the heavens also, and came down; and darkness was under His feet.” (16:7-9) What answers come to the righteous in the times of distressing! How the Lord responds to the call of His children! What awesome protection! What tremendous fatherly love! He vanquishes the enemies of the upright…He bares the arm of His might…He scatters His righteous arrows of light into the darkness of despair…and at each breath of His nostrils the strong adversaries are conquered. God is able to save! He will “save to the uttermost” them that come to Him (Hb. 7:25)! He will draw His children out of the deepest waters of peril! He will deliver (18:19)!
“The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands hath He recompensed me. For I have kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God.” (18:20-21) “Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” (Gal. 6:7) To the merciful…they will reap mercy. To the upright…they will reap righteousness. To the pure…they will reap purity. To the perverse…they will reap perversion. Jehovah will “enlighten the darkness” of His people (18:28), but He will harden the wicked hearts in eternal stone to be crushed ‘neath the heaviness of the brimstone of hell. The Lord will “bring down” the high looks…He will strengthen the righteous, and make their path perfect.
“For by Thee I have run through a troop, and by my God have I leaped over a wall. He maketh my feet like hinds’ feet, and setteth me upon my high places. He teaches my hands to war, so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms.” (18:29, 33) There is no evil so powerful that its hold cannot be broken! There is no snare of sin that is so entangling that God cannot unravel its web. No sinister, spiritual army is so immense that the Lord cannot destroy them. Darkness cannot conquer the Light! Day overcomes the night! By the Father’s hand His children have gained the unconquerable zeal found only in the trust of the Lord. He has given unto His sheep eternal life…but He has also given them consuming capabilities.
“I have pursued mine enemies and overtaken them; neither did I turn again till they were consumed. I have wounded them that were not able to rise: they are fallen under my feet. For Thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle: Thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me.” (18:37-39) Never will the Lord’s chosen be swept away…never will they lose the battle! God is at their side…in their swords…riding on every arrow…behind every crushing blow. His elect have been awarded the breastplate of righteousness, feet shod about with the preparation of the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit…and these things will constantly conquer the powers of darkness. “Then did I beat them small as the dust before the wind: I did cast them out as dirt in the streets.” (18:42)
“Therefore will I give thanks unto Thee, O Lord, among the heathen, and sing praises unto Thy name.” (18:49) The “God of my salvation” shall be exalted above all else! The Lord of my deliverance shall forever be extolled beyond all honor and admiration. With prayers of thanks known only to heaven itself…with devotion known only to the creatures of eternity will I worship the Lord with thanksgiving. Tears of gratitude that stream from my eyes continually fill the diamond-like sea that shimmers before the throne of God…and the tears that shine the brightest are the diamonds of my thanks. Thank you, Lord…thank you! May Thy name be forever on my tongue…may my life reflect my thankfulness to You each day…and may all know Your everlasting name!
The Handiwork and the Heavens
(Psalm 19)
“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth His handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge.” (19:1-2) The dazzling beauty amongst the celestial bodies of the heavens reveals one of the greatest attestations to the presence of Jehovah God. The brilliant glistening of the stars…the colossal collisions of reactive molecules…the cosmic nothingness too great to perceive with mortal intelligence…the countless uncharted galaxies that the rays of this sun have not yet touched are all preaching the same sermon: “God is alive and powerful!”
With each morning’s sun that rears its rays upon the earth…the same sermon is shouted from its blazing podium, “God controls me!” Every existing creature (clothed with beauty beyond compare) makes up the innumerable congregation of creation that declares, “In Him we live, and move, and have our being!” As the sun fades away into the west…the mystifying light beams from the moon repeat the proclamation: “God controls my path!” “There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard!” (19:3) There are no people…no kindred, nation, nor tongue (no matter how learned or advanced) that has ever looked upon the night heavens and concluded that man is superior to all else. “Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.” (19:4) With each falling star…with each passing comet…with each twinkle and flicker on the dark face of night’s blanket…there comes a sermon that all comprehend: “TO GOD BE THE GLORY!” (19:1)
While the pathways of the planets are perfect, and the orbits of thousands of moons are fixed…so the “law of the Lord is perfect…the testimony of the Lord is sure…and the statutes of the Lord are right.” (19:7-8) As the celestial bodies above brighten the world…so the “commandments of the Lord…enlighten the eyes,” (19:8) making the darkness of sin vanish away. “The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.” (19:9) His decrees will forever stand, and His wisdom will forever be just.
How many souls long for the commandments of God? How many hearts (if truth be told) desire the law of the Lord beyond all else? “More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.” (19:10) Oh the preciousness of gold! How the mind imagines heaps upon heaps of coins…shining riches in locked chests…bars of reflecting metal stacked, one upon another, as far as the eye can see…immaculate over-layings…treasures of chains, rings, and bracelets! Oh the sweet and satisfying flavor of honey…how succulently one would savor those sugary droplets fresh from the comb! How magnificent the sight/taste would be if desire became reality! But the Christian is to desire (above all) the statutes of the Lord. There should be no riches great enough…no storehouses of treasure deep enough…no Rockefeller or Gates inheritance large enough to overpower the child of God’s desire to keep the Father’s will. “The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever:” but moth and rust corrupts the pleasures of this world (19:9).
God sets His eyes upon the earth much like the sun’s rays cover it: “there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.” (19:6) The day illuminates the darkness…and God pierces the nightshades of secret sin. The Lord sees what drives the heart, and He “divides asunder the soul and spirit.” This is why David would cry (as we must), “Keep back Thy servant from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me…” For as the lines and orbits of the heavens must be followed…accordingly, the child of God must keep to the pattern of God’s words. “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my Strength and my Redeemer.” (19:14) “Go, and do thou likewise.”
Sending Strength
(Psalm 20)
“The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee.” (Psa. 20:1)
The last place a soul flies is the point from which it should have flown to first. When a heart is in hopelessness and a life is in anguish…the knees are an end result and not a beginning response. From the depths of a hellish descent into pain and darkness…a still, small plea from a famished soul is heard by the God of Heaven: “Send help from the sanctuary…” (20:2). Then, from the ethereal heights of perfection and enchantment…a hand of mercy and redemption is to be found descending toward a threadbare soul in the grips of spiritual death. With the embrace of a mother to a child, that spirit is encircled by warm, eternal arms of love that drive away the chill of pain, and relieve the exhausted heart. “We will rejoice in Thy salvation…” (20:5)
“Now know I that the Lord saveth His anointed, He will hear him from His holy heaven with the saving strength of His right hand.” (20:6) Ah, what a joy it is to be one of the Lord’s anointed! To understand that the Hand which made the heavens…the Hand that parted the Red Sea of old…and the Hand nailed to the cross…is the Hand which attends to the poor in spirit and the pure in heart. What a thrill it is to know that the same Hand that raises the sun in the east…will raise the righteous out of their suffering. What bliss in brings a soul to know that the Hand that feeds the sparrow is the Hand that gives nourishment to the upright. By God’s hand the Lord’s chosen will rise above sin and sorrow…above all that this world has to offer.
“Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.” (20:7) If all the treasures of the world could be attained, it would not be enough to buy the faith which the righteous have in the Almighty God…a faith that is immoveable and eternal in the heavens. Christians do not trust in physical effects, but the anointed of God trust in something far greater…“unseen” in the heavens. Whether there are wars to be fought, or peace to be enjoyed…the chosen of God look not at what the eyes behold or what the hand touches. No! Not at all! The righteous “remember the name of the Lord God.” There is no other name given among men whereby one must be saved! There is no greater name than that which was given the Lord, and there is no other faith to be had…than true faith in Him!
“Save, Lord, Save” (Psa. 20:9)
Power on the Path
(Psalm 21)
How hard it is indeed to give God the credit which He deserves for the numerous victories He has granted every blood-bought soul. More often than not the rule of the human heart is to credit self. People tend to bask in their own glory and say, “Look at the great things that I have accomplished with my own power,” much as the rich fool of Luke 12…when, all the while, it has been God that has bestowed so rich a blessing on their lives. The virtuous child of the Lord lives only to bask in the glory of God, and be found in Him. “In Him we live and move and have our being…” (Acts 17:28). As it is written, “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.” (I Cor. 2:9) God gives the strength for victory in any pressing battle which a life may encounter along the spiritual way. He is the One who ultimately defeats the vice of the devil…He is the One who protects from the Destroyer of souls. “The king shall joy in Thy strength, O Lord; and in Thy salvation how greatly shall He rejoice.” (21:1)
The path of the righteous is strewed with blessings of goodness…but these blessings are sometimes barriers to keep the foot from slipping off course. “For Thou preventest him with the blessings of goodness…” (21:3). The Lord makes the pathway plain! He gives what is needful in order that the race can be run with confidence in the right direction. “For the king trusteth in the Lord, and through the mercy of the Most High he shall not be moved.” (21:7) With this renewed assurance that the road traveled leads to the glory of God and the reward of His servants…each step taken on the pathway of life becomes passionately stronger than the last.
“Thine hand shall find out all Thine enemies: Thy right hand shall find those that hate Thee. Thou shalt make them as a fiery oven in the time of Thine anger: The Lord shall swallow them up in His wrath, and the fire shall devour them.” (21:8-9). As each hurdle is approached…as each temptation is confronted the Lord has already given a way of escape. His hand has already conquered the enemy! He has made them “turn their back, when He made ready His arrows upon His string…” (21:12). The Lord protects each step taken on the road to heaven…and even now His arrows are pointed at the struggling temptations and sins of your life. Just remember that in order to release those Divine arrows from the celestial bow of God…we must stay on the righteous path.
Poured Out In Pain
Psalm 22
“My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?”
Disbelief and doubt hammer upon even the strongest wall of faith. When there is no oasis to be found in the desert of sorrow and sin…when the land of bliss is far from being seen because of the never-ending waters of turmoil there is always the inquiry of the soul, “My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?” The heart begins to speculate, as David’s spirit roared from the depths, “O my God, I cry in the daytime, but Thou hearest not; and in the night season I am not silent.” (22:2)
There are to be moments in life when the anguished voice of the soul calls out to God for comfort, but the Divine time for the giving of that consolation will not yet have come. As the soul languishes with the contemplation that no instant heavenly assistance is to be found, there is another notion that pierces the mind and soul of the faithful: “But Thou art holy, O Thou that inhabitest the praise of Israel. Our fathers trusted in Thee: they trusted, and Thou didst deliver them.” (22:3-4). God will not forsake His own people. If they are in duress…He will deliver them from the threat. If they are at the point of being beaten down by the enemies of the world…He will raise them to victory. The child of God will watch as the Lord hurls immense stones that will crush all of the enemies of the cross (as he crushed the Amorites of old). The Lord delivered our fathers…will he not deliver you?
“Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help.” (22:11). Divine help is the best help…Divine help is the only help when life has come to what may be its ending scene. For David…his body, soul, and spirit were at the point of being “poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint, my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels. My strength is dried up like a potsherd; and my tongue cleaveth to my jaws, and Thou hast brought me into the dust of death.” (22:14-15). The bulls of persecution used their brutal strength to trample David’s courage into the ground. The raging and ravening mouths of spiteful and malicious men pursued him…and pursued him until his strength was as dry as the Red Sea floor which the Israelites walked clean across. “Be Thou not far from me, O Lord; O my Strength, haste Thee to help me…save me from the lion’s mouth.” (22:19,21a)
“Ye that fear the Lord, praise Him; all ye the seed of Jacob glorify Him; and fear Him all ye the seed of Israel. FOR HE HATH NOT DESPISED NOR ABHORRED THE AFFLICTION OF THE AFFLICTED; NEITHER HATH HE HID HIS FACE FROM HIM; BUT WHEN HE CRIED UNTO HIM…HE HEARD!” (22:23-24). In the most tremendous of trials…in the most dreadful of difficulties…NEVER, NEVER forget that the Lord knows your affliction! He has never hidden His face from you! He has never closed His ears to your prayers! Though we doubt and question…though we feel ourselves to be unworthy worms…though enemies encompass on every side with vicious mouths gaped wide for the slaughter… though we are brought to the dusts of death itself THE LORD DOES NOT LEAVE US NOR FORSAKE US!
“I will declare Thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise Thee.” (22:22)
The Soul’s Still Waters
(Psalm 23)
“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” (23:1). The world struggles to attain an unattainable physical flawlessness…people crave an unfeasible amount of wealth which is thought to be needed to be happy. Yet, the child of God does not crave such things for “the Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” All the treasures of the world are as nothing in comparison to the blessing of being in the Shepherd’s shadow. In Him is where peace resides…in Him the storms of life are silent. He leads His sheep to the stilled waters of their souls…made calm by the sound of His own voice calling them to the green pastures of rest. “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”
“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me.” (23:4) The darkest shades of death will never o’er shadow the brightness of the Shepherd’s love. The sound of His voice will never be dulled by sickness or pain…but it will continuously ring out, “I AM WITH THEE ALWAY!
I AM WITH THEE ALWAY!” (Mt. 28:20). His hand will perpetually be outstretched to the wayward and the lost…as long as time stands. Though His rod of correction has righted our paths many times…that same rod will be what goes before us in defense. “I will fear no evil” when the Lord is my Guide! “I will fear no evil!”
With confidence we can sit down at the table the Lord has prepared…with confidence we can look our enemy in the face without fear or trepidation. “I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me!” Their words cannot harm…their actions come to naught…their deceptions are revealed…their foot slips when the oil of the Lord is poured out! What greatness is promised to the Lord’s anointed ones! Protection…power…paths of righteousness…and the very presence of God the Shepherd through life and through death. Our cups surely run over…
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” (23:6)
Clean Hands and Pure Hearts
(Psalm 24)
“The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof; the world and all they that dwell therein.” (24:1) Most people buy, and sell, and get gain without ever acknowledging where that gain is acquired from. The majority of souls that wander this earth aimlessly go here and there devoid of godly purpose or principle. All the people of the planet walk on borrowed land, breathe borrowed air, and live within borrowed time. “The earth is the Lord’s!” From the massive mansions in Beverly Hills to the poor shacks of the third world…from the billion dollar skyscrapers to the grain bins of West Kentucky…everything belongs to Him, “the world and all they that dwell therein.”
“He hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods.” (24:2) “God said, ‘Let the waters under the heaven be gathered unto one place, and let the dry land appear:’ and it was so.” (Gen. 1:9) God has created all that man has…all that man can ever attain. He has determined the ages and the orders…he has lifted His hand to the waters and said, “Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further.” (Job 38:11) God is perfectly powerful over all men and all things!
As a result of the Lord’s flawless supremacy, the question is then asked: “Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? Who shall stand in His holy place?” (24:3) And the answer cometh four-fold: One with “clean hands, and a pure heart…one who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor sworn deceitfully.” (24:4) Can vile hands worship the Lord? Is it possible for a fraudulent and corrupt heart to revere and love a perfectly righteous Lord? Never! There can never be an honest heart which pleases self before it pleases God! There can never be virtuous words spoken while the same tongue swears deceitfully. “Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessings and cursings. My brethren, these things ought not so to be.” (Jas. 3:10) Only those who have these four fruits “shall receive the blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.” (24:5)
“Lift up your heads, O ye gates: and be lifted up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of Glory shall come in.” (24:7) Barriers…the love of the riches of the earth…the overwhelming desire to attain the praise and fame of mankind…the lust of the flesh…the pride of carnal minds…self-confident strength…ALL these things cause the Lord to be shut out of the soul. With arrogant words and proud looks (which the Lord hates) the gates and doors of the heart are closed to the presence of the Lord. With haughtiness and condescension we are all guilty of slighting the Lord…we are all guilty of shutting Him out. The call of the Psalmist is this: “…Be lifted up, ye everlasting doors!” Don’t fasten the lock of your soul when the Lord is waiting at the door! Unlatch the locks! Pull down the gates! Lift up your heads and witness the glory of the King! “The Lord is strong and mighty, the Lord is strong and mighty in battle! The Lord of hosts, He is the King of Glory!” (24:8,10) Let the Lord into your life, and bask in His glory!
Eyes Ever Toward the Lord
(Psalm 25)
How many souls have been beaten down with temptation and sin? How many hearts lay wounded and torn with transgressions against Jehovah God? In the war of spirit against flesh… countless saints have found the battle too great, and they fall into the earth overcome by their own desires. They defile their garments as they wallow in the mire of the world for a season. Yet, when convicted of immoral conduct by the living words of the Spirit… when the danger that one’s soul is in is found out…there is only one place to raise a cry: “Unto Thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in Thee: let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me.” (25:1-2)
“Lead me in Thy truth, and teach me: for Thou art the God of my salvation; on Thee do I wait all the day.” (25:5) The experiences of this life will only teach so much…and then no more. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” (Mt. 4:4) The soul needs spiritual guidance that can only be obtained through learning the truths of God. However, these truths cannot be partially existent in life…the words of the Lord aren’t to be heeded one day and discarded the next, but God is to be waited upon “all the day.”
“What man is he that feareth the Lord? him shall He teach in the way that He shall choose. The secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him: and He will shew them His covenant.” (25:12, 14) “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge…” (Pro. 1:7) Without God there is no knowledge that is worth attaining…without God there are no words that are worth the writing. Though a man gain the whole of universal knowledge, if that man does not come to have fear of the Lord…what does it profit? There is no peace for those who do not fear Him. There are no alleviation of burdens for those who refuse Him. But for those who worship and revere the God of all…“their soul shall dwell at ease; and their seed shall inherit the earth.” (25:13) THIS IS THE SECRET OF LIFE! God has exposed the riddle of all the ages: How do I attain true happiness? How can I live a blessed life? “The secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him: and He will shew them His covenant.” (25:14)
Therefore, “my eyes are ever toward the Lord; for he shall pluck my feet out of the net.” (25:15) Even if the battle rages its worst…even if the soul is crushed by sin to the point of death “mine eyes are ever toward the Lord!” When the devil is walking to and fro through every day of life trying to discover weaknesses and flaws “my eyes are ever toward the Lord!” Though the darkest of sins that are committed in the darkest hours be exposed…the prayer of those that fear the Lord will be this: “look upon my affliction and my pain; and forgive all my sins.” (25:18)
“O keep my soul; and deliver me; let me not be ashamed; for I put my trust in Thee.” (25:20)
Bold Integrity in the Midst of Bloody Men
(Psalm 26)
“Judge me, O Lord.” (26:1) What a powerful statement comes from the lips of mortal man! David stands before an endlessly perfect God, and with all confidence asks his Creator to judge his every action and motive! He asks that God investigate every portion of his life…every word…every thought. Oh, for a courage like this today! Man’s faith is oftentimes tossed by every uncertainty of life…every insecurity seems to make us more hesitant to go to the Comforter of Heaven for help. Yet, the Psalmist teaches us that this is all the more reason to go to God and have Him examine each aspect of our lives.
“Examine me, O Lord, and prove me: try my reins and my heart!” (26:2) Why?! Why, David, do you ask such things as this? It is torture to be scrutinized and dissected! To stand before a Judge such as the Lord God is terrifying! And David resoundingly responds, “No…it is not!” How can one man have such confidence in the face of an Almighty Lord? Not to tremble in dread…not to be frightened by the thought of exposing the inner life…how is this possible? “I have trusted in the Lord; therefore I will not slide. Thy loving-kindness is ever before mine eyes; and I have walked in Thy truth.” (26:1,3) When you know the pathway you’re on leads to God…you are not afraid; for He is what you seek and desire to know.
How well do we know inner selves? How much conviction do we really have? Can we say with David that we “have not sat down with vain persons, neither will I go in with dissemblers…I have hated the congregation of evil doers; and will not sit with the wicked…I wash my hands in innocency…” (26:4-6) More and more…conviction is less and less. The ability to stand for truth is being replaced by a complacency of mind that causes our swords to be dulled. With less conviction comes less confidence that the life you live….is the right life. The mark of the mature saint is the ability to stand the closest scrutiny of the soul…and (even when blemishes are found upon canvas of life) knowing that we are able to go to God for cleansing. “Redeem me, and be merci | 