April 30, 2023 -- Psalm 20 -- The Psalm Series: A Prayer for Militaristic Times

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

20 May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble!
    May the name of the God of Jacob protect you!
2 May he send you help from the sanctuary
    and give you support from Zion!
3 May he remember all your offerings
    and regard with favor your burnt sacrifices! Selah

4 May he grant you your heart's desire
    and fulfill all your plans!
5 May we shout for joy over your salvation,
    and in the name of our God set up our banners!
May the LORD fulfill all your petitions!

6 Now I know that the LORD saves his anointed;
    he will answer him from his holy heaven
    with the saving might of his right hand.
7 Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
    but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.
8 They collapse and fall,
    but we rise and stand upright.

9 O LORD, save the king!
    May he answer us when we call.

Psalm 20 ESV

What is the difference between the words “can” and “may”? In a psalm-prayer like this one, the distinction is important. If you ask “can the LORD answer you in the day” you are asking a question of possibility. If you ask may the LORD answer you it permission seeking. He Who has the power is being approached with the plea to bring His great power and help to bear on behalf of His people. 

This is a military prayer. The great king David is teaching his people to pray for his successes in battle. The people of God are to be a nation that receives people who are refugees from the godlessness of the others nations all around them. They are to be a people who defend their borders because this land is His gift to His people. They are to be a people who, directed by the LORD, go out against the enemies of the LORD. By Spirit-inspired prophecy David is teaching the people of Israel one of his descendants would be the lasting King, Jesus.

Now believers pray to the Father through the power of David’s greater descendant, Jesus. We appeal to Him that He will hear His people in the day of trouble. As He has, through-out all the generations heard and answered His people, He will again hear and answer His people.

The people of the LORD, know He has set His banner over them. He has won the battle and He will bring His troops to full victory. The warfare is intense precisely because the enemy has been thrown against the ropes so this is the final round. But the outcome is sure, Jesus will be recognized as LORD over all and every enemy will be thrown down to their knees in acknowledgement of His splendour. Believer, pray to the King of Glory for His great power and victory to be revealed in your life as you battle 1. sins of the flesh, 2. peer pressure of the world and the tyranny of nations who hate God, and 3. the schemes of the Devil. Now you understand, with these three forces arrayed against you, the need for urgent prayer, for gathering with the people of God to worship Him and be reassured of His great power and sure victory.

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name.
Your kingdom come, Your will be done,
   on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
   and forgive us our debts,
   as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
   but deliver us from evil.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory,
   now and forevermore. Amen.

https://youtu.be/zhMFifugZ8o "A Mighty Fortress is Our God"
 

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 29, 2023 -- Psalm 19:12 - 13 -- The Psalm Series: the power of confession

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Who can discern his errors?
    Declare me innocent from hidden faults.
13 Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins;
    let them not have dominion over me!
Then I shall be blameless,
    and innocent of great transgression.
Psalm 19:12-13 ESV

Yesterday we noted that Psalm 19 explains the two books of revelation the LORD God uses to make Himself known. First is creation. The second is the Bible, which is the law and the testimony of God. The Bible includes the Living Word, Jesus Christ, Who is the best revelation of the Father, the radiance of His glory.

This psalm, written by David, is meant to be sung by the people. The lessons of this psalm continually teach believers, so that their relationship with God will be strengthened and enriched. By this psalm-song believers are taught to know their faults and errors; their presumptuous sins. Why does the Bible focus on the sins believers struggle with?

When you drive and you are about to change lanes you have a blind spot. You need to do a shoulder check, looking backwards to the blind spot so you can see whether or not there is a car that is cruising along near you. If you just change lanes without checking you will wind up in a crash. So too with our sins. Unless the Bible reveals to us our sins and the areas where they have dominion over us, we will crash and burn. Our relationship with God will be in placed in jeopardy.

This is the gracious work of God. When He reveals to us our sins, we have the opportunity to confess them and receive the forgiveness He holds out to us in Jesus Christ. What a great blessing that is. The Spirit then stirs believers to greater, willing, obedience.

Our Father in heaven hallowed be Your Name. Help us to discern our hidden faults. We easily ignore our sins and consider them no big deal; but they keep us from truly knowing You and walking with You in truth. Faithful Father, may Your Word accomplish the purpose for which You send it out. Show us our sins. Deliver us from their power. Apply the grace of Jesus to every part of our neediness and send Your Spirit so that we will be rock solid in obedience to You in every part of our lives. Amen.

https://youtu.be/yxCb6l3jkis
I Am Not My Own - Keith and Kristyn Getty and Skye Peterson

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 28, 2023 -- Psalm 19:1-2, 7-8 -- The Psalm Series: The two-fold revelation of the Living God

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

The heavens declare the glory of God,
    and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
2 Day to day pours out speech,
    and night to night reveals knowledge.

The law of the LORD is perfect,
    reviving the soul;
the testimony of the LORD is sure,
    making wise the simple;
8 the precepts of the LORD are right,
    rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the LORD is pure,
    enlightening the eyes;
Psalm 19:1-2; 7-8 ESV

This Psalm declares the ways in which the Living God declares Himself to all creation. The first way is in creation. Wherever the sun rises and sets the heavens are declaring the glory of the Maker of it all. This is called “general revelation”. The Self-revelation of God which is available to all people all over the earth.

Then verse 7 speaks of the special revelation of God. The Bible is His special revelation. While a man will discern there is a God Who made all things and orders the heavens and the earth, such a person could not know Jesus Christ and the power of His grace except that a Bible were put into his hands. This is why the Psalmist speaks of the Law of the LORD as perfect. His testimony gives to all who read it the declaration of Who He Is, that He is to be worshiped and adored.

The two-fold revelation of God, general revelation and special revelation, call for believers to know the Father intimately through the splendour of creation. Then, His most excellent Self-revelation is proclaimed in the Word, the Bible. The Bible declares Jesus, the Living Word. The Spirit of God continually declares the truthfulness of God to the heart (John 14:17; Romans 8:15,16).

Our Father in heaven forever honoured and blessed be Your Name. By Your written Word and the Living Word You revive the soul of Your people. How great is Your Name and wonderful is the salvation You lavish on Your people. Thank You for the Spirit Whom You have put into the heart of believers. Thank You for the Spirit Who constantly speaks Your goodness deep into the core of who we are. O LORD, “let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, my Rock and my Redeemer”. Amen.

The final sentence of the prayer is Psalm 19:14 ESV

https://youtu.be/awEvlCRZ3WQ
"The Heavens Declare the Glory of God" Martijn de Groot

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 27, 2023 -- Galatians 5:1, 16-17 -- Fighting the Enemy Within

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

For freedom Christ has set us free;
stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.
Galatians 5:1, 16-17 ESV

In my work with Redemption Prison Ministry, I have the privilege of reading and correcting the correspondence course work of an inmate. In preparation for this work I have been reading along with my student, Kris Lundgaard's work "The Enemy Within". The most recent reading made a huge impact on me. Today's devotion is at the first a quotation from this book and then an accompanying prayer from Valley of Vision: Puritan Prayers and Devotions.

     The flesh has chosen quite an enemy; it is ‘enmity against God.”
     Sometimes we think of the flesh as our enemy; but it only hates
     us because God is in us; 'The flesh wars against the Spirit' in
     us (Galatians 5:17).
     Which is easier: to sit with a bucket of butter-soaked popcorn
     and watch Tom Cruise on the big screen for two hours or kneel
     down and pray for five minutes?...The flesh can curl up by your
     side and watch mindless movies all night long. But let even the
     barest thought of meditation flutter into your mind and the flesh
     goes to Red Alter. Before you get past 'Our Father,' your eyes,
     which were glued to the screen, now sag in sleepiness and
     your attention, which was so fixed on the plot, now zips around
     the universe faster than the Starship Enterprise.
     "The Enemy Within" Kris Lundgaard, page 46


O FATHER,
Thou hast made man for the glory of thyself,
and when not an instrument of that glory,
he is a thing of nought;
No sin is greater than the sin of unbelief,
for if union with Christ is the greatest good,
unbelief is the greatest sin, as being cross to thy command;
I see that whatever my sin is,
yet no sin is like disunion from Christ by unbelief.
Lord, keep me from committing
the greatest sin in departing from him,
for I can never in this life perfectly obey and cleave to Christ.
When thou takest away my outward blessings,
it is for sin,
in not acknowledging that all that I have is of thee,
in not serving thee through what I have,
in making myself secure and hardened.
Lawful blessings are the secret idols, and do most hurt;
the greatest injury is in the having,
the greatest good in the taking away.
In love divest me of blessings that I may glorify thee the more;
remove the fuel of my sin, and may I prize the gain of a little holiness
as overbalancing all my losses.
The more I love thee with a truly gracious love
the more I desire to love thee,
and the more miserable I am at my want of love;
The more I hunger and thirst after thee,
the more I faint and fail in finding thee,
The more my heart is broken for sin,
the more I pray it may be far more broken.
My great evil is that I do not remember the sins of my youth,
nay, the sins of one day I forget the next.
Keep me from all things that turn to unbelief
or lack of felt union with Christ.
Valley of Vision "Union with Christ"

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 25, 2023 -- Psalm 18:1-3 -- The Psalm Series: The LORD My Deliverer

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, the servant of the LORD, who addressed the words of this song to the LORD on the day when the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. He said:

18 I love you, O LORD, my strength.
2 The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
    my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
    my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
3 I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised,
    and I am saved from my enemies.

Psalm 18:1-3 ESV

This Psalm was first recorded in II Samuel 22. The Psalm before us is slightly modified from the original one in II Samuel. However, this song of David, recalling God's faithfulness before he became king of Israel, has been taken up by believers as a song of trust and deliverance. It is a psalm sung and memorized by generation after generation of believers.

David had experienced great hardships, betrayal by King Saul who had previously appointed him to his court. King Saul even had troops of soldiers hunting him down. Time after time the LORD rescued David. This Psalm of love and trust is a response to the goodness of the LORD in the life of His servant.

David’s declaration of love to the LORD echoes to the Living God His prior love to David. Consider all the imagery David uses to describe the LORD’s saving love. The LORD is “my rock”. When all the world around is sinking sand and unreliable, God is the sure foundation of one’s life. For the New Testament believer this is revealed as definitively true in Christ Jesus. The Devil would sink us in lies and defeat and self-condemnation, but Jesus disarmed the Devil at the cross (Colossians 2:15).

Dear family in Christ, think about the opening words of this Psalm. Reflect on the fact that the LORD our God is near. He is Your shield. Perhaps, unlike David, you have not escaped from the clutches of the enemy, be assured, as was David "In my distress I called upon the LORD; to my God I cried for help. From HIs temple He heard my voice" (verse 6). Give thanks to Him based on the ways you have seen His deliverance in your own life

Our Father in heaven hallowed be Your Name. With David, and the great company of believers of previous generations, we raise our voices in honour, love, and praise to You. Faithful Father thank You for Jesus, the Rock of our salvation. Thank You for the Spirit Who shields us from wiles of the Devil. Thank You for the protection You give to Your people so that we can face the challenges and trouble of this generation and through it all loudly declare Your love. Amen.

https://youtu.be/FfVyWMcVJaI
Psalm 18 Song -- Abe and Liz Philip 
 

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 21, 2023 -- Proverbs 21:16 & 21 -- Pursuing righteousness and lovingkindness

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

One who wanders from the way of good sense
    will rest in the assembly of the dead.

Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness
    will find life, righteousness, and honor.

Proverbs 21:16 & 21 ESV

Did you notice the sharp contrast between the kinds of people described in these two proverbs? One is wandering. He is aimless. He is not submitted to the way of the LORD, nor does he consider himself a wicked man. He is flitting like a butterfly from one senseless act to another drinking in the poison of waywardness as if it were nectar.

The other man is pursuing righteousness and kindness. That word kindness is a reference to the covenant lovingkindness of the Living God. He, who has been captivated by the goodness of God, will dedicate himself to the LORD of Glory. He has every opportunity to flit here and there and be as senseless as the wanderer. He does not. Why? Because the grace of Jesus Christ has touched him. He has life everlasting flowing through his veins which is fueled by the presence of the Holy Spirit. When he pursues worthless things the Spirit lights up the Word of God so that his heart and mind are convicted by his wandering and he is drawn back to righteousness.

The man or woman caught in the grip of God’s grace have been declared righteous by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. They are justified so that their sins no longer count against them. Such men and women, however, are now by the Spirit’s power drawn into the process of being made holy. The Spirit restrains their willful sin. The Spirit continually shows them their need to be disciplined in their loving obedience so that they do not give the Devil an opening in their ranks. The Spirit takes the Word of God and shows them their need to confess their sins, to turn from them, and the walk with God. Those held by the saving power of the Father are learning to hate their sin more and more. They forsake such because they are soldiers serving Jesus, the Captain of Salvation.

Our Father in heaven hallowed be Your Name. Thank You, Father, for the grace of Jesus which You have decreed from before the foundation of the world to be the sole reason Your love reached us and declared us to be righteous. Spirit of the Living God guard us and fill us with a hunger for the Word so that we will hate sin and ever more fully delight in the pursuit of His righteousness and the Father's lovingkindness lavished on us in Jesus Christ. Amen.

https://youtu.be/SbCtc0obNTs Fountainview Academy “Leaning on the Everlasting Arms”

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 20, 2023 -- Psalm 17:6-8a -- The Psalm Series: Kept as the apple of His eye

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
    incline your ear to me; hear my words.
7 Wondrously show your steadfast love,
    O Savior of those who seek refuge
    from their adversaries at your right hand.
8 Keep me as the apple of your eye;
    hide me in the shadow of your wings,
Psalm 17:6-8a ESV

It is the intimacy of these words that stands out to me. The whole Psalm is called “A Prayer of David”. His sins are well-known to us. He slept with Bathsheba, the wife of one of his closest friends and a general in his army. Then he killed this man in order to cover up his sin. He didn’t discipline his sons when they sinned. This chaos and absentee fathering led to one of his sons rising up against him in a coup. Knowing this highlights that it is the LORD Who wondrously shows steadfast love. He is also the initiator of the covenant. He is always the One Who by His Spirit holds us in the place where His steadfast love meets our deepest and greatest brokenness.

God is the Savior of all those who seek refuge in Him. Their refuge-seeking is based on His prior saving work. It is grace which surrounded the believer. In the Old Testament it is the foreshadowing of the grace that is ours in Jesus Christ. In the New Testament we know God the Savior through Jesus Christ. All the Old Testament pointed to the Father's faithful salvation that would be poured out in Jesus through Whom we are adopted as sons and daughters.

What a beautiful expression it is, to be kept as the apple of God’s eye. Think of it. If anything comes near your eye you instinctively swat it away, you zealously guard it so nothing happens to it. God, Who is all-powerful, will guard you as surely as you guard and protect your eye from all harm. What a beautiful protection is figured in that final line of today's text: “Hide me in the shadow of Your wings”. Imagine a massive eagle, strong and powerful, guarding her nest, shielding her eaglets under her wings.

Such imagery invites prayer. Such imagery was given to King David as inspiration so that believers generations and centuries removed from him, would by the Spirit’s power contemplate Who God is and be drawn to Him in prayer. Our sins cannot stop us from coming to God. Think of it, as often as we confess them, He inclines His hear to hear and to heal. What a mighty God we serve!

Our  Father in heaven hallowed and forever blessed be Your Name. Thank You for the wondrous salvation You have poured out on us in Jesus Christ. Thank You, Spirit of the Living God that in You and by Your powerful presence in our lives we are guarded as the apple of our Father's eye beneath the sheltering of His protecting wings. Increase our imagination of this glorious God so that our hearts will flow with never-ending prayer, devoting ourselves to this Mighty Savior Who has so fiercely, protectively, drawn us to Himself. Amen.

https://youtu.be/W5EUvOnQr4Y “His Mercy Is More” Matt Papa

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 19, 2023 -- Psalm 16:11 -- The Psalm Series: the pathway of life

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

You make known to me the path of life;
    in your presence there is fullness of joy;
    at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Psalm 16:11 ESV

Funny isn’t it, how something so familiar can suddenly seem new. For quite some time I have been slightly misquoting this particular text. The first line I’d recite as “You have made know to me the path of life” as if it were past tense. The force of it is more accurately rendered “You continually declare to me the path of life”. It is an on-going declaration of His goodness in our lives.

The Word of God continually lays out for us the pathway of life.

The Spirit of God constantly teaches us the pathway of life.

The fellowship of friends who love Jesus is His gift given which helps us walking in the right way.

The joy of the Father’s goodness and steadfast love (see verse 1) are also a constant declaration to our minds and souls so that veering to the right or to the left is leaving the boundary lines He has set in place for our blessing (verse 6). .

Yesterday I was driving a friend’s car. It has all the latest gadgets. Suddenly, there was a sharp, repetitive, ping. It was distracting. Then I realized what it was. The car’s warning system was alerting me that the car was starting to drift out of its lane. What an annoying sound. What a great reminder to stay in one’s lane.

When you realize the lack of such things as joy, the pleasure of the Word, or the fellowship of Christian friends, it ought to be like a sharp pinging in life which reminds you to get back into your lane in joyful obedience to God as He declares to you the path of life.

Our Father in heaven hallowed be Your Name. Thank You that You are the LORD and You are my Lord. Thank You for Your Spirit, Your Word, the grace You give me in Jesus, for the blessed fellowship with other Christians, and so many other pleasures at Your right hand, which keep me in my lane as I journey through this life. Continually declare to me the path of life so that the anticipation of the glorious life yet to come will increase in me. How wonderful are Your promises. How exciting that one day the pleasures I already enjoy with You now will be perfected and inestimably more wonderful in the strength of Your Spirit and by Jesus’ grace fully applied which will afford to me the joy of being with You, living in wonder and offering awestruck worship before the fiery splendor of Your holiness. Amen.

https://youtu.be/fmaEBfHJnCg “The King in All His Beauty”

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 17, 2023 -- Psalm 16:1-2 -- The Psalm Series: the LORD the Source of all Good

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~hear and obey Jesus!

Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
2 I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord;
    I have no good apart from you.”
Psalm 16:1-2 ESV

The old atheist question “If there is a good man who does not know God, why would a loving God condemn him to hell?” is answered by these first verses of Psalm 16. There is no good apart from the Living God. The only good in our life is to acknowledge the LORD—He Who makes covenant with His people and at great cost keeps those covenant promises. But how would the non-believer know this?

The heavens declare God’s glory (Psalm 19:1) and their testimony is available to all.

The complexity of human design proves there is a maker (Psalm 139:14). Cell phone manufacturers boast of their latest models and all its features. We are often amazed at what computing power is in our hands. These companies crow over their designs. We know these machines are designed. There is no way they ‘happened by chance and time’. And if you'd be so naïve to think that, you'd see the maker's stamp on it to correct your foolish notion. Yet a single cell in our bodies is far more complex. What a work of beauty each one is. Our very DNA bears our Maker's mark. If a cell phone has a maker (manufacturer) how much more does life have a designer?! He is God--the source of all good.

It is increasingly difficult to watch any movie or film. The Name of God is a cure. Interestingly and painfully, when the same one who curses is in trouble, there is an appeal to God. It is obvious men suppress the truth of God’s existence (Romans 1:28). Why else would they curse Him or cry out to Him? No one curses the Easter Bunny or the Tooth Fairy when they are in crisis.

When the Rich Young Ruler came to Jesus asking how to be saved, he began by calling Jesus “Good Teacher”. Jesus replied “No one is good except God alone”. (Luke 18:19). Jesus is affirming God the Father is the source of good. In conjunction with this Jesus is challenging the RYR to see standing before him Jesus, truly God, truly the Source of Good for all who believe.

Still the mercy of God beyond all description is seen in this fact, as long as men, atheists and believers alike, draw breath, God is good. He sends His rain on the just and the unjust. He gives life. He gives breath in our lungs and skills and abilities. Truly His goodness is infinite. As long as a man lives and breaths, he has every opportunity to acknowledge “apart from God I have no good”.

Our Father in heaven honoured and praised may Your Name be throughout all eternity. LORD, You are my Lord; I have no good apart from You! You make known to me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are eternal pleasures forevermore. Amen.
(Based on Psalm 16:1,11) 

https://youtu.be/pCsC0CUH34I
When Morning Gilds the Sky

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 16, 2023 -- Psalm 15 -- The Psalm Series: Worship at great cost

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

A Psalm of David.

15 O LORD, who shall sojourn in your tent?
    Who shall dwell on your holy hill?

2 He who walks blamelessly and does what is right
    and speaks truth in his heart;
3 who does not slander with his tongue
    and does no evil to his neighbor,
    nor takes up a reproach against his friend;
4 in whose eyes a vile person is despised,
    but who honors those who fear the Lord;
who swears to his own hurt and does not change;
5 who does not put out his money at interest
    and does not take a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things shall never be moved.

Psalm 15 ESV

It is Sunday. Those who are inclined to go to join with God’s people are getting prepared. There will be thoughts on what to eat before going and gathering with other Christians. There will be questions on what to wear. Perhaps some will wonder if there is enough time to go and get back before the family supper, or the game, or other events deemed important.

I wonder how many people are asking the most important question. The same question as did David—the writer of this Psalm? How many people are asking themselves if their walk is blameless? How many are asking: “have I done evil to my neighbour or expressed strong disapproval of my friend so that the relationship is fractured? How many are asking "who can sojourn" who can stay for a time with the LORD of Glory?

In Matthew 5 Jesus taught “if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift” (Matthew 5:23-24ESV). It is a great privilege to worship the Father and one must worship Him in the fear of the LORD after having examined his own heart.

David is a man whose sins are well-documented in the Bible. What is also well-documented are his confessions. He confessed his sins. When he did not, his hard heart was humbled by his prophet, Nathan, whom the LORD had sent to confront him. The sacrifices David offered on the altar, sin offerings, all pointing to Jesus Christ. In Christ our sins are forgiven. In Christ we have the open path to being reconciled to God and then being reconciled to one another. This is not cheap grace. Jesus Christ lived a perfect life. No sin was found in Him. He became for us the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world. Our sins were put on Him and His blamelessness was credited to us.

Before you go into the house of God, what do you need to make right with God? With your brother, your wife, your neighbour, or your friend?

Our Father in heaven hallowed be Your Name. Thank You for the work of Jesus in Whom we are reconciled to You by His death and through Whom we are presented to You as holy and blameless, above reproach1. Spirit of the Living God let Your Word penetrate deep into our heart, conscience and mind so that we will confess whatever hinders our walk with the Father thereby denying the Devil a foothold, and keeping the unity of peace among the family of God. Forgive us for our thoughtless worship and our worshipless thoughts. Renew a right spirit in us so that we will be the holy and blameless people You call us to be through the sacrifice of Jesus and this in the power of the Spirit. Amen.

1 from Colossians 1:22

https://youtu.be/UaSn2f2ejPM Henry Purcell “Remember Not, Lord, our Offences”

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 14, 2023 -- Psalm 14:1-2 -- The Psalm Series: The knowability of the LORD

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

To the choirmaster. Of David.

1The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
    They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds;
    there is none who does good.

2 The LORD looks down from heaven on the children of man,
    to see if there are any who understand,
    who seek after God.

Psalm 14:1-2 ESV

There is a very familiar atheist verbal sleight of hand which purports to give the reason people cannot know God. The atheist says imagine there is an elephant standing still and four blind men are there and one touches the trunk and another the tusk and so on. Each one based on the little bit it perceives does not interpret the whole to be an elephant because they only poorly sense a part of it. Here is the problem with that analogy.

First, it assumes the one telling the story knows it is an elephant. So the one telling this has a position of knowing more than the listener could.

Second it does not allow for the four men to communicate with one another and learn there is, in fact, an elephant standing right there.

Finally, the elephant cannot speak. In sharp contrast God does speak. He says, “I am God!”

Look at this Psalm. The LORD is inviting men and women to seek after Him. His creation declares His goodness. His Word is given so that blind men can hear and know Him. He has opened heaven and given His Son Jesus Christ, Who is the clearest communication of the Father’s love and “is the radiance of the glory of God” (Hebrews 1:3).

The atheist is willfully foolish; willfully denying the evidence of God’s nearness and denying the evidence of the creation, the Word and Jesus. Having determined there is no God, the atheist acts like a fool and his deed are wicked. The greatest wickedness is to live as if the God you know exists does not exist. No wonder there is great judgment that will fall on the man or woman who foolishly refuses to see Him and worship Him.

Our Father in heaven let Your Name be greatly revered in all the earth. You have declared Your splendor in the vast beauty of creation. By Your Spirit You spoke to prophets so that Your revelation has been made known. Mighty God of Glory, You have most clearly spoken through Jesus Christ, the heir of all things and the radiance of the Father's glory. Spirit of God, work mightily in us and through all of us who believe so that the Name of Jesus will be made known to all our circle of family and friends and ultimately to every part of the world. Increase our zeal to seek after You and know You so that we can worship You, triune God, in spirit and in truth. This we ask in Jesus' Name. Amen.

https://youtu.be/5XYeDpNndR0
"The Lord Almighty Reigns" Getty Music

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 12, 2023 -- Psalm 13 -- The Psalm Series: the cycle of lament that leads to God's peace

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

 How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever?
    How long will you hide your face from me?
2 How long must I take counsel in my soul
    and have sorrow in my heart all the day?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?

3 Consider and answer me, O LORD my God;
    light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death,
4 lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,”
    lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.

5 But I have trusted in your steadfast love;
    my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
6 I will sing to the LORD,
    because he has dealt bountifully with me.

Psalm 13 ESV

Dear family in Jesus Christ, doesn’t it sometimes seem that sin and sorrow and the flood of wickedness hit you wave upon wave and there is no relief? How does one move from giving voice to appropriate lamentation—that is sorrow that fills the heart and mind— and then find one's way back to a sense of equilibrium? This Psalm shows us the cycle of lament.

The writer pours out his complaint (verses 1 & 2). These are general enough so that the congregation gathered who are learning this and singing it can fill in their own details. A cancer diagnosis? A huge financial loss? A friend’s death, untimely? In-fighting within the church? A friend’s stubborn refusal of the Gospel? The Devil’s old tricks tripping you up again? Pour this out in prayer.

Notice the change, this is petition (verses 3 & 4). The Psalm writer is asking for God’s help: answer me. Consider me. Look at my sorrows. The complaint moves to petition which is asking for God’s intervention.

The 5th verse is a vow of trust. In the past God the Faithful Father has always acted in love and in accordance with His goodness and based on this the people once again decide to place their trust in Him, knowing He will do so again. So the Psalmist makes a vow to consider all HIs previous acts of  salvation and let this be what his brain thinks about, rather than constantly rehearsing all the troubles he is facing. This is what breaks the pattern of complaint. It is focusing on God’s steadfast love. Consider the salvation of the LORD as shown in Jesus Christ and how He keeps in your heart by the power of the Spirit.

The final verse is the return to peace in the presence of the LORD, that is equilibrium. It is peace that passes understanding. Though the enemy rages, or death is near, or troubles arise, the LORD our God is our hope and song. No one can take this from us. When the next wave of hardship splashes up against the believer’s life, like a mighty flood, then the cycle begins again: complaint, petition, the vow of trust and return to equilibrium, peace which is anchored in God’s goodness.

Our Father in heaven hallowed be Your Name. Great are You and glorious in power. We choose to sing to You today. As You have acted in faithfulness and love so Your people are confident that the grace of Jesus Christ will flow in like a tide and wash away these light and momentary troubles we are experiencing. In view of eternity and the sanctifying work which Your Spirit is effecting in us, all the troubles of this life are small in comparison to the fact that You are the Warrior-God Who guards HIs people, now and for eternity. How worthy You are and greatly to be praised. Let our minds constantly review all Your mighty acts of salvation to the praise and glory of the Father and the building up of the mighty congregation of people who belong to Jesus. Amen.

https://youtu.be/TLPUYk1W1AE Getty Music "The Lord God Almighty Reigns"

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 11, 2023 -- Psalm 12 -- The Psalm Series: A chorus calling for God's help

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

Save, O LORD, for the godly one is gone;
    for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.
2 Everyone utters lies to his neighbor;
    with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

3 May the LORD cut off all flattering lips,
    the tongue that makes great boasts,
4 those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
    our lips are with us; who is master over us?”

5 “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
    I will now arise,” says the LORD;
    “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”
6 The words of the LORD are pure words,
    like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
    purified seven times.

7 You, O LORD, will keep them;
    you will guard us from this generation forever.
8 On every side the wicked prowl,
    as vileness is exalted among the children of man.

Psalm 12 ESV

Here we are again! Another Psalm which laments the pervasiveness of the wicked. The godless are so many it seems to the Psalm-writer as if “the faithfulness have vanished from among the children of man” (verse 1). Look at the notation above the beginning of the Psalm. There is an instruction for the choirmaster. That means this is a psalm that is meant to be sung by the people who have gathered for worship. It is something the people must learn and sing repeatedly. Why?

The recognition of the flood of wickedness will result in the people of God crying out the LORD. When people gather for worship they are prepared for the day of trouble when godlessness and temptations rise up and engulf them.

The judgment of God against the wicked will be measured out in full (verse 3). Either here on earth, or when Jesus Christ returns.

Those who are in poverty, helpless before those who are abusive in their power, will receive special attention from the LORD (verse 5).

The word of the LORD is completely trustworthy (verse 6). This emphasis is needed because the gap in time between the utterance of this prayer and the coming of the LORD’s justice can make it seem like the LORD is either not answering or listening.

This psalm keeps the believer from thinking characters in the Bible times had it easy. They' didn’t. One must always rely on the power of the Spirit to reveal the beauty of the Word of God—the written word and the Living Word, Jesus.

The response of Christians while facing great hardship is a testimony to the world that greater is He Who is in us than he who is in the world (I John 4:4).

Our Father in heaven blessed be Your Name. You are terrible in splendor. The godly receive Your protection while the godless will experience Your just and swift retribution. Savior of Your people arise and give the protection You have promised. LORD, Whose every word is trustworthy, send Your Spirit so that believers will once again be reminded of the words of Jesus and the greatness of the protection which is found in Him. Teach us as believers the appropriate fear of the LORD which keeps us from all wrong pathways. LORD of lords and King of kings, teach Your people faithfulness in gathering for worship, as well as the hope and blessedness to be found in ascribing to You the praise and honour due Your Name. Amen.

https://youtu.be/qF6aBDS3drA

He Lives! SE Samonte

 

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 10, 2023 -- Psalm 11 -- The Psalm Series: the LORD's power in bewildering times

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

To the choirmaster. Of David.

11 In the LORD I take refuge;
how can you say to my soul,
    “Flee like a bird to your mountain,
2 for behold, the wicked bend the bow;
    they have fitted their arrow to the string
    to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart;
3 if the foundations are destroyed,
    what can the righteous do?”

4 The LORD is in his holy temple;
    the LORD's throne is in heaven;
    his eyes see, his eyelids test the children of man.
5 The LORD tests the righteous,
    but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.
6 Let him rain coals on the wicked;
    fire and sulfur and a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.
7 For the LORD is righteous;
he loves righteous deeds;
    the upright shall behold his face.

Psalm 11 ESV

There is an expression that is commonly used which goes something like this: the LORD hates the sin but loves the sinner. According to Psalm 11 that expression is wrong. Look at verse 5. The LORD’s very soul, the core of Who He Is, hates the wicked and hates the one who loves violence. There is no wiggle room there.

Yesterday I was speaking with a dear young Christian who recently had been tested. He testified he had stepped out of the sheltering of the LORD by his own willfulness and when he realized the depths of his error he said he knew the appropriate fear of the LORD. If he, at that point, continued in his sin or committed worse sins, he’d know an even greater measure of the LORD’s just anger. How sobering that is. The LORD is awesome and terrible. In a very real sense believers are to be "scared straight" so that we do not toy with evil.

This Psalm was written a few thousand years ago, but it captures for us the bewilderment of our times. Back then, as today, what is right is mocked as wrong and all that is wrong and evil is celebrated as right. The foundations are being destroyed. Dear Christian, do not lose hope! Consider the power of God through-out all ages. His eyes see. Nothing escapes His notice. His eyelids test the children of men. So great is the power of His gaze that the merest blink of His eyes will bring to ruin and defeat the strongest of His (and our) enemies.

Look at the last verse. The LORD is righteous. His Son Jesus Christ is the Righteous One Who came and took the hot, fiery coals of God’s wrath on sin and the scorching wind of His fury so that all who look to Jesus will be saved. All who trust in Jesus are the upright ones. Their very nature has changed because of Jesus Christ. Hallelujah! What a Savior.

Our Father in heaven hallowed be Your Name! Thank You for the greatness of the salvation You have given in Jesus Christ. Thank You for Jesus’ grace that covers every area our existence and for the Holy Spirit Who applies the work of Jesus to our lives so that in Him we are a new creation. Holy God, preserve Your people. Purify us from all unrighteousness. O LORD, seated in power in the heavens, break the power of sin and wickedness that has a choke-hold on so many of our friends and family members. Give to them the freedom that is found in Jesus Christ alone. Resurrected Jesus, let Your the fame of Your glory cover this earth as the waters cover the sea. Amen.

https://youtu.be/oN77HjfAc8k
"Up from the Grave He Arose" Islington Baptist Church

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 9, 2023 -- Mark 16:1-8 -- Jesus Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

 When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. 3 And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” 4 And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large. 5 And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. 6 And he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.” 8 And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.
Mark 16:1-8 ESV

He is risen! He is risen indeed! This phrase usually spoken by the minister is then picked up by the gathered congregation. All our Christian faith hangs on this truth, Jesus Christ is risen.

• Because Jesus is risen the Father’s promises are shown and proven to be yes and Amen.

• Because Jesus is risen believers have new life.

• Because Jesus is risen we are assured the Father knew the worst of our condition, sent His Son, the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world and by His Spirit we are constantly assured nothing will ever separate us from the Father.

• Because Jesus is risen believers have a message to tell the whole world.

The women went away from the tomb afraid. No wonder. They’d seen an angel who stands in the presence of God. They’d expected Jesus to be dead, but He learned that He is alive. Whenever the power of God breaks into the story of our lives there is fear, because everything is new. Nothing will ever be the same again. It takes time for the terror of fear to become the appropriate fear of God and wonder-filled reverence walking in His way.

Our Father in heaven hallowed and blessed be Your Name. Your Son is risen through Your glory and believers have life forevermore. Glory and wisdom, power and strength, honour and blessing belong to You, Triune God, now and forever more! Let the wondrous news of Jesus’ resurrection be boldly proclaimed in pulpits across our land so that battered souls, fast-bound by the chains of sin, may find the freedom which can only be found in You, God. Amen.

https://youtu.be/WSs4_vc0pq0 “Christ the Lord Is Risen Today” Martijn de Groot

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 8, 2023 -- Psalm 10:10-18 -- The Psalm Series: Waiting

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

The helpless are crushed, sink down,
    and fall by his might.
11 He says in his heart, “God has forgotten,
    he has hidden his face, he will never see it.”
12 Arise, O LORD; O God, lift up your hand;
    forget not the afflicted.
13 Why does the wicked renounce God
    and say in his heart, “You will not call to account”?
14 But you do see, for you note mischief and vexation,
    that you may take it into your hands;
to you the helpless commits himself;
    you have been the helper of the fatherless.
15 Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer;
    call his wickedness to account till you find none.
16 The LORD is king forever and ever;
    the nations perish from his land.
17 O LORD, you hear the desire of the afflicted;
    you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear
18 to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed,
    so that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more.
Psalm 10:10-18 ESV

Waiting. That is Holy Saturday—the day between Good Friday and the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. It is a day of waiting. Doesn’t it seem God’s people are always waiting? It is hard to wait when so much is going on. Today it is as it was for the people in Psalm 10; the people are facing hardship and cry out and wonder: “has God forgotten us?”

Think of the Exodus. When the people cried out, the assurance was given: God heard (chapter 2). They were as good as delivered. Pharoah was defeated. However, their deliverance from Egypt didn’t happen until ten chapters later, at 12:33 and following. It is already and not yet. The promises of God are already given, and are solid and reliable. However, the people have yet to experience it. They still lived through tremendous hardships until they saw the day of their exodus.

Holy Saturday exemplifies this as well. Jesus’ death has atoned for our sins. The Devil is disarmed, but the final victory of His resurrection is a day away. Symbolically we live in the already and not yet. Jesus came. Jesus suffered. Jesus died. He is risen. But mockers mock on. The helpless are crushed by evil doers. The Day of Judgment is at hand. All who are awaiting the full manifestation of Jesus’ majesty and glory know the day is near. It is like Holy Saturday. The day of waiting. But God’s deliverance and salvation is sure. It is near. Jesus will be revealed to all. Strengthen your heart, incline your ear, Jesus Christ is coming soon.

Our Father in heaven hallowed, blessed and honoured be Your Name now and forevermore. Thank You for the glorious salvation already given in Jesus Christ. As we await His coming on the clouds of glory, by Your Spirit make the word living in us and profoundly reassuring as we live through these of anticipation. Strengthen Your people facing persecution. Encourage the hearts of those who are discouraged. Revive Your people who are already called Your beloved sons and daughters and but are yet waiting for the fullest expression of that magnificent truth. Amen.

https://youtu.be/4s0Zb189Sco Chris Tomlin “Even So Come”

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 7, 2023 -- Psalm 9:16 -- The Psalm Series: Just judgment on Good Friday

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

The LORD has made himself known; he has executed judgment;
    the wicked are snared in the work of their own hands.
Psalm 9:16 ESV

It seems today has the oddest name of any day on the Christian calendar. It is “Good Friday”. How can it be good that Jesus died? How can it be good that the Israelites mocked Him, soldiers gambled for His clothes and the Savior of the world died?

First, as the text notes, the Father, the LORD, Who keeps His promises forever, shows there is judgment for the wicked.

Second this judgment was poured on Jesus Christ. So that all who believe in Him are forgiven and reconciled to the Father by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Third the wicked who refuse Him, who ignore Him, who trust in the lies of the atheists and mockers around them they will be snared by the work of their own hands and will face an eternity of punishment.

So this day is Good Friday because Christ fulfilled the Father’s promise to rescue a people for Himself. This is Good Friday because those who believe in Him tremble at their sins which brought the Lord of Glory to the cruel cross. It is Good Friday because believers see in the sacrifice the heinousness of their sins and the need for the Spirit’s work to bring new life to them. Finally, it is Good because wickedness and sin will be punished. So much injustice is happening in the world around us. There will come a day when the Savior will right all wrongs. Pause and think about that. All wrongs that weren’t answered at the cross will be brought to right at the Judgment Seat when Jesus separates His followers out from His haters and detractors. It is Good Friday today, believers be renewed in your holy zeal to be vulnerable to the Spirit's work in bringing your new life in Christ to be more and more evident to others around you and let your words and your deeds bring honour and praise to the Father Who has made Himself known.

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name. Let the victory You planned for this Good Friday make its way past my mental defenses and knock down the walls which surround my hardened heart. Spirit of God let the victory of Jesus, disarming the accusations of the Devil at the cross, so strengthen my confident trust in Jesus that I will, wholeheartedly, now and forever, serve Him to the honour and praise of the Father. Amen.

https://youtu.be/7T8qwVjfvms

Johnny Cash “Were You There”

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 6, 2023 -- Psalm 9:7-10 -- The Psalm Series: the problem of our lack of righteousness and the Father's extravagant gift

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

But the Lord sits enthroned forever;
    he has established his throne for justice,
8 and he judges the world with righteousness;
    he judges the peoples with uprightness.

9 The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed,
    a stronghold in times of trouble.
10 And those who know your name put their trust in you,
    for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.

Psalm 9:7-10 ESV

The opening line of the reading today is definitive, from eternity to eternity the LORD sits enthroned forever. Nothing can shake His power. Nothing can challenge His dominion. By way of contrast, the people are judged. The people are found to fall short of the justice and righteousness His kingdom demands.

     There are two reasons why man cannot work out for himself a
     righteousness by perfectly obeying the law. He has already sinned
     and the wages of sin is death (Romans 3:23; 6:23). And even if
     all former debts should be blotted out, yet man is still unable to fulfil
     the law. ‘By works of the law, no flesh shall be justified.’ Man’s flesh,
     weakened by sin, cannot walk in perfect obedience to the law.

     So convinced of his utter inability to make himself righteous by the
     law, man turns to some other way by which he can please God.
     Papists turn to buying works of supererogation and indulgences, to
     penances and to purgatory. This Paul calls a seeking for righteous-
     ness ‘as it were by the works of the law’ (Romans 9:32). They did
     not try and obey the law itself, ‘but as it were’ by the works of the
     law, substituting one thing for another. ‘By doing this,’ says Paul,
     they proved themselves enemies to God’s righteousness
     (Romans 10:3). They were enemies to God’s righteousness
     because they tried to establish their own righteousness. And they
     tried to establish their own self-righteousness because they were
     ignorant of God’s righteousness.
     John Owen (abridged, made easier to read by J. K. Law)

Simply put, God’s righteous is too lofty, too unattainable for people. Aware of this all kinds of other means of putting ourselves forward as righteous are being used. Supererogation in Roman Catholic theology is the heretical belief that some people’s righteousness exceeds God’s lawful demands, and a pope can collect the extra and dole it out as he deems appropriate. It is on a grand scale, what many of us try in our own hearts. We negotiate with God. If I do this or that, then God will be satisfied with me. We ignore all our sinful condition. We ignore the fact that our starting place is as those who are guilty before God, without any righteousness or justice, or plea.

This is why Good Friday and Easter are such a delight to the people of God. On Good Friday the Father put on Jesus the sinfulness and sinful deeds of fallen man, and Jesus was punished in our place. On Easter Sunday Jesus rose through the glory of the Father so that we may walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4)., that is, in the righteousness the Father has given us through the sacrifice of Jesus. The Spirit of God applies this to the hearts of those who are oppressed and troubled by their godless and unrighteous standing before God.

Those who know they have no righteousness and no possibility of being righteous before the Father run to Him. The Spirit uses the Word to awaken in us the awareness of our sin-oppressed and troubled state and shows us the extended hand of the Father’s mercy and love. Running to the Father we find in Him a welcome that clothes us in Christ’s righteousness and a confidence that the roaring of that old defeated lion the Devil (I Peter 5:8) cannot shake. In Jesus Christ we have a righteousness that matches all the Father’s requirements. By the Spirit’s work this garment of praise, this robe of splendour and great beauty, is wrapped around us until death is defeated and we see God, the Light of Life.

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name, O King in beauty and exalted in majesty. Who is a God like You?! Pardoning iniquity and passing over transgressions and delighting to show Your steadfast love to all Your people. This through the inexpressibly rich gift of Jesus Christ and His blood. You have shown Your faithfulness to Israel and then to all the nations and showered out Your steadfast love on all the sons of Abraham and those adopted into his family by the grace of Jesus Christ. 

https://youtu.be/TFPyyNNcYP0 “All Creatures of Our God and King” Shane and Shane

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 4, 2023 -- Psalm 8 -- The Psalm Series: Jesus as the Crown of creation and our restoration in Him

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

To the choirmaster: according to The Gittith. A Psalm of David.

8 O LORD, our Lord,
    how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory above the heavens.
2     Out of the mouth of babies and infants,
you have established strength because of your foes,
    to still the enemy and the avenger.

3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
    the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
4 what is man that you are mindful of him,
    and the son of man that you care for him?

5 Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
    and crowned him with glory and honor.
6 You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;
    you have put all things under his feet,
7 all sheep and oxen,
    and also the beasts of the field,
8 the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea,
    whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

9 O LORD, our Lord,
    how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Psalm 8 ESV

Creation is so heart-thrillingly beautiful. Each morning I love to watch the sun begin to rise. The first herald of its approach is the lessening of the darkness and a hint of colour at the distant edges of the sky. Then there are pinks and oranges that accompany the dawn. So beautiful. Sometimes the moon is just heading off the stage of the sky as the sun begins to make its appearance. The LORD of Splendor and Glory has created this.

As you follow the lines of this Psalm something else finds its way into your imagination. Though you might peer into the heavens on a dark night and see stars and galaxies and planets and feel yourself puny in comparison, of no significance whatsoever, under the inspiration of the Spirit David reminds the people of God we have been crowned with glory and honour. Mankind is the pinnacle of creation, given dominion at the command of God, as stewards of creation. Though all the heavens declare His glory, yet it is His people who bring Him praise that outshines the complexities of the universe and the plumage of peacocks.

Our sinfulness erases our sense of our place in God’s order of things. Yet the Majestic One of heaven has sent His Son to still the enemy and the avenger. The accusations of the Devil are without a basis because Jesus Christ took on flesh, though sinless, He was punished in our place. His death put our sins and the punished we deserved for them was left in the grave, never to rise again. Jesus’ resurrection through the Father’s glory means all who believe in Jesus rise to newness of life, leaving all those sins and the punishment for them behind, and are restored as the crown of creation with Christ as the King, Captain of our Salvation.

Our Father in heaven hallowed be Your Name! O LORD, our Lord, with the psalmist and believers throughout the generations we declare the majesty of Your Name! Thank You for the indescribably magnificent work of Jesus Christ by Whose sacrifice many sons and daughters have been adopted into Your great family. Spirit of the Living God move our stubborn hearts from self-focus and self-indulgence to the place where Christ fills our thoughts and desires so that in His established strength we rise up to serve Him with our hands and voices and hearts and this to the glory and praise of the Father, the Majestic One.

https://youtu.be/If-svStcvS8 “Crown Him with Many Crowns”

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

April 3, 2023 -- Psalm 7 -- The Psalm Series: Fighting off enemies and the temptation to bitterness

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Behold, the wicked man conceives evil
    and is pregnant with mischief
    and gives birth to lies.
15 He makes a pit, digging it out,
    and falls into the hole that he has made.
16 His mischief returns upon his own head,
    and on his own skull his violence descends.
17 I will give to the LORD the thanks due to his righteousness,
    and I will sing praise to the name of the LORD, the Most High.
Psalm 7:14-17 ESV

At the start of the Psalm David proclaimed he would take refuge in the LORD. He was pursued by enemies, and his own son rose up in rebellion against him. He wrestled in his heart for purity toward God. It is easy to get bitter. It is easy to curse your enemy and then begin to plot evil against those who have offended you. That is not the way of God. David examined his heart first, then he called on the judgment of God against those who were sinning against him. These last verses need careful attention.

In verse 8 David declared “The LORD judges the peoples”. In David’s day there were offerings for guilt. As New Testament Christians we know Jesus is the Lamb of God Who takes away our sin. A man who confesses his wrong knows the judgment of God has fallen on Christ and the believer is judged righteous by the same sacrifice of Jesus. A man who is been embattled by people rising up against him, must be careful to call out for God’s help and salvation, while not sinning by forming hatred against those who are opposing him. To foment hate in your heart another human is to ignore the precious blood of Jesus which flowed for you. Don’t do it. That is why David concluded this Psalm by declaring his praise to God and thanking Him for the righteousness he has received. Without such righteousness the heart would shrivel up and begin to commit the same wrongs which non-believers commit and thereby to give room to the devil in your heart.

Blessed and honoured be Your Name, O Father of Heavenly Lights. Thank You for the rich salvation You have lavished on us in Jesus Christ. Thank You, King of kings and Lord of lords for the freedom You have given us from all the wiles, cords and traps of the Devil. Spirit of the Living God, bring us to the rescue of God our LORD and guard our minds from plotting evil and our hearts from violence. You, Triune God, are the shield of all who believe; You save the upright in heart. Thank You for the multi-faceted salvation which brings the Light of Jesus Christ into every area of life formerly governed by darkness. With believers through-out the centuries we declare to You: “I will give to the LORD the thanks due to His righteousness, and I will sing praise to the Name of the LORD, Most High”.

https://youtu.be/XNo3ctmdn3c "Praise the Savior Now and Ever" Green Carpet Players

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.