“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”
I do not know if you know what I mean when I say that I have been feeling the heaviness of life for the last few days. I am retired and not on a strict schedule, but I have been feeling the pressure of demands on my life and on my time. Mostly, I have just felt a great need for the Lord. I was searching for a scripture reference that would speak to my need. Psalm 46:1 came to my mind, so I read it, meditated on it, prayed over it, and then felt the need to share my thoughts on the text with you. “God is our refuge…” I remember a gospel song that I heard years ago, and haven’t heard for a long time, that spoke to this. The song was “I Found a Hiding Place.” I don’t remember all of the words to the song, but the thought behind the song spoke to me this morning. When we feel that the world is rushing in on us and that the demands of life are becoming too heavy, we can escape to that hiding place and find the security that we need to go on and to meet the demands that life places on us. It is just good to take refuge in God sometimes and just let Him minister to our sore hearts and minds. When we go to Him for refuge, He reassures us of His presence and of His love for us. It is also in this hiding place that the Lord feeds our faith and lifts our spirits. “God is…our strength.” It is nice to take refuge in the Lord, but we cannot stay there. When we are in the “hiding place” and He is ministering to us, He is preparing us to go on and do His will for our lives, and to meet the demands of our lives whatever those demands may be. It is in these times that He gives us the strength to leave the hiding place. I praise Him that the strength that He gives us is His strength. It is Holy Spirit strength. The promise of the Holy Spirit given by Jesus is not an idle promise. The Holy Spirit is not in our lives to just give us some “holy thrill” and some talking points for our next fellowship meeting. He gave us the Holy Spirit to minister to us on a daily basis and to give us the strength that we need to live and to serve. The text did not say that God just gives us strength. He does give us strength, but the text says that God is our strength. We need to remember that when we have Him in our lives, we have His strength. It doesn’t hurt to ask for His strength, but we should remember that we already have His strength because we have Him. (At this point we pause and say “Thank you Jesus.”) “God is…our very present help in trouble.” The NIV translates this: “God is our ever present help in trouble.” I like both translations. God is our “very” present help. There is no doubt about it. But He is also our “ever” present help in trouble. We can know that there will never be a time when He will not be our “help in trouble.” I think that the whole Bible story from Genesis to Revelation shows us this. I have found in my life that God’s help in my troubles takes different forms. For example, there are times that I go to the hiding place whining and whimpering. That is when He “takes me to the woodshed” and tells me to get over it and get on with it. There are other times that I go to Him in real need and He ministers to my heart and gently shoves me back out into the fray. We need to be sensitive to what God is telling us when we go to Him for refuge. When He gives us His strength in those times of refuge, He gives it to us to serve Him and to do His will for our lives. But we can be assured that when the Lord Jesus has a plan for us, and that He will be with us while He carries it out through us. You can take this verse personally. Let the Lord speak to your heart now through this verse. Let Him be your refuge today. If you are a believer, know that He is your strength, and that He is present in your life for whatever trouble you might encounter. Believe it! Rejoice in it! Do it! Bro. Joe
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“Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of His, and give thanks at the remembrance of His holiness. 5. For His anger endures for a moment: in His favor is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.”
In these two verses, David calls upon God’s saints to “sing unto the Lord" a glad song. Singing is one way throughout history that we have been able to express ourselves in joy or sorrow. Singing (music), is one of the great blessings of God to us. Our devotion to God needs to be expressed and one of the main ways that we do it is through singing. Why should we sing unto the Lord? We should sing unto the Lord because we are “saints of his.” In the Bible, a saint is not a person who has been set aside as being a special person; rather a saint is anyone who belongs to the Lord. In the Old Testament the Israelites are referred to as “saints.” In the New Testament, all believers in Jesus Christ are referred to as “saints.” Today, being a saint means that one belongs to God through faith in Jesus Christ. This is, perhaps, our greatest reason for singing songs of joy, because we belong to God. We belong to God by His grace, not because we deserve it. God’s grace bestowed upon us is a reason for us to sing unto the Lord. We should sing unto God because He is holy: “and give thanks at the remembrance of His holiness.” The fact that there is a holy God overseeing this seemingly erratic universe should give us a song in our hearts. God’s holiness does not just mean that He is good and above reproach. It also means that He is holy in all of His dealings with us. In other words, we can trust God because He is holy. Whatever happens, we can be assured that the Holy God loves us and that He is looking out for our best interests. We will not understand all that God has done for us until we are face to face with Him, but by faith we can sing about His favor now. Which brings us to: We should sing unto the Lord because, “His anger endures for a moment: in His favor is life.” I pity the people who only see God as “the angry God.” Some people refuse to believe in Him because they read about His judgments in the Bible, or see His judgments today. This is not the complete picture of the God who has been revealed to us through Jesus Christ. The important thing to know about God is not that He is angry, for "His anger lasts but a moment, but His favor lasts for a lifetime." In the final analysis, the “saints of God” will be in His favor no matter what other judgments may come in their lives. The Bible tells us that God disciplines His children just as a good parent disciplines his or her children. God’s discipline is a result of His love and favor. When we forget that, we do not sing unto the Lord. We should sing unto the Lord because, “weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.” We have probably all had a fitful night’s sleep, worrying about what we had to face, but when morning light broke we saw what we were worried about in a new light. God did a work of grace in our lives even while we slept. We can be sure that there will be times for us to weep. But we can be equally sure that our weeping will turn to joy when God does His work in our lives. This is why we should have a song in our hearts, and why we should be optimistic about life. We can trust that though “weeping may endure for a night…joy comes in the morning." Believe it! Bro. Joe “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 behold, His eyelids try the children of men.”
David had the same concern that we who believe in God and in the values that are intrinsic to that belief have. We look around and see that the foundations of our country are being destroyed. The “foundations” that are not of God need to be destroyed. We just need to be sure that the foundations that we lament are those that pertain to God and His values. Foundations are always being destroyed, but there are some foundations that we destroy at our own peril. You know, of course, that I am thinking of Christian values, those values that honor God and make people better. It is for sure that atheism does not make people better. It is for sure that the “anything goes” philosophy does not make people better. At any rate, we look around and see foundations being destroyed and we wonder what can the righetous who believe in and love the Lord do? The answer to the question does not lie in our righteousness. The answer does not lie in our fretting and worrying about the situation. In ourselves we have no power to change anything. The answer does not lie in our ceasing to love the people for whom Christ died. We need to put away any thought of our own goodness or our own power. This does not mean that there is nothing that we can do, because we can live lives that will advertise the virtues of the moral foundations of the Bible. But the answer does not lie in our actions alone. David gave us the answer in verse 4. He reminded us that “God is in His holy temple.” What does this mean since we do not have a temple? In the Old Testament the temple, or the tabernacle, was where God came to be among His people in the holy of holies. What David means here is that God is present among His people. This is a teaching that we see throughout the Bible. When David fought Goliath, he believed that God was right there with him. We, too, need to be reminded that when our foundations are crumbling God is not absent. He is present and He knows what is going on. This is a great comfort to me and I hope that it is a comfort for you as well. God is not unaware of what is going on, and He will be with us as we live in the darkness of the world as His lights. He does not want us to throw our hands up and give up because things aren’t going our way. He wants us to remember that He is with us and, because of that, the situation is not hopeless. David also reminds us that “God’s throne is in heaven: His eyes behold, His eyelids try the children of men.” This means that God is watching all that is going on, and that He is aware of all of it. The history of mankind shows us that there are always those to whom biblical foundations mean nothing. But this does not mean that the foundations are not real, nor that they will ultimately be destroyed. We do not keep the foundation firm; rather, the foundation keeps us firm. We cannot let those who would destroy all that is holy and good make us judgmental and keep us from realizing that God is ultimately in control. We are alive at a certain time in history because God wills it so, and our task is to witness and minister to the world in which we live. We need to hold firmly to our faith in God, who is present with us, and seek to do His will for our lives. If we want to change society, we can live by the values that we preach and teach and depend on God to make the changes that need to be made. In other words, we do not blandly accept the destruction of the foundations, but we hold to the tenets and precepts of those foundations and trust that God will straighten it all out in His good time. Rejoice!!! God is alive and well and He will be with you and guide you through it all!!! Bro. Joe “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap if we faint not. 10. As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all (people), especially unto them that are of the household of faith.”
If we aren’t careful, we will give up in the struggles of life. It is definitely a possibility for Christians today. There are so many objections to our faith and we are experiencing hostility as we have never experienced it. But we need to remember who wrote our text – the apostle Paul. He experienced negativity the likes of which we will probably never experience. I do not mean that our challenges are not real because they are not as fierce as Paul’s, but I am referring to how Paul faced the challenges that he faced. He did not give up, sit down and stop serving the Lord. What would Paul tell us to do? He would tell us not to be “weary in well doing.” Another translation of this text is that we not be “weary in doing good.” Doing good is part of our Christian calling. We just have to remember how Jesus lived. He never stopped doing good, though He was confronted time after time by those who opposed Him. Jesus was even accused of using the power of Satan when He healed people. He was given a false trial, given a beating across His back, and nailed to a cross, yet Jesus went on to the cross and did the good thing that would result in our salvation. We should be extremely thankful that Jesus did not grow weary in doing good. Throughout the New Testament we see those who trusted Jesus as their savior doing good and not returning evil for evil. We do good because it is the will of God for us to do good as a witness to the world, and as decent human beings. We can grow weary of good works when it seems that we are getting no credit for it and because people do not seem to appreciate what we do. The cliché, that “it is not about us, but it is about Jesus," comes to mind. We cannot lose heart to the point that we cease doing what God has called us to do in ministering and witnessing to a lost world. He would tell us that we will “reap if we faint not (do not lose heart).” Paul reminds us to not grow weary in well doing, because if we do we will not reap the fruit that Jesus intends for us. What does “reap” mean in this context. I think that it means that we should not stop witnessing to people about Jesus, even though we are rebuffed time and time again. I think that it means that we should not cease doing works of ministry to people who are in need. We can be sure that some people will take advantage of our good nature. Some people are downright professional about it. But we can’t stop doing good in that respect. We cannot lose heart because people to whom we witness and minister do not seem to be thankful. We keep on doing because it is what Jesus would have us do. He would tell us to do good to all people. That would mean that we should do good to people who do not agree with us and might even be hostile to our faith. He also told us to do good,“especially to those that are of the household of faith.” This means that we should also do good to fellow Christians. Putting the two together, this means that we would do good at work, for example, at play, at clubs, and at the church. It would be great if all Christians lived like this. Can you imagine the difference that it would make in our communities and in our churches? Do not lose heart, because this is what Satan would have you do. Don’t grow weary of good works, because if you do you cannot reap a harvest for Jesus. Do be good to all people at work and at church. Bro. Joe “For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. 9. Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10. For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God has before ordained that we should walk in them.”
Ephesians 2:8-10 is one of those texts that I return to again and again. Like John 3:16, this passage is what we could call “the gospel in a nutshell.” It tells us that it is because of the grace of God that we can be saved in the first place. In other words, God will save us in spite of ourselves. It tells us that we are saved when we put our faith in Christ Jesus. Furthermore it tells us that we have not been saved by our works, but that we have been saved to work for the Lord. Nothing that we do can save us, but when we are saved God has work for us to do. Notice that the text tells us that we are God’s workmanship. What this means is that by God’s grace, when we put our faith in Christ we are saved. In other places in scripture we are told that when we are saved we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit begins a work in us to do the works that God has called us to do. Our salvation is not “worked in;” rather it is "worked out" through the Holy Spirit within us. Notice also that the works that we are to do have been “before ordained.” The NIV translates it: “which God has prepared in advance for us to do.” The idea is that when we are saved, God has plans for us. We are led by the Holy Spirit to do the things that God planned out in eternity for us to do. These works take many forms. Many of these works are carried out in the churches that we attend. There are many ways that God can use our gifts in the church. There is always work to be done at the church, from teaching a Sunday School class to singing in the choir. God prepared in advance that we would do these works that keep the church going and carrying out its mission for the Lord. But God also has prepared in advance works for us to do in our daily lives. I think that we forget that and think that it is only at the church that God can use us. I don’t know what it is that God might want you to do in your community, but you should follow the leading of the Holy Spirit and do the works there that He would have you do. The world needs for us to do God’s work outside of the walls of the church. I don’t know what work God has called you to do, but I know that if you are a Christian, He has work for you to do. We should be aware that God is working in us to work for Him in daily life. The KJV translates it: “that God has before ordained that we should walk in them.” In this context “walk” means what we do in our daily lives. The point is that we are God’s workmanship every day of our lives and that God can use us in many ways as we live out our lives in the world. We are God’s workmanship whether we are in church, at work, on vacation, attending a sports event –whatever. Doing God’s work is not just event oriented; rather it is part of our lifestyles. I don’t want to be trite here, or seem to belittle the work that God wants us to do, but there are times that this work can be to smile and say a good word to someone who is in bad need of encouragement. If the Holy Spirit can lead a lost soul to Christ through us, He can surely use us to be an encouragement to discouraged people. The point of this article is to make you aware that God wants to use you at your church and in your community. You are “God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God has before ordained that (you) should do.” Bro. Joe “If the world hate you, you know that it hated me before it hated you.” John 15:18
“Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.” 1 John 3:13 I began thinking about this subject while reading the book of Ezra. I suggest that you read this book and see what I mean. The Jews who returned from captivity to rebuild the temple had a lot of opposition from their enemies. Then I thought of the two texts that I have printed above. Jesus promised that if we follow Him, we will have opposition; therefore, it should not surprise us that those who do not know Christ as Savior oppose us. A cursory reading of Christian history will verify that. The question is what should our reaction to this opposition be? First, we should not allow opposition to rob us of our commitment to our faith. Satan loves to use opposition to intimidate us. He tried to use this ploy in Jerusalem in the days of Ezra. He used this ploy in the earthly life of Jesus. He used this ploy against the disciples, who were under mandate to spread the word about Christ in spite of opposition. Jesus never covered up the fact that His followers would have opposition, but He also reminded them, and us, to stay faithful to Him regardless of what the world says. I will admit that opposition to the gospel has grown more adamant over the years. Things are different now than they were when I entered the ministry in 1960. So the temptation is to accommodate the world and turn our backs on the gospel. At all costs, we should not let the world intimidate us with polls of the acceptance of sin, or opinions by people who are famous who disagree adamantly with the gospel. The best advice is to endure, endure, and endure. Second, we should not allow opposition to rob us of the love that we are to have for all people. I have to admit that when I read some of the things that increasingly bold atheists say and write about the gospel, I grit my teeth and really want to “get at’em.” But it would be bad for me to allow opposition to cause me to hate. Take a look at what John wrote about the matter in 1 John 3:14-15: “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loves not the brethren abides in death. 15. Whosoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life dwelling in him.” The word “brother”could be interpreted as meaning “brothers in Christ.” However, if we will look at what Jesus tells us to do, it will not matter how we interpret “brother” here: “You have heard that it has been said, You shall love your neighbor, and hate your enemy. 43. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you.” (Matthew 5:43-44) To give in to hatred is to compromise the gospel. We need to remember that. Third, we should not allow opposition to rob us of the facility to forgive. We need to remember what Jesus’ reaction was to those who crucified Him: “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34) Furthermore, in the Lord’s Model Prayer, Jesus taught: “And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” (Matthew 6:12) In verses 14-15, Jesus added: “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15. But if you forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive you.” It is not a compromise to forgive people who oppose your faith from your heart. It is compromise if we do not. There is no way to escape opposition to the gospel in this world. This is seen in the life of Jesus and the early Christians. It is also a reality today. The main thing for us to do is maintain the integrity of our faith, not succumb to the world through compromise of our faith or of our love and forgiveness. Bro. Joe “Seek ye the Lord while He may be found, call ye upon Him while He is near. 7. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him; and to our God for He will abundantly pardon.”
We need to be careful not to take a text out of its historical context, for it might distort the meaning of the text. The text that I have printed above has a historical context, for it is a call for Israel to turn to the Lord before it is too late. But at the same time, the text has eternal significance because it can be followed successfully by anyone at any time. It is what I have called “The Way to the Lord.” Seek We are called upon to seek the Lord. We seek a lot of things in the course of our lives. Some of the things we seek are unworthy of our time and effort and some can be rewarding. In all things, however, we are to seek the Lord. At the time this text was written, Judah was going over to idol worship and doing about everything that God told them not to do. It is a call for them to stop seeking idols and seek the Lord. We do not worship idols today, per se, but we do have things that we seek instead of the Lord, and this is just as bad as what Israel was doing. We need to ask ourselves just what it is we are seeking in this life. Sometimes we can even seek things that could be worthy goals, but if they lead us away from our commitment to the Lord, they can serve as stumbling blocks in our lives. For example, we can make an idol out of education. Getting an education is an important thing and is a worthy goal for anyone, but it cannot take the place of the Lord and His will in our lives. Perhaps you need to ask yourself what it is that you are seeking in your life today. Does what you are seeking have anything to do with the Lord. He is near you wanting to lead and guide you in all of your life’s endeavors, but sometimes what we seek can lead us away from Him. This is why Isaiah admonished the Jews to “call ye upon Him while He is near.” Forsake If we discover that we are seeking the wrong things, we should forsake that way and turn to the Lord. I think that most people realize when they are getting away from the Lord, and that they know that the way they are taking is the wrong way. I can look back on my life and see where I have done that, and my life did not get straightened out until I forsook the wrong way and went the right way. It is possible that you are going through a difficult time in your life now because you are going in the wrong direction and seeking the wrong things. It is possible that there are some things that you need to forsake in order to get your life in line with the Lord. We are told to forsake two things: “his way” and “his thoughts.” We need to let the Lord have control of our thoughts, because our thoughts are the fathers of our deeds. What we think about will control what we do. Maybe there are some thoughts and ways that you need to forsake. Do it today. Return It is not enough to just forsake the wrong way; we must choose the right way. Isaiah’s admonition here is to “return unto the Lord.” This means to put our thoughts on the Lord so that He can control our ways. We will not seek what is right until we return to what is right, and it is always right to seek God’s guidance through scripture and prayer. It might even mean a return to your church, or to change your attitude about your church. Whatever it means for you, it is important that you seek the Lord, forsake the wrong way and return to the right way. God is more than willing and able to give you His great mercy and to give you His "abundant pardon." It sure beats running from God's mercy and pardon. Think about it! Bro. Joe “For by Him (Jesus) were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers, all things were created by Him and for Him. 17.And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist (are held together).”
We should not be surprised that Jesus was involved in creation, as were the Father and the Spirit. John gave the same information in John 1:3: “All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made.” In His life on earth, Jesus certainly showed Godlike traits. For example, He turned water into wine. I have never heard of “water wine,” have you? He took one substance and turned it into another in order to make wine. Only the creator could do that. In Colossians 1:21 Paul added another dimension to the power of Jesus, for he informs us that all things are held together by Jesus. This means that we do not have to worry about Mars getting out of orbit and colliding with the earth. We can trust that Jesus will hold it all together. The only way that the meteorite that we hear so much about, can hit the earth is if Jesus lets it happen. If Jesus lets it happen, nothing on earth or in heaven can stop it. This is not your “namby pamby” Jesus that people talk about today. He has real, eternal power. If I read this text correctly, it is Jesus who is holding the universe together. We know that the universe is of unfathomable size; therefore, Jesus has unfathomable power. I have written all of the above to get to the point that I want to make, i.e., this same Jesus has the power to hold our lives together. This is the good news that a lot of people need today. We are warned about all kinds of destructive scenarios that can cause our hearts to sink. If I didn’t believe in Jesus, I would be worried about all that I hear and see. But I believe in Jesus and I believe that He who holds all things together, can also hold me together. Sometimes it seems that our lives are out of control. Problems seem to pile on top of problems. We have problems within ourselves. We worry about what is going to happen to us in the future. We have ego problems that seem so big to us, but are really no problem at all. We have family problems. What family does not have some problems? Show me a perfect family and I will show you a real honest to goodness miracle. We encounter problems in the places where we work. There are always problem people that we have to deal with. There are all sorts of things that crop up in a workplace that can cause anxiety on our part. Then we have to deal with the news every day. I watch the news on Television and read it about it in the newspaper, and I tell myself that if I didn’t know that Jesus was holding all things together, I would really panic. All of the things that I mentioned above, and all of the things that you could add to what I have mentioned, do not have to defeat us if we believe that Jesus is holding us together as He is holding the universe together. In 1 John, the apostle John gave us a great word of wisdom on this matter. When you read these three verses out of 1 John, know that Jesus can hold your life together: 1 John 4:4: “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world.” 1 John 5:4-5: “For whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith. 5. Who is he that overcomes the world but he that believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” Put your faith in the only One who holds all things together – even you. Believe it! Bro. Joe “Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to His power that works in us. 21. Unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end, amen.”
We need to understand that when we serve the Lord, whatever that service is, we are not in it by ourselves. In our flesh we are limited as to what we can do. In His infinite wisdom, God has shown me what I can do in my flesh, and that is mainly to make a mess. Whatever your task is as a Christian, you cannot do it by yourself. You need the power of God. I think that this is the crux of the problem in a lot of church work today. We go about church business as though it is simply our business, not realizing that it is not simply “our” business. Before Jesus was crucified and ascended, He promised His disciples that He would send the Holy Spirit to work within them. That promise was not just for the disciples, it is also for us. If you are a Christian, you have the Holy Spirit living within you, and He is not in you just to give you some holy thrills. He is in you to enable you to do whatever it is that God wants you to do. He is in you to help you live the Christian life. We depend every day on that “power that works in us.” If we are not depending on Him, then we are not getting done for the Lord what He wants done. You might say, “Wait a minute, do you mean that when I keep the nursery at church that I need the power of the Holy Spirit to help me do it?” I will assure you that if my job at church was keeping the nursery, I would need every bit of the Holy Spirit to help me do it. Don’t you think that tending babies is a gift from God? Not everyone who tends babies is serving God, but if you are doing it in His kingdom work, it is a gift from God. That’s why we don’t need to take any task that we do in the church or the community lightly. God does not take anything that we do for Him lightly. Read this very carefully: What the church needs today is for all of her people, whatever their tasks, to depend on the Holy Spirit, who can give them the power to serve. Of course, that doesn’t just apply to the things that we do at church. It also applies to the things that we do seven days a week. We need to depend on the Holy Spirit when we are at work. Don’t you think that God wants to use you on a daily basis? The problem is that you might feel surrounded and intimidated by those who work with you. We need to always be reminded about what is recorded in 1 John 4:4: “You are of God. Little children, and have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you than he who is in the world.” There is no need to feel intimidated, because we are not in it by ourselves. Remember that you belong to God and that He has empowered you with His Spirit. If God has something that He wants us to do, no matter how menial it may seem to us, it is important because God wants us to do it. Do not belittle your service to Him. Sometimes our service might be to just be quiet Christians, quietly living out our faith before the world. Just remember as you face life’s daily challenges, that God is working in you “according to His power that works in us.” God’s power is never menial, and it is never unimportant. Let’s just go out into the world, into the church, or wherever, with the understanding that God’s power is at work in us. Bro. Joe "Order my steps in thy word: and let not iniquity have dominion over me."
NIV: "Direct my footsteps according to your word; and let no sin rule over me." I can't speak for everybody, but the Christian life can be awfully difficult. It seems that the more we try to do better the harder it is. That's why I'm calling this blog "Some Very Good Advice." First, it tells us that if we want to live victoriously over sin, we will have to be directed by the word of God. To the Psalmist the word of God would probably have been the Pentateuch, the five books of Moses. There would be a lot there to follow. It amazes me that people think they can live the Christian life without spending time in the word. Since I have been house-bound the last few months, I have spent hours reading the Bible - two to four hours a day. But I still find myself not being as good as I ought to be. Just think what I would be if I didn't spend time in the word Second, it tells us that if we spend time in the word we can keep sin from having dominion over us. I like the KJV translation of sin better here, because it uses the more expressive term "iniquity." Iniquity means twisted. If we want to keep from getting all twisted up by sin in our lives. If we want sin to lose its dominion in our lives, we will need to be directed by the word of God. Isn't this how Jesus fought the devil in his temptations in Matthew 4? He quoted scripture to the devil in every temptation. People say that advice is cheap. Biblical advice is never cheap and always works if followed. Let's let the Lord order our steps in His word so that iniquity will not dominion over us. Bro. Joe |
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