Thursday
Evening Bible Study
December
1, 2016
Introduction
Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel
preached? Does it address the person who is: Empty, lonely, guilty, or afraid
to die? Does it speak to the broken
hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk – Meat – Manna Preach for a decision
Is the church loved? Target 3300 words
Video = 75 wpm
The English word psalm comes from a Greek word that means “a poem
sung to musical accompaniment”, or in particular, “stringed instruments”.
The Hebrew name is tehillim, which means “praises.”
The book of Psalms is the hymnbook
of God’s people.
It’s also the “Him” book as well.
It’s all about Jesus.
The writer of Hebrews quotes from
Psalm 40:8 when he writes,
(Hebrews 10:7 NKJV) Then I
said, ‘Behold, I have come— In the
volume of the book it is written of Me— To do Your will, O God.’ ”
The author was talking about Jesus.
We’re going to see a lot of Jesus
in the Psalms.
Soul Music
Music touches the soul. It’s
“soulish” in nature. It touches the emotions.
We’re going to find every kind of
emotion possible expressed in the Psalms.
For every sigh there is a Psalm.
For most of us, this is what makes
the Psalms so wonderful. We can identify. We can relate.
If we were honest, even darkest
most depressing Psalms describe the very things we go through day by day.
It is my prayer that as we continue
on this journey through the Psalms, we won’t just look at these songs academically,
with our mind, but that we may also grow as worshippers.
Psalm 92 Good Thanks
: A Psalm. A Song for the Sabbath Day.
for the Sabbath Day
This is a song for the day of worship.
The Sabbath day is the seventh day
(Saturday). It was intended by God to be
a day of rest and worship.
(Leviticus 23:3 NLT) “You have
six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day
of complete rest, an official day for holy assembly. It is the Lord’s Sabbath day, and it must be
observed wherever you live.
“Holy assembly” sounds a lot like getting
together for church.
Are we to “keep the Sabbath” (ie – go to church on Saturday)?
There are some churches and cults
who hold the position that everyone must worship on Saturday.
Seventh Day Adventists are among
those who teach this.
Here’s what the Bible says,
1.The Sabbath was clearly given to the Jews
(Exodus 31:13 NKJV) “Speak
also to the children of Israel, saying: ‘Surely My Sabbaths you shall keep, for
it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you
may know that I am the Lord
who sanctifies you.
It was a part of
God’s covenant with the nation of Israel and is at the core of Judaism.
2.
The Gentile church was clearly excused from having to keep the Law to be
saved.
There was conflict in the early
church about whether or not Gentiles needed to convert to Judaism and keep the
Law of Moses in order to be saved.
The church held a council and came
to this conclusion:
(Acts 15:28–29 NKJV) —28 For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you
no greater burden than these necessary things: 29 that you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from
things strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from
these, you will do well. Farewell.
The issues of food
offered to idols and blood were prescribed in order for the Gentiles not to
offend Jews living in their communities.
3.
It was the practice of the early Gentile church to worship on Sunday
(1Cor.16:1-3) in honor of the resurrection.
(1 Corinthians 16:1–3 NKJV) —1 Now
concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the
churches of Galatia, so you must do also: 2 On the
first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing
up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come. 3 And when I come, whomever you approve by your letters I
will send to bear your gift to Jerusalem.
4.
We should still observe the principles behind the Sabbath, mainly to
rest and worship (Heb.4)
Rest and worship are good.
5.
As a Christian, you can go to church any day and every day:
(Romans 14:4–5 NKJV) —4 Who are
you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed,
he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand. 5 One person esteems one day above another; another esteems
every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind.
:1 It is good to give thanks to the Lord, And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High;
give thanks – yadah
– (Hiphil) to give thanks, laud, praise
:2 To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning, And Your faithfulness
every night,
:3 On an instrument of ten strings, On the lute, And on the harp, With
harmonious sound.
:3 On an instrument of ten strings
Some churches think that it is unspiritual to use instruments in
worship. The Psalmists didn’t think so.
:2 in the morning … every night
Lesson
All Day Praise
As we’ve been reading through the book of Daniel, I have been stirred by
the life of the prophet.
As a youth, he acted on his convictions not to be defiled with the king’s
food. (Dan. 1)
When he heard of Nebuchadnezzar’s threat to kill all the wise men unless
someone tell him about his dream, Daniel came forward and said he would do it …
and then prayed … and received the answer from God.
When with other government leaders wanted to get rid of Daniel under the
rule of King Darius, they decided to make up a law against praying to God for
thirty days…
(Daniel
6:10 NKJV) Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went home. And
in his upper room, with his windows open toward Jerusalem, he knelt down on his
knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was
his custom since early days.
I am impressed not that Daniel prayed openly, but that he
had a habit of praying three times a day.
When you read through the prophetic writings of Daniel, I am amazed at the content
of what Daniel wrote about, and yet not so amazed when I think about his life
of regular prayer, fasting, and study of the Scriptures.
I wonder if the one thing that is keeping our nation from experiencing
revival is the fact that many of us believers have wandered away from our love
for the Lord.
The church in Ephesus
had left it’s “first love”. Jesus had a
remedy for it:
(Revelation
2:4–5a NLT) —4 “But I have this complaint against you. You don’t love me or each
other as you did at first! 5 Look how far you have fallen! Turn back to me and do the works you
did at first.
Jesus suggested three things to get back to the first love:
Remember – look back to remember what it used to be like
cause that’s where you’re heading
Repent – if there’s something taking you away from Jesus,
turn from it.
Re-do – do the first works. Whether or not you feel like it, do the
things you used to do when you were first in love with Jesus. What are those thing? Reading your Bible, praying, witnessing,
fellowshipping, and praising Him.
Now the Psalmist will give his reasons for thanks and praise to God…
:4 For You, Lord, have made
me glad through Your work; I will triumph in the works of Your hands.
:5 O Lord, how great are Your
works! Your thoughts are very deep.
:5 Your works … Your thoughts
Lesson
Thanksgiving Menu
What did you eat last week for Thanksgiving?
The Psalmist gives us two things on the Thanksgiving menu – things to be thankful
for.
Works
(Luke 17:11–19
NKJV) —11 Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the
midst of Samaria and Galilee. 12 Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who
were lepers, who stood afar off. 13 And they lifted up their voices and said, “Jesus, Master,
have mercy on us!” 14 So when He saw them, He said to them, “Go, show yourselves
to the priests.” And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed. 15 And one of
them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified
God, 16 and fell
down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan. 17 So Jesus
answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?
18 Were there
not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” 19 And He said
to him, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.”
Nine of the lepers didn’t take the time to acknowledge
what Jesus had done for them.
And He had done something incredibly powerful.
What has God been doing in your life?
Is it hard to come up with something?
Or are you in tune to looking for and acknowledging God’s
role in your life?
It doesn’t have to be big things…
Video: Values
– Gratitude – Off to College
Thoughts
Perhaps you’re having a hard time thinking of what God has done for you
lately.
Give Him thanks for what He thinks about you.
He thinks a lot about you.
(Psalm
139:17–18 NKJV) —17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is
the sum of them!
18 If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I
awake, I am still with You.
They are thoughts of peace
(Jeremiah
29:11 NKJV) For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of
evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Thoughts of love
(Jeremiah
31:3 NKJV) The Lord has appeared
of old to me, saying: “Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore
with lovingkindness I have drawn you.
Give thanks for His works, for His thoughts.
(1 John 3:16 NKJV) By
this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to
lay down our lives for the brethren.
:6 A senseless man does not know, Nor does a fool understand this.
:6 A senseless man does not know
senseless – ba‘ar
– brutishness, stupidity, foolishness; senseless
I think the Psalmist is talking about those who don’t know God.
They will have a hard time understanding God’s works and God’s thoughts,
let alone thinking about praising God.
Paul wrote,
(1 Corinthians 2:14
NKJV) But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of
God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they
are spiritually discerned.
A person who does not have God’s Spirit understanding spiritual things is
like a blind person understanding colors.
Yet when a person commits their heart to Jesus, the Spirit of God dwells
inside of them and gives them understanding to the things of God.
:7 When the wicked spring up like grass, And when all the workers of
iniquity flourish, It is that they may be destroyed forever.
:8 But You, Lord, are
on high forevermore.
:9 For behold, Your enemies, O Lord,
For behold, Your enemies shall perish; All the workers of iniquity shall be
scattered.
:9 Your enemies shall perish
Now we get a little more backstory to this Psalm.
The Psalmist is going to remind us of the wickedness that goes on
continually around us.
We can get all caught up with the evil around us without realizing that
evil will one day be judged by God.
While God’s enemies will one day perish, God will rule forever.
:10 But my horn You have exalted like a wild ox; I have been anointed with
fresh oil.
:10 my horn You have exalted
“horns” are symbolic of strength.
The Psalmist has been strengthened.
:10 anointed with fresh oil
fresh – ra‘anan
– luxuriant, fresh
Lesson
Spiritual Freshness
Oil in the Scriptures is a symbol of the Holy Spirit. One of the places we see this is in the life
of David when he was a boy and anointed by Samuel the prophet:
(1 Samuel 16:13
NKJV) Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of
his brothers; and the Spirit of the Lord
came upon David from that day forward.
Food can get stale and spoil
Illustration
Food Spoilage Test
Here’s some helpful hints about when to throw away food:
DAIRY PRODUCTS:
Milk is spoiled when it starts to look like yogurt. Yogurt
is spoiled when it starts to look like cottage cheese. Cottage cheese is
spoiled when it starts to look like regular cheese. Regular cheese is nothing
but spoiled milk anyway and can't get any more spoiled than it is already.
Cheddar cheese is spoiled when you think it is blue cheese but you realize
you've never purchased that kind.
MAYONNAISE:
If it makes you violently ill after you eat it, the
mayonnaise is spoiled.
BREAD:
Sesame seeds and Poppy seeds are the only officially
acceptable "spots" that should be seen on the surface of any loaf of
bread. Fuzzy and hairy looking white or green growth areas are a good
indication that your bread has turned into a pharmaceutical laboratory experiment.
GENERAL RULE OF THUMB:
Most food cannot be kept longer than the average life span
of a hamster. Keep a hamster in or nearby your refrigerator to gauge this.
Don’t let your oil get stale.
Your relationship with the Holy Spirit can get “stale”.
When was the last time you seriously asked God to fill you with His Holy
Spirit?
:11 My eye also has seen my desire on my enemies; My ears hear my
desire on the wicked Who rise up against me.
:12 The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree, He shall grow like a
cedar in Lebanon.
:13 Those who are planted in the house of the Lord Shall flourish in the courts of our God.
:13 planted in the house of the Lord
Lesson
The importance of church
I don’t need to be telling most of you this, after all, you’re here on a
Thursday night. But just as a refresher:
We need to get together to encourage each other:
(Hebrews 10:24–25
NLT) —24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and
good works. 25 And let us
not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another,
especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.
This means that you don’t just come to church for what you
get out of it, but that you come in order to encourage others.
:14 They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and
flourishing,
:15 To declare that the Lord
is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in
Him.
:1 It is good to give thanks to the Lord
Lesson
Why give thanks?
Why is it good to give thanks to the Lord?
Acknowledging God
It forces me to think about His works and His thoughts.
It’s good to remember that you’re not alone, that He’s on
your side.
It expresses faith
Life isn’t always filled with good things that are easy to
be thankful for.
Plenty of times our lives can be filled with struggles and
trials, just like the Psalmist thinking about his enemies.
Faith is expressed by giving thanks, even when we don’t
totally understand our circumstances.
(1
Peter 1:6–7 NKJV) —6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need
be, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 that the genuineness of your faith, being
much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be
found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ,
Learning to rejoice in trials, knowing that God is
watching and protecting me, will show just how genuine my faith is.
Learning to praise Him in our trials expresses to God that
we trust Him, that we trust what He’s doing.
Our faith is important to God.
(Hebrews 11:6 NKJV) But
without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to
God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who
diligently seek Him.
I came across this old video today, probably 35 or more years old, of a
group I used to love…
Video: 2nd Chapter of Acts – Mansion
Builder - Live
Why should we worry when our “Mansion Builder” isn’t finished with us yet?
Paul wrote,
(Philippians
4:6–7 NKJV) —6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and
supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the
peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus.
It has been my experience that my prayers don’t always end
with the peace of God in my heart.
That’s because my prayers are often not an expression of
trust – trusting God to answer my prayer the way that is best.
It’s when I pray with thanksgiving – letting Him know that
I’m thankful that He hears me and is answering my request, that I find the
peace.
Songs
D G
It is good to give thanks
D
To the Lord
Bm7
To sing praises to Thy name
Em7 A7
O Most High
D G
To declare Thy steadfast love
D Bm7
In the morning
Em7 A7
D
And Thy faithfulness by night
D G D
To the music of the lute and the harp
G F#m
Em7 A7
To the mel - o - dy of the lyre
D G
For Thou O Lord has made me glad
D Bm7
By Thy works
Em7 A7
And by the works of Thy hands
D (Bm7)
I sing for joy
Words
& Music by Mike Carman & Jon Fekkes
©
unknown
Psalm 93 Big God
:1 The Lord reigns, He is
clothed with majesty; The Lord is
clothed, He has girded Himself with strength. Surely the world is established,
so that it cannot be moved.
:2 Your throne is established from of old; You are from
everlasting.
:3 The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
The floods have lifted up their voice; The floods lift up their waves.
:3 The floods have lifted up
The Psalmist is talking about the troubles of life.
At times it seems like life’s troubles are going to drown us.
:4 The Lord on high is
mightier Than the noise of many waters, Than the mighty waves of the
sea.
:5 Your testimonies are very sure; Holiness adorns Your house, O Lord, forever.
:4 The Lord on high is
mightier
Lesson
God is bigger
No matter what the “flood” is coming against you, God is bigger.
When the children of Israel first knocked on the door of the Promised Land,
they saw something like a “flood” that was just too big for them:
(Numbers 13:32–33
NLT) —32 So they spread this bad report about the land among the Israelites:
“The land we traveled through and explored will devour anyone who goes to live
there. All the people we saw were huge. 33 We even saw giants there, the descendants of Anak. Next to them we
felt like grasshoppers, and that’s what they thought, too!”
They just couldn’t get over the fact that the people of
Canaan were HUGE. It was too much for
them. The people were discouraged.
Caleb and Joshua tried to get the people to realize that God could handle
the giants,
(Numbers 14:8–9
NLT) —8 And if the Lord is
pleased with us, he will bring us safely into that land and give it to us. It
is a rich land flowing with milk and honey. 9 Do not rebel against the Lord, and don’t be afraid of the people
of the land. They are only helpless prey to us! They have no protection, but the
Lord is with us! Don’t be afraid
of them!”
But the people just couldn’t see it. As a result, the nation wandered in the
wilderness for forty years.
When a young shepherd named David decided to take on the battle hardened, 9-foot-tall
Philistine warrior Goliath, he wasn’t all that worried. David told Goliath…
(1 Samuel 17:45 NLT)
“You
come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the
Lord of Heaven’s Armies—the God
of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.
David knew that just “God’s name” was bigger than Goliath.
At the end of the forty years, it
was again time to take the land, and only Joshua and Caleb were left over from
the older generation to go into the land.
Caleb stepped up to ask for his
part of the Promised Land:
(Joshua 14:12 NLT) So give me
the hill country that the Lord
promised me. You will remember that as scouts we found the descendants of Anak
living there in great, walled towns. But if the Lord is with me, I will drive them out of the land, just as
the Lord said.”
Was he able to handle the giants?
(Joshua 15:13–14 NLT) —13 The Lord commanded Joshua to assign some of
Judah’s territory to Caleb son of Jephunneh. So Caleb was given the town of
Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), which had been named after Anak’s ancestor. 14 Caleb drove out the three groups of Anakites—the descendants of
Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai, the sons of Anak.
Paul wrote,
(Romans 8:31 NKJV) What then
shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be
against us?
Songs
Psalm 94 God’s Discipline
:1 O Lord God, to whom
vengeance belongs— O God, to whom vengeance belongs, shine forth!
:1 O Lord God, to whom
vengeance belongs
The Psalmist recognizes that “revenge” is something that’s on God’s job
description, not ours.
(Romans 12:19 NKJV)
Beloved,
do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is
written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.
This Psalm is all about putting vengeance into God’s hand.
:2 Rise up, O Judge of the earth; Render punishment to the proud.
:3 Lord, how long will the
wicked, How long will the wicked triumph?
:4 They utter speech, and speak insolent things; All the workers of iniquity
boast in themselves.
:5 They break in pieces Your people, O Lord,
And afflict Your heritage.
Wicked people oppose God’s people.
:6 They slay the widow and the stranger, And murder the fatherless.
:7 Yet they say, “The Lord
does not see, Nor does the God of Jacob understand.”
:8 Understand, you senseless among the people; And you fools, when
will you be wise?
:9 He who planted the ear, shall He not hear? He who formed the eye, shall
He not see?
:9 He who formed the eye
If God was the one that designed and made the human eye, don’t you think
that He is capable of seeing things as well?
:10 He who instructs the nations, shall He not correct, He who teaches man
knowledge?
:10 He who instructs the nations
instructs – yacar – to
chasten, admonish; to instruct; to discipline
(Psalm 94:10 NASB95)
He
who chastens the nations, will He not rebuke, Even He who
teaches man knowledge?
(1 Peter 4:17 NKJV) For the
time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it
begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey
the gospel of God?
:11 The Lord knows the
thoughts of man, That they are futile.
:11 The Lord knows the
thoughts of man
futile – hebel
– vapor, breath
Isn’t it kind of scary sometimes to think that God knows our very thoughts?
(Psalm 139:2b NKJV)
…You understand my thought afar off.
He not only knows our thoughts, but He knows how often our thoughts are a
waste of time (futile).
:12 Blessed is the man whom You instruct, O Lord, And teach out of Your law,
:13 That You may give him rest from the days of adversity, Until the pit is
dug for the wicked.
:12 Blessed is the man whom You instruct
Blessed – ‘esher
– happiness, blessedness
instruct – yacar – to
chasten, discipline, instruct, admonish (same as in vs. 10)
Lesson
Happy spanking
God can instruct/chasten the heathen (vs. 10), but He will also chasten His
own children as well.
Chastening is how you discipline and instruct children.
We might call it “spanking” today.
Or not.
Illustration
Baby shouldn’t have
been there
It was late at night and Heidi, who was expecting her
second child, was home only with her 3-year-old daughter, Katelyn. Heidi
started to go into labor and called 911. Due to a power outage in the city at
the time, only one paramedic was able to respond to the call. The house was
very, very dark, so the paramedic asked Katelyn to hold a flashlight high over
her mommy so he could see while he helped deliver the baby. Very diligently, Katelyn
did as she was asked. Heidi pushed and pushed, and after a little while Connor
was born. The paramedic lifted him by his feet, and spanked him on his bottom.
Connor began to cry. The paramedic then thanked Katelyn for her help, and asked
the wide-eyed 3-year-old Katelyn what she thought about what she had just
witnessed. Katelyn quickly responded, “He shouldn’t have crawled in there in
the first place. Spank him again.”
Eliphaz the Temanite told Job,
(Job 5:17 NKJV) “Behold, happy is
the man whom God corrects; Therefore
do not despise the chastening of the Almighty.
corrects – yakach
– (Hiphil) to decide, judge; to convince, convict; to reprove, chide; to
correct, rebuke
chastening – muwcar
– discipline, chastening, correction
Moses wrote,
(Deuteronomy 8:5 NKJV) You should
know in your heart that as a man chastens his son, so the Lord your God chastens you.
chastens – yacar
– to chasten, discipline, instruct, admonish
Solomon wrote,
(Proverbs 3:11–12 NKJV) —11 My son, do
not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor detest His correction; 12 For whom
the Lord loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights.
chastening – muwcar
– discipline, chastening, correction
correction – towkechah
– rebuke, correction, reproof, punishment, chastisement
corrects – yakach
– (Hiphil) to reprove, chide; to correct, rebuke
The author of Hebrews quotes Solomon (Prov. 3:11-12) when he writes,
(Hebrews 12:5–11
NKJV) —5 And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to
sons: “My son, do
not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor be
discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; 6 For whom the
Lord loves He chastens, And scourges
every son whom He receives.” 7 If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what
son is there whom a father does not chasten? 8 But if you are without chastening,
of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons.
He’s saying that if God has been disciplining you
(spanking), it’s not a bad thing.
It shows you are God’s child and it shows He loves you.
If you never experience God’s spanking, perhaps you might
not be God’s child.
9 Furthermore,
we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them
respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of
spirits and live? 10 For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best
to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His
holiness. 11 Now no
chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless,
afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been
trained by it.
Chastening is one of the tools at God’s disposal to help
us grow up and mature.
Nobody likes to be spanked, but if you learn the lessons
your Father is trying to teach you, then there are good results – peace and
righteousness.
You experience the peace of God.
You learn to keep your life within the boundaries of what
is right.
Learning from our chastisement is what gives us “rest”
from the days of adversity (Ps. 94:13)
:13 the pit is dug for the
wicked
Reminds me that hell was created
for the devil and his angels.
:14 For the Lord will not
cast off His people, Nor will He forsake His inheritance.
Wonderful promise!
:15 But judgment will return to righteousness, And all the upright in heart
will follow it.
:16 Who will rise up for me against the evildoers? Who will stand up for me
against the workers of iniquity?
:17 Unless the Lord had
been my help, My soul would soon have settled in silence.
God is our ultimate help in time of trouble.
:18 If I say, “My foot slips,” Your mercy, O Lord, will hold me up.
Lord have mercy. Kyrie eleison
:19 In the multitude of my anxieties within me, Your comforts delight my
soul.
:20 Shall the throne of iniquity, which devises evil by law, Have
fellowship with You?
:20 the throne of iniquity … Have fellowship …
(Psalm 94:20 NLT) Can unjust
leaders claim that God is on their side— leaders whose decrees permit
injustice?
God does not have “fellowship” with iniquity, even if they are leaders.
He does not have an intimate relationship with people who walk in darkness.
(1 John 1:6 NKJV) If we say
that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not
practice the truth.
:21 They gather together against the life of the righteous, And condemn
innocent blood.
:22 But the Lord has been my
defense, And my God the rock of my refuge.
:23 He has brought on them their own iniquity, And shall cut them off in
their own wickedness; The Lord
our God shall cut them off.
:23 The Lord our God shall
cut them off
God will deal with the enemy.
Back to …
:19 In the multitude of my anxieties within me, Your comforts delight my
soul.
:19 Your comforts delight my soul
anxieties – sar’aph
– disquieting thoughts, thoughts
comforts – tanchuwm
– consolation(s)
delight – sha’a’
– to sport, take delight in;
(Pilpel) to sport, delight in, take delight in, delight oneself
Lesson
God’s comfort
The Psalmist is struggling with the threat of his enemies.
We too can be overwhelmed by our anxieties.
God sends comfort that delights our soul.
We can find “comfort” in all sorts of things, like getting under the covers
in your bed. We do call the things on
our beds “comforters” after all…
Video: Simon’s Cat – Bed Sheets
Sometimes the things we look to for comfort aren’t all
that comforting, are they?
God is all about comfort.
(2 Corinthians
1:3–5 NKJV) —3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to
comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves
are comforted by God. 5 For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation
also abounds through Christ.
God has much at His disposal to bring us comfort.
(John 14:16 AV) And I will
pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide
with you for ever;
The Holy Spirit brings us “comfort”.
(Psalm 119:50 NKJV)
This
is my comfort in my affliction, For Your word has given me life.
God’s Word gives us comfort.
(1 Thessalonians
5:11 NKJV) Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you
also are doing.
God can use us to comfort one another.
God’s comforts are better than bed sheets.
Songs
Thy Consolations
Ps.94:19
G D A D
When my anxious thoughts are many
G D A
D
When they multiply in me
G D A
D
When my fears are overwhelming
G D A
D
That's when I will start to sing
G D G D
Thy consolations delight my soul
G D E A
In Thy presence is joy for me
G D
In Thy right hand
G D
are pleasures
forever
G D
You are my light,
A D
I delight in Thee
written March 17, 1988
Thy Consolations
Ps.94:19/ Words & Music by Richard Cathers / © 1988 Richard Cathers / ThyCons.doc