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Psalms 63:1-8 ESV
This is the prayer of someone who loves the Lord Jesus, who earnestly seeks after the Lord and his ways, in truth, and not in pretense. [And I am just going to say “she” here since I am a she, but you can put in “he” if you are a he.] In truth, she hungers and thirsts for the Lord and for his righteousness. She wants to know his ways, because she wants to follow his ways. Her heart’s desire is to do the will of the Lord and to not follow after the flesh.
Because she loves the Lord, and because she is so appreciative of what he has done for her, she praises him, she gives honor to him, she reveres him, and she follows his lead in whatever it is he has for her to do or to say or to be. I am certain she is not 100% perfect in every way, but she is following the Lord in obedience, and she is living a holy life, pleasing to him, and she is saying “No!” to sin daily and “Yes!” to God and to his righteousness.
And she is someone who, in truth, thinks about the Lord when she goes to bed at night and when she rises in the morning and even throughout the night any time she is awakened. And she is willing and ready to serve the Lord with her life no matter what time of day or night it is. I am certain that she doesn’t jump for joy anytime she is awakened in the night to get up and to serve the Lord in some way, but she obeys him, even when she is tired.
For the Lord is her Lord. He is Owner and Master of her life, and so her life is committed to him and to his service. She is surrendered to do his will no matter the cost to her personally, and no matter what opposition she might face along the way which will oppose her because of her love for the Lord, and because of her sincerity of devotion to the Lord to do his will. For the Lord is her helper, and so her soul clings to the Lord, and he upholds her.
Psalms 63:9-11 ESV
Those who are committed to the Lord and to serving him with their lives are going to face opposition. That opposition may come from within the gatherings of what is called “church” today, and some of it may come from pastors and from elders and from other professers of faith in Jesus Christ. And some of it could come from people outside of faith in Jesus Christ and from neighbors or co-workers or friends or even from family members.
Some of the strongest opposition to those who are living godly and holy lives, in service to the Lord, will come from those who are the self-indulgent, who are addicted to sin, who are liars, deceivers, manipulators, and tricksters, who behave in unfair and dishonest ways in order to gain advantage over other people. These are people who are in regular pursuit of what is immoral, wicked, dishonorable and corrupt. It is their practice.
These are people who may be professers of faith in Jesus Christ but who are convinced that if they make a profession of faith in Christ that their sins will no longer be held to their account. And so they feel at liberty to continue in sin while claiming Jesus as their Savior, and while claiming heaven as their eternal destiny, and while claiming God’s grace over all their willful, deliberate, habitual and premeditated sins against God and other humans.
And then they lie to cover up their sins, and they play act as though all is well, when it is not well. For they want to present one image of themselves outwardly for others to see while they are living the opposite of what they present. They want others to see them as good, while truly what they are practicing is pure evil. For these are people without conscience, who are hardhearted, and who do not feel guilty for manipulating and tricking others in order to take advantage of their trust. And some of them are pastors.
And many of these people are in positions of power and influence over other people, the people they are taking advantage of, and that they are lying to. So if the righteous person, who loves Jesus, enters into the picture, and that person is serving the Lord, and doing what is right, and is teaching the truth and not the lies, then those who are living wickedly, especially who are lying to the people, will try to bring down that righteous person. For the wicked want to destroy the lives of the righteous.
And so they may lie about the righteous person, and turn others against him or her, and will oppose what he or she is teaching, because the righteous person, in her zeal for the Lord, is speaking truth to the people, and not the lies. And so the liars, whose mission is to take advantage of others, will do whatever they can to destroy the righteous person so that the people will not listen to her but so they will listen to the lies, instead, and so they will follow in the ways of Satan and not in the ways of God.
So, we need to be discerning people. We need to be those who have our armor of God firmly in place all day and night every day of the week, because the enemy is working hard to destroy us who are following the Lord Jesus with our lives, especially those of us on the front lines who are speaking the truth of God’s word in opposition to the lies of the enemy. And we need to not fear what others might do to us, too, but we just need to keep on keeping on in the strength of the Lord in doing what we are called to do for the glory and honor and praise of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Seek the Lord
An Original Work / July 20, 2012
Based off Isaiah 55
“Come to Me all you who thirst; come to waters.
Listen to Me, and eat what’s good today,
And your soul will delight in richest of fare.
Give ear to Me, and you will live.
I have made an eternal covenant with you.
Wash in the blood of the Lamb.”
Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him.
Let the wicked forsake his way, in truth.
Let him turn to the Lord, and he will receive mercy.
Freely, God pardons him.
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,”
declares the Lord, our God.
“My word that goes out of My mouth is truthful.
It will not return to Me unfulfilled.
My word will accomplish all that I desire,
And achieve the goal I intend.
You will go in joy and be led forth in peace.
The mountains will burst into song… before you,
And all of the trees clap their hands.”
“O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
beholding your power and glory.
Because your steadfast love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.
So I will bless you as long as I live;
in your name I will lift up my hands.
“My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,
and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,
when I remember you upon my bed,
and meditate on you in the watches of the night;
for you have been my help,
and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.
My soul clings to you;
your right hand upholds me.”
This is the prayer of someone who loves the Lord Jesus, who earnestly seeks after the Lord and his ways, in truth, and not in pretense. [And I am just going to say “she” here since I am a she, but you can put in “he” if you are a he.] In truth, she hungers and thirsts for the Lord and for his righteousness. She wants to know his ways, because she wants to follow his ways. Her heart’s desire is to do the will of the Lord and to not follow after the flesh.
Because she loves the Lord, and because she is so appreciative of what he has done for her, she praises him, she gives honor to him, she reveres him, and she follows his lead in whatever it is he has for her to do or to say or to be. I am certain she is not 100% perfect in every way, but she is following the Lord in obedience, and she is living a holy life, pleasing to him, and she is saying “No!” to sin daily and “Yes!” to God and to his righteousness.
And she is someone who, in truth, thinks about the Lord when she goes to bed at night and when she rises in the morning and even throughout the night any time she is awakened. And she is willing and ready to serve the Lord with her life no matter what time of day or night it is. I am certain that she doesn’t jump for joy anytime she is awakened in the night to get up and to serve the Lord in some way, but she obeys him, even when she is tired.
For the Lord is her Lord. He is Owner and Master of her life, and so her life is committed to him and to his service. She is surrendered to do his will no matter the cost to her personally, and no matter what opposition she might face along the way which will oppose her because of her love for the Lord, and because of her sincerity of devotion to the Lord to do his will. For the Lord is her helper, and so her soul clings to the Lord, and he upholds her.
Psalms 63:9-11 ESV
“But those who seek to destroy my life
shall go down into the depths of the earth;
they shall be given over to the power of the sword;
they shall be a portion for jackals.
But the king shall rejoice in God;
all who swear by him shall exult,
for the mouths of liars will be stopped.”
Those who are committed to the Lord and to serving him with their lives are going to face opposition. That opposition may come from within the gatherings of what is called “church” today, and some of it may come from pastors and from elders and from other professers of faith in Jesus Christ. And some of it could come from people outside of faith in Jesus Christ and from neighbors or co-workers or friends or even from family members.
Some of the strongest opposition to those who are living godly and holy lives, in service to the Lord, will come from those who are the self-indulgent, who are addicted to sin, who are liars, deceivers, manipulators, and tricksters, who behave in unfair and dishonest ways in order to gain advantage over other people. These are people who are in regular pursuit of what is immoral, wicked, dishonorable and corrupt. It is their practice.
These are people who may be professers of faith in Jesus Christ but who are convinced that if they make a profession of faith in Christ that their sins will no longer be held to their account. And so they feel at liberty to continue in sin while claiming Jesus as their Savior, and while claiming heaven as their eternal destiny, and while claiming God’s grace over all their willful, deliberate, habitual and premeditated sins against God and other humans.
And then they lie to cover up their sins, and they play act as though all is well, when it is not well. For they want to present one image of themselves outwardly for others to see while they are living the opposite of what they present. They want others to see them as good, while truly what they are practicing is pure evil. For these are people without conscience, who are hardhearted, and who do not feel guilty for manipulating and tricking others in order to take advantage of their trust. And some of them are pastors.
And many of these people are in positions of power and influence over other people, the people they are taking advantage of, and that they are lying to. So if the righteous person, who loves Jesus, enters into the picture, and that person is serving the Lord, and doing what is right, and is teaching the truth and not the lies, then those who are living wickedly, especially who are lying to the people, will try to bring down that righteous person. For the wicked want to destroy the lives of the righteous.
And so they may lie about the righteous person, and turn others against him or her, and will oppose what he or she is teaching, because the righteous person, in her zeal for the Lord, is speaking truth to the people, and not the lies. And so the liars, whose mission is to take advantage of others, will do whatever they can to destroy the righteous person so that the people will not listen to her but so they will listen to the lies, instead, and so they will follow in the ways of Satan and not in the ways of God.
So, we need to be discerning people. We need to be those who have our armor of God firmly in place all day and night every day of the week, because the enemy is working hard to destroy us who are following the Lord Jesus with our lives, especially those of us on the front lines who are speaking the truth of God’s word in opposition to the lies of the enemy. And we need to not fear what others might do to us, too, but we just need to keep on keeping on in the strength of the Lord in doing what we are called to do for the glory and honor and praise of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Seek the Lord
An Original Work / July 20, 2012
Based off Isaiah 55
“Come to Me all you who thirst; come to waters.
Listen to Me, and eat what’s good today,
And your soul will delight in richest of fare.
Give ear to Me, and you will live.
I have made an eternal covenant with you.
Wash in the blood of the Lamb.”
Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him.
Let the wicked forsake his way, in truth.
Let him turn to the Lord, and he will receive mercy.
Freely, God pardons him.
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,”
declares the Lord, our God.
“My word that goes out of My mouth is truthful.
It will not return to Me unfulfilled.
My word will accomplish all that I desire,
And achieve the goal I intend.
You will go in joy and be led forth in peace.
The mountains will burst into song… before you,
And all of the trees clap their hands.”
