April 24, 2024

Take Heed

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As for God, His way is perfect:
The Lord’s Word is flawless;
He shields all who take refuge in Him.
Psalm 18:30 NIV

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Here we have David, in the midst of singing praises to God for delivering him from his enemies.  I believe David stated the most important reason for that victory—!

God’s way, as the following Scriptures state, is His very own method and style.  God’s way of doing something has no comparison.

LORD, there is no one like You!
For You are great, and Your name is full of power.
Jeremiah 10:6 NLT

Among the gods there is none like You, Lord;
no deeds can compare with Yours.
Psalm 86:8

He is the Rock, His works are perfect,
and all His ways are just.
A faithful God who does no wrong,
upright and just is He.
Deuteronomy 32:4

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord.
“And My ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.
For just as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so My ways are higher than your ways
and My thoughts higher than your thoughts.
Isaiah 55:8-9

God’s Word is flawless, unbroken, unimpaired, and whole.  It is beneficial to us.  This is in sharp contrast to the lies of the enemy.

God is not man, that He should lie, or a son of man,
that He should change His mind.
Has He said, and will He not do it?
Or has He spoken, and will He not fulfill it?
Numbers 23:19

All Scripture is breathed out by God
and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction,
and for training in righteousness,
that the man of God may be competent,
equipped for every good work.
2 Timothy 3:16-17

God is our Shield.  Just as a king is trusted as the protector of his people, so we who put our faith in God are to trust Him as our Protector.

But You, Lord, are a Shield around me,
my glory, the One who lifts my head high.
Psalm 3:3

Lord Almighty, blessed is the one who trusts in You.
Psalm 84:12

But let all who take refuge in You be glad;
let them ever sing for joy.
Spread Your protection over them,
that those who love Your name may rejoice in You.
Psalm 5:11

Because God’s way is perfect, and His word is flawless, and He has promised to protect His children, we need to take heed.  Yes, like David, we have enemies—whether in the physical or in the spiritual—who try to “entangle us with cords of death” (Psalms 18:4-5).  But if we take heed of God and His Word, He will ”avenge us, and save us from our enemies” (Psalms 18:47-48).  When we are faithfully in God’s Word, then we will know God and experience His deliverance.

It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
Matthew 4:4

Joyful are people of integrity, who follow the instructions of the Lord.
Joyful are those who obey His laws and search for Him with all their hearts.
They do not compromise with evil, and they walk only in His paths.
You have charged us to keep Your commandments carefully.
Oh, that my actions would consistently reflect Your decrees!
Psalms 119:1-4

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Dear God, our Father and Protector, we come before You with humble and grateful hearts.  There is no way that is more perfect than Your Ways.  There is no word that is more flawless than Your Words.  We are Your children, and You desire nothing more than for us to trust You wholeheartedly so that You can be our Protector.  Help us by Your Holy Spirit to “take heed” of Your Word for us, so that we will know You better and follow You more closely.  We want to be joyful daughters of integrity “…who obey Your laws, and search for You with all our hearts.”  Thank You for Your Word and Your Holy Spirit, so that we can know You better.  In Jesus’ Precious Name, we pray, Amen.

10,000 Reasons

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before, O my soul
I worship Your holy name

The sun comes up; it’s a new day dawning
It’s time to sing Your song again
Whatever may pass and whatever lies before me
Let me be singing when the evening comes

You’re rich in love and You’re slow to anger
Your name is great and Your heart is kind
For all Your goodness, I will keep on singing
10,000 reasons for my heart to find

And on that day when my strength is failing
The end draws near and my time has come
Still my soul will sing Your praise unending
10,000 years and then forever more

Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before, O my soul
I worship Your holy name
Jesus, I worship Your holy name
I worship Your holy name
Sing like never before, O my soul
I worship Your holy name
I worship Your holy name
I worship Your holy name

Matt Redman
written with Jonas Myrin

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Bless and affectionately praise the Lord, O my soul,
And all that is [deep] within me, bless His holy name.
Bless and affectionately praise the Lord, O my soul,
Psalms 103:1-2a AMP

Recently I have seen several FaceBook posts about blessing the Lord.  This song immediately came to mind.  And, as I thought about blessing the Lord, two questions were at the forefront:

1) Why are we to bless the Lord?    2) How do we bless the Lord?

First, WHY  are we to bless the Lord?  The song title says there are 10,000 reasons to bless the Lord.  And in the second verse, it gives us several specific reasons taken from Scripture:

  • The Lord is rich in love

But God, being [so very] rich in mercy,
because of His great and wonderful love with which He loved us…
Ephesians 2:4 AMP

Yahweh—Yahweh is a compassionate and gracious God,
…rich in faithful love and truth,
Exodus 34:6 HCSB

  • The Lord is slow to anger

Return to the Lord your God,
For He is gracious and merciful,
Slow to anger,
Joel 2:13 NKJV

The Lord is slow to anger…forgiving wrongdoing and rebellion
Numbers 14:18 HCSB

  • His name is great

Inasmuch as there is none like You, O Lord
You are great, and Your name is great in might
Jeremiah 10:6 NKJV

I will vindicate the holiness of My great name
which has been profaned among the nations
Ezekiel 36:23 NASB

  • His heart is kind

For His merciful kindness is great toward us
Psalm 117:2 NKJV

“But with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you,”
says the Lord your Redeemer.
Isaiah 54:8 AMP

The Lord is righteous in all His ways
And kind in all His deeds
Psalm 145:17 NASB

But, the best reason is because He loves us.  John 3:16 tells us He loved us so much that He sent His only Son to die in our place, so that we could have everlasting life.

Augustine explained it like this
“God loves each of us as if there were only one of us.”

His plan would have been put into effect even if you or I were the only person on earth. This leaves me speechless!

And, second, HOW  do we bless the Lord?  What could I possibly do that would bless Him?  Thankfully, in the words of David, we have the answer:

I will bless the Lord at all times;
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
My soul shall make its boast in the Lord;
The humble shall hear of it and be glad.
Oh, magnify the Lord with me,
And let us exalt His name together.
Psalm 34:1-3NKJV

We are to praise the Lord continually—boast about Him, magnify Him, and exalt His Holy name.  That’s how we bless the Lord.  (That’s not asking too much, is it?)

You Reign Alone

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

There is no one greater than You
All our praise belongs to You
Holy in power
Faithful and true
There is none like You

There is no one stronger than You
Sin forever conquered by You
Fearless in life
Faithful in death
There is none like You

Lord, You reign
You reign alone
Exalted over all the earth enthroned
The majesty and greatness of Your name
Let all creation say ‘Lord, You reign’

There is none more loving than You
Near to all who call out to You
Your mercies anew
You’re faithful and true
There is none like You

No One is higher than
The King above all nations
No one is like You God
The name of Jesus is
Higher than any other
No one is like You God

Written by Wade Joye and London Gatch / Elevation Worship

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I love singing Scripture and this song is full of Scripture!   The writers used Psalm 96 as their inspiration, and here are just a few other verses that declare the character and greatness of God.

There is none like You, O LORD; You are great, and great is Your name in might.
Jeremiah 10:6

Your way, O God, is holy; What god is great like our God?
Psalm 77:3

The LORD’S lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, For His compassions never fail.
They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.
Lamentations 3:22-23

For the LORD Most High is awesome. He is the great King of all the earth.
Psalm 47:2

“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”
For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power.
But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Corinthians 15:55-57

Jesus came and told His disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.
Matthew 28:18

They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them
because He is Lord of lords and King of kings—
and with Him will be His called, chosen and faithful followers.
Revelation 17:14

As I sang this song and meditated on it, I kept coming back to the words “You reign alone.” As a verb, ‘reign’ refers to holding a royal office, to be sovereign, to rule.  As a noun, ‘reign’ refers to the period of time during which a sovereign rules.

The Lord reigns; He is robed in majesty;
the Lord is robed; He has put on strength as His belt.
Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved.
Your throne is established from of old;
You are from everlasting.
Psalms 93:1-2

In this Scripture (one of many), it is confirmed both that our Lord is reigning now, He is sovereign, AND His reign is forever.  For me (and I hope for you) that establishes an assurance in my heart that I am safe, cared for, and secure.  In a home where neither parent assumes responsibility to be head of the household, the children feel insecure and even unloved.  For us, as children of God, we never have to feel that way.  God reigns, He has always reigned, and He has taken responsibility to make sure that we are secure and loved through the sacrifice of His one and only Son, Jesus, for our salvation. Ladies, we don’t need to look to anyone else or anything else for this security and love.

For You are great and do wondrous things; You alone are God.
Psalm 86:10

Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this:
‘Listen, O Israel! The LORD our God is the one and only LORD.
Mark 12:29

God alone (Who needs no help from anyone or anything else) rules and reigns.  He is quite capable of and wanting very much to take care of us.  Our God is faithful and true, loving and merciful, holy and just, strong and majestic!  This great God, Who reigns alone in all the universe, loves you and me.  There is definitely no one like our God.  Please join me today in singing to and worshiping our Sovereign Lord and King!

And then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea.
They sang: “Blessing and honor and glory and power belong
to the One sitting on the throne and to the Lamb forever and ever.”
Revelation 5:13

AMEN!