November | 2010 | Moore to Ponder

Psalm 40…The Lord Inclines: (Part 5)

November 30, 2010 at 10:06 pm (About Sin, Assurance, Devoted To My Daughter, Devoted To My Son, Devotional Thoughts., Holy Spirit, Sins, Sovereignty of God, Wisdom)

Originally posted on July 16, 2010 at 3:36 am

Scripture Reference;

I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD. Blessed is that man that maketh the LORD his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies. Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered. Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required. Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart. I have preached righteousness in the great congregation: lo, I have not refrained my lips, O LORD, thou knowest.I have not hid thy righteousness within my heart; I have declared thy faithfulness and thy salvation: I have not concealed thy lovingkindness and thy truth from the great congregation.Withhold not thou thy tender mercies from me, O LORD: let thy lovingkindness and thy truth continually preserve me.For innumerable evils have compassed me about: mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up; they are more than the hairs of mine head: therefore my heart faileth me.Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me: O LORD, make haste to help me.Let them be ashamed and confounded together that seek after my soul to destroy it; let them be driven backward and put to shame that wish me evil. Let them be desolate for a reward of their shame that say unto me, Aha, aha.Let all those that seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee: let such as love thy salvation say continually, The LORD be magnified.But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh upon me: thou art my help and my deliverer; make no tarrying, O my God. Psalm 40 KJV

A few weeks ago I thought I would look at Psalm 40, so I typed some entries that looked sometimes at a few verses and sometimes at just one verse. Verses 7 and 8 split up a thought, and in my last post in this series I focused only on verse 7. Today I would like to look at the complete thought contained in those two verses.

^“7Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me,⁸I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.”

Well, I think I mentioned in my last entry in this series a little about “The Book”, and that there was more than just a list of names written in it. I believe verse 8 confirms that. I believe that David’s words in his Psalms were both sincere and true. Does that mean that David “always” did the Lord’s will, and obeyed the law that was in his heart? Well if you have read both the 10 commandments, and the accounts of David’s life in the Old Testament you will notice that he, like every other person who was ever born, was a sinner. You can read about one of his most tragic sins in 2 Samuel chapters 11 and 12. Now if you take the time to read them (They are not long; are about 2 pages in length in my little Bible.) you might be shocked at how it didn’t seem to occur to David just how wicked his sin really was (in the eyes of the Lord), until the Lord used Nathan the prophet to open his eyes. But you must understand that David was a king, and kings fought in battles and not unlike appointed leaders in the military services in many countries today (even our own), had to make decisions about sending troops into areas where there was a likelihood that some soldiers would lose there lives. I am sure that he probably worked things out in his mind to help ease his conscience, and don’t we all sometimes do incredibly selfish and even hurtful things sometimes when it is “inconvenient” to do the right thing or to (refrain from doing the wrong thing), and manage to work it out mentally until we have made them “seem” justifiable in our minds? But the Lord, although always gracious and merciful, will not let His children get away with that. Consider this passage below:

^“3 For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, so that you won’t grow weary and lose heart. ^(D) ⁴ In struggling against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. ⁵ And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons:

My son, do not take the Lord’s discipline lightly,

or faint when you are reproved by Him;

⁶ for the Lord disciplines the one He loves,

and punishes every son whom He receives. ^(E) ^(F)

⁷ Endure it as discipline: God is dealing with you as sons. For what son is there whom a father does not discipline? ⁸ But if you are without discipline—which all ^[d] receive ^[e] —then you are illegitimate children and not sons. ^(G) ⁹ Furthermore, we had natural fathers discipline us, and we respected them. Shouldn’t we submit even more to the Father of spirits and live? ^(H) ¹⁰ For they disciplined us for a short time based on what seemed good to them, but He does it for our benefit, so that we can share His holiness. ^(I) ¹¹ No discipline seems enjoyable at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it yields the fruit of peace ^(J) and righteousness to those who have been trained by it. ^(K)

¹² Therefore strengthen your tired hands and weakened knees, ^(L) ¹³ and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, ^[f] but healed instead. ^(M)”Hebrews 12:3-12 HCSB

Now with the above information in mind one might ask the following questions: (1) How could a person who was capable of doing what David did truthfully say, “I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart?” (2) If all Christians are also sinners can we truthfully say that, and if we can say that, then how? or (3) When did David say that? … “before” or “after” he committed adultery and had that devoted soldier killed?…Well, I do not know the answer to the last question. I could look it up, but it really doesn’t matter, because he was a sinner both before and after he spoke those words; like David said in Psalm 51:

“³For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. ⁴Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.⁵Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.” Psalm 51:3-5 KJV

Now, I will attempt to address the three questions that came before that last question. The first question was, “How could a person who was capable of doing what David did truthfully say, ‘I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart?’” Allow me to respond to that question by explaining that all people that come to dwell on the earth have physical life, but not all people have “spiritual life”. However, all people who have placed their faith in the Lord and know Him as their personal Savior do have “spiritual life”, and are said to be “born again”. This means that the Lord has put His Spirit in them and has made their “Hidden Man of the Heart” or “Inner Man” alive. This act that the Lord performs is referred to as “regeneration”. I have explained in other blog entries that once we have been born again we are “new creatures” with a ” two-fold” or “dual nature” consisting of “the flesh” and “The spirit”. Here is an excerpt from a blog entry titled, https://pronetoponder.wordpress.com/2010/04/23/considering-the-source-part-1-conviction-or-condemnation/

“Another reason that Satan is good at his job is because he can quote scripture. However, he doesn’t “rightly divide it”, because if he were to do that we would be filled with hope instead of shame. He knows not only all of our sins that we have committed, but he also knows that Christians are “New Creatures” with a “Twofold Nature”. This nature consists of an “Inner Man” or “Spiritual Man” or “The Hidden Man of the Heart”, and an “Outer Man” or “The Flesh”. The “Spiritual Man” cannot sin. It can only follow the Lord. The “Flesh” can do nothing but sin. The two are opposed as described in Romans 7 and 8. Below are some scriptures where these terms are used.

For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. 2 Corinthians 4:16 KJV

That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; Ephesians 3:16 KJV

I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. Romans 7:21-25 KJV

But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. 1 Peter 3:4

That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. John 3:6 KJV

Okay, lets look one more time at that verse:

^“7Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me,⁸I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.”

Now I would like to answer the second question which was, “If all Christians are also sinners can we truthfully say that, and if we can say that, then how?” The answer is “Yes, like David, ‘I’, also can sincerely say, ‘ I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.’” …and how? Based on the above scriptures it is my “inner man” or “the hidden man of my heart” that delights to do God’s will and God’s law is is within the heart of my “inner man” or “hidden man” of my heart, but not “my flesh” (Romans 7:21-25 KJV).

So I guess I will conclude today’s blog entry by saying that even though David was a sinner, all of his words we find in scripture are true, and all Christians share that same delight. We may still sin and even be chastised as a result, but we have Christ (the one who actually came and fulfilled the law) residing in our hearts. We can appreciate that the law reveals just how Holy our God is, and just how sinful our bodies of flesh are, and be thankful that we are not under that law, but are children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. If you would like to know more about that you can read the third chapter of Galatians.

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click here: https://pronetoponder.wordpress.com/category/about-salvation-very-important-words/ and make sure.

Do you have a Bible? If you don’t have one, you need not worry. Just click here: www.biblegateway.com They have many versions and translations of the Bible that you can read. Some of the best things in life are free!

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Psalm 40…The Lord Inclines: (Part 4)

November 30, 2010 at 12:09 am (About Sin, Assurance, Devotional Thoughts., Forgiveness, Judging, Lighter Burdens., Our Unchanging God, Parenting, Praise, Sins, Sovereignty of God, When you are afraid, When You Feel Like Crying., Wisdom)

Originally posted on June 22, 2010 at 11:09 pm

Scripture Reference;

Today I am proceeding to verse 7 of Psalm 40. Here it is below:

^“Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me,”

…What can I say about this? We all have a story, and the versions can vary depending on who is telling it. We read about people and events in history books, but we are often left wondering how accurate these accounts really are. But the book referred to by David was 100 percent accurate. The Lord makes no mistakes. This is not the only Psalm that mentions that our life is recorded in a book. It is funny how something that I think can be simple can become complicated. There are many books in the Bible that mention David including one called “The Lamb’s Book of Life”. I had wondered if that was the book to which he was referring. I have heard preachers over the years mention this book. It contains the names of all the people throughout all the ages that have known the Lord as their personal Savior. I had always thought that it was just a list of names, and like the chorus to that popular old hymn says, “When the roll is called up yonder I’ll be there.”, but when David speaks he makes it sound like there is more to it than that.

Last Sunday I was in church and the pastor was preaching about the role a parent has in a child’s life, and that it is very important that one should strive to bring their child up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. He explained how parents should teach and model for their children what it means to live a Christian life. While he was preaching he quoted a couple Bible verses that convicted me and made me worry a little, because I was not sure how to interpret them. I have been to many different types of churches in my life, and some of them interpreted scripture in a way that caused me to have a “type” of fear that I now believe the Lord does not desire His children to have. The verse has to do with what many Christians refer to as “The Judgment Seat of Christ”. Here are the verses below.

“³⁶But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. ³⁷For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:36-37 NIV

I became concerned about the whole subject of “The Judgment Seat of Christ” and wrote to him about it. He wrote me back and I was so comforted by his reply that I decided to get his permission to share this correspondence with you. Here it is below:

Howard,

I believe the Lord has laid a few things on my heart today (with your help) that have been of great comfort and encouragement to me. One of the things that was on my mind was “The Judgment Seat of Christ”, the “day” of judgment. This came to my mind when you mentioned the verses in Matthew below. I am sure that when it comes to this subject you probably know a lot more than I do, and there is probably a whole lot of scripture that speaks about it. However, I wanted to look at that passage from Matthew as well as another passage. Here they are :

⁶Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. ⁷We live by faith, not by sight. ⁸We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. ⁹So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. ¹⁰For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.¹¹Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience. ” 2 Corinthians 5:6-11 NIV

You might find it interesting that prior to 1999 I had been under the teachings of various churches that all taught that a person’s salvation was not always permanent. These people seldom spoke about the judgment seat of Christ. They didn’t seem to believe in the idea of receiving rewards. They usually spoke of the great white judgment that was for the unsaved, and that was the only type of judgment they really seemed to think about. Then I came to believe that salvation is always permanent, and not long after that we joined a type of Baptist church simply because we did not know that there were other denominations beside Baptists that believed that saved people always stay saved. I know I have already told you about our history of church experiences, and I will now try to get to my point. The pastor of that particular church believed that it was of utmost importance that we never forget that believers would definitely appear before “The Judgment Seat of Christ” and he would warn us continually that we should be very concerned about that. I am sure you know me well enough by now to know that as a result I went from being very afraid of losing my salvation to being afraid of getting a rebuke instead of a reward at the Judgment Seat of Christ”, as well as bouts of fear that my sins proved that I might have failed to put my faith in Christ in the first place ( I still battle that one some.) We all had two verses memorized. Here they are :

^“11Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences.” 2 Corinthians 5:11 KJV, and “⁷Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” Galatians 6:7 KJV

Well, I had an experience one night that affected some of my thinking on this subject. I hope you will not consider what I am about to say as heresy. The first thing I want to say is that the verses I have mentioned so far in this letter clearly teach that there will be a day when our life here on the earth is over when we will certainly appear before that judgment seat, so please don’t think that I am rejecting that truth. One night while I prayed silently before going to sleep I was feeling afraid of facing the Lord on that day of judgment, and I said something to the Lord that might be a little humorous, but I really was sincere. I said “Lord, I’m scared…I’m scared to face you that day.” I was talking to Him as if he were two different people (one to whom I could run to for comfort whenever the need arose and one to run away from, one who I was so afraid of finally facing on that day ). Then something happened that does not happen to me very often. Right after I made that statement to the Lord a thought surfaced in my mind. It said “You just were.” Then I remembered the verses below.

¹ O LORD, you have searched me and you know me. ² You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. ³ You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. ⁴ Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD. ⁵ You hem me in—behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me. ⁶ Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. ⁷ Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? ⁸ If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, ^[a] you are there. ⁹ If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, ¹⁰ even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. ¹¹ If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” ¹² even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you. Psalm 139:1-12 NIV

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:17NIV

It occurred to me that all of the attributes that I find in my Savior that are so comforting will still be there when I face Him on the day of judgment after I die. The next thing that occurred to me was that Jesus is on the throne: “²¹To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne.” Revelation 3:21NIV. Therefore when the Holy Spirit convicts me of my sin, and I feel that anguish and go to Him in prayer I have in a sense been to the Judgment Seat of Christ, and perhaps in a moment in time have been both condemned and acquitted, but I still really am not sure how to interpret this verse:

^“37 For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:37 NIV.

But I do know that the Bible teaches that if we confess our sins He is just and able to forgive us, and all who call on the name of the Lord will be saved. The reason I have a hard time understanding the meaning of Matthew 12:36-37, and all of the other passages I mentioned about the Judgment Seat of Christ is because there are also verses in the Bible that say this:

“¹⁷ Surely it was for my benefit that I suffered such anguish. In your love you kept me from the pit of destruction; you have put all my sins behind your back.” Isaiah 38:17 NIV

“¹⁰ he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. ¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; ¹² as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us . ¹³ As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;” Psalm 103:10-13 NIV

³If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?⁴But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared. Psalm 130:3-4KJV

For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more. Hebrews 8:12 NIV

I know the passages at the top of this letter about the Judgment Seat of Christ are true, but I don’t understand how sins that have been taken away, that are behind God’s back, if the Lord doesn’t mark our iniquities,…then how will these sins suddenly be there again for the Lord to view? I find that thought so disturbing. If you can help me with this I would appreciate it.

Sincerely,

Theresa

Theresa;

There is much to be said about the judgement seat of Christ and the “publication” of our sin. Indeed it seems counterintuitive that sins would be separated from us as far as east is from west and that as Micah says, our transgressions would be cast into the depths of the sea, beyond remembrance and yet appear to testify against us on what will be one of the most glorious days of our existence.

Yet it must be noted that when God separates us from our sin and places them beyond remembrance, this primarily indicates that we experience release from the judicial consquences of our sin — in other words, our sins are not “counted against” us because they were reckoned upon Christ on the cross. I like John Bunyan’s perspective best on the publication of our sin at the judgement seat of Christ — that it is not so much a publication of our sins which causes personal sorrow for us, but a publication of the glories of our Savior who bore every one and thus causes us to praise Christ.

At the judgement seat of Christ our focus will not be on our failings, but on Christ’s successes! I sorrow over my sin every day. It grieves me and there is a sense which I long to be with Christ so that I will sin no more. Yet on the day when I stand before Christ, I stand there by grace alone. Not by my ability to do what is right or to restrain what was wrong. For I am a sinful creature without hope except by God’s grace. When I stand before Christ, I stand in His grace. I will not feebly try to explain my sin, but I will praise my savior for the depth of his love which, only then will be fully revealed to me. There is a sense in which I experience this every week in worship — when I realize that I stand before Him, my sin is always before me, but then He reminds me that in grace I am invited to come boldly into his presence because I do not come alone without a mediator, intercessor, and surety.

Beloved, Theresa, do not fear that judgment if you trust in Christ’s mercy and flee to Him. For on that day, your account will be read and after every transgression will be shouted, “paid in full.” The Lord Jesus Christ will not look upon you with disdain and sorrow, but with the tender love of a husband for his beloved bride.

Those who stand before Christ without the covering of his grace will have nothing to say and no recourse to their works, for those works will only condemn them. Those who simply trust in Christ in acknowledgment of their complete inability to rid themselves of their sin or the guilt of it and who rest upon Him will receive the reward for the gracious deeds that He has worked in us through the Holy Spirit ( Phil 2:13 )

We must constantly remember that the judgment seat of Christ is about Christ and not primarily about us.

Those who trust in their works and on their religious works are admonished time and time again in the OT prophets, “woe to you who long for the Day of the Lord.” But for those who place no confidence in the flesh but flee to Christ’s mercy in grace we long for the “blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our Savior.” Titus 2:11-13 The gospel is good news because it is utterly gracious. Hebrews 7:25 is one of my favorite verses of Scripture because it reminds me that even in the midst of my continued war between the flesh and the Spirit, that Jesus is interceding for me for every transgression and will save me to the uttermost.

Let us long for the glorious appearing of our King especially since His glory is revealed in the publication of His grace through the publication of my sins. And let me say this, on that day you will not hear my sins and say, “oh my, how could he have thought, said, done such a thing — after all he is a pastor.” What you will say, is “glory to the Lamb who sits in the midst of the throne, for he has purchased, by his own blood, men from every tribe and nation and language and people. Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of His Father!” Praise Jesus who, “while we are yet sinning, died for us.”

Theresa, what good news is such a gospel! When I think of it, Paul’s words in Romans 7:25-8:1 come to my mind! What a glorious savior to shed his own blood for such sinners as I! How glorious it will be when the depth of our savior’s love is revealed on that day because it will be made clear how great was our sin and how great is our Savior! How can we not love such a Savior with all that we are! Let your thoughts of that day of that judgment seat of Christ fan into flame your love for Christ and not your fear of Him. It will not be a day of your shame but of His glory for those who trust in Him.

Now may the Lord of peace, Himself, give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with you.

In Christ,

Howard

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click here: https://pronetoponder.wordpress.com/category/about-salvation-very-important-words/ and make sure.

Do you have a Bible? If you don’t have one, you need not worry. Just go to http://www.biblegateway.com. They have many versions and translations of the Bible that you can read. Some of the best things in life are free!

6 Comments

Psalm 40… The Lord Inclines: (Part 3)

November 29, 2010 at 1:39 am (About Sin, Assurance, Devotional Thoughts., Forgiveness, Guidance, Lighter Burdens., Our Unchanging God, Sins, Sovereignty of God, Transformation., When you are afraid, When You Feel Like Crying., Wisdom)

Originally posted on June 16, 2010 at 11:25 pm

Scripture References;

I have these past few days been looking at Psalm 40. So far I have focused on verses 1-5. Now I am moving along.

⁶Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required.

“Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire”… I am pausing here, because blogs can have so many types of readers. I will often look at my “Dashboard”, but the graph gives me very little information about my readers. They are anonymous to me. Only the readers who choose to comment give clues to what they know and believe. I like to make my blog entries simple, so that if someone comes along who knows very little about the Bible, they will still be able to understand the thoughts that I am conveying. I also must admit that even though I have a good amount of scripture hidden in my heart, there are many “topics” that I still know very little about, so please know that there are many things that can be taught from these verses that I might not even mention. My Blog is about “glimpses” and in no way would ever be considered “exhaustive”,…LOL . However, just because it is simple doesn’t mean that it cannot benefit readers who know more than I do. We all know that it is nice to be reminded of things that we already know to be true.
Okay, “Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire”…I guess I will start with some background, and what better place to start but in Genesis:

^“9And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?¹⁰And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.¹¹And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?¹²And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.¹³And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.¹⁴And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:¹⁵And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” Genesis 3:9-15 KJV

God had told them that they could eat from any tree except the “Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil”:

^“9And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil..¹⁶And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: ¹⁷But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. Genesis 2:9, 16, and17. KJV

This eating of the tree that they were told not to eat of is the first sin ever committed by man and woman. It is referred to as “The Fall of Man”. If they had not sinned they could have lived there forever. After that all people that were ever born came into the world in that fallen state and would eventually spend an eternity in Hell when they died. But God had a plan to save people from that horrible penalty. Look again at Genesis 3:15:

“And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.”

Here are two more references that have to do with being bitten by serpents, and what that actually represented:

⁴ They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; ⁵ they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!”

⁶ Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. ⁷ The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.

⁸ The LORD said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” ⁹ So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived. Numbers 21:4-9 NIV

¹³No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man. ¹⁴Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, ¹⁵that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.

¹⁶“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. ¹⁸Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. John 3:13-18 NIV

Many many years later a woman named Mary, one of Adam and Eve’s descendants, would give birth to a son; not an ordinary son, but God’s only begotten Son. He would come to the earth and be born from a virgin. His name would be called Jesus, and He would live a perfectly sinless life in mankind’s place and lay down His life by allowing himself to be crucified on a cross, and would rise from the dead. In fact, He would also be a descendant of David who also was a descendant of Adam and Eve along with the rest of the Human race. Because of this, Jesus was sometimes referred to as “The Son of David”

Adam and Eve did not know all of these details, but they as well as their descendants knew that although they were the ones that initiated the fall of man, it would be God’s provision of a Messiah that would provide the escape from those tragic consequences. They knew that it would also involve a sacrifice. Now look at this verse:

The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. Genesis 3:22^KJV

I was taught that an animal lost its life in order for that skin (covering) to be provided for them. This would have been the first sacrifice ever made. After that God’s people in the Old Testament were instructed to make different types of sacrifices. Some were offered routinely in a specific way, and others were to be offered when specific circumstances( like when someone committed certain kinds of sins) called for them. Those sacrifices pictured the ultimate sacrifice of the Messiah that would take place some day in their future. The people of the Old Testament were saved by their faith that was placed in the Messiah to come. Those who lived at the time Jesus had His earthly ministry were saved by their faith that was placed in the Messiah that had finally come, and after that right up until the present time salvation is provided for all who place their faith in the Messiah who already came, and it will always be that way until the Lord finally returns again.

Now lets look at that phrase from Psalm 40:6 again: “Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire”, If you have read many of David’s Psalms you know that he often confessed that he was a sinner, and as you continue to read this Psalm you will see that in verse 12 he says, “mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up; they are more than the hairs of mine head: therefore my heart faileth me.”…I have been thinking about this phrase and got stuck. I even read some comments by scholars. I do not want my blog entries to be complicated, so instead of trying to think of all of the possible things that were on David’s mind, I am going to share what is on my mind. There are times when I am in prayer and I begin to confess my sin, and there is no way that I could name them one by one; not even if I were to confess them every hour, so when I pray I usually mention categories of sin, and even doing that can take a few minutes to list them. At times it truly is hard to look up. However, David’s hope was not in sacrifice and offering. His hope was in the Lord; in what the Lord had to offer. The Lord had opened his ears so that He could hear the Lord’s thoughts on the matter, and as a result David’s confidence in the Lord was revived. I have a tendency to become so preoccupied with my guilt and fears that I fail to hear and look up, but the Lord opens my ears, too, and causes me to look up. He call us by name, and that always gets our attention. Our God is an unchanging God. There is no shadow of turning with Him (James 1:17). Do you hear Him calling? Has He been on your mind? Look up, and you will be glad that you did!

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click here: “https://pronetoponder.wordpress.com/category/about-salvation-very-important-words/ ” and make sure.

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Psalm 40…The Lord Inclines: (Part 2)

November 27, 2010 at 3:49 pm (About Sin, Assurance, Devotional Thoughts., Forgiveness, Guidance, Joy, Life, Lighter Burdens., Love, Our Unchanging God, Sins, Sovereignty of God, Thanksgiving, Transformation., When you are afraid, When You Feel Like Crying.)

Originally posted on June 8, 2010 at 7:24 pm

Scripture Reference;

Today I’m going to pick up where I left off in Part “1”, and look at some more verses.

⁵Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.

I am having a little trouble grasping this one, and I dare say that I am not the only one. All of us humans see only in part. We live in a world that has so much access to news, but the tendency in reporting and commenting is to focus on mostly negative reports and opinions. Sometimes our bigger battles are to do with thinking on that which is good. Actually, I am beginning to see that probably one of the biggest battles that we must face is the battle of choosing “NOT to battle”. I hope you don’t mind if I digress a little here, and please know that I am aware that the Bible teaches us to put on the “Armor of God”, and even David Himself fought in battles (both physical and spiritual… at least the physical ones) and spoke of them in the Psalms. Below is the passage of scripture that speaks about armor and battling. The Apostle Paul wrote it to the saints at Ephesus while he was in prison.

The Armor of God

^“10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹²For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. ¹⁸And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

¹⁹Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.” Ephesians 6:10-19 NIV

The above passage mentions the “day of evil” I am sure that many Bible scholars have many varying opinions on what that phrase means. I am not a scholar. I am just a woman, a wife, a daughter, a mother, a sinner, and a blood bought child of God. There is one thing that I have learned and am still learning and will probably continue to learn for the rest of my life here on the earth. It is that the day a Christian is tempted to doubt that his/her sins are forgiven, that salvation has truly been secured, that Jesus does hear every cry, and have pity instead of anger when we cry out to him, the day one is tempted to think that He “WOULD” put more on His children than they could bear, that He “WILL NOT” cast out the type of fear that “TORMENTS”, the day one is tempted to doubt that the love of Jesus is powerful enough to save to “THE UTTERMOST” those who come to him, the day one is tempted to doubt that the very most important battle ever fought for us was fought and “WON” by “JESUS” when He died on that cross and rose the 3rd day… that day is truly a “day of evil”! I will never forget a few years ago I was in a Sunday School class and heard something that really struck me. It had to do with the following verse:

^“31And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: ³²But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.” Luke 22:31-32

I remembered that as the teacher read verse 31 I recognized it, but had no memory of verse 32. The goal of all sifting is to separate one thing from another. The teacher explained that morning that Christians cannot be separated from Christ’s love and their salvation (see Romans 8:26-39 and Psalm 139). BUT look at verse 32. It was Peter’s faith or confidence in Christ that Satan wanted to separate from Peter. Look at this: “⁸For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: ⁹Not of works, lest any man should boast. Ephesians 4:8-9 KJV Now look again at Luke 22:32. Jesus told Simon (Peter) that not only had He pray(ed) for Him that his faith would not fail, but also that when Simon (Peter) was converted that he would strengthen his brethren. Jesus didn’t say “IF” thou are converted”, but “WHEN” thou are converted. I am so thankful for that Sunday School teacher’s words spoken that day.

Well, what started out as a digression has become the message. Now back to my first thought… “The battle to think on that which is good”… that which is of “good report”. Does that phrase sound familiar? Look at this:

^“4Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.⁵Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.⁶Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.⁷And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.⁸Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. ⁹Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you. ” Philippians 4:4-9 KJV

…Our sin is not good and it certainly is not lovely. Christians have Christ dwelling in them. This means they have new life and light in them, and yes, that light makes their sins visible to them, and when we see them we are commanded to confess them and turn from them. It is so important that we understand what it means to turn from our sins. Part of it means to understand how bad they are, and to strive to not commit them (to follow the Spirit instead of the flesh…see Romans 7 and 8). BUT do you understand that when you turn your back on something you can no longer see it? The Lord does not look at them. We are not supposed to dwell on the past(This includes both distant and recent past. Past is past…5 minutes ago is past.), we are not to wallow in shame. The Lord does not look at them… We are not to look at them either…we are to look at Jesus, to look up, not down, not over our shoulder, but up!

Now I am going back to the subject of “the battle NOT to battle” Samuel was so upset when Israel rejected the Lord by asking for a human king to lead them in their battles. They sinned a terrible sin when they made that choice. We must choose our battles carefully, and remember that there are some battles that have already been fought and won. The Lord’s Prayer illustrates this. It is a prayer we all need to memorize and pray. Here it is:

After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

¹⁰Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

¹¹Give us this day our daily bread.

¹²And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

¹³And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. Matthew 6:9-13 KJV

Now finally I will conclude today’s entry by returning to the original Bible verse:

^“5Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered. Psalm 40:5 KJV

We are taught in scripture to take time to give thanks. But we often think of “giving thanks” as just a duty or obligation. We forget that there are real benefits to us when we give thanks. Whenever we take the time to give thanks unto the Lord we take the time to recall all of the things we know the Lord has done and promised to do in the Bible, and we also think about all of the things the Lord has done for each of us throughout our lives. We often think about difficult times where the Lord delivered us either by changing the circumstances or by changing our perspective or both, and as a result we start to magnify the Lord, and as we do this our hearts are encouraged and touched by a keener awareness of his love. It is true that the Lord’s thoughts about each and every one of us are more than can be numbered; there is no way that we could recall them all in order. However, as we become still in His presence He will bring them to our minds. What a privilege it is to give thanks unto the Lord!

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click here:https://pronetoponder.wordpress.com/category/about-salvation-very-important-words/ and make sure.

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Psalm 40…The Lord Inclines: (Part 1)

November 26, 2010 at 5:54 pm (Assurance, Contentment, Devotional Thoughts., Guidance, Holy Spirit, Joy, Life, Lighter Burdens., Love, Our Unchanging God, Patience, Praise, Restoration, Sovereignty of God, Thanksgiving, The Greatest Commandment, Transformation., When you are afraid, When You Feel Like Crying., Wisdom)

Originally posted on June 7, 2010 at 2:41 pm

Over the past few months I have written from time to time some things I learned as I looked at Psalm 40. I came across this psalm while I was having a panic attack. I first started suffering from them in May…probably as a post traumatic stress response to some very hard situations that I and my family had been enduring for quite sometime ( See “Transitions” in the column on the left). I have decided to re-post them starting with part one.

Scripture References;

Recently I have been struggling with fear. Last Saturday morning I was running some errands with my husband and I began to struggle again. The panic attacks would come and go. I was sitting in the van while my husband went in the post office and I pulled out one of those pocket sized New Testaments that also have the Psalms, and decided to read for a few minutes. I came across Psalm 40. It was such a comfort to me. That evening I just had to read it again. I thought I might examine it verse by verse and share what comes to me. I have spent the last 2 days on verses 1-4. I hope to continue in the upcoming days, and have decided to break it into parts. Below is Part “one”.

¹I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.

Well, it is hard to know how the Lord measures patience, but I have been waiting a lot lately (especially these last couple of weeks), not by virtue of being one who is characterized by patience, but I have been waiting, because the Lord has put me in a place where I don’t really have much choice. I have also been doing some crying. Now I didn’t look up “cry” to see what the Hebrew meaning was. It might have meant “calling out” or “sobbing” or “both”. I have done both and sometimes both at the same time…Enough about me. The Lord “inclined unto David”, and as I prayerfully read this psalm I felt like the Lord inclined to me, and heard my cry, too. I believe He does this for all who call on Him.

²He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.

Now this verse really comforts me. I can visualize a pit with slimy sides, and how helpless and afraid one would be if they were in one. One can stumble and fall in one, or an enemy could capture you and throw you in one. As I read on through the rest of the Psalm David spoke of both enemies and his own iniquities. Often times we find ourselves wondering about difficult and scary situations in which we find ourselves. Sometimes they are the result of our own sin, sometimes they are forms of persecution as a result of our obedience, but a lot of times we just aren’t sure because even on our best day we still sin. That is why I am so thankful that Christians today have much in common with so many of God’s people who are written about in the Bible. We must not forget that Jesus was the only one who never sinned.

The Lord also set David’s feet on a rock. He will also do this for us when we call on Him if we have placed our saving faith in Him. We cannot sink into a rock. Look at John 10:29: “My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.” His hand is as solid as a rock. In fact one of His names is “The Rock”, and the Bible teaches that not only is He in believers, but believers are also in Him…so “His Hand” is “The Rock”. The enemy may slap us around a little, but he cannot pluck us out of the Father’s hand. In fact as soon as we are saved the Lord Himself places us in His hand, and there we forever reside:

4But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

⁵Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

⁶And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

⁷That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:4-7 KJV

This is something He alone does. To me this describes the nature of salvation. Where our walk is concerned, we can find ourselves in various kinds of pits, but like David, we can cry out to the Lord and at the time the Lord thinks is best He will lift us out of them.

The Lord established David’s goings, and he has established the goings of all his children.

³And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD.

As I read this I find myself asking the question, “What kind of song did he have in his mouth while he was in the pit?” Well, it sounds like it wasn’t a praise song; maybe it was a sad song he was pouring out in despair to the Lord. David’s tune was changed, and David didn’t change it. It says that “God” put a new song in his mouth…and as a result, “many” “have” seen it, and feared and trusted in the Lord. The Lord can do the same for us and the effect will be the same when He does it. Even if it happens when you think you are alone, you really aren’t; you are surrounded by a cloud of many witnesses who already trust the Lord, and I’m sure they will rejoice.

⁴Blessed is that man that maketh the LORD his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.

“Blessed”…I looked this word up in my Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to see what the Hebrew meaning of that word was as it was used in that particular verse. It said that it meant “happy” and often was used as an interjection.

“maketh the LORD his trust”… “maketh” is a word in this phrase that interests me. If we “maketh” then we DO have a choice in whom we will trust, but only those who choose to trust the “LORD” will be be happy.

“and respecteth not the proud”…God is Love or “Charity” (1John 4:16), and love is not proud or “puffed up” ( 1 Corinthians 13:4). Whenever we start to water down our trust in the Lord, so it is partly in the Lord and partly in someone or something else (including self, that old “arm of the flesh”), we have ceased to trust in the Lord, and have become a respecter of proud things. When that happens the Lord will have to re-educate us so we will remember that trusting in mixtures is futile, and that all glory and honor and “respect” are to be given to Him, and Him alone.

“nor such as turn aside to lies”…there are so many lies that God’s children can be tricked into believing. Satan loves to tell them. There is no way that I could list them all, so instead I will focus on the fact that another one of Christ’s titles or names is “The Truth”, We should be so thankful for that. If we have received the Lord, the Truth resides in our hearts, but our minds need to be renewed daily, so the truth will be present in our thoughts, too. Paul advised the believers at Rome to: “ Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.(Romans 12:2 HCSB)…so the opposite of “turning aside to lies” is obviously to turn to the Savior, and allow our minds to be renewed through prayer and study of the Bible, the word of truth.

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click on “Very Important Words” on the left margin of this page and make sure.

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Thankful For Laughter

November 25, 2010 at 5:19 pm (Contentment, Devotional Thoughts., Thanksgiving, Wisdom)

Scripture Reference;

In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 1Thessalonians 5:18 KJV

²²A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones. Proverbs 17:22 KJV

I know that television can be one of those taboo subjects with Christians, and whenever we watch it, it is good to have the remote control in hand, so we can hurry and change the channel in case anything bad comes on, but I am so thankful that once in awhile we can enjoy an episode that not only makes us laugh, but also reminds us that we should be thankful. The episode clip below illustrates how unthankful we can be, while providing us with a little chuckle, too! 🙂

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click on “Very Important Words” on the left margin of this page and make sure.

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Reasons For Giving Thanks-Comforting Words

November 24, 2010 at 7:15 pm (Devotional Thoughts., Homeschooling, Lighter Burdens., Our Unchanging God, Parenting, Praise, Relaxed Homeschooling, Sovereignty of God, Thanksgiving, Transformation., When you are afraid, When You Feel Like Crying., Wisdom)

Originally posted on January 12, 2010 at 12:38 am

Scripture Reference;

In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 1Thessalonians 5:18 KJV

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. Psalm 51:17 KJV

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. Ezekiel 36:26 HCSB

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? Romans 8:28-31 KJV

I am thankful for many things:

I am thankful that Jesus died for me.

I am thankful that He saved me.

I am thankful that He put his Spirit in me.

I am thankful that Jesus promised that the Spirit would guide me into
all truth( John 16:13)

I am thankful that nothing can separate us from the love of God
(Romans 8:39)…Not even parents that fall short (That part was
not in the verse, but it is true, and it makes parents like me very glad.)

I am thankful that all of these promises are for our children, too.

I am thankful that my Savior does many works in his children… He
calls them, justifies, glorifies. (Romans 8:29-30)

I am so thankful that the sacrifices of God are a broken and contrite
heart (Psalm 51:17)…and that we have a God that can break hearts (Ezekiel 36…The order of events in that chapter is noteworthy.)

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click on “Very Important Words” on the left margin of this page and make sure.

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Psalm 40 The Lord Inclines: Part 8 (Conclusion)

November 22, 2010 at 3:06 am (Assurance, Devotional Thoughts., Forgiveness, Lighter Burdens., Sins, Sovereignty of God, Transformation., When you are afraid, When You Feel Like Crying., Wisdom)

Scripture Reference;

Psalm 40KJV

¹I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.²He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.³And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD.⁴Blessed is that man that maketh the LORD his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.⁵Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.⁶Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required.⁷Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me,⁸I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.⁹I have preached righteousness in the great congregation: lo, I have not refrained my lips, O LORD, thou knowest.¹⁰I have not hid thy righteousness within my heart; I have declared thy faithfulness and thy salvation: I have not concealed thy lovingkindness and thy truth from the great congregation.¹¹Withhold not thou thy tender mercies from me, O LORD: let thy lovingkindness and thy truth continually preserve me.¹²For innumerable evils have compassed me about: mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up; they are more than the hairs of mine head: therefore my heart faileth me.¹³Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me: O LORD, make haste to help me.¹⁴Let them be ashamed and confounded together that seek after my soul to destroy it; let them be driven backward and put to shame that wish me evil.¹⁵Let them be desolate for a reward of their shame that say unto me, Aha, aha.¹⁶Let all those that seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee: let such as love thy salvation say continually, The LORD be magnified.¹⁷But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh upon me: thou art my help and my deliverer; make no tarrying, O my God.

Like I said in part 7, David starts the psalm in the present tense and then recalls a time where he was really low and helpless and cried out to the Lord for help. As he shares the words that he cried out we come to verse 16:

^“16Let all those that seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee: let such as love thy salvation say continually, The LORD be magnified.^“
In this verse he makes two statements. First he says “Let all those who seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee” I like the word “seek”. Jesus used that word on a few occasions. Let’s look at some statements He made where He used that word.

³¹Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?³²(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.³³But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.³⁴Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. Matthew 6:31-34KJV

⁹And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.¹⁰For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.¹¹If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?¹²Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?¹³If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? Luke 11:9-13KJV

Jesus knows about all of our needs; both our physical needs and our spiritual needs. But our spiritual needs are the most important, so He wants us to seek Him and have those needs met first. Then when it comes to our physical needs, he wants us to seek Him first for those, too before we set out on our way to work, or the bank,or the doctor. He didn’t say that we should not go to those places. He just wants us to go to Him first.

So David’s thoughts about seeking the Lord were consistent with the words of Jesus. Now let’s look at the second statement in verse 16.

“let such as love thy salvation say continually, The LORD be magnified.^”

Do you understand what it is to love the Lord’s salvation? To understand that …one must possess it. To possess it one must understand why they need it, and that it is the Lord alone who can provide it …secure it. Those who possess the Lord’s salvation shall continually say, “The Lord be magnified.”…they understand that they have no part in it, except to believe and receive it, and that is why they continually say it!

Now I have finally come to the last verse in Psalm 40.

¹⁷But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh upon me: thou art my help and my deliverer; make no tarrying, O my God.

Recently the subjects of “confidence” and self esteem came up in a thread of comments on another entry I wrote (https://pronetoponder.wordpress.com/2010/11/11/in-awesome-wonder-part-one-a-place-for-everything-and-everything-in-its-place/ ). I tried to write a post on that subject and I went blank. Can we be confident? Yes. Can we have self-esteem? Yes, I believe so, but before I explain my answer let’s look again at this: “But I am poor and needy” Yes he was, and so are we apart from Christ:

We All Are Sinners.

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.Romans 3:23

As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one. Romans 3:10

Now let’s look at this: “yet the Lord thinketh upon me: thou art my help and my deliverer;”

God Loves Us.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

God’s Remedy For Our Sin

For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name. John 1:12

For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures. 1 Corinthians 15:3-4

All May Be Saved Now.

Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him. Revelation 3:20(a)

For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Romans 10:13

The last statement David made was, “make no tarrying, O my God.” Do you know what “tarrying” means? It means to stay away or delay coming. David is calling on the Lord. Look at Romans 10:13 above.

Yes we are poor and needy yet the Lord thought about us and made a way to save us. To know that the Lord loved us so much…that we had worth…it is not how we esteem ourselves, but how we esteem the Lord; for He esteemed us worth dying for. Now we can have confidence that although we are poor and needy we have a very big God who has power, and can supply us with strength.

For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. Matthew 6:9-13 KJV

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click on “Very Important Words” on the left margin of this page and make sure.

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Psalm 40…The Lord Inclines : (Part 7)

November 21, 2010 at 9:31 pm (Assurance, Devotional Thoughts., Forgiveness, Lighter Burdens., Sins, Sovereignty of God, When you are afraid, When You Feel Like Crying., Wisdom)

Scripture Reference;

Psalm 40KJV

A few months ago I began to have panic attacks that were quite debilitating. I remember desiring to be able to function. I often felt afraid to even drive a mile from home, and it was hard to study the Bible, but I wanted to so badly. I remember coming across this psalm and finding some comfort in it, so I decided to meditate on portions of it and share the thoughts that came to me in my posts. If you go back and start with “Part 1 (“https://pronetoponder.wordpress.com/2010/06/07/groanings-part-5a-the-lord-inclines/ ) and take note of the dates on each post, you will notice that there have been pauses. I am much better now, and am functioning for the most part normally. I still have occasional attacks but they are much milder and easier to manage, so once again, after another long break from my study of Psalm 40 I am continuing now.

¹¹Withhold not thou thy tender mercies from me, O LORD: let thy lovingkindness and thy truth continually preserve me.²For innumerable evils have compassed me about: mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up; they are more than the hairs of mine head: therefore my heart faileth me.¹³Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me: O LORD, make haste to help me.¹⁴Let them be ashamed and confounded together that seek after my soul to destroy it; let them be driven backward and put to shame that wish me evil.¹⁵Let them be desolate for a reward of their shame that say unto me, Aha, aha. Psalm 40:11-15 KJV

Today as I read this psalm again I noticed that verses 1-5 were written in the present tense and verses 6-15 changes to past tense and although it looks like it switches back to present tense, David is still looking back in time to another day and is quoting what He said on the day he cried for help…so today as I look at verses 11-15 I can read that passage with confidence that the Lord both heard and rescued David out of that awful state, and verses 1-4 confirm that fact.

I too can both sympathize and rejoice with David as I read not just verses 11-15, but also the entire Psalm, because the Lord rescued and has promised to continue rescuing me! Innumerable evils do surround the Lord’s children, and their iniquities (evil:– fault, mischief) can be more than the hairs on their heads, can overcome them to the point that they lose heart, but the Lord’s goodness and mercy is so much greater, and they can cry out for deliverance, and their cries will not be in vain! Those foes shall be defeated!

Let’s consider another situation. The crucifixion of Jesus was close at hand, and he knew that his disciples would be scattered and experience fear and sorrow before He rose from the dead and showed himself to them. Below is a conversation He had with them.

²⁵These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs: but the time cometh, when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall shew you plainly of the Father.²⁶At that day ye shall ask in my name: and I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you:²⁷For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.²⁸I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.²⁹His disciples said unto him, Lo, now speakest thou plainly, and speakest no proverb.³⁰Now are we sure that thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask thee: by this we believe that thou camest forth from God.³¹Jesus answered them, Do ye now believe?³²Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me.³³These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.John 16:25-33 KJV

He also taught them to pray “The Lord’s Prayer”. Here it is below:

⁹After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.¹⁰Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.¹¹Give us this day our daily bread.¹²And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.¹³And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. Matthew 6:9-13 KJV

Now look at verse 13 again:

¹³And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

We are told to pray to be delivered from evil, and we are also told to have confidence in Jesus; that He has and will forever have the power to deliver us from evil. He knows what is truly evil and He will deliver us from it if we have prayed that prayer. What a wonderful thing to ponder!

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click on “Very Important Words” on the left margin of this page and make sure.

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About Moore to Ponder: How to Get The Most Out of This Blog/Navigation Tips

November 20, 2010 at 8:29 pm (About Moore to Ponder: How to Get The Most Out of This Blog/Navigation Tips)

Originally posted on February 14, 2010 at 6:49 am

This is my very first blog, and let me tell you from the start, I, being computer challenged, still do not know as much about how to organize my entries and effectively label them as more experienced bloggers know. This blog has categories, parent categories, and even some other kind, but I forgot what they call it.

If I counted correctly there are 9 parent categories. Two of my parent categories are titled Devotional Thoughts and Transitions. I will have more entries that fall under Devotional Thoughts than any of the other parent categories. Each regular category will fall under one or more of the parent categories. I do not plan on adding any more parent categories, but the ordinary categories will probably grow in number. The Homeschooling parent category and the Relaxed Homeschooling category will contain posts about homeschooling, but also some of my devotional posts that have a perspective that if applied can enhance the homeschooling experience and hopefully help homeschooling parents to “relax” a little.

I have two different approaches that I use when I write a devotional entry. Sometimes I have a Bible verse or passage on my mind that I want to look at and think about. I first consider the plain or obvious truth that is normally taken from it. Then I look again to see additional glimpses of truth that might come from phrases or even a single word contained in the verse or passage. These glimpses will not contradict the plain truth taught in the passage. They are just things I learn about God, mankind, and life whenever I take the time to slow down and savor the word. Next I consider the meaning of the phrase or word and using an exhaustive concordance of the Bible do a word study, and finally think of an analogy or even an experience that illustrates that truth.

The other approach is taken when I have a very specific subject or truth on my mind. It will usually involve either “types”, parallels, or both. Then again I will use an analogy or an experience that illustrates that truth. Then I will gather the scriptures that prove that truth.

When I am finished writing I read the entry looking for an appropriate category that it might come under. If I don’t find one from the categories I have, I then create a new category. Each entry will usually have more than one category, so it is very likely that you will reach that entry in more than one location.

In the parent category titled Transitions you will find updates on what is happening in my life. I gave it that title, because, life this side of heaven is really one continual transition. We are always facing new challenges. However, there are two things that never change…my Savior and my hope. Jesus is always good, and my hope is always sure…because it is in Him.

If you have a question about a particular topic and you are not sure where to look, or you have already looked and found nothing that I have written that helps, please feel free to click on the phrase Leave a Comment at the bottom of this entry and post that question. I will do my best to respond to your question, even if my answer is “I don’t know.”.

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click on “Very Important Words” on the left margin of this page and make sure.

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Moore to Ponder

Psalm 40…The Lord Inclines: (Part 5)

Scripture Reference;

Psalm 40…The Lord Inclines: (Part 4)

Scripture Reference;

Psalm 40… The Lord Inclines: (Part 3)

Scripture References;

Psalm 40…The Lord Inclines: (Part 2)

Scripture Reference;

The Armor of God

Psalm 40…The Lord Inclines: (Part 1)

Scripture References;

Thankful For Laughter

Scripture Reference;

Reasons For Giving Thanks-Comforting Words

Scripture Reference;

Psalm 40 The Lord Inclines: Part 8 (Conclusion)

Scripture Reference;

Psalm 40KJV

We All Are Sinners.

God Loves Us.

God’s Remedy For Our Sin

All May Be Saved Now.

Psalm 40…The Lord Inclines : (Part 7)

Scripture Reference;

Psalm 40KJV

About Moore to Ponder: How to Get The Most Out of This Blog/Navigation Tips

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