Psalm 103

1 Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;
4 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;
5 Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.
6 The LORD executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.
7 He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.
8 The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.
9 He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever.
10 He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.
11 For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.
12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.
13 Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him.
14 For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.
15 As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth.
16 For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more.
17 But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children;
18 To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.
19 The LORD hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all.
20 Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word.
21 Bless ye the LORD, all ye his hosts; ye ministers of his, that do his pleasure.
22 Bless the LORD, all his works in all places of his dominion: bless the LORD, O my soul.

Key Verse:
1 Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.

Key Observation:
McGee: “It looks forward to a new day; in fact, it looks beyond the Millennium into eternity where it will find the fullness of fulfillment.”

Memory Verse:
12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

Devotion:
1 Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
These are some of my favorite words in a favorite psalm. In my inner spirit I am commanded to bless his holy name. I have read that it could be translated as the deepest part of me: bless his holy name.

I am in the generation that is scheduled to be raptured up soon, if the Lord is gracious to me, and it is my conviction that I will be given a new body. Many questions remain particularly to our generation, for the imminent coming is almost upon us, and I know that I wonder about the things that God might have planned for me in the future. Paul and John both hint at our reigning with the Lord, but the hints do little to me except tantalize. I have all eternity that God has given; what will I do with it?

But then I look at great passages like this psalm, that bespeaks of an awesome God and I know that I would be content to fall on my face before my God and spend eternity worshipping him. I think that is because this psalm tells us so much of what God is going to do for us:
1) Forgive our iniquities
2) Heal our diseases
3) Redeem our life from destruction
4) Crowns us with lovingkindness
5) Satisfies our mouth with good things
6) Removed our transgressions from us
7) He pities us

My favorite? I think it is in this verse: “12As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.” McGee notices that the Lord did not say as far as the north is from the south, reasoning that if we go far enough north (on the earth) we will be going south again. Instead the Lord says he will remove our transgressions from us as far as the east is from the west. I know my transgressions and I am ashamed. I have no excuse for any sin, but much of my sin I did in spite of the knowledge of the love of my God. I can look forward to him removing that from me. “He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.” (Micah 7:19)

Again there are people who say that God has forgotten Israel or replaced them with his church. Absolutely a falsehood. People should have more confidence in his faithfulness: Jeremiah 31:37
37 Thus saith the LORD; If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the LORD.
God cannot be much plainer than that. Trust in Him and he shall bring it to pass. Or trust not—and He will anyway. He is God. Our job is to figure out his promises, and this is one that you can trust, now that you know it.

Only Trust Him
1. Come, ev'ry soul by sin oppressed
There's mercy with the Lord,
And He will surely give you rest
By trusting in His Word.

2. For Jesus shed His precious blood,
Rich blessings to bestow;
Plunge now into the crimson flood
That washes white as snow.

3. Yes, Jesus is the Truth, the Way,
That leads you into rest;
Believe in Him without delay
And you are fully blest.

Chorus:
Only trust Him, only trust Him,
Only trust Him now;
He will save you, He will save you,
He will save you now.
Lyrics: John Hart Stockton

Psalm 102

1 Hear my prayer, O LORD, and let my cry come unto thee.
2 Hide not thy face from me in the day when I am in trouble; incline thine ear unto me: in the day when I call answer me speedily.
3 For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are burned as an hearth.
4 My heart is smitten, and withered like grass; so that I forget to eat my bread.
5 By reason of the voice of my groaning my bones cleave to my skin.
6 I am like a pelican of the wilderness: I am like an owl of the desert.
7 I watch, and am as a sparrow alone upon the house top.
8 Mine enemies reproach me all the day; and they that are mad against me are sworn against me.
9 For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping.
10 Because of thine indignation and thy wrath: for thou hast lifted me up, and cast me down.
11 My days are like a shadow that declineth; and I am withered like grass.
12 But thou, O LORD, shall endure for ever; and thy remembrance unto all generations.
13 Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion: for the time to favour her, yea, the set time, is come.
14 For thy servants take pleasure in her stones, and favour the dust thereof.
15 So the heathen shall fear the name of the LORD, and all the kings of the earth thy glory.
16 When the LORD shall build up Zion, he shall appear in his glory.
17 He will regard the prayer of the destitute, and not despise their prayer.
18 This shall be written for the generation to come: and the people which shall be created shall praise the LORD.
19 For he hath looked down from the height of his sanctuary; from heaven did the LORD behold the earth;
20 To hear the groaning of the prisoner; to loose those that are appointed to death;
21 To declare the name of the LORD in Zion, and his praise in Jerusalem;
22 When the people are gathered together, and the kingdoms, to serve the LORD.
23 He weakened my strength in the way; he shortened my days.
24 I said, O my God, take me not away in the midst of my days: thy years are throughout all generations.
25 Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the earth: and the heavens are the work of thy hands.
26 They shall perish, but thou shalt endure: yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; as a vesture shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed:
27 But thou art the same, and thy years shall have no end.
28 The children of thy servants shall continue, and their seed shall be established before thee.

Key Verse:
13Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion: for the time to favour her, yea, the set time, is come.

Key Observation:
25Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the earth: and the heavens are the work of thy hands.
26They shall perish, but thou shalt endure: yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; as a vesture shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed:
27But thou art the same, and thy years shall have no end.

The above passage is quoted in Hebrews 1:10-12:
“He also says: In the beginning, O Lord, you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands, They will perish, but you remain; they will wear out like a garment. You will roll them up like a robe; like a garment they will be changed. But you will remain the same, and your years will never end.”
Thus we know that this is a messianic psalm.

Memory Verse:
12But thou, O LORD, shall endure for ever; and thy remembrance unto all generations.

Devotion:
McGee: “This is a messianic psalm that pictures the Lord Jesus in Gethsemane.” Notice these descriptions:
1) My days are consumed like smoke (v. 3);
2) My bones are burned (v. 3);
3) My heart is smitten and withered (v. 4);
5) My bones cleave to my skin (v. 5);
6) My enemies reproach me (v. 8);
7) They are sworn against me (v. 8);
8) I have eaten ashes like bread (v. 9);
9) They mingled my drink with weeping (v. 9);
10) Thy indignation and thy wrath have lifted me up and cast me down (v. 10);
11) My days are like a shadow that declinith (v. 11);
12) I am withered like grass (v. 11).

That is a somewhat complete picture of our Lord on the cross. But notice verse 13: “13Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion: for the time to favour her, yea, the set time, is come.” The Lord who freely came and gave of himself (“I lay down my own life; no man takes it from me.”) will also return the second time to show mercy to Jerusalem and Israel. In that day and at that time the Lord shall rule over all, and the earth shall know peace for the first time. “And the Lord shall be king over all the earth: in that day there shall be one Lord, and his name one.” (Zechariah 14:9)

Again there is a sharp division of God’s plan for Israel and his plan for the church. We learn in the New Testament that Christ is coming for the church that “we might be saved from the wrath to come”. Israel has waited for its Messiah to come now for many thousands of years, blinded to his first coming, but blind no longer when He returns for the second time. Says Chafer in his kingdom book: “This kingdom has ever been Israel’s only hope and was the consolation for which she waited when Christ was born (Lk. 2:25)” While there are many things shared in God’s plan, it is evident that He has separate plans for both the church and Israel. We, the church, are waiting for our “Blessed Hope”. Israel is awaiting their ruling king. God fully intends to keep both promises. They that wait on Him shall in no wise be disappointed!

Near the Cross

1. Jesus, keep me near the cross
There a precious fountain,
Free to all, a healing stream,
Flows from Calvary's mountain.

2. Near the cross, a trembling soul,
Love and mercy found me;
There the Bright and Morning Star
Sheds its beams around me.

3. Near the cross! O Lamb of God,
Bring its scenes before me;
Help me walk from day to day
With its shadow o'er me.

4. Near the cross I'll watch and wait,
Hoping, trusting ever,
Till I reach the golden strand
Just beyond the river.

Chorus:
In the cross, in the cross,
Be my glory ever,
Till my raptured soul shall find
Rest, beyond the river.

Lyrics: Frances Jane (Fanny J.) Crosby

Psalm 101

1 I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O LORD, will I sing.
2 I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.
3 I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me.
4 A froward heart shall depart from me: I will not know a wicked person.
5 Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour, him will I cut off: him that hath an high look and a proud heart will not I suffer.
6 Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me.
7 He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight.
8 I will early destroy all the wicked of the land; that I may cut off all wicked doers from the city of the LORD.

Key Verse:
2 I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.

Key Observation:
Who else could possibly accomplish the key verse other than our Messiah? This psalm is describing Christ’s coming earthly rule.

Memory Verse:
1 I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O LORD, will I sing.

Devotion:
McGee says of this psalm: “It is all about Him again, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the King of righteousness and peace, and He is going to reign on this earth.” The psalm could be of no other for notice that: 1)He is wise (v.2) , 2) He behaves in a perfect way (v. 2), 3) He will have a perfect heart (v. 2), 4) He will not know wickedness (v.3), 5) He is not froward (contrary) (v. 4), He will watch over the faithful (v.6), 6) and He will cut off all the wicked doers from the city of the Lord (v. 7 & 8). I think it obvious that no earthly king could possibly accomplish these tasks save the Messiah. It therefore is prophetic and looks to the time Christ is reigning on earth.

Chafer, in his book on the kingdom, says: “The Bible revelation regarding the kingdom presents the purpose, process and final realization of divine government in the earth. This objective is the heart of the kingdom prayer: “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” I think it important to realize this vision of this psalm is given to Israel; it may fit Christians by application, but it is God promising to Israel that He will one day reign on earth. The kingdom prayer, so often recited in churches even today, is also a prayer taught to Israel. Our prayer is not for the kingdom to come; our prayer is to see our Christ return for us.

Origen was first responsible for allegorizing our scriptures, a despicable practice still maintained by many today in our churches. Prophetic psalms should be taken literally when possible, just as any other scriptures. I believe is the old adage: “When the simple sense makes the best sense, seek no other sense.” If Bible learners would follow this simple rule I believe they would be a lot closer to what God would teach them through His Word. Chafer remonstrates those who believe otherwise: “Accepted inferences of so-called Postmillennialism and Premillennialism as possible coexisting systems of interpretation constitute a serious challenge against the dignity and purpose of the Bible itself.”

I have many friends who are caught up in these false teachings. I think many start okay, but somewhere they stray off. Often the interpretations of the Bible are taught side-by-side, and students come away feeling that they can choose the interpretation that they are most comfortable with. If I want to be tough, I will choose Post-Trib. If I want to hope for mercy I will believe Pre-Trib. This is absolutely a false belief! Do you not know that God is truth? Freely He imparted the truth to us, and there are not several truths for us to pick and choose from; there is one truth, and it is the solemn obligation of every Bible reader (Christian, of course, for who can see into the Bible except the Spirit give him understanding) to read it carefully, noting who God is speaking to, and what might be the applications of particular verses to his life. I submit that there would be more agreement in churches if we were all wise enough to see the Bible as a cogent literal message to us.

Holy Bible, Book Divine

1. Holy Bible, book divine,
Precious treasure, thou art mine;
Mine to tell me whence I came;
Mine to teach me what I am.

2. Mine to chide me when I rove;
Mine to show a Savior's love;
Mine thou art to guide and guard;
Mine to punish or reward.

3. Mine to comfort in distress,
Suff'ring in this wilderness;
Mine to show, by living faith,
Man can triumph over death.

4. Mine to tell of joys to come,
And the rebel sinner's doom;
O thou holy Book divine,
Precious treasure, thou art mine.

Lyrics: John Burton, Sr.

Psalm 100

1 Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.
2 Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
3 Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
5 For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

Key Verse:
3 Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Key Observation:
A millennial psalm asking “all ye lands” to worship the Lord.

Memory Verse:
5 For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

Devotion:
Know that it is he that has made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people and the sheep of his pasture. This psalm is directed to the Israelites, but it is ours by application. For the Israelites it looks forward to the time of peace on earth, when the Lord reigns in Zion. For us, Christ included us in saying that he has other sheep not of this pen. Christians are sheep “not of this pen”.

Praise and thankfulness sometimes are seen too little of in many Christians’ lives. This psalm pictures a people so delighted that they would sing. They would express thankfulness; they would praise their Creator God. I cannot even begin to imagine what my life will be like when Christ returns and I am remade. But I can well imagine, from what little I do know about my awesome God, that I could spend all of eternity just in praise to God. How about a little of that enthusiasm infecting you before his return? We do serve an awesome God!

Our God is an Awesome God

Rich Mullins

When He rolls up His sleeves
He ain't just putting on the ritz
(Our God is an awesome God)
There's thunder in His footsteps
And lightning in His fists
(Our God is an awesome God)
And the Lord wasn't joking when He kicked 'em out of Eden
It wasn't for no reason that He she'd His blood
His return is very close and so you better be believing that
Our God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God
He reigns from heaven above
With wisdom, power, and love
Our God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God
He reigns from heaven above
With wisdom, power, and love
Our God is an awesome God
And when the sky was starless
In the void of the night
(Our God is an awesome God)
He spoke into the darkness
And created the light
(Our God is an awesome God)
Judgment and wrath He poured out on Sodom
Mercy and grace He gave us at the cross
I hope that we have not too quickly forgotten that
Our God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God
He reigns from heaven above
With wisdom, power, and love
Our God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God
He reigns from heaven above
With wisdom, power, and love
Our God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God (Our God is an awesome God)
He reigns from heaven above (He reigns from heaven above)
With wisdom, power, and love (With wisdom, power, and love)
Our God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God

Psalm 99

1 The LORD reigneth; let the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubims; let the earth be moved.
2 The LORD is great in Zion; and he is high above all the people.
3 Let them praise thy great and terrible name; for it is holy.
4 The king's strength also loveth judgment; thou dost establish equity, thou executest judgment and righteousness in Jacob.
5 Exalt ye the LORD our God, and worship at his footstool; for he is holy.
6 Moses and Aaron among his priests, and Samuel among them that call upon his name; they called upon the LORD, and he answered them.
7 He spake unto them in the cloudy pillar: they kept his testimonies, and the ordinance that he gave them.
8 Thou answeredst them, O LORD our God: thou wast a God that forgavest them, though thou tookest vengeance of their inventions.
9 Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the LORD our God is holy.

Key Verse:
2 The LORD is great in Zion; and he is high above all the people.

Key Observation:
A millennial psalm with the Lord ruling the earth.

Memory Verse:
3 Let them praise thy great and terrible name; for it is holy.

Devotion:
The Lord reigns in Zion. People are to come worship at his holy will. This did not happen ever in the history of Jerusalem. Some say that it will not happen because Israel did not keep the law. But the testament of scripture is plain. God is sovereign and He did not make promises to Israel without fully knowing that Israel would not keep them. He is the same God of the glorious gospel; his words change not. He tells us over and over that His promises would come true even if we were faithless.

Paul tells us that this is a “time of hardening” (Romans 11), and tells us that “God did not reject his people whom He foreknew”. It never ceases to perplex me that so many can point accurately to God’s sovereignty in the New Testament without making the same application in the Old Testament. Matthew Henry appears to have gone astray here, ascribing this psalm somehow with a gospel fulfillment: “Still we are celebrating the glories of the kingdom of God among men, and are called upon to praise him, as in the foregoing psalms; but those psalms looked forward to the times of the gospel, and prophesied of the graces and comforts of those times; this psalm seems to dwell more upon the Old-Testament dispensation and the manifestation of God’s glory and grace in that.” I know not Matthew Henry’s time, but my time I know, and in the past century mankind has committed tremendous atrocities that do little to show “the graces and comforts of those times.” Arguably I would maintain that mankind has failed in its part; we were to carry the gospel to all creatures, and we have failed. We are to bring peace to a warring world, but sometimes we have made the wars worse. We created a nation under which Christianity might flourish; instead we have founded a nation that functions as atheist. Our sins in no way are less than the sins of faithless Israel. Yet we know that God is faithful!

The same God has a plan for his nation, Israel. In no way has He departed from it. The Lord is coming to reign in Zion, and all of the world will gather there in worship of the King of Kings.

To God Be the Glory

To God be the glory, great things he hath done!
So loved he the world that he gave us his Son,
who yielded his life an atonement for sin,
and opened the lifegate that all may go in.

Refrain:
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
let the earth hear his voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father thru Jesus the Son,
and give him the glory, great things he hath done!

2. O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood,
to every believer the promise of God;
the vilest offender who truly believes,
that moment from Jesus a pardon receives.
(Refrain)

3. Great things he hath taught us, great things he hath done,
and great our rejoicing thru Jesus the Son;
but purer, and higher, and greater will be
our wonder, our transport, when Jesus we see

Psalm 98

1 O sing unto the LORD a new song; for he hath done marvellous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory.
2 The LORD hath made known his salvation: his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.
3 He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel: all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
4 Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.
5 Sing unto the LORD with the harp; with the harp, and the voice of a psalm.
6 With trumpets and sound of cornet make a joyful noise before the LORD, the King.
7 Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.
8 Let the floods clap their hands: let the hills be joyful together
9 Before the LORD; for he cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity.

Key Verse:
3 He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel: all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

Key Observation:
Another millennial psalm picturing the rule of the Christ.

Memory Verse:
9 Before the LORD; for he cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity.

Devotion:
Before the LORD; for he cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity. So ends this psalm, another affirmation that the Lord is not done with Israel, as some would say, but will yet fulfill his promises after the 70th week of Daniel. The scripture is replete with prophecies of “that day” or “at that time”. A simple study of the book of Zechariah reveals much that will take place just before the Lord comes to rule. “On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves.” (Zech. 12:3)

Further: “And on that day I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.” (Zech. 12:9) At that time, on that day, Israel will recognize their sin: “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they will mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.” (Zech. 12:10) “I will say, “These are my people,” and they will say, “The Lord is my God.” (Zech. 13:9)

His return to earth to set up that kingdom will be sudden and dramatic: “On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west to a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward.” The foot of Jesus shall touch the mount on that very place where he ascended. For He is not slack concerning his promise which was: “1Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.” ( Acts 1:11) Evidently geography is to change dramatically, not the least for the reason of making room for all the Christians that Jesus brings with him. “Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.” (Zech. 14:5) The holy ones are going to be you and me, and all those who have believed God the past 2,000 years. What a treasured future we have to look forward to!

The King is Coming

Praise God, He's coming for me

The marketplace is empty, no more traffic in the street
All the builder's tools are silent, no more time to harvest wheat
Busy housewives cease their labor, in the courtroom no debate
Work on earth has been suspended as the King comes through the gate

Happy faces line the hallway, those whose lives have been redeemed
Broken homes He has mended, those from prison He has freed
Little children and the aged hand in hand stand all a-glow
Who were crippled, broken, ruined, clad in garments white as snow

Chorus:
The King is coming, the King is coming
I just heard the trumpet sounding and soon His face I'll see
The King is coming, the King is coming
Praise God, He's coming for me

I can hear the chariot's rumble, I can see the marching throng
And the fury of God's trumpet spells the end of sin and wrong
Regal rolls are now unfolded, heaven's grandstands all in place
Heaven's choir is now assembled, start to sing 'Amazing Grace'

Praise God, He's coming for me, for me, for me

Psalm 97

1 The LORD reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof.
2 Clouds and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne.
3 A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about.
4 His lightnings enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled.
5 The hills melted like wax at the presence of the LORD, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.
6 The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory.
7 Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods.
8 Zion heard, and was glad; and the daughters of Judah rejoiced because of thy judgments, O LORD.
9 For thou, LORD, art high above all the earth: thou art exalted far above all gods.
10 Ye that love the LORD, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.
11 Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart.
12 Rejoice in the LORD, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.

Key Verse:
1 The LORD reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof.

Key Observation:
A millennial psalm. A celebration of earth toward their ruling Lord.

Memory Verse:
6 The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory.

Devotion:
This is a great psalm of celebration of the ruling of the Lord on the earth. Notice that Zion “heard and was glad”. Israel is to receive all of the promises of God; not one good thing that He promised will He withhold. Today, as I write this, Palestine is seeking recognition before the UN, and world pressure is being brought against Israel. The US is backing Israel this time, but almost reluctantly, and even the US will seek to bring great pressure on Israel to give up their lands. The Bible clearly states that Israel will be surrounded by enemies on every side, and I cannot help but wonder if this so-called “Arab Spring” is not going to result in a massive movement against Israel. It does seem as if the time of “the Blessed Hope” is near.

At any rate, we are called to use our days wisely, and let us do so. If the Lord tarries, I have hopes and prayers to be used to evangelize in a manner similar to what He blessed us with in our younger lives. Judgment will come upon the earth; the very hills will seem to melt says the psalmest. What manner of people should we be, since we know these things are at hand?

No Shortage
There's no shortage on God's mercy, no shortage on God's love.

There's a shortage on corn, a shortage on wheat. Got a shortage on beans, a shortage on meat. The things that are needed we just can't hardly buy. Why there's even a shortage on air in the sky.

But I know a great thing there's no shortage of. There's no shortage on God's mercy, no shortage on God's love.

There's a shortage on fuel, a shortage on gas. Got a shortage on wood, a shortage on glass. The things that we've wasted are now precious to buy. Well there's even a shortage on air in the sky.

But I know a great thing there's no shortage of. There's no shortage on God's mercy, no shortage on God's love.

God is love and mercy unending. His precious love will leave you no doubt. When from Satan you need defending, God has supplies that will never run out.

There's a shortage on friendship, a shortage on smiles. Got a shortage on neighbors, though they're millions for miles. Thank heaven for one thing there's no shortage of.
There's no shortage on God's mercy, no shortage on God's love.(x2)

Psalm 96

1 O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth.
2 Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day.
3 Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people.
4 For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods.
5 For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.
6 Honour and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.
7 Give unto the LORD, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength.
8 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts.
9 O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.
10 Say among the heathen that the LORD reigneth: the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously.
11 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof.
12 Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice
13 Before the LORD: for he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth.

Key Verse:
1O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth.

Key Observation:
A millennial psalm, for where else can it be that: “Say among the heathen that the LORD reigneth: the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously.”

Memory Verse:
7 Give unto the LORD, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength.

Devotion:
This psalm is for the future; it is a comfort to Israel because it speaks to them of God’s faithfulness; it is a comfort to Christians because it promises God’s visible rule is coming; but it primarily speaks of the time after Jacob’s trouble, when peace on earth will at last come. I rejoice because I look towards the ends of things. I try always to figure out things that are happening, to gain insight on how God is going to work things out. That is why on my way to becoming a Christian I first looked at prophecy. Not many Christians will tell you that the book of Revelation was the first book of the Bible they read.

God did not tell us all the details, but there is plenty that He did tell us. Lay aside those teachers who tell you to symbolize these passages. The false doctrines have long stated that we will ready ourselves somehow for God by perfecting ourselves. You have only to look at the world around you to know that men will never get their act together, that redemption is only possible in the Lord. We are not going to transform civilization to a heavenly place. In fact I think the Bible states, and I see, that we are rapidly going the wrong way. I look within myself and find nothing good there. As Romans tells us, “When I want to do good, evil is right there with me.” No, apart from the grace and power of God, I am nothing. But with His grace and power I am a child of God, called to inherit a life that “I can only imagine” The psalm finishes with this tone: “the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously.”

I Can Only Imagine

I can only imagine
What it will be like
When I walk
By your side

I can only imagine
What my eyes will see
When your face
Is before me
I can only imagine

I can only imagine

[Chorus:]
Surrounded by Your glory, what will my heart feel
Will I dance for you Jesus or in awe of you be still
Will I stand in your presence or to my knees will I
fall
Will I sing hallelujah, will I be able to speak at all
I can only imagine

I can only imagine

I can only imagine
When that day comes
When I find myself
Standing in the Son
[ From: http://www.elyrics.net/read/m/mercyme-lyrics/i-can-only-imagine-lyrics.html]

I can only imagine
When all I will do
Is forever
Forever worship You
I can only imagine

I can only imagine

Surrounded by Your glory, what will my heart feel
Will I dance for you Jesus or in awe of you be still
Will I stand in your presence or to my knees will I
fall
Will I sing hallelujah, will I be able to speak at all
I can only imagine

I can only imagine

I can only imagine
i can only imagine

I can only imagine
When all I will do
Is forever, forever worship you

I can only imagine

Psalm 95

1 O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.
3 For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.
4 In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also.
5 The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land.
6 O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker.
7 For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice,
8 Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness:
9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work.
10 Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways:
11 Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest.

Key Verse:
7 For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice,
8 Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness:

Key Observation:
Our Creator God wants his people to keep a soft heart.

Memory Verse:
3 For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.

Devotion:
“This psalm must be sung with a holy reverence of God’s majesty and a dread of his justice, with a desire to please him and a fear to offend him.” (Matthew Henry) This is a deep psalm of praise to the Lord. God is called “our God” and we are the people of his pasture. David gets credit for writing this psalm when it is quoted in Hebrews 3 and 4. “7Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” (Hebrews 4:7)

I find seven commands in this short psalm.

1. Sing to the Lord, v. 1
2. Make a joyful noise, v. 1
3. Come before His presence, v. 2
4. Make a joyful noise with psalms, v. 2
5. Worship and bow down to Him, v. 6
6. Kneel before the Lord our Maker, v.6
7. Harden not your hearts, v. 8

Because it is so filled with commands to worship, we perhaps picture this psalm as being mostly read and applied to the millennium. Though its audience is Israel, the application is so obviously world wide. One day, we are told, the nations which know not God will appear trembling before Him. The application seems to fit Christians very strongly, as they give us direction and focus for our praise to God. Christians should be joyful, not because we live in joyful circumstances, but because Our God has told us the end from the beginning. Our joy should cause us to break out in frequent song, which I do, much to my wife’s lament! I do not care that I cannot sing a lick—the Lord has placed a song in my heart. I need to come before His presence, to worship, kneeling and bowing down, each day. Most importantly I need to constantly allow the Holy Spirit to prick my heart and my conscience that I may walk aright.

We Walk with Our Lord

We walk with our Lord through the day;
Just talk with our Lord through the day.
His Spirit guides along the way.
We walk with our Lord through the day.
We walk in His love through the day.
We talk in His love through the day.
A helping hand, a word of grace-
We walk in His love through the day.
We live in His joy through the day,
The joy of the Lord through the day.
His greatness fills our lives with praise.
We live in His joy through the day.

Words by Ken Bible
Music: Traditional Folk Tune and Ken Bible
© 2004 by LNWhymns.com. CCLI Song #853407, 4387972, 4388012.

Psalm 94

1 O Lord God, to whom vengeance belongeth; O God, to whom vengeance belongeth, shew thyself.
2 Lift up thyself, thou judge of the earth: render a reward to the proud.
3 LORD, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked triumph?
4 How long shall they utter and speak hard things? and all the workers of iniquity boast themselves?
5 They break in pieces thy people, O LORD, and afflict thine heritage.
6 They slay the widow and the stranger, and murder the fatherless.
7 Yet they say, The LORD shall not see, neither shall the God of Jacob regard it.
8 Understand, ye brutish among the people: and ye fools, when will ye be wise?
9 He that planted the ear, shall he not hear? he that formed the eye, shall he not see?
10 He that chastiseth the heathen, shall not he correct? he that teacheth man knowledge, shall not he know?
11 The LORD knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity.
12 Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest, O LORD, and teachest him out of thy law;
13 That thou mayest give him rest from the days of adversity, until the pit be digged for the wicked.
14 For the LORD will not cast off his people, neither will he forsake his inheritance.
15 But judgment shall return unto righteousness: and all the upright in heart shall follow it.
16 Who will rise up for me against the evildoers? or who will stand up for me against the workers of iniquity?
17 Unless the LORD had been my help, my soul had almost dwelt in silence.
18 When I said, My foot slippeth; thy mercy, O LORD, held me up.
19 In the multitude of my thoughts within me thy comforts delight my soul.
20 Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?
21 They gather themselves together against the soul of the righteous, and condemn the innocent blood.
22 But the LORD is my defence; and my God is the rock of my refuge.
23 And he shall bring upon them their own iniquity, and shall cut them off in their own wickedness; yea, the LORD our God shall cut them off.

Key Verse:
23 And he shall bring upon them their own iniquity, and shall cut them off in their own wickedness; yea, the LORD our God shall cut them off.

Key Observation:
Though He lingers, yet the day is coming when God shall stand against the wicked and for his people.

Memory Verse:
22 But the LORD is my defence; and my God is the rock of my refuge.

Devotion:
McGee: “Psalms 94 to 100 form a series of psalms that tell a consecutive story. These seven glorious psalms are kingdom songs celebrating the reign of the Messiah.” Contrast that with Matthew Henry: “This psalm was penned when the church of God was under hatches, oppressed and persecuted; and it is an appeal to God, as the judge of heaven and earth, and an address to him, to appear for his people against his and their enemies.” I would submit that Henry is talking about “application” not interpretation. The psalms were, of course, written eons before the church was even born, yet in Henry’s day the Scripture was often interpreted to be only to the church, superseding somehow the primary audience, and any prophetic audience that it might be directed to.

Lewis Sperry Chafer says: “Since the Bible contains God’s message to the people of the ages, it must be rightly divided if the body of truth concerning any particular age or people is to be clearly understood.” This is very close to the position that I hold; the passages of the Bible might apply to us, but we must look closely at to who they were addressed and where they fit into God’s divine program. Look closer at this psalm: “14For the LORD will not cast off his people, neither will he forsake his inheritance.” Is this not a promise of faithfulness, when many Bible interpreters would say that God abandoned Israel in favor of Christians? Remember Romans 11: “Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of Gentiles has come in.” Are we know approaching that “full number”? The signs are manifest, but we will not know for certain until He comes. God will yet deal in faithfulness to His people. Watch and be ready!

We’ll Understand It Better By and By

We are tossed and driven
on the restless sea of time;
somber skies and howling tempests
oft succeed a bright sunshine;
in that land of perfect day,
when the mists are rolled away,
we will understand it better by and by.
Refrain:
By and by, when the morning comes,
when the saints of God are gathered home,
we'll tell the story how we've overcome,
for we'll understand it better by and by.

2. We are often destitute
of the things that life demands,
want of food and want of shelter,
thirsty hills and barren lands;
we are trusting in the Lord,
and according to God's word,
we will understand it better by and by.
(Refrain)

3. Trials dark on every hand,
and we cannot understand
all the ways of God would lead us
to that blessed promised land;
but he guides us with his eye,
and we'll follow till we die,
for we'll understand it better by and by.
(Refrain)

4. Temptations, hidden snares
often take us unawares,
and our hearts are made to bleed
for a thoughtless word or deed;
and we wonder why the test
when we try to do our best,
but we'll understand it better by and by.
(Refrain)

Psalm 93

1 The LORD reigneth, he is clothed with majesty; the LORD is clothed with strength, wherewith he hath girded himself: the world also is stablished, that it cannot be moved.
2 Thy throne is established of old: thou art from everlasting.
3 The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their waves.
4 The LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea.
5 Thy testimonies are very sure: holiness becometh thine house, O LORD, for ever.

Key Verse:
4 The LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea.

Key Observation:
A psalm of the majesty of the Lord.

Memory Verse:
2 Thy throne is established of old: thou art from everlasting.

Devotion:
This psalm speaks of the millennium. When else will the Lord reign? The psalm speaks of the floods lifting up. In Revelation, the beast is said to come out of the “sea”, perhaps metaphorically speaking of the sea of people. Is God here speaking of a “flood” of people? Or perhaps is it an allusion to the tribulation, the time of Jacob’s trouble? It does tell us that whatever the flood is, the Lord is greater even than the flood.

Not many years ago, a local flood came through our area, and devestated many houses. In the place where the levee broke, just on the dry side, stood a brand new brick house with a tile roof. When the water rushed through the levee, it took out the house so that not a brick could be found when the waters receded. That was just a local flood! Imagine what would happen should a larger area of land be considered here. Having said that, I do think that this is a metaphor for opposition to God. God is mightier, and soon I think we will see how much mightier!

A Mighty Fortress is Our God,
by Martin Luther

A mighty fortress is our God,
a bulwark never failing;
our helper he amid the flood
of mortal ills prevaling.
For still our ancient foe
doth seek to work us woe;
his craft and power are great,
and armed with cruel hate,
on earth is not his equal.

2. Did we in our own strength confide,
our striving would be losing,
were not the right man on our side,
the man of God's own choosing.
Dost ask who that may be?
Christ Jesus, it is he;
Lord Sabaoth, his name,
from age to age the same,
and he must win the battle.

3. And though this world, with devils filled,
should threaten to undo us,
we will not fear, for God hath willed
his truth to triumph through us.
The Prince of Darkness grim,
we tremble not for him;
his rage we can endure,
for lo, his doom is sure;
one little word shall fell him.

Psalm 92

1 IT IS A GOOD THING TO GIVE THANKS UNTO THE LORD, AND TO SING PRAISES UNTO THY NAME, O MOST HIGH:
2 To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night,
3 Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound.
4 For thou, LORD, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the works of thy hands.
5 O LORD, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep.
6 A brutish man knoweth not; neither doth a fool understand this.
7 When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever:
8 But thou, LORD, art most high for evermore.
9 For, lo, thine enemies, O LORD, for, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered.
10 But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn: I shall be anointed with fresh oil.
11 Mine eye also shall see my desire on mine enemies, and mine ears shall hear my desire of the wicked that rise up against me.
12 The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
13 Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God.
14 They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing;
15 To shew that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.

Key Verse:
1 IT IS A GOOD THING TO GIVE THANKS UNTO THE LORD, AND TO SING PRAISES UNTO THY NAME, O MOST HIGH:

Key Observation:
McGee: “This is a millennial psalm which looks forward to the future, when the time of worship will once again be on the sabbath day.”

Memory Verse:
14They still bear fruit in old age;
they are ever full of sap and green, (ESV)

Devotion:
Oh how I love the promise of the memory verse! Perhaps my older life will be more fruitful than my younger life. For a time early in my Christian walk, my wife and I saw many decisions for Christ as young and old alike changed their lives forever. Since those many years ago, we just see occasional fruit, here and there, as the Lord prospers us. Wouldn’t it be a great thing to be brought back to a time of spiritual fruitfulness? I realize the verse does not promise that, but it is my fervent prayer. Lord, multiply and empower my testimony with Thy Spirit that both of us should again rejoice in being used as laborers of Thy Harvest.

Make us to flourish like the palm tree, flourishing in the courts of our God! In the millennium this will find fulfillment. What a day that will be! I cannot begin to imagine the good things that God has prepared for us. What a joy that is to look forward to, what excellence there is in pursuing Him who first pursued us.

Swing Low Sweet Chariot


Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home

I looked over Jordan, and what did I see
Coming for to carry me home
A band of angels coming after me
Coming for to carry me home

Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home

If you get there before I do
Coming for to carry me home
Tell all my friends I'm coming, too
Coming for to carry me home

Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home

I'm sometimes up and sometimes down
Coming for to carry me home
But still my soul feels heavenly bound
Coming for to carry me home

Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home
The brightest day that I can say
Coming for to carry me home
When Jesus washed my sins away
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home

If I get there before you do
Coming for to carry me home
I'll cut a hole and pull you through
Coming for to carry me home

Psalm 91

1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.
8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.
9 Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;
10 There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.
11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.
14 Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.
15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.
16 With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

Key Verse:
2 I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.

Key Observation:
A Messianic psalm.

Memory Verse:
1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

Devotion:
McGee: “This is the passage that the Devil quoted, and the interesting thing is that Satan knew this psalm applied to the Lord Jesus. He knew something a lot of theology professors don’t know today.” This psalm is to be interpreted as a messianic psalm; Jesus is wonderfully in view throughout the psalm. There are many wonderful verses in this psalm that can be applied to Christians, so long as we remember the primary interpretation is of Jesus. McGee further contrasts Psalm 90, calling it a psalm of death, with this psalm, calling it a psalm of life.

I find many characteristics of the Lord here:
1. He shall abide under the shadow of the almighty.
2. God shall be his fortress and his refuge.
3. God will be his deliverer.
4. God will cover him, or God will protect him with the shield of truth.
5. He will not be afraid of those who oppose him.
6. No pestilence or destruction shall overcome him.
7. The angels of God will keep him in all his ways.
8. All enemies shall be put under His feet.
9. When he calls upon God, God hears and delivers.
10. God will honor him and rescue him.

Scripture says: No good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless. Here we have the psalm of the blameless one, and I see that God gives freely all things to Him. I find great comfort in this psalm, for am I not also abiding under the shadow of the Almighty? In fact, Christ has made it possible for me to have life and to escape death; to find truth and escape lies; to walk away from Satan forever and to walk towards Christ in the very power of the Holy Spirit. I have been redeemed!

Redeemed by the Blood of the Lamb

Redeemed--how I love to proclaim it!
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed through His infinite mercy,
His child, and forever, I am.

Redeemed, redeemed,
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed, redeemed,
His child, and forever, I am.

Redeemed and so happy in Jesus,
No language my rapture can tell;
I know that the light of His presence
With me doth continually dwell.

I think of my blessed Redeemer,
I think of Him all the day long;
I sing, for I cannot be silent;
His love is the theme of my song.

I know I shall see in His beauty
The King in whose way I delight;
Who lovingly guardeth my footsteps,
And giveth me songs in the night.

Psalm 90

1 Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.
2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.
3 Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men.
4 For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.
5 Thou carriest them away as with a flood; they are as a sleep: in the morning they are like grass which groweth up.
6 In the morning it flourisheth, and groweth up; in the evening it is cut down, and withereth.
7 For we are consumed by thine anger, and by thy wrath are we troubled.
8 Thou hast set our iniquities before thee, our secret sins in the light of thy countenance.
9 For all our days are passed away in thy wrath: we spend our years as a tale that is told.
10 The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.
11 Who knoweth the power of thine anger? even according to thy fear, so is thy wrath.
12 So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.
13 Return, O LORD, how long? and let it repent thee concerning thy servants.
14 O satisfy us early with thy mercy; that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
15 Make us glad according to the days wherein thou hast afflicted us, and the years wherein we have seen evil.
16 Let thy work appear unto thy servants, and thy glory unto their children.
17 And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.

Key Verse:
4 For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.

Key Observation:
A man could expect to live to about 70 in the days of Moses; today a man can live to about 70—yet science claims to be extending life span. World life span expectancy is 69.2 years according to world estimates.

Memory Verse:
12 So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.

Devotion:
This is the only psalm written by Moses. McGee mentions that since it is the first psalm written, it might be expected to be Psalm 1. Instead it pleased God to put it in as Psalm 90, the first of what McGee calls the Number psalms. These psalms, Psalm 90 through Psalm 106, constitute the Number psalms.

I recall that as a youngster just learning to devour all available reading material, I read often in the newspapers that life expectancy of man would increase to well over a 100 for my generation. Well, here I am, and life expectancy has increased in the US to the mid seventies. I feel like I got cheated! Well, not really, because God has given me blessings many in my brief years, and eternal life to look forward to. Even if men were to live to a thousand years, the time would be brief compared to eternity.

Today, at Grandma’s, waiting for her to finish getting ready, I read a pamphlet about C.S. Lewis. It was a short but excellent synopsis of how Lewis grew in the faith and the books that he wrote were paralleled with his life experiences at the time. I remember reading that Lewis commented that it would be a good thing to follow Christianity if one found it helpful, whether or not it was true. But somewhere along his pursuit for truth, Lewis came to recognize the gospel as truth, and thus became redeemed, not because he thought it helpful, but because he found it true.

My life experience in coming to Christ was similar to that; I actually did not find out about the promises of eternal life until after being confronted with Truth, and coming to my reckoning with Him. I had begun my Bible reading by reading prophecy, and it was through prophecy that God deemed to bring me to Him. Later that same month I read the gospels and found oh, so much more! Every word that God has promised will be proven true. Even if faithless men are crying today, "where is the promise of his coming?", yet still the words of Moses prove true: “4 For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.”

El Shaddai
Songwriters: Card, Michael; Thompson, John W;

El Shaddai, el shaddai
El-elyon na adonia
Age to age you're still the same
By the power of the name
El shaddai, el shaddai
Erkamka na adonai
I will praise and lift you high
El shaddai

Through your love and through the ram
You saved the son of Abraham
Through the power of your hand
You turned the sea into dry land
To the outcast on her knees
You were the God who really sees
And by your might
You set your children free

El shaddai, el shaddai
El-elyon na adonia
Age to age you're still the same
By the power of the name
El shaddai, el shaddai
Erkamka na adonai
I will praise and lift you high
El shaddai

El shaddai, el shaddai
El-elyon na adonai
Age to age you're still the same
By the power of the name
El shaddai, el shaddai
Erkamka na adonai
I will praise and lift you high
El shaddai

Through the years you've made it clear
That the time of Christ was near
Though the people couldn't see
What Messiah ought to be
Your most awesome work was done
Through the frailty of your son

I will praise and lift you high
El shaddai

Psalm 89

1 I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.
2 For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever: thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens.
3 I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant,
4 Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah.
5 And the heavens shall praise thy wonders, O LORD: thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints.
6 For who in the heaven can be compared unto the LORD? who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the LORD?
7 God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.
8 O LORD God of hosts, who is a strong LORD like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee?
9 Thou rulest the raging of the sea: when the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.
10 Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain; thou hast scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm.
11 The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: as for the world and the fulness thereof, thou hast founded them.
12 The north and the south thou hast created them: Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy name.
13 Thou hast a mighty arm: strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand.
14 Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face.
15 Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O LORD, in the light of thy countenance.
16 In thy name shall they rejoice all the day: and in thy righteousness shall they be exalted.
17 For thou art the glory of their strength: and in thy favour our horn shall be exalted.
18 For the LORD is our defence; and the Holy One of Israel is our king.
19 Then thou spakest in vision to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
20 I have found David my servant; with my holy oil have I anointed him:
21 With whom my hand shall be established: mine arm also shall strengthen him.
22 The enemy shall not exact upon him; nor the son of wickedness afflict him.
23 And I will beat down his foes before his face, and plague them that hate him.
24 But my faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him: and in my name shall his horn be exalted.
25 I will set his hand also in the sea, and his right hand in the rivers.
26 He shall cry unto me, Thou art my father, my God, and the rock of my salvation.
27 Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.
28 My mercy will I keep for him for evermore, and my covenant shall stand fast with him.
29 His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.
30 If his children forsake my law, and walk not in my judgments;
31 If they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments;
32 Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.
33 Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail.
34 My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.
35 Once have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David.
36 His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before me.
37 It shall be established for ever as the moon, and as a faithful witness in heaven. Selah.
38 But thou hast cast off and abhorred, thou hast been wroth with thine anointed.
39 Thou hast made void the covenant of thy servant: thou hast profaned his crown by casting it to the ground.
40 Thou hast broken down all his hedges; thou hast brought his strong holds to ruin.
41 All that pass by the way spoil him: he is a reproach to his neighbours.
42 Thou hast set up the right hand of his adversaries; thou hast made all his enemies to rejoice.
43 Thou hast also turned the edge of his sword, and hast not made him to stand in the battle.
44 Thou hast made his glory to cease, and cast his throne down to the ground.
45 The days of his youth hast thou shortened: thou hast covered him with shame. Selah.
46 How long, LORD? wilt thou hide thyself for ever? shall thy wrath burn like fire?
47 Remember how short my time is: wherefore hast thou made all men in vain?
48 What man is he that liveth, and shall not see death? shall he deliver his soul from the hand of the grave? Selah.
49 Lord, where are thy former lovingkindnesses, which thou swarest unto David in thy truth?
50 Remember, Lord, the reproach of thy servants; how I do bear in my bosom the reproach of all the mighty people;
51 Wherewith thine enemies have reproached, O LORD; wherewith they have reproached the footsteps of thine anointed.
52 Blessed be the LORD for evermore. Amen, and Amen.

Key Verse:
27 Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.

Key Observation:
The last of the Leviticus Psalms. A psalm of Ethan, a psalm to praise the faithfulness of God.

Memory Verse:
35 Once have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David.
36 His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before me.

Devotion:
This psalm describes the faithfulness of God in all of his promises to David. It goes along with 2 Samuel 7, where God affirms his covenant with David. Says McGee:

“The faithfulness of God is mentioned ten times, which makes it obvious that the psalmist is emphasizing His faithfulness. The word covenant is mentioned four times, and with it God says, “I have sworn” three times. Also “I- will not lie” occurs four times. It is quite a contrast with the previous psalm which was all gloom and no glory. The one is all glory and no gloom.”

It is yet another psalm where God promises something which too many Christians symbolize today. I read often in books that God did not mean Israel; it was just that the church had not yet replaced Israel, and God had no way of communicating to us that He intended to somehow morph Israel into the church. I think of the prophets of Baal, who missed totally the message of God, thinking He was other than He was. God is simply who He is. He has revealed himself in the Word, not to be fancifully rearranged to whatever meaning the reader wants to give—rather God makes literal statements about Himself that we, as interpreters, better do our very best to take literally. Where is the Lord God of Elijah? Perhaps if we start believing God like Elijah we will see our God delivering us as spectacularly as He delivered Elijah.

At any rate the promise is repeated in this psalm, “31If they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments;” still He will be faithful to His promises. I cannot say it strongly enough, in no sense are we supplanters of Israel; God is going to do what He will through Israel, and will not change His mind. If it could be otherwise, then we could have no confidence in God because His grace would depend on our behavior, something that could never be.

There are still some (there used to be many more before all the terrible wars and atrocities of the last century) who teach that we as people will progressively become better and better until the Lord just sort of ‘glides’ in and takes over. Many have taught this pernicious doctrine from the time of Augustine, and it never has been literal. In fact, my study of history teaches me that as men began to de-literalize Scripture, they also began to fall away from the Truth. The Reformation can be looked at as the beginning of men trying once more to take God’s Word literally. Luther once more discovered for men that men are saved by faith alone.

This psalm teaches that God will send Christ to “make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.” There is no other interpretation possible; He means what He says. Take Him literally, and watch for our “Blessed Hope”.

The King is Coming
(Bill Gaither)


Praise God, He's coming for me

The marketplace is empty, no more traffic in the street
All the builder's tools are silent, no more time to harvest wheat
Busy housewives cease their labor, in the courtroom no debate
Work on earth has been suspended as the King comes through the gate

Happy faces line the hallway, those whose lives have been redeemed
Broken homes He has mended, those from prison He has freed
Little children and the aged hand in hand stand all a-glow
Who were crippled, broken, ruined, clad in garments white as snow

Chorus:
The King is coming, the King is coming
I just heard the trumpet sounding and soon His face I'll see
The King is coming, the King is coming
Praise God, He's coming for me

I can hear the chariot's rumble, I can see the marching throng
And the fury of God's trumpet spells the end of sin and wrong
Regal rolls are now unfolded, heaven's grandstands all in place
Heaven's choir is now assembled, start to sing 'Amazing Grace'

Psalm 88

1 O lord God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:
2 Let my prayer come before thee: incline thine ear unto my cry;
3 For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh unto the grave.
4 I am counted with them that go down into the pit: I am as a man that hath no strength:
5 Free among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, whom thou rememberest no more: and they are cut off from thy hand.
6 Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps.
7 Thy wrath lieth hard upon me, and thou hast afflicted me with all thy waves. Selah.
8 Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me; thou hast made me an abomination unto them: I am shut up, and I cannot come forth.
9 Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction: LORD, I have called daily upon thee, I have stretched out my hands unto thee.
10 Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead? shall the dead arise and praise thee? Selah.
11 Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? or thy faithfulness in destruction?
12 Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
13 But unto thee have I cried, O LORD; and in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee.
14 LORD, why castest thou off my soul? why hidest thou thy face from me?
15 I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up: while I suffer thy terrors I am distracted.
16 Thy fierce wrath goeth over me; thy terrors have cut me off.
17 They came round about me daily like water; they compassed me about together.
18 Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness.

Key Verse:
1 O lord God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:

Key Observation:
This is a dark psalm. A psalm of a soul caught in bitter problems with no way out. Note that it ends in “darkness”.

Memory:
1 O lord God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:

Devotion:
Who do we go to when God does not seem to hear? We know Him; we know He is good and still there is no answer to our problems. In this psalm, even lovers and friends are put far off. The only note of hope is when the psalmest calls his “God of salvation”. He has been rescued by God before; he knows He works salvation. Yet there is horrible emptiness when He is called upon.

Rejoice O Christian. For though the night lingers, yet the day shall surely dawn, and the dawn shall be all the brighter for the night. I know not why God seems not to answer sometimes, yet I know my Saviour, my God. Surely He will rescue His saints.

It is Well with My Soul
When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul. Refrain:
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.
My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!
For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.
But, Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!
Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul!
And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.

Psalm 87

1 His foundation is in the holy mountains.
2 The LORD loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God. Selah.
4 I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon to them that know me: behold Philistia, and Tyre, with Ethiopia; this man was born there.
5 And of Zion it shall be said, This and that man was born in her: and the highest himself shall establish her.
6 The LORD shall count, when he writeth up the people, that this man was born there. Selah.
7 As well the singers as the players on instruments shall be there: all my springs are in thee.

Key Verse:
2 The LORD loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.

Key Observation:
The highest shall establish her. Christ, the Highest, has not yet established Jerusalem. Wait and see.

Memory Verse:
None

Devotion:
McGee reminds me: “I hear people today sing, “We’re marching to Zion, that wonderful city of God.” I am afraid that song is meaningless, because Zion is a geographical spot on this earth.” The good Lord loves Zion, or Jerusalem, and one day will return to rule the earth from there. That makes this psalm to be a millennial psalm, picturing the Lord’s rule, and the honor which will one day come to the city of Jerusalem.

It bothers me that so many people look at these Scriptures, the word of God, and want to mythologize or spiritualize these passages. The word of God is usually pretty clear. Is it not clear again that the Lord has a special place reserved for Israel? The church has not replaced Israel at all in God’s plan; what the church has done is postponed the fulfillment of God’s plans with Israel. Sixty-nine weeks were prophesied in Daniel against Israel, when they “should suddenly be cut off”. Two thousand years have passed suspending God’s promises so that the times of the Gentiles, or the mystery age of Grace, might be held. There is one week left prophesied against Israel. That week has yet to come to pass, though I believe we see early warning signs of it now. The world is gathering against Israel, the storm clouds are on the horizon, and the United Nations is apparently going to give recognition to the Palestinians next week. I am watching to see the Arab reaction. Will we soon see hordes of angry men threatening the very existence of this tiny, this least of nations?

As a Christian, I will wait on the Lord. He will prove to be true and righteous, fulfilling all of his promises. One day, in front of the whole world, He will declare Israel’s validity as a nation. He will forever give them deed to their property. Contrast Christianity with other religions. Are Christians fighting and killing and bombing others to secure the Holy Land? Nay! They are awaiting the God of all creation to speak, and perhaps, though the world knows it not, they are waiting also.

"I Know Who Holds Tomorrow"

I don't know about tomorrow,
I just live from day to day.
And I don't borrow from its sunshine
'Cause the skies might turn to grey.
And I don't worry about the future,
'Cause I know what Jesus said,
And today I'm gonna walk right beside him
'Cause he's the one who knows what is ahead.
There are things about tomorrow
That I don't seem to understand
But I know who holds tomorrow
And I know who holds my hand.
And each step is getting brighter
As the golden stairs I climb.
And every burden is getting lighter
And all the clouds are silver lined.
And, over there the sun is always shining
And no tears will ever dim the eye
And the ending of the rainbow
Where the mountains, they touch the sky.
There are many things about tomorrow
I don't seem to understand
But I know who holds tomorrow
And I know who holds my hand.
Yes I know who holds my hand.

Psalm 86

1 Bow down thine ear, O LORD, hear me: for I am poor and needy.
2 Preserve my soul; for I am holy: O thou my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee.
3 Be merciful unto me, O Lord: for I cry unto thee daily.
4 Rejoice the soul of thy servant: for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
5 For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.
6 Give ear, O LORD, unto my prayer; and attend to the voice of my supplications.
7 In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me.
8 Among the gods there is none like unto thee, O Lord; neither are there any works like unto thy works.
9 All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and shall glorify thy name.
10 For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone.
11 Teach me thy way, O LORD; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name.
12 I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore.
13 For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell.
14 O God, the proud are risen against me, and the assemblies of violent men have sought after my soul; and have not set thee before them.
15 But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, long suffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.
16 O turn unto me, and have mercy upon me; give thy strength unto thy servant, and save the son of thine handmaid.
17 Shew me a token for good; that they which hate me may see it, and be ashamed: because thou, LORD, hast holpen me, and comforted me.

Key Verse:
9 All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and shall glorify thy name.

Key Observation:
The key verse suggests another Messianic psalm, especially in this verse: All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and shall glorify thy name, and this psalm is one that is again with the theme of the millennium. This same verse talks about all nations coming before God. Never happened. Never will, until the great millennium. Hence, logically, it must be millennial.


Memory Verse:
In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me.

Devotion:
McGee comments that this is a prayer of David for the nation of Israel. He feels it is millennial, but not Messianic. I would be interested to read what Messianic means to McGee, feeling that somehow I miss the definition. I think it is Messianic, because it speaks of the Lord’s rule in the millennium. But it does not give us much information about the Messiah, which may be the difference McGee is noting.

I was wondering about the millennium and I am not an expert on life in the millennium, but I wonder about how much that life is described. I know from my study of Revelation this summer (Walvoord and McGee’s separate very fine commentaries), that we will be taken to heaven in the Rapture, as Christ the groom takes his bride the church. Walvoord, in Revelation 19, tells of the Jewish custom of the wedding being in three steps. The first step is when the parents pledge the children to each other; during this step the dowry was paid. In the second step, the couple reached acceptable age and the bridegroom would go to the bride’s house and take her home with him. This, in the church metaphor, is the Rapture. It is the seven years in heaven for us. Then the wedding feast comes, and this corresponds to Revelation 19, when Christ returns with his bride to the feast. McGee comments that evidently the feast goes on the entire millennium.

Paul hints at us reigning with Christ, clearly implying that we will have some responsibilities. But in the main, all we seem to know, is that we will be forever with Christ. And maybe that is enough!

"I Know Who Holds Tomorrow"

I don't know about tomorrow,
I just live from day to day.
And I don't borrow from its sunshine
'Cause the skies might turn to grey.
And I don't worry about the future,
'Cause I know what Jesus said,
And today I'm gonna walk right beside him
'Cause he's the one who knows what is ahead.
There are things about tomorrow
That I don't seem to understand
But I know who holds tomorrow
And I know who holds my hand.
And each step is getting brighter
As the golden stairs I climb.
And every burden is getting lighter
And all the clouds are silver lined.
And, over there the sun is always shining
And no tears will ever dim the eye
And the ending of the rainbow
Where the mountains, they touch the sky.
There are many things about tomorrow
I don't seem to understand
But I know who holds tomorrow
And I know who holds my hand.
Yes I know who holds my hand.

Psalm 85

1 Lord, thou hast been favourable unto thy land: thou hast brought back the captivity of Jacob.
2 Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people, thou hast covered all their sin. Selah.
3 Thou hast taken away all thy wrath: thou hast turned thyself from the fierceness of thine anger.
4 Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause thine anger toward us to cease.
5 Wilt thou be angry with us for ever? wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations?
6 Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee?
7 Shew us thy mercy, O LORD, and grant us thy salvation.
8 I will hear what God the LORD will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly.
9 Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him; that glory may dwell in our land.
10 Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.
11 Truth shall spring out of the earth; and righteousness shall look down from heaven.
12 Yea, the LORD shall give that which is good; and our land shall yield her increase.
13 Righteousness shall go before him; and shall set us in the way of his steps.

Key Verse:
10 Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

Key Observation:
A prophetic psalm of the millennium.

Memory Verse:
7 Shew us thy mercy, O LORD, and grant us thy salvation.

Devotion:
I believe this psalm to be strongly prophetic, looking forward to the time when Israel is at last reconciled to her God. Righteousness and peace kiss each other; but that cannot happen until the Lord Himself is reigning upon the earth. Israel will be a nation in mourning over its sin. Deep repentance will be felt throughout all the Jews. Israel shall also rejoice strongly over the presence of her Shepherd. It will only come when Christ brings both righteousness and peace.

By application, I think of repentance, or better put, of confession to be a paramount necessity for Christians today. Do you not realize that we will stand before Christ, where He will reward us for what we have done? He will not reward us with salvation; that was the gift given to us who BELIEVE, with all the payment made at the cross by our Savior. But He does expect us to walk in the Spirit, to be filled with the Spirit, and to produce the fruits of the Spirit. Many of us Christians today do not walk as we ought; we meander all over the place, without due regard to the One who would direct our steps. The Bible calls those type of Christians to be carnal Christians.

A. W. Tozer says: “A carnal Christian always blames secondary causes. You never knew a baby that took the blame for anything; it is always somebody else that is at fault.” I know a man, a Christian, who at every turn, is ready with an excuse as to why something is undone in his life. I have confronted him with his need to change; instead he clings to the vapor of his sin instead of changing. He misses the good things of God, in his case lifelong missing, because he simply will not judge himself. We are to judge ourselves, lest we be found wanting on that day.

How then shall we walk in the Spirit? The command of the Scripture is to “be filled” with the Spirit. The idea is to continuously “be being filled” with the Spirit. In the times when God is filling us, our focus is not on us, but on God. Most of us know remarkable men of God who seem to be all the time filled with the very presence of God; the one thing common to such men is that the last thing on their mind is themselves. They are too busy looking at God. A. W. Tozer: “A good man does not know he is good, and a holy man is not aware that he is holy, and the righteous man thinks he is miserable.”

So how are we filled? How do we walk daily with God? Chafer says: “To be filled is not the problem of getting more of the Spirit: it is rather the problem of the Spirit getting more of us. . . . True Christian character is produced in the believer, but not by the believer.” I have found it to be a very easy formula—the difficult part is focusing on God rather than myself. Continuously I find myself looking at me and what I want—just as continuously I need to recognize those wants as part of my sin nature. God wants me to confess those sins (Christ has already forgiven them). Confession is agreeing with God that the sin is a sin. That is the first step to be filled with the Spirit. Look at the people whose Christianity you admire. Are they busy with themselves or doing the things of God. I have learned that if I want to walk with God, I had better start by agreeing with God. Surrender myself, just as He surrendered Himself for me.

I Surrender All

All to Jesus, I surrender;
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In His presence daily live.

Refrain

I surrender all, I surrender all,
All to Thee, my blessèd Savior,
I surrender all.

All to Jesus I surrender;
Humbly at His feet I bow,
Worldly pleasures all forsaken;
Take me, Jesus, take me now.

Refrain

All to Jesus, I surrender;
Make me, Savior, wholly Thine;
Let me feel the Holy Spirit,
Truly know that Thou art mine.

Psalm 84

1 How amiable are thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts!
2 My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.
3 Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God.
4 Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee. Selah.
5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them.
6 Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools.
7 They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.
8 O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer: give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah.
9 Behold, O God our shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed.
10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.
11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
12 O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.

Key Verse:
10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.

Key Observation:
This psalm reflects on the wonderousness of being next to God; it is thus prophetic in the sense that it is forward looking to Christ's reign on earth.

Memory:
11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

Devotion:
Here is a fine thing! God speaks through the Scripture, the God of the Universe, and more, and natural man looks at those same Scriptures and they cannot see the God in them. They look around at their world, the same world I look at, and they do not see the Creator; rather they see accident and chaos and mutation as benign agents who happened to create this world. Where I see purpose they see only chance. Where I see design they see only void; where I see the Creator, they see only themselves, deluded and convinced that they themselves are gods, fully capable of creating a heaven on earth. One of the great things wrong with today’s world (and there is not space enough to remark on all the wrong things) is the fact that man thinks he can solve his own problems. Did you notice that the harder we try to solve our own problems, the deeper that Chaos seems to reign? Even our own government, after 200 years, still thinks that if only the common citizen will trust them, they will design a utopia of which God would be proud. What foolishness! What pride! Fall rather on your face before God, believing Him, for only in belief is there redemption.

“Behold, O God our shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed.” The anointed is of course a reference to Jesus. It is to Jesus that man must turn. There is no Nietzsche superman who will be raised from among men; our Superman has come from God and it is to Him that we must turn while yet there is time. For the day of Grace is coming to an end, and we will soon see the Christ coming back to earth, and men coming from all over the world to worship Him. That is the message of this psalm. Rejoice!

10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.

Rejoice in the Lord always
And again I say, and again I say
Rejoice in the Lord always
And again I say, and again I say
Rejoice

Come bless the Lord, come bless the Lord
Draw near to worship Christ the Lord
And bless His name, His Holy name
Declaring He is good

O that men would praise Him
O that men would praise Him

O that men would praise Him
O that men would praise Him

O that men would praise His name
Would praise His name to the ends of the earth