PSALM 119:145-152 QOPH
Crying out to the LORD verse 145- 147
I cried with my whole heart
HEAR ME – I will keep YOUR statutes
I cried to YOU
SAVE ME – and I shall keep YOUR testimonies
I prevented the dawning of the morning – and cried
I hoped in YOUR word
Meditating on the Word of the LORD verse 148
Mine eyes prevent the night watches
that I might mediate in YOUR word
Loving-kindness of the LORD verse 149
Hear my voice according to YOUR loving-kindness – O LORD
QUICKEN ME according to YOUR judgment
Mischief makers disobey the LORD verse 150
They draw nigh that follow after mischief
they are far from YOUR law
LORD never lies verse 151
YOU are near – O LORD
and all YOUR commandments are truth
Word of the LORD eternal verse 152
Concerning YOUR testimonies
I have known of old that YOU have founded them forever
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 145 I cried with my whole heart; hear me, O LORD: I will keep thy statutes. (7121 “cried” [ ] means proclaim, read, pray, call, summoned, or invoke.)
DEVOTION: In this section of the Psalm we have the nineteenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet introducing the psalmist as someone who is crying out to God for help.
The next two verses also state that the Psalmist summoned the LORD for a special reason. He was being harassed by individuals only interested in mischief.
He was an individual who loved to ask the LORD for help. He prayed throughout the day. It is believed that faithful Hebrews prayed three times a day. Daniel was an example of someone who would not stop praying no matter the consequences. He prayed near an open window. He prayed in the morning, midday and evening. Here we find the Psalmist doing the same type of praying.
However, it seems that he didn’t sleep because of these individuals who wanted to hurt him. He stayed up in the night watches. He wanted the LORD to know that he was serious.
He prayed with his whole heart. He was totally committed to the LORD. His heart was fixed on the LORD. He was looking to the LORD for an answer and wouldn’t quit until he knew that the LORD was going to help. He knew that the LORD was looking at his life to see if he had any unconfessed sin. He was setting his whole hope in the LORD for deliverance. The LORD knew his heart, just like he knows our hearts. We can’t fake out God. We might be able to fake out those around us. HE not only sees our outward appearance but HE sees our inner life.
CHALLENGE: When faced with individuals who want to give us a hard time. Turn them over to the LORD.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 146 “I cry out to You; Save me, and I will keep your testimonies.”
Cry – 7121 קָרָא [qaraʾ /kaw·raw/] v. A primitive root [rather identical with 7122 through the idea of accosting a person met]; TWOT 2063; GK 7924; 735 occurrences; AV translates as “call” 528 times, “cried” 98 times, “read” 38 times, “proclaim” 36 times, “named” seven times, “guests” four times, “invited” three times, “gave” three times, “renowned” three times, “bidden” twice, “preach” twice, and translated miscellaneously 11 times. 1 to call, call out, recite, read, cry out, proclaim. 1A (Qal). 1A1 to call, cry, utter a loud sound. 1A2 to call unto, cry (for help), call (with name of God). 1A3 to proclaim. 1A4 to read aloud, read (to oneself), read. 1A5 to summon, invite, call for, call and commission, appoint, call and endow. 1A6 to call, name, give name to, call by. 1B (Niphal). 1B1 to call oneself. 1B2 to be called, be proclaimed, be read aloud, be summoned, be named. 1C (Pual) to be called, be named, be called out, be chosen. James Strong, Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2001).
DEVOTION: How intently do we pray to the Lord? The psalmist is describing his time with the Lord in intercession and petitions. Whether in word or simply groanings the psalmist desired for the Lord to hear him. Day and night the psalmist cried out for the Lord’s attention. That cry can be with words or without as he states it to be with his whole heart! (v.145) John Bunyan said it fittingly, “In prayer, it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart”. Paul’s states the equivalent in Romans 8:26, “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for the us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”
How or when you choose to pray is not as important as the attitude of prayer! Hanna prayed without saying a word (1 Samuel 1), Solomon prayed before the assembly of Israel (1Kings 8: 22) and Paul and Silas prayed and sang hymns at midnight in prison. (Acts16:25) The key is pray!
CHALLENGE: Take time to call out to the Lord with a heartfelt plea, no matter the time of day it is! (Dr. Brian Miller – board member)
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: 147 I prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried: I hoped in YOUR word. (6923 “prevented” [qadam] means to act in advance of, deal with ahead of time, come or be in front, to go before, be in front, walk at the head, to anticipate, confront, or confront.)
DEVOTION: When in prayer the author said that he anticipated the morning coming but didn’t want it to appear until he had an answer from the LORD.
This individual and each of us need to come to the LORD each night and pray for the LORD to bless our ministry of service to HIM. Sometimes this time of prayer involves waiting on the LORD to give us an answer and we don’t get up from our knees until the LORD speaks to us about what we are to do next.
Each of us has had a time that we really wanted to know HIS will for our life at a given time period. We have many time periods in our life that we need an answer from the LORD regarding what to do next in our service to HIM.
During these time periods we have to stay on our knees until we hear back from the LORD. HE will answer HIS children who are determined to wait for an answer from HIM.
Today we find that there are only a few churches that have all night prayer meetings to ask the LORD for guidance and direction for the next time period of their ministry. This is a good thing because there are many churches who continue in the same rut but don’t realize it till it is too late.
God doesn’t want an individual or a church to stay in a rut but to move forward to reach the world with the message of salvation and service.
CHALLENGE: Are we determined enough to pray through the night and into the morning to find out what the LORD wants us to do next? Waiting on the LORD is a lost art but it still needs to be done with prayer even today!!
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 150 They draw nigh that follow after mischief: they are far from YOUR law. (2154 “mischief” [zimmah] means infamy, shameful behavior, device, wickedness, a wicked deed, evil, shameful behavior, licentiousness or lewdness.)
DEVOTION: Our behavior is important to the LORD. HE wants us to serve HIM with our whole body, soul and spirit each day.
This is not easy but as a believer it should be our goal. We will fail at times but we can call on the LORD for forgiveness and then move back to where we should be and with the help of the LORD stay there.
We have many challenges in our lives throughout the years and these challenges need to be put int hands of the LORD. HE allows things to happen in our lives that we don’t like but we still have to remain true to HIM and HE will give us the strength to get through those times of testing.
Another thing that is true is that there are always individuals or even groups that want to have everything done their way even if it is not the way the LORD wants it done. This is happening in many churches today. They are changing to fit the times we are living in instead of staying true to the Word of God.
Society is not to give us direction but the Word of God. If the Word of God was against it in the past it is still against it in the present.
CHALLENGE: Today even in our churches we find individuals in leadership who are more interested in pleasing themselves rather than pleasing the LORD.
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: 151 YOU are near, O LORD; and all YOUR commandments are truth. (7138 “near” [qarowb] means nigh, at hand, next, kin, or neighbor)
DEVOTION: He cried all night. He didn’t sleep because he wanted the LORD tohelp
him through a difficult time. He concentrated on the Word of God while he was praying
for help. He had enemies around him who were up to mischief.
He knew that the LORD was someone who was close at hand. Our LORD is right next to us all the time. HE is omnipresent. Yes, HE does have an angel next to us too. Hebrews 1: 14, informs us that they are ministering spirits to the heirs of salvation.
All those who are followers of Christ as their personal Savior are heirs of salvation. Each day we need to realize how near the LORD is to us. At times, like the psalmist we will have something pressing in our lives that we will stay up all night to seek an answer from the LORD. The New Testament informs us that major problems need the disciplines of prayer AND fasting. Too often we don’t really show the LORD that we mean business in our requests to HIM.
Our enemies are real. Some decisions are hard to make. Are we practicing the presence of the LORD in our daily lives? We should be praising the LORD daily for HIS daily providence and protection.
We need to thank the LORD for being on hand to answer our prayers. Never doubt the presence of the LORD and the ministry of the Holy Spirit in your life.
CHALLENGE: How near do you want the LORD? If we want HIM near we should remember to act accordingly. Our actions speak louder than words.
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DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Meditate in the word verse 148
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
I cry verse 145- 147
Prevented the coming of morning verse 147
Hear me verse 149
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
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DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Statutes verse 145
Testimonies verse 146, 152
Word verse 147, 148
Judgment verse 149
Law verse 150
Commandments verse 151
Truth verse 151
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal) verse 145, 149, 151
Loving-kindness verse 149
Judgment verse 149
Testimonies founded forever verse 152
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Mischief verse 150
Far from the Law verse 150
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Prayer [cry] verse 145- 147
Keep the Word of God verse 145-146
Salvation verse 146
Hope verse 147
Meditate on Word of God verse 148
Loving-kindness verse 149
Quickened verse 149
Nearness of God verse 151
Truth verse 151
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
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DONATIONS:
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QUOTES regarding passage
147–49 The psalmist’s intensity in prayer (“with all my heart,” v. 145; cf. v. 58) is matched by his intense loyalty to obedient living (“with all my heart,” vv. 34, 69). So intense is his longing for God’s salvation that he prays “for help” (v. 147; cf. 22:24; 28:2) “before” (q-d-m) dawn and “through” (q-d-m lit., “before,” v. 148) the night watches. Throughout the night he loves to “meditate” (ś-y-h; cf. vv. 15, 23, 27, 48, 99) on God’s “promises” (ʾimrāh). He waits for the Lord to come through, having put his “hope” in God’s word (v. 147; cf. v. 81). The focus of his hope lies in the renewal of God’s “love” (ḥeseḏ, v. 149), by which the Lord will justly (NIV, “according to your laws”) transform the present adverse conditions to “life.”
150–52 Verses 150–51 both begin with the verb “be near” (q-r-b) so as to more clearly contrast the closing in of the wicked (v. 150) and the closeness of the Lord (v. 151). Though the wicked hunt the psalmist down, the Lord is nearby (cf. 69:18; 73:28). Moreover, his relationship with the Lord has been well established. His “statutes” (ʿēḏôṯ, v. 152) are constant, unlike the cabalas of the wicked. (VanGemeren, W. A. (1991). Psalms. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs (Vol. 5, p. 760). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)
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149. quicken me—revive my heart according to those principles of justice, founded on Thine own nature, and revealed in Thy law, which specially set forth Thy mercy to the humble as well as justice to the wicked (compare Ps 119:30). (Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. (1997). Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (Vol. 1, p. 384). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.)
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119:145–152. The psalmist called on the Lord to deliver him because he obeyed, hoped in, and meditated on His Word (vv. 145–149). His enemies, though near him, were far removed from God’s Law (v. 150). God, however, was also near him and His words were reliable (vv. 151–152). (Ross, A. P. (1985). Psalms. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 882). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
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145. I cried with my whole heart; hear me, O Lord: I will keep thy statutes
146. I cried unto thee: save me, and I shall keep thy testimonies
This is indeed the “pouring out of the soul before the Lord”—“a beautiful and encouraging picture of a soul wrestling with God in a few short sentences, with as much power and success as in the most continued length of supplication. Brief as are the petitions, the whole compass of language could not make them more comprehensive. “Hear me.” The whole heart is engaged in the “cry.” “Save me,” includes a sinner’s whole need—pardon, acceptance, access, holiness, strength, comfort, heaven, all in one word—Christ. Save me—from self, from Satan, from the world, from the curse of sin, from the wrath of God. This is the need of every moment to the end. “I cried unto thee”—What a mercy to know where to go! The way of access must have been implied—though not mentioned—in these short ejaculations. “Hear me”—must have been in the name of the all-prevailing Advocate. “Save me”—through him, whose name is, Jesus the Saviour. A moment’s interruption of our view of Jesus casts, for the time, an impenetrable cloud over our way to God, and paralyzes the spirit of prayer. Prayer is not only the sense of guilt, and the cry for mercy, but the exercise of faith. When I come to God, I would always bring with me the blood of Christ—my price—my plea in my hand. He cannot cast it out. Thus am I “a prince, that hath power with God and prevail.” Here is the warrant to believe, that my God does, and will hear me. Here is my encouragement to “look up”—to be “watching at his gate”4—like the cripple at the “beautiful gate of the temple—expecting to receive somewhat of him.” Not a word of such prayer is lost. It is as seed—not cast into the earth, exposed to hazard and loss—but cast into the bosom of God—and here—as in the natural harvest, “he that soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.” The most frequent comers are the largest receivers—always wanting—always asking—living upon what they have, but still hungering for more.
With many, however, the ceremony of prayer is everything, without any thought, desire, anxiety, or waiting for an answer. These slight dealings prove low thoughts of God, and deep and guilty insensibility;—that the sense of pressing need is not sharp enough to put an edge upon the affections. But are none of God’s dear children, too, who in days past never missed the presence of God, but they “sought it carefully with tears”—now too easily satisfied with the act of prayer, without this “great object of it—the enjoyment of God?” Perhaps you lament your deficiencies, your weakness in the hour of temptation, your indulgence of ease, your unfaithfulness of heart. But is your “cry” continually ascending “with your whole heart?” Your soul would not be so empty of comfort, if your mouth were not so empty of prayer. The Lord never charges presumption upon the frequency or extent of your supplications; but he is often ready to “upbraid you with your unbelief,” that you are so reluctant in your approach, and so straitened in your desires—that you are so unready to receive what he is so ready to give—that your vessels are too narrow to take in his full blessing—that you are content with drops, when he has promised “floods,”—yea “rivers of living water,”3—and above all, that you are so negligent in praising him for what you have already received.
We must not lightly give up our suit. We must not be content with keeping up duty, without keeping up “continued instancy in prayer” in our duty. This alone preserves in temptation. Satan strikes at all of God in the soul. Unbelief readily yields to his suggestions. This is the element in which we live—the warfare of every moment. Will then the customary devotion of morning and evening (even supposing it to be sincere) suffice for such an emergency? No. The Christian must “put on the whole armor of God;” and buckle on his panoply with unceasing “prayer and watchfulness in the Spirit.” If his heart be dead and cold, let him rather cry and wait, (as Luther was used to do,) till it was warm and enlivened. The hypocrite, indeed, would be satisfied with the barren performance of the duty. But the child of God, while he mourns in the dust, “Behold I am vile!”6—still holds on, though sometimes with a cry, that probably finds no utterance with his lips; that vents itself only with tears, or “groanings that cannot be uttered.”2 And shall such a cry fail to “enter into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth?” “The Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping. Lord, all my desire is before thee; and my groaning is not hid from thee.”
But why is the believer so earnest for an audience? — why so restless in his cries for salvation? Is it not, that he loves “the statutes” of his God; that he is grieved on account of his inability to keep them; and that he longs for mercy, as the spring of his obedience? “Hear me; I will keep thy statutes. Save me; and I shall keep thy testimonies”—a most satisfactory evidence of an upright heart. Sin can have no fellowship with the statutes. As saved sinners, they are our delight.
Lord! thou knowest how our hearts draw back from the spiritual work of prayer; and how we nourish our unbelief by our distance from thee. Oh pour upon us this “Spirit of grace and supplication.” “Teach us to pray”—even our hearts—“our whole hearts”—to “cry unto thee.” Give us the privilege of real communion with thee—the only satisfying joy of earth or heaven. Then shall we “run the way of thy commandments, when thou shalt enlarge our hearts.” (Bridges, C. (1861). Exposition of Psalm 119: As Illustrative of the Character and Exercises of Christian Experience (Seventeenth Edition., pp. 238–240). New York: Robert Carter & Brothers
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FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
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Glenn Bloom III writes (NY):
General William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army at the end of the nineteenth century said:
“I’am of the opinion that the greatest danger facing the twentieth century to be:
Religion without the Holy Spirit;
Christianity without Christ;
Forgiveness without regeneration;
Morality without God and
Heaven without Hell.
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In Tuesday night’s State of the Union address, President Joe Biden told young people with gender dysphoria that he will “always have (their) back.” Though he didn’t specify what exactly that means, presumably it had something to do with extending Title IX protections to include allowing men full access to women’s facilities and sports; extending mandatory insurance coverage for “gender reassignment” surgeries; and restricting any counseling, treatments, or public advocacy that does anything less than fully affirm one’s gender dysphoria.
What makes it likely that the President’s late-speech shoutout referred to these sorts of extreme positions on the issue is that it was quickly followed by a call to pass the so-called “Equality Act,” something that remains (at least for now) dead in the Senate. The Equality Act would be a kind of legislative nuclear option, rendering about 250 so-called “anti-LGBTQ” bills under consideration across America pointless, leading to serious restrictions on religious liberty, especially for religious schools.
Over the last few years, following a strategy that proved effective for pro-life protections, states like Texas have been laying creative groundwork to hold adults accountable for experimenting on young people struggling with gender identity. Having these laws in place is incredibly important, given the astronomical rise in the number of young people identifying as transgender, and how quickly transgender ideology went from being unthinkable to unquestionable in so many aspects of society.
For instance, the field of so-called gender-affirming “medicine” is the only example of medical treatment that attempts to orient the body to the mind, as opposed to correcting the mind to align with biological reality. That was a $316 million industry in 2018. By 2026, it is projected to be a $1.5 billion industry.
Children, in particular, are the subjects of this social experimentation, which is only one example of how reality has been reimagined along the lines of sexual autonomy. If the early days of the sexual revolution were about being free from the confines of sexual morality, these latter days are about being free from the confines of sexual reality.
That these created realities were part of a biological, social, and religious package deal went largely unquestioned until recently. However, technological innovations such as the pill, IVF, and surrogacy; legal innovations such as no-fault divorce; and cultural innovations such as ubiquitous pornography and “hook-up” apps, have all made it increasingly easy to reimagine the world along the line of advancing our sexual happiness. Children are forced to go along.
Pursuing social and legal equality without reference to reality has proven even more disastrous. It’s one thing to say that men and women are equal before God and the law; it’s quite another to say that they are the same or, like we are saying today, that any and all differences are either an illusion or unjust. So now, we talk without a hint of parody that men can bear children and that “not all women menstruate” and that love can make a second mom into a dad. None of this is true, but young people are expected to play along, to adapt and adopt these lies, pretending all is well, even if they’re not.
(Break Point: Protecting the Victims of Bad Ideas)
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After His baptism by His forerunner, John, Jesus’ ministry is validated by God the Father.
INSIGHT
No matter when, no matter where, repentance is necessary when meeting God for the first time. To repent means to change your mind.
If you have been living your life without God, you must change your mind about Him. You must stop thinking of Him as something less than Sovereign Lord of the universe. You must acknowledge His right to define what is right — and wrong — for you. And you must trust Him to reconcile you to Himself through His only begotten Son.
If you were transported back to John’s time and heard his message, would you repent?
(Quiet Walk)
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WHAT OUR LORD PRAYS FOR
I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. John 17:15
The primary object of Christ’s prayer is not so much that His followers may be one with one another as that they may be kept in true unity with Him, with God the Father, and therefore with each other. That is the nature of communion. Obviously, this has to be worked out in greater detail, and never perhaps was this more necessary than today.
The next thing He prays for them is that they may be kept from the evil one—the devil, the god of this world, the prince of the power of the air—and the evil that is in the world as the result of his activities and efforts. Our Lord does not pray that they may be taken out of the world. We sometimes wish we could pray that; the idea of monasticism is somewhere down in the depths of all of us. We want to retire out of the world and arrive in some magic circle where nothing can disturb us. There is a longing in the suffering, persecuted Christian to get out of the world. But our Lord does not pray that they may be taken out of the world in any sense, nor that they may be taken out of it by death, but rather that in it they may be kept from the evil.
Your business and mine as Christian people is to be in the midst of this world and its affairs and still remain true and loyal to God and be kept from the evil. “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this,” says James, not to retire out of every vocation in life, but rather “to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world” (James1:27). The task of the Christian is to be in the midst of this world and its affairs in order that he or she may do this work of evangelism.
A Thought to Ponder
Our Lord does not pray that they may be taken out of the world but rather that in it they may be kept from the evil.
(From Safe in the World, pp. 14, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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Justification by faith is illustrated in the Old Testament through the lives of Abraham and David.
INSIGHT
To impute something means “to apply something to your account.” The Bible teaches that no one can earn salvation. However, God will give it to us freely if we have faith in Him. God honors the attitude of our hearts and imputes righteousness to our accounts. To be able to impute righteousness to those living during Old Testament times, God looked ahead to the work of Christ on the cross. Now He looks back to the Cross. But in both cases, God´s people have been saved by grace through faith. (Quiet Walk)
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WHAT DOES FELLOWSHIP MEAN?
…and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. 1 John 1:3
What does fellowship mean? To be in a state of fellowship means that we share in things. We are partakers or, if you like, partners–that idea is there intrinsically in the word. That means something like this: The Christian is one who has become a sharer in the life of God. Now that is staggering and astounding language, but the Bible teaches us that; the New Testament offers us that, and nothing less than that.
Peter writes, “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (2 Peter 1:4). That is it, and there are many other similar statements. Indeed, the whole doctrine of regeneration and rebirth leads to this; born again, born from above, born of the Spirit” all carry exactly the same idea. This, then, is what John is so anxious to impress upon the minds of his readers” that Christians are not merely people who are a little bit better than they once were and who have just added certain things to their lives. Rather, they are men and women who have received the divine life.
In some amazing and astounding manner we know that we are partakers of the divine nature, that the being of God has somehow entered into us. I cannot tell you how” I cannot find it in the dissecting room. It is no use dissecting the body” you will not find it, any more than you will find the soul by dissecting the body; but it is in us, and we are aware of it. There is a being in us”” I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me” (Galatians 2:20); how, I do not know. We will understand in glory, but some how we know now that we are sharers in the life of God.
A Thought to Ponder: The Christian is one who has become a sharer in the life of God. (From Fellowship with God, pp. 80-82, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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Exhorting One Another
“But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” (Hebrews 3:13)
The fascinating word rendered “exhort” (Greek para-kaleo) in our text verse, elsewhere translated “comfort,” “beseech,” etc., literally means “call alongside.”
For example, note 2 Corinthians 1:4: “[God] comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.” Also look at Paul’s appeal to Philemon: “I beseech thee for my son Onesimus, whom I have begotten in my bonds” (Philemon 1:10). Such words as “desire,” “entreat,” and “pray” are also used.
The unusual importance of the word is pointed up by the fact that its noun form (parakletos) is used as one of the titles of God the Holy Spirit. Jesus said: “When the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me” (John 15:26).
Thus, a Christian who is “called alongside” to comfort a sorrowing friend, to beseech a person to do right, or to exhort him to useful action all in the name of Christ, is in effect performing the same type of service on the human level that the Holy Spirit Himself performs on the divine level. Further, our text would inform us that this type of service—whether done in the context of exhorting or comforting or beseeching—is designed specifically to prevent the one to whom he is “called alongside” from being “hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” And since this is a moment-by-moment danger to the unwary, the ministry of exhortation (or comforting or entreating, as the need may be) is one that must be performed “daily, while it is called To day.”
(HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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Encouraged in God
Saul’s son Jonathan went to David . . . and helped him find strength in God. 1 Samuel 23:16
In 1925, Langston Hughes, an aspiring writer working as a busboy at a hotel, discovered that a poet he admired (Vachel Lindsey) was staying there as a guest. Hughes shyly slipped Lindsey some of his own poetry, which Lindsey later praised enthusiastically at a public reading. Lindsey’s encouragement resulted in Hughes receiving a university scholarship, furthering him on his way to his own successful writing career.
A little encouragement can go a long way, especially when God is in it. Scripture tells of an incident when David was on the run from King Saul, who was trying “to take his life.” Saul’s son Jonathan sought David out “and helped him find strength in God. ‘Don’t be afraid,’ he said. ‘My father Saul will not lay a hand on you. You will be king over Israel’ ” (1 Samuel 23:15–17).
Jonathan was right. David would be king. The key to the effective encouragement Jonathan offered is found in the simple phrase “in God” (v. 16). Through Jesus, God gives us “eternal encouragement and good hope” (2 Thessalonians 2:16). As we humble ourselves before Him, He lifts us as no other can.
All around us are people who need the encouragement God gives. If we seek them out as Jonathan sought David and gently point them to God through a kind word or action, He’ll do the rest. Regardless of what this life may hold, a bright future in eternity awaits those who trust in Him. (By James Banks (Our Daily Bread)
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Propitiation
“And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.” (1 John 2:2)
Most words in the King James Bible have one or two syllables. Our text verse, for example, has 21 such short words and only one big word; but that word, “propitiation,” has five syllables, and so has elicited much complaint from folks who don’t like to use dictionaries. What does “propitiation” mean?
The Greek word is hilasmos and occurs just two other times. These are as follows:
“Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God” (Romans 3:25). “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4:10).
As an aside, note that these two verses contain two words of two syllables, three of three syllables, and 48 of one syllable. But both also include “propitiation,” and that seems to be a problem. Nevertheless, “propitiation” is certainly the most accurate word to convey the meaning of the original. The dictionary gives “expiation” and “conciliation” as definitions, but that probably doesn’t help much.
In any case, the action of the Lord Jesus in submitting His body to be a substitutionary sacrifice to pay the penalty for our sins and to endure God’s wrath against all the sins of the world, thereby enabling Him to be reconciled to us, with Christ’s perfect righteousness credited to our account, is seen in these three verses to be a basic theme of this great truth of Christ’s propitiatory work on the cross. And surely, as John says: “Herein is love,” that God would so love us that He would offer up His Son, and Christ would so love us that He would die for us. Surely, this is love! (HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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Loving Your Man by Barbara Rainey
The wise woman builds her house, but the foolish tears it down with her own hands. PROVERBS 14:1
I often give three pieces of advice to young women before their wedding day. But because these remain just as important as we go through marriage and because they are fashioned by the Scriptures and proven by experience, I share them with you today—at whatever stage you find yourself in marriage:
1. Believe in your husband. This is the most valuable gift Dennis says I’ve given him. You know your husband better than anyone. To see his faults and weaknesses and yet to believe in your husband’s God-given potential as a man and his leadership of your home does more than you can imagine for his spiritual growth.
2. Be willing to confront your husband in love. Too many wives mistakenly believe they are following the biblical pattern of submission by ignoring or denying deficits in their husband’s life. But being submissive does not mean being silent. It simply means being wise and loving in how you approach him, treating him with kindness and respect. Say to your husband, “Could I talk to you about something?” Asking permission to broach a difficult subject may make it easier to get your message across. He is far less threatened and insecure this way.
3. Pursue intimacy with him on every level. Most men consider physical intimacy the most important part of marriage. I’ve come to learn that it is central to my husband’s manhood. It’s the way God made him, and it is good. So rather than resenting it, learn to appreciate this aspect of your marriage as God’s design. And be willing to learn and grow, becoming God’s woman for your man. It’s not always easy, but with God, nothing is impossible. (Moments with You Couples Devotional)
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