Psalm 72:18-19 Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen, and Amen.
Oh Friends, would you believe it’s Monday already? The weekends sure seem to fly by, while the work weeks slowly drag along. But there’s, ‘no rest for the wicked,’ and unfortunately, neither for the blossoming righteous. We must also go out into the wicked world to earn a living, plus further God’s kingdom. The latter being our main pursuit, the former only a means to achieve that most worthwhile end. But remember too, that to be successful in either endeavour, we’ve first got to be clothed in the spiritual armour of God; the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the belt of truth, the sandals of peace, the mighty shield of faith and the awesome sword of the Spirit; the formidable Word that brings us to conviction and repentance. So please ensure that every day we offer thanks and praise for the blessing of life, ask for guidance and dress in our battle armour before walking out the door. For remember, the enemy is always on the prowl. Some of you are probably tired hearing me say this, but mih people, in this life, only ‘practice makes perfect.’ Continuous communication with the Father must become a habit if we’re to grow and mature in faith. That’s the only way we’ll ever enjoy the full benefits of His LOVE, guidance, forgiveness and mercy. Now I said it should become a habit, but I didn’t say mindless, meaningless or by rote, just that we don’t have to consciously think about it every time. Awright, I agree, enough preaching, (smile) especially since I claim not to like it, though my first born disagrees. Time to continue considering the offering of praise and thanks to our God, which we began yesterday. Today we’ll tackle the second half. ‘And blessed be his glorious name for ever.’ But isn’t it strange that we glorify our God the most after we’ve done wrong, have suffered for it, then have repented and been forgiven? The following passage happens after Israel rebelled against the God of their fathers, was taken captive to Babylon, but has now returned to Jerusalem through His LOVING kindness, and they are fasting and repenting, with the Levites leading the confession. ‘Then the Levites…said, Stand up and bless the Lord your God for ever and ever: and blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise. Thou, even thou, art Lord alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.’ (Neh.9:5-6) Yes Friends, it’s oftimes in tribulation that we truly appreciate our wonderful God and turn to Him with all sorts of exotic praise and thanks. But that’s not wisdom. The smart money says that it’s while life is good, we should remember Him and shower Him with deserving accolades so that life won’t get bad, because He’s our benefactor. By so doing, our actions would be more conducive to ‘let the whole earth be filled with his glory.’ Oh Friends, the Lord is intent on that happening whether we like it or help it along. As He said when Moses interceded for Israel’s many transgressions; ‘I have pardoned according to thy word: But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord. Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it. But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.’ (Num.14:20-24) Yes Friends, regardless of our behaviour, the Lord’s glory will eventually fill the whole earth. And in Isaiah’s vision, when the Lord commissioned him to prophecy the word, he saw the Lord sitting on His throne on high, surrounded by seraphim. ‘And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory. And the posts of the door moved (were shaken) at the voice of him that cried (out), and the house was filled with smoke.’ (Isa.6:3-4) We hear the same story from Habakkuk when he talks about the judgement of the unrighteous. ‘Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood (bloodshed), and stablisheth a city by iniquity! Behold, is it not of the Lord of hosts that the people shall labour in the very fire (for that of no lasting value), and the people shall weary themselves for very vanity (in vain)? For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.’ (Hab.2:12-14) And if we won’t accept the Old Testament, then listen to the New: ‘And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest (cease) not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.’ (Rev.4:8) That’s John’s vision. Oh Friends, simple common sense and logic says you’re always better off to keep your benefactor happy than to incur his displeasure. I don’t know if we can therefore assume that the early Israelites, the Jews in Jesus’ time and many of our ancestors through the ages lacked those attributes. But please, I’m pleading, don’t let future generations look back at our time and assume the same thing. Through hard experience we’ve surely learned that the Lord’s our benefactor, so let’s show those who come after us our wisdom, make them proud of us, by believing, by being obedient and constantly chanting: ‘Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen, and Amen.’ Much LOVE!…there’s nothing our God desires from us…more than our sincere thanks and praise…
SCRIP-BITS 