SCRIP-BITS

Psalm 97:10.    Ye that LOVE the Lord, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.
 
Ah Friends, what shall we say to a good God, who has so kindly granted us the blessing of seeing another day eh? He doesn’t expect, or ask for much. A simple, heartfelt, ‘Thank you Lord!’ will do. But then we have to show that gratefulness in our words, thoughts, and actions during the day, otherwise we’d be hypocrites, like the Pharisees, whom Jesus obviously disliked. Oh, by the way, don’t forget to collect your portion of manna for today, it’s fresh and waiting out there for you. I’ve already collected mine – the early bird catching the worm and all that nuh. (smile) Now here’s a quote from David Star Jordan’s book, ‘The Philosophy of Despair’, which says: ‘Wisdom is knowing what to do next: virtue is doing it.’ So that’s why there are so few virtuous people in the world! We don’t do our wisdom. No wonder the world’s in such a mess. And that ties in nicely with our Bit: ‘Ye that LOVE the Lord, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.’ Yes Friends, if we LOVE God, which is wisdom, then we should hate evil and stay away from it, which in turn would be virtuous. But far too many of us claim to LOVE God and still engage in serious evil. And an even greater number seem to despise God and adore evil. You can’t win for losing. However, for those who truly LOVE God, who truly eschew evil and abstain it, it’s a win win situation, for the Lord preserves their souls, as we saw in the scriptures of yesterday’s Bit. And He also ‘delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.’ Today we’ll check out scriptures for that, of which there are plenty. I had to narrow them down to these few to fit into our time and space. Let’s begin with words from Bruh David, as possibly no one in scripture, besides Jesus obviously, lived our Bit more closely than him; LOVING the Lord, having his soul preserved and being saved from his enemies on numerous occasions. In Psalm 22, his cry of anguish and song of praise, he boldly asserts: ‘Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them. They cried unto thee, and were delivered: they trusted in thee, and were not confounded (ashamed).’ (Ps.22:4-5) Then in Psalm 37; the true state of the wicked, he again assures us: ‘But the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord: he is their strength in the time of trouble. And the Lord shall help them: he shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them, because they trust in him.’ (Ps.37:30-40) Yes my people, those who obtain wisdom, LOVING God, then turn it into the practical aspect of virtue, doing His will, they shall be saved from the snares of the wicked. It’s a sure thing, like money in the bank. And if you don’t believe Bruh David and I, then check out this real situation from Daniel. When confronted with a fiery death or worshipping a golden idol in Babylon, ‘Shadrach. Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful (have no need) to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand. But if not, be it known that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.’ (Dan.3:16-18) What faith, what assurance those three Jewish boys had in the God of their fathers! And we all know the results of the story; how the king got angry and threw them in the furnace heated seven times hotter than normal. But those three of great faith came out of the furnace alive and kicking, not even smelling of smoke. How great and faithful is our God eh people! Now hear the king’s words after that miraculous incident. ‘Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed (frustrated) the king’s word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God. Therefore I make a decree, That every people, nation, and language, which speak anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill (an ash heap): because there is no other God that can deliver after this sort (like this).’ (Dan.3:28-29) And all God’s people went, ‘Wow!’ Yes Friends, actions certainly speak louder than words, and our God is a God of ACTION! So should we be too. Less talk and much more action is what’s currently needed in the Christian community. And we’ll close, most appropriately, with the Lord’s words of assurance to Jeremiah: ‘And I will make thee unto this people a fenced brazen (fortified bronze) wall: and they shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee: for I am with thee to save thee and to deliver thee, saith the Lord. And I will deliver thee out of the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem thee out of the hand (grip) of the terrible.’ (Jer.15:20-21) Ah mih breddren, it’s all about faith, trust and belief in the ONE and ONLY TRUE GOD, He of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! If you haven’t yet put your trust in Him, haven’t surrendered your life to Him, please do it NOW, cause He’s the only one who can save us, and time is running out. Much LOVE!…to believe…to trust…and to surrender to Jesus…that’s faith…the only basis for salvation…