Pastor Matt will not be preaching on 4/25/15; as such, this week's blog will not focus on a preaching text but rather on our church's weekly benediction Scripture:
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer. -Psalm 19:14
Please share what God has revealed to you about this passage, and how He has led you to live accordingly.
This is probably the first scripture verse I ever memorized since we have been saying it every Sabbath since I can remember and before we had the projector you had to say it from memory. ;-)
ReplyDeleteThis verse reminds me that I am and always will be acceptable to God, because I have accepted His Son, but I still need to strive to make sure my words and my thoughts are acceptable to Him as well. Just like your own child will sometimes do things that are considered unacceptable, you will still always love them and care for them because they are your child, the same is true between us and God. We are His Children and He loves us and wants us to want to strive to do what is acceptable and pleasing in His sight, which shows our love and gratitude in return.
This actually ties in very well with last week's sermon. In writing to the Colossians Paul urged them to be "salt" as they shared the gospel with those around them. The way to do that, he wrote, is to make sure your words are "full of grace." If we are careful to speak as if the Lord were present at all times, we will be able to honor the promise we make in our benediction each week to speak in such a way that our words are an acceptable offering to the Lord. I don't always live up to this, but it is an excellent weekly reminder of the standard God calls us to as His people.
ReplyDeleteAfter a few "stumbles" early in my Christian walk, I now make it a point to read the surrounding texts whenever a short Scripture passage is presented to me (context, context, context!), and that's exactly what I did with this week's blog entry. The thing that struck me is that, like so many other Scripture passages, Psalm 19 mirrors the "Lord's Prayer" (Matthew 6:9-13):
ReplyDeleteOur Father in heaven, hallowed be your name
[[An address to the Lord that shows a recognition of His holiness as well as respect for Him, as seen in Psalm 19:1-6]]
your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
[[A statement of thanksgiving and acknowledgment that the speaker is willing to submit to the Lord, as seen in Psalm 19:7-11]]
Give us today our daily bread.
[[A request for life's necessities - physical and/or spiritual -- the only part of the Lord's Prayer that is not directly mirrored in Psalm 19]]
And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
[[A recognition of sins, repentance of those sins, and request for forgiveness, as seen in Psalm 19:12-13]]
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.
[[Asking for God's spiritual protection, as seen in Psalm 19:14]]
Nice comparison, Trish.
DeleteI guess the part about honey wouldn't really count for daily bread.
I agree, Doctor Vic -- the acknowledgement that God's decrees are "sweeter than honey" is not a request for necessities, but rather a statement to show David's understanding of his need to submit to them.
DeletePsalm 19 is a beautiful psalm of David. David speaks about the glory of God(1-6) and how the Lord is perfect, how we may find joy. He is enduring forever, He is righteous and His commands are radiant, more precious than gold and sweeter than honey(7-10). David reveals that by keeping His commands, there is great reward(11). David also speaks of seeking forgiveness for his hidden faults and asks for His strength to stay away from sin so he will be blameless and innocent of great transgression(12-13).
ReplyDeleteThis leads us to the verse we say each Sabbath, what has God revealed to me and how I live. Well, when I speak these words, I am saying that I want to do what is right in our Lords eyes. He knows my heart and when we ask Him, He gives me the strength to endure. I want to please Him and when I feel Him calling me to do something or not to do something, as hard as it may be, I do not question Him, I do it. Why ? Because He is my Rock and my Redeemer !
I meant to say when I ask Him above, although, when we pray for each other as God calls us to do, we is good ! <3
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