The Advice of a Sanctified Sage
Psalm 37 presents two realities side by side... the righteous and the wicked.
The Psalmist reveals he speaks from a vast reserve of experience:
Psalm 37:25–26 (ESV) I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread. 26 He is ever lending generously, and his children become a blessing.
Psalm 37:3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
The first thing we do is do what is good trusting the Lord to be faithful on our behalf.
Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Second we delight in the Lord. It isn't delight in our desires, but first delight in Him.
We must see the Lord not as a slave master but as a caring Father. What loved son doesn't love to be around his father? So too, we must see our Father in heaven as the one who takes notice and care of us even in the small stuff, like sparrows and the hairs of our heads.
Psalm 37:5 Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. 6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.
We have to decide! We have to commit our plans to Him. When temptation to follow the ways of the wicked presents itself, we have an opportunity to see God come through by doing right, or taking matters into our own hand and not growing.
Psalm 37:7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices!
Finally, we have to wait. It's not always an immediate result in doing life God's way. Most of the time, faithfulness and longevity go hand in hand when it comes to prosperity.
Psalm 37:34 (ESV) Wait for the LORD and keep his way, and he will exalt you to inherit the land; you will look on when the wicked are cut off.
The Psalmist reveals he speaks from a vast reserve of experience:
Psalm 37:25–26 (ESV) I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread. 26 He is ever lending generously, and his children become a blessing.
He basically says, "trust me in this, I've seen it with my own eyes... the wicked do not last, the righteous are upheld by the Lord."
The question for us is, will we take his advice?
Four Proverbs are given in the beginning by which to live:
Psalm 37:3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
The first thing we do is do what is good trusting the Lord to be faithful on our behalf.
Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Second we delight in the Lord. It isn't delight in our desires, but first delight in Him.
We must see the Lord not as a slave master but as a caring Father. What loved son doesn't love to be around his father? So too, we must see our Father in heaven as the one who takes notice and care of us even in the small stuff, like sparrows and the hairs of our heads.
Psalm 37:5 Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. 6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.
We have to decide! We have to commit our plans to Him. When temptation to follow the ways of the wicked presents itself, we have an opportunity to see God come through by doing right, or taking matters into our own hand and not growing.
Psalm 37:7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices!
Finally, we have to wait. It's not always an immediate result in doing life God's way. Most of the time, faithfulness and longevity go hand in hand when it comes to prosperity.
Psalm 37:34 (ESV) Wait for the LORD and keep his way, and he will exalt you to inherit the land; you will look on when the wicked are cut off.
This Psalm is basically about "who are your going to pay attention to?" Who will get your follow? Who will be your lead? We make that decision every day.
I just finished watching "The Devil's Advocate" for about the 10th time. That movie nails our humanity in a huge way. Poor Kevin is duped along a path paved by the prince of darkness into a hellish situation that goes from bad to beyond worse. And the line from Satan that seals the message: "Vanity is definitely my favorite sin."
Following The Lord is a moment by moment decision. But choosing Him leaves you no regret.
Comments
Post a Comment