Unending Praise For God Our Savior

August 31, 2017

Unending Praise For God Our Savior

Praise the Lord!

Sing to the Lord a new song.

    Sing his praises in the assembly of the faithful.

Psalm 149:1

Psalm 149 is two dimensional, in that it is encouragement today for our worship of God, and our witness for Christ to the world. Our sword is not literal; our sword is the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. (Ephesians 6:17) In Revelation 19, the Apostle John teaches us that the Christian witness for God in times of persecution is the most powerful witness for God in the world. The faithfulness of God’s people in standing firm on the Word of God is crucial to the defeat of the forces of evil. Ultimately, Jesus has the final victory over evil, and that leads us to the second dimension.

In Revelation 21, we get a glimpse of what it will be like when the persecution of God’s people has ended. With the ultimate and final defeat of evil, God’s people will be completely unrestrained in worship. Worship will not be confined to times and places; worship will be a state of being as God is worshiped through everything that a person does, wherever they may be.

The followers of Christ have been commissioned to speak God’s Word and God’s truth into this present darkness. We remain diligent in our responsibility to honor God as we wait for Christ to come in final victory. One thing these two eras have in common is our unending praise for God our Savior.

Praise the Lord!

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

Copyright © 2017 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Even The Small Scurrying Animals

August 30, 2017

Even The Small Scurrying Animals

Let every created thing give praise to the Lord,

    for he issued his command, and they came into being.

Psalm 148:5

Psalm 148 appears to be simple in form and purpose; however, I see three quite compelling lessons.

First, the psalmist used the word praise eleven times in fourteen verses. Certainly he is communicating the importance of our continually living with an attitude of praise for God, and for God’s creation.

Secondly, I see the psalmist extoling the virtue of unity within God’s creation. The prose here reminds me of the Apostle Paul’s assertion that “creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time” (Romans 8:21-22). Someday the lion and the lamb, all creation, even the “small scurrying animals” (verse 10) will sing praise to God in perfect unity and perfect harmony.

The third lesson is that while the wonders of God’s creation are sufficient for our praise, verse 14 makes clear that the icing on the cake is the wonder of God’s love for humankind, “He has made his people strong, honoring his faithful ones.“

What else is there to say but,

Praise the Lord!

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

Copyright © 2017 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

God Is Not Far From Us

August 29, 2017

God Is Not Far From Us

How great is our Lord! His power is absolute!

    His understanding is beyond comprehension!

Psalm 147:8

In previous meditations (Psalm 11 and 125), I have referred to the Age of Enlightenment, which was birthed with the scientific and industrial age, approximately three hundred years ago.  With the coming of this Age, there was a seismic shift in the worldview of the Christian faith in Western Civilization. This shift was manifested in two ways. First, the Christian faith contained at its core, an affirmation of the foundation of Judaism, which is known as the “The Shema Yisrael.” Based on Deuteronomy 6:4, this prayer proclaims, “Hear O Israel, the LORD our God is One LORD.”  In succeeding generations, since the dawn of the Age of Enlightenment, Christian worldview has shifted away from the uniqueness of God the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth. In today’s culture, God, the Father of our Lord, Christ Jesus, is just a generic god, one of many.

The second shift was in the nature of God’s involvement in the affairs of humankind. Prior to the Enlightenment, the Christian faith believed God directed the course of human affairs, as well as the ebb and flow of nature. Post Enlightenment, God is viewed as more of a watchmaker. He created all that is, wound it up and left it to run on its own. Psalm 147 is an eloquent reminder that God, who established His people Israel, “has not done this for any other nation” (Psalm 147:20). God’s relationship with Israel, and His children, the followers of Jesus, is most assuredly unique in the entire universe. The psalmist celebrates that God is not far from us, uncaring about our lives:

The Lord is rebuilding Jerusalem and bringing the exiles back to Israel.

He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.

He covers the heavens with clouds, provides rain for the earth,

    and makes the grass grow in mountain pastures.

He sends peace across your nation and satisfies your hunger with the finest wheat.

Psalm 147:2-3, 8, and 14

The Age of Enlightenment has produced blessing after blessing for humankind, not the least of which is overcoming the power of superstition that crippled the development of civilization. However, respect for the depth of human intellect is not mutually exclusive from a deep and abiding faith in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth; And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord. Perhaps greater than any other theologian, John Wesley was able to find a mutually inclusive faith when he ordered his theological studies through a balance of: Scripture, Reason, Tradition and Experience (Known as the Wesleyan Quadrilateral).

Praise the Lord!

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

Copyright © 2017 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

I Will Sing Praises To My God With My Dying Breath

August 28, 2017

I Will Sing Praises To My God With My Dying Breath

He gives justice to the oppressed

    and food to the hungry.

The Lord frees the prisoners.

    The Lord opens the eyes of the blind.

The Lord lifts up those who are weighed down.

    The Lord loves the godly.

Psalm 146:7-8

When you read Psalm 146, what is the first thing that comes to your mind? I think of Jesus.

I see a great similarity between verses 7-9 and Jesus’ affirmation of his call to ministry in Luke 4:18-19,

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

    for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released,

    that the blind will see,

that the oppressed will be set free,

and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.”

This similarity is also present in Isaiah’s prophecy of the Messiah in Isaiah 35: 5-6,

And when he comes, he will open the eyes of the blind

    and unplug the ears of the deaf.

The lame will leap like a deer,

    and those who cannot speak will sing for joy!

Psalm 146 can also be heard in Jesus’ words to John the Baptist’s disciples,

“the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor” (Matthew 11:5).

The Messiah not only cares for his people, he is also caring for all creation: “He made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them” (Psalm 146:6). This verse carries forward to the Apostle Paul’s affirmation of the supremacy of Christ in Colossians 1:16b-17,

“Everything was created through him and for him.

He existed before anything else,

    and he holds all creation together.”

Can there be any wonder why the psalmist opens and closes this psalm with, “Praise the Lord!” and vows to,

“Let all that I am praise the Lord.

    I will praise the Lord as long as I live.

    I will sing praises to my God with my dying breath”

Remembering Jesus’ words at the end of the parable of the Good Samaritan seems appropriate here,

“Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same”” (Luke 10:37).

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

Copyright © 2017 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.