Tag Archives: goodness

THINGS THAT DAVID SAID – 16

Devotion, ,

THE HOUND OF HEAVEN!

Psalms 23:6 NLT
[6] “Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever.”

Back to Psalm 23! Some of David’s most wonderfully comforting words are clustered together in one psalm, like for example, Psalm 23, Psalm 103, and Psalm 139.

Don’t we love David’s concluding words in Psalm 23? They conjure up a mental picture of two supernatural “angels”, named “Goodness” and “Mercy”, like twe pet dogs, that follow us faithfully wherever we go. They refuse to leave us no matter what our situation or circumstances. They are always there to comfort, strengthen, and provide for all our needs. They are God’s messengers, not God Himself but…

Hebrews 1:14 NLT
[14] “Therefore, angels are only servants—spirits sent to care for people who will inherit salvation.”

Apart from these ministering angels, who provide protection in every situation…

God’s own presence is always with us…

Psalms 139:7-10 NLT
[7] “I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! [8] If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. [9] If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, [10] even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me.”

…never to spy on us, as some people think, but to strengthen, support and bless us.

Have you ever considered that God has provided us with a bodyguard more powerfully efficient than the best-trained humans can ever be? His powerful ministering angels take care of our safety and provide everything we need, and His own presence guards and protects us from the perils of lies and deception that our enemy tries to impress on us?

2 Thessalonians 3:3 NIV
[3] “But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.”

Not only do we have God Himself all around us, but we also have His Word as a powerful set of armour, defensive and offensive weapons to take care of all the fiery darts hurled at us. Like the Israelis’ “iron dome”, we are shielded on all sides from the enemy’s missiles.

Psalms 91:9-12 NLT
[9] “If you make the Lord your refuge, if you make the Most High your shelter, [10] no evil will conquer you; no plague will come near your home. [11] For he will order his angels to protect you wherever you go. [12] They will hold you up with their hands so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.”

God has also provided a full set of armour, like the armour of an ancient Roman soldier, that covers us from head to foot and that enables us to ward off every temptation and every accusation the enemybl hurls at us to throw us off course.

Ephesians 6:11-13 NIV
[11] “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. [12] For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. [13] Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.”

Our spiritual armour is defensive since Jesus has already conquered Satan for us. Our role is only to stand our ground on the truth and never give way to his assault on our minds and hearts.

As much as “goodness” and “mercy”, accompany us on our journey, watching our backs and keeping the enemy at bay, so also are they the very presence of God to lavish His grace and favour on us simply because we are His children.

Romans 8:32 NIV
[32] “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?”

Through Jesus, our Saviour, High Priest, and Mediator, we have everything we need and more through the Father’s “great and precious promises” guaranteed by the Son Himself.

2 Corinthians 1:20 NIV
[20] “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.”

All we need to do to trigger their fulfilment is to say a hearty “Amen!”

God’s children are neither orphans nor paupers. In Christ Jesus, we are fully supplied, carefully guarded, deeply loved, and highly favoured.

So, let’s live as His beloved sons and daughters in the abundance of His goodness and mercy.

GOD’S WITNESSES

Apologetics, ,

Acts of the Apostles 14:16-17 NLT‬
[16] In the past he permitted all the nations to go their own ways, [17] but he never left them without evidence of himself and his goodness. For instance, he sends you rain and good crops and gives you food and joyful hearts.”

No matter how bad the people in the world are, God is always speaking.

  1. David said that God speaks from the sky.

‭Psalms 19:1-4 NLT‬
[1] “The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship. [2] Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. [3] They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard. [4] Yet their message has gone throughout the earth, and their words to all the world…. “

Science has even discovered, through radio telescopes, that some of the stars are beating out their message with sounds that echo throughout the universe.

  1. Paul said that God also speaks from the world around us.

‭Romans 1:20 NLT‬
[20]”For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.”

God speaks of His power and divine nature through His creation. Despite man’s abuse of creation, we see beauty and order everywhere when we choose to acknowledge God.

Only human foolishness, moral corruption, stands in the way of seeing God’s signature on everything. People do not believe in God because they choose to deny the evidence of His work. They do not want to believe.

‭2 Corinthians 4:4 NLT‬
[4] “Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe….”

  1. God speaks from inside of us.

‭Romans 2:14-15 NLT‬
[14] “Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. [15] They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right.”

Every child is born with a moral compass in his conscience. Instinctive guilt points to wrongdoing without his having to be taught right and wrong.

  1. Jesus is God’s last and final word.

‭Hebrews 1:1-2 NLT‬
[1]”Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets. [2] And now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son. God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son he created the universe.”

Despite sometimes wellmeaning (but still) false prophets who claim they speak from God, God has spoken His complete and final message to the world through Jesus. He has nothing more to say to us because Jesus has said it all. Jesus is His personal and living Word to the world. Much of modern prophecy adds to God’s word and is irrelevant at best and dangerous at worst.

‭John 1:1-2, 4-5 NLT‬
[1] “In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. [2] He existed in the beginning with God…
[4] The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. [5] The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.”

‭John 8:12 NLT‬
[12] Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”

  1. God speaks through His written Word.

Since God’s Word is light…

‭Psalms 119:105 NLT‬
[105] “Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.”

…and Jesus is the Word, we find the clearest and most powerful witness to the Father and His plan by ‘reading’ the Son. Everything Jesus said and did is God speaking to us. When we read Jesus, we discover that He is the only way to the Father.

  1. The Holy Spirit speaks through and about Jesus.

‭John 16:7, 12-15 NLT‬
[7] “But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you….”
[12] “There is so much more I want to tell you, but you can’t bear it now. [13] When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. [14] He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me. [15] All that belongs to the Father is mine; this is why I said, ‘The Spirit will tell you whatever he receives from me.’ “

The Holy Spirit also testifies to us that God has done His work in us through Jesus.

‭Romans 8:15-16 NLT‬
[15] “So, you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” [16] For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.”

  1. God speaks through His children.

We are Jesus’ witnesses.

‭Acts of the Apostles 1:8 NLT‬
[8]” But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

God speaks to the world through the changed lives of His children.

‭2 Corinthians 3:2-3 NLT‬
[2] “The only letter of recommendation we need is you yourselves. Your lives are a letter written in our hearts; everyone can read it and recognize our good work among you. [3] Clearly, you are a letter from Christ showing the result of our ministry among you. This “letter” is written not with pen and ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is carved not on tablets of stone, but on human hearts.”

‭Matthew 5:14-16 NLT‬
[14] “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. [15] No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. [16] In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.”

  1. He has covered the earth with His Word.

‭Habakkuk 2:14 NLT‬
[14]”For as the waters fill the sea, the earth will be filled with an awareness of the glory of the Lord.”

We live in an age of technology so marvellous that it is no longer possible to eradicate the Bible from the earth as people have tried to do in the past. The Internet guarantees that God’s Word is able to cover the earth. Everyone on earth, except those who remain in primitive isolation, has access to the Bible, mostly free of charge, via a smartphone. A tap on Playstore, or its equivalent, puts the Bible in our hands in almost any language in a few minutes.

So, the world is without excuse. Anyone can read, in the sky above, the world around, in the Son who came, in the book God gave, or in the the people who believe, or in the convicting work of the Holy Spirit through His witnesses, the message of God’s mercy in Christ Jesus. His rescue plan is for everyone who believes His message. He delivers from death and guarantees eternal life, if only people will read!

The Spirit Of Torah

Christian Life, , , , ,

THE SPIRIT OF TORAH

Unlike the other rabbis with s’mikhah (authority) who were permitted to make new interpretations of Torah, but who focused primarily on behaviour and actions, Jesus turned His hearers’ attention to the spirit of Torah, what He called ‘the more important matters of the law.’ (Matt. 23: 23). The Greek word translated “more important” has the connotation of “weight”, i.e., that which is heavy, which carries weight or is profound.

What is this “weight” of which Jesus spoke? To understand its meaning, we must go back to the Torah and look at its use there. Moses used the same word, “weight” (Hebrew kabod), when he asked God to show him His glory – kabod – Ex. 33:18. What was he asking? He was asking God to show him what was heaviest, weightiest or profoundest in Him – in His character as God.

This is how God responded:

And the LORD said, ‘I will cause all my goodness to pass by in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.’ (Ex. 33:19)

It seems, then, that the weightiest part of God’s character is His goodness (functionality) expressed in His mercy and compassion. This was confirmed by the prophet Micah who asked the question:

With what shall I come before the LORD and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? (Micah 6:6-7)

All the things that Micah has mentioned were requirements within the Torah but taken to the extreme. But at the same time, all of these were useless without the “weightier things” of Torah.

He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6: 8)

In Matt. 23, Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for their attention to detail but the absolute neglect of their heart attitude of mercy. They did the right thing as far as Halakhah was concerned but they missed the point of Yahweh’s Torah completely. Whatever Halakhah demanded was to be fulfilled in the spirit of Torah – justice, mercy and faithfulness. These “religious” Jews were so intent on gaining a reputation for their “piety” that they were completely phoney before God.

Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices – mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law – justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practised the latter without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel. (Matt. 23:23-24)

What was Jesus saying? Wherever the prescriptions of Halakhah came into conflict with the weightier matters of Torah, i.e. justice, mercy and faithfulness, Halakhah must give way.

Jesus’s many altercations with the religious leaders raged around the issue of mercy versus Halakhah. His call to Matthew to be a disciple and the subsequent banquet Matthew gave for Jesus with the disreputable element of society as his honoured guests, provoked a protest from the Pharisees.

When the Pharisees saw this, they asked His disciples, ‘Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and “sinners”?’

On hearing this, Jesus said, ‘It is not the healthy that need a doctor but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous but sinners.’ (Matt. 9:10-13)

A few days later the Pharisees went on the attack again. While Jesus and His disciples walked through a field of grain on the Sabbath, the men picked a few heads of grain and rubbed them in their hands because they were hungry. Always on the warpath, the Pharisees protested.

When the Pharisees saw this, they said to Him, ‘Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath.’ He answered, ‘Haven’t you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread – which is not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests . . . If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice’, you would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.’ (Matt. 12:1-4; 7-8)

It is quite obvious that they had not learned the lesson. As far as Jesus was concerned, wherever mercy and Halakhah clashed, mercy took precedence, even when it came to the simple matter of hunger over what was lawful according to Torah. Every requirement of Torah had to be fulfilled in the spirit of Torah for it to be what God intended.

Scripture is taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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ISBN: Softcover – 978-1-4828-0512-3,                                                                              eBook 978-4828-0511-6

Available on www.amazon.com in paperback, e-book or Kindle version, on www.takealot.com  or order directly from the publisher at www.partridgepublishing.com.

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The Future Is Assured

Bible Study, , , ,

THE FUTURE IS ASSURED

“Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Psalm 23:6.

Surely? David is making an assumption, but based on what? If this is what the past has taught me, then surely my future is assured. Past experience has shown me that I have a shepherd who has cared and provided for me throughout my life, rescued me from my own foolish ways, and brought me this far in safety. Surely, then, I can say that the same goodness and love that has followed me all my life will be there to take me home.

What is this goodness and love that has followed me all the days of my life? If we replace the word “goodness” with the word “functionality”, something amazing comes to light.

“And God saw all that he had made, and it was very good…” Genesis 1:31a.

“What did God mean when He said, “It was very good”? Was is pleasing to His eye? The Hebrew word tov is best translated as “functional” rather than “good”. God saw His creation as functioning properly, or, as we might say, working like a well-oiled machine.” (The Living Words Volume 1 by Jeff Benner, published 2007 by Virtualbookworm.com Publishing Inc, P O Box 9949, College Station, TX 77845, USA).

God’s creation worked. Everything functioned perfectly and interactively, revealing a God of perfect order and unity. Since God is good (functional), everything He made was functional because it reflected Him. It was Adam, through his disobedience, who introduced dysfuntionality, causing every part of the universe to go out of sync.

David learned through the course of his life that, when he submitted himself to the shepherd and walked in His ways, he became functional, all the circumstances of his life working together for his benefit. He also learned, to his dismay, that disobedience plunged him, his family and his kingdom back into dyfunctionality. Unfortunately, the consequences of disobedience were far-reaching, bringing dysfuntionality to generations after him which not even repentance could reverse.

Now let’s read this verse with new understanding:

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28.

And we know that God is using all the circumstances of those who love Him to restore them to functionality again because that’s His purpose. He wants us to live in harmony with Him and with each other just as His Son, Jesus did as a human being on earth. Since it is He determined goal make us functional again, He will dog our footsteps, day and night, with goodness to achieve what He has set out to do.

And what about love? The King James Version translates the word chesed as “mercy”. It is the mercy of God which He shows to us within a covenant bond in which He pledges His everlasting love. It is an unbreakable bond which has been sealed in blood. God has promised to do good to His covenant people always. His goodness and mercy are relentless companions wherever we go because He cannot and will not break His promise.

“I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me, so that they will never turn away from me.” Jeremiah 32:40.

In spite of Israel’s unfaithfulness, God pledged to do good to them within the covenant of His chesed, His loving kindness.

Because Yahweh, my shepherd’s goodness and love relentlessly pursue me, day after day in this life, I am assured that I will eventually be made to abide and remain forever, in His eternal day, in His name, which is a fortress of safety and protection.

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.