"Praise the Lord, for it is good to sing praises to our God, for it is pleasant, and praise is beautiful." Psalm 147:1 “Praise is beautiful…” What does the Lord hear from us? Are our prayers mostly complaints? Are most of our prayers "gimme?" or "please change things?" The Lord is the lover of our souls and desires that he be the beloved in our eyes. When a person first falls in love all he can think of is the wonderful things about the loved one. His words are words of love, not complaint, and "gimme" is not part of his vocabulary. So it should be toward the Lord, he desires that in our eyes he be greatly loved and appreciated and praised as the cherished one of our hearts. We sometimes lose sight of just how great our God is. They say that there are billions of galaxies - not stars – galaxies of stars. The multitude of the stars within them is beyond what any man could number, yet our God created each and every single one of them, one at a time, and even calls each one by name. vs 4: "He counts the number of the stars, he calls them all by name." The ability to create a star presents to us a picture of the greatness of God. Could a man ever create or make a star? If all the scientists in the world got together and put all their talents and understanding and knowledge together, they would not be able to make a single star, never mind billions of them. This God of creation is mighty in power, it is nothing to him to create a galaxy. His understanding is infinite. Consider the smartest, most knowledgeable of men. Truly, it is God himself who GAVE each of them knowledge, talented them with gifts, yet they forget that their knowledge is very small, and pride swells their hearts. The foolishness of pride is seen in the greatest of men. We are so used to seeing the clouds, the rain, the grass growing, that we forget there is a creator behind it who is causing it all to work together in real time. We know spring follows winter and summer follows spring, but because it is so constant we forget that God is holding it all together. God is intimately involved in all the workings of all of nature even though we live on a tiny planet revolving around a comparatively tiny sun. Our planet is so small that it could be negligible and forgotten, yet God watches over every single thing that is needed for it to continue. vs 8: "Who covers the heavens with clouds, who prepares rain for the earth, who makes grass to grow on the mountains." There are men who say we humans are causing changes in the ecology of our planet. God chuckles at their ignorance. No, it is God and God alone who controls the seasons, the heat and cold, and it is God who sends his Word to melt the ice and snow. It is God and God alone who sends the wind and makes the waters flow. Telling mankind that people are causing any change in the ecology of this planet is a direct slap in the face to the One who truly IS in control of it - and that's the point, men want to rob God of the glory that is his alone by ascribing to man what man certainly is not the cause of. vs 17-18: "He casts out his hail like morsels; who can stand before his cold? He sends out his Word and melts them; he causes his wind to blow, and the waters flow." "Professing to be wise, they became fools..." Romans 1:22 In this generation men bow before the god of "science," and ascribe to science the glory that belongs to God - in deliberate opposition against him. "O Timothy, keep that which is committed to your trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of SCIENCE FALSELY SO CALLED..." 1st Timothy 6:20
"And you shall remember that the Lord your God
led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness,
to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart,
whether you would keep his commandments or not."
Deuteronomy 8:2
"...to HUMBLE you."
The sin of pride was the sin that caused the downfall of Satan. He had it all. He was the most beautiful and wise angel in heaven. After awhile, the accolades got to him and he felt invincible. He began to think on how he might rival God himself. He managed to persuade a third of the angels in heaven to follow him in a revolt against God. He lost, of course, and was dethroned and expelled from heaven.
When God created Adam, Satan was jealous. God had done something without Satan's valuable input, and God made great promises to the human race, which absolutely enraged Satan. God gave Adam what Satan so craved, he gave Adam authority over the earth. In his hatred, Satan knew that the one way he could oppose God was to turn Adam against him, cause Adam to sin and lose his standing with God just as he had, and then Adam would also lose his authority over the earth. Satan succeeded in causing Adam's rebellion which resulted in corrupting the human race, and from his new standpoint of claiming authority over man, Satan has proceeded down through the ages to corrupt and pervert and oppose all that God loves, and all that God does with man.
If you understand this thoroughly, it will become obvious why God so hates pride. Pride was the cause of Satan's fall, and pride is the greatest tool in Satan's hands which he uses to bring men down. Therefore, when a person is born again into the Kingdom of God and begins his journey with the Lord, God will always be watching for pitfalls of pride because the danger in pride is so great. It's the most effective tool Satan can foster - that can cause a man to be lost.
vs 3:
"So he humbled you, allowed you to hunger,
and fed you with manna which you did not know
nor did your fathers know,
that he might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone,
but man lives by every Word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord."
Throughout the journey of the believer, man will come again and again to the end of his resources, only to find the provision of God that comes seemingly out of the blue. After awhile, the man will realize that the most important thing he can do in his walk is to "live by every Word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord." In other words, when he comes to a problem that is insurmountable, his heart must be trained to bring the problem to God because only God can speak a Word that will bring the solution.
In the Bible's Book of Exodus, the Jews left Egypt and the armies of Egypt were following them to destroy them. The Jews see behind them the advancing armies, and they see before them the sea. They are caught in a predicament for which there is no solution. BUT GOD ...came to their rescue, and that - in a very supernatural way! The sea parted and they went across on dry land. No sooner had the last foot crossed to the other side, when the walls of the sea returned to normal, covering the enemy army which drowned in the sea.
This is the way a believer has to walk with God. The Lord gave this mighty example for us in order to make us know that his ways are trustworthy and there's no limit to his power. We can know for a surety that in all the stories we journey through, God will provide the solution for the times when there are no solutions. This is the walk of faith - not expecting to control everything with our own resources and through own smarts, but instead to not resist being humbled because in our humility we will see the power of God.
vs 4:
“Your garments did not wear out on you,
nor did your foot swell these forty years."
This means that in all of their journey, God provided for them in a supernatural way.
Didn't Jesus say:
“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’
or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’
for after all these things the Gentiles seek.
For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
But seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness,
and all these things shall be added to you."
Matthew 6:31-33
Always pay attention when the Lord says "if," or "but." This passage in Matthew, this Word proceeding from the mouth of the Lord, states that your life must not be centered around worrying about material needs; no, God is saying that IF you spend your life seeking FIRST the Kingdom of God, as each believer is called to do, THEN all your material needs will be met as surely as they were provided for the Jews in the forty years of their journey through the wilderness. When they had no water, God provided water ...flowing out of a rock!
And thus he will do for us. Where there is no way, he will make a way. If you are seeking FIRST his Kingdom and his righteousness, your provision is guaranteed. I have walked with him for many years, through some very, very rough and very, very scary times, but I have never lacked a thing. And on many, VERY many occasions, the provision came in totally unexpected and surprising ways, which is oftentimes God's way of strengthening us in the faith. It's a principle you can trust, because it's Almighty God who guarantees it.
"Jesus said to her, 'Did I not say to you that if you would believe
you would see the glory of God?'”
John 11:40
"Now the son of an Israelite woman,
whose father was an Egyptian,
went out among the children of Israel;
and this Israelite woman’s son and a man of Israel
fought each other in the camp.
And the Israelite woman’s son
blasphemed the Name of the Lord and cursed;
and so they brought him to Moses."
Leviticus 24:10-11
Today, cursing the Name of the Lord is hardly recognized as a sin, and certainly not judged a crime worthy of the death penalty. People are used to thinking as society thinks, it's the way they grew up. People don't think about sin anymore, today's society says that's just so old fashioned. Men have risen up teaching that sin is an archaic idea that was based on Scriptures that were written thousands of years ago and no longer relevant in today's world. But those are lies. God's Word does NOT change with the times, it remains forever because it is the Word of God.
"For I am the Lord, I do not change;"
Malachi 3:6
"The grass withers, and its flower falls away,
but the Word of the Lord endures forever.”
1st Peter 1:24-25
Moses was directed by God to pronounce the death penalty upon the man who cursed the Name of God.
"And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
'Take outside the camp him who has cursed;
then let all who heard him lay their hands on his head,
and let all the congregation stone him.'"
Leviticus 24:13-14
vs 16:
"...whoever blasphemes the Name of the Lord shall surely be put to death."
To the modern mind this seems crazy, it seems so extreme. Why is it so serious that it should bring the death penalty? Why were so many of the sins listed in the Old Testament worthy of something as drastic as the death penalty? Well Scripture answers this question for us:
"For whatever things were written before
WERE WRITTEN FOR OUR LEARNING…"
Romans 15:4
Man needs to know the seriousness of sin. The death penalty for sins in the Old Testament were a demonstration of the truth: "the wages of sin is death." Romans 6:23 (NEW Testament)
In today's society everything is relative. Little white lies are laughed at. The huge sins are those most people don't commit, murder, rape, incest, etc.
The whole point is to drive home the DEADLINESS of sin. ALL sin. Because once one has broken the law of God, he's broken the whole law, just as breaking a glass breaks the whole glass. One who has broken the law of God is forever guilty.
"For whoever shall keep the whole law,
and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all."
James 2:10
The law is broken. The glass is broken.
And the penalty for sin is death, both in the Old Testament and in the New:
"For the wages of sin is death…"
Romans 6:2
Once a man understands this, what will his reaction be? If he truly understands it, he will become aware of the hopeless burden of guilt he bears. Whether it's in "minor" sin or great sin, the penalty of sin is death. When he truly understands this, he will realize he is TOTALLY LOST.
God knew that all of mankind is lost, and God himself provided the solution. He sent his Son into the world for one purpose: to take upon himself the penalty of our sin and bear the curse of sin on himself - in our place - suffering ...death. The solution the Lord provided is the ONLY solution, and it is granted to him who turns to the Savior, confessing his sin and in all humility asking the Savior to save him. If he is willing to surrender his sinful self to the Lord Jesus Christ, pardon is granted because Jesus Christ has paid the penalty on his behalf. But it's all or nothing. He receives the atonement made for him by Jesus Christ, or he dies in his sin. (John 8:24)
That is why the Gospel is exclusive. No other religion provides atonement for sin. God only provided one way.
Why were there two criminals crucified with Jesus on that hill that day on Calvary?
Those two criminals represented all of sinful mankind, because all of mankind is guilty. One rejected Christ with sarcasm, the other criminal humbled himself before the Lord and asked him to remember him when he came into his Kingdom. The first represented all who reject the Savior, and the second represented all who receive him. The first sinner was lost. The second sinner, equally guilty, was saved. It's all or nothing.
Which are you?