Psalm 112… The NIV Study Bible calls it “A Eulogy to the Godly.” I’d call it “Another Song in Honor of Those Who Love/Delight in God’s Word” (it’s like Psalm 1 in that regard). Perhaps another title would be “A HYMN IN HONOR OF THE RIGHTEOUS LIFE!”
You really ought to read it today… I did! And I’m still enjoying the afterglow!! Here’s just a taste…
“Praise the Lord!
Blessed are those who fear [reverence] the Lord, who find great delight in His commands.
Their children will be mighty in the land;
the generation of the upright will be blessed!
Wealth and riches are in their houses,
And THEIR RIGHTEOUSNESS ENDURES FOREVER!
Even in darkness light dawns for the upright, for those who are gracious and compassionate and righteous…
Surely the righteous will never be shaken; they will be remembered forever!
They will have no fear of bad news; their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord.
Their hearts are secure…
They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor,
THEIR RIGHTEOUSNESS ENDURES FOREVER!”
(from Psalm 112 NIV)
Gotta tell you… I want to live my life like that! I want God’s blessing on my life, don’t you!
HOW TO BE AN “OVERCOMER” is a big issue in the Christian life! Before we experienced “salvation” we were bound by sin – a terrible spiritual disease that ultimately leads to “death” (Romans 3:23) But the challenge we often struggle with after salvation is “THE FLESH” (i.e. the natural self under the temptation and influence of sin). WE NEED HELP – DIVINE HELP – TO BE AN “OVERCOMER!”
So today, I read a passage that addresses that issue – that challenge …Galatians 5:16-24! Here is some of what it says…
“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of ‘the flesh!’…
“Now the works of ‘the flesh’ are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealously, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, division, envy drunkenness, orgies, and this like these [some of the symptoms of ‘the flesh’ – the ‘sin disease] I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God!
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control… those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified ‘the flesh’ with its passions and desires!”
So we need help to be an “overcomer” – divine help! God has provided Someone not only to diagnose our problems but also to provide a remedy – the Holy Spirit! Sounds like a “divine doctor” to me!
So I asked my physician son-in-law, Dr. Timothy Dresselhaus, about what are some reliable, accurate diagnostic tools he was aware of. He told me “a highly specific and sensitive test is ‘coronary angiography,’ which is ‘the gold standard’ for Coronary Artery Disease.” Several years ago I had a “heart episode” and took a battery of tests to determine the problem … they ran all kinds of tests and by the time they finished they appeared know the faintest whisper of my heart.
The Holy Spirit knows my “spiritual challenges” better than anyone! He prompts, warns, “convinces and convicts” me when I am about to engage in “fleshly living!” (John 16:7-8) But He also prompts and empowers me to produce “the fruit of the Spirit!” I need to live in continual sensitivity to His work within me!
Don’t know about you, but I need a periodic diagnosis by the Holy Spirit and the prescription and empowerment He provides to become AN “OVERCOMER!”
There are those passages in the Bible that speak with a “punch” – with “Apostolic authority” (“Apostolic” with a capital “A” – not a small “a”). Apostle Paul was not “fooling around” when he wrote what he did to the “Christians” in the churches in and near Ephesus – he was “inspired” and spoke directly to the issues, influences and challenges they were facing as “the body of Christ” – the Church in his day and time.
The passage where Apostle Paul addresses His concerns is Ephesians 5:3-12 – a part of my Bible reading this morning during “coffee with the Lord” (you should take time to read it for yourself)…
And nothing has really changed… The challenges and evil influences the Church faced as “the body of Christ” within the Roman culture are in many ways replicated in ours! The temptation today, as then, very often would lead us to compromise in the area of moral purity and distinctive, transformed living in thought, speech and action.
So here goes my attempt to re-present Paul’s challenge…
The expectation:
Christians should be “new and different people” – transformed by faith in Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit. Moral purity is expected from them in sexual matters, speech, humor and the expression of their desires… The “mores” (the evil practices of the broader culture) “should not even be named among them” according to Apostle Paul). Instead “thanksgiving,” holy living and the pursuit of “what would please the Lord” should characterize those who claim to have been “born again!”
And the warning?
“You may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous [and note that this covetousness is in a “moral purity” context] – i.e. “lust”) has no inheritance in the king of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the son of disobedience. Therefor do not become partners with them!” (vss. 5-7)
The expectation and the warning is pretty clear wouldn’t you say? GOD HELP US TO BE A “NEW AND DIFFERENT” PEOPLE BY GOD’S POWER AND GRACE!
Coffee With The Lord 