God is always faithful...His people are FORGETFUL! Don't you wish that the LORD could say about you, "I always had to be careful what I told him, because I knew he'd do it!" That is what the owner said about his dog who burned to death as he stood guard over the man's lunch. After the fire was dead, the man found the charred body of his faithful dog standing by the charred lunch! Oh, that the LORD would find us so faithful!
Psa. 105 exalts God's faithfulness to His people Israel - describes His grace and mercy - proclaims God's wonderful treatment of them; Psa. 106 describes Israel's unfaithfulness toward Him - their failure and sin - laments their miserable mistreatment of the LORD.
The LORD sustained the Israelites. We are reminded over and over to REMEMBER! Do you remember or do you allow your thoughts instead to stray to complaining and grumbling as the Israelites?
The song "We Will Remember" is a commitment that each of us should make. Remember suggests more than mer recollection...it describes one prepared to take action. God remembers His promises ALWAYS in All Ways FOREVER! God began His covenant purpose with Israel when He called Abraham and continued and confirmed His word continuously. The psalmist recounted God's past faithfulness to Israel and affirmed His everlasting faithfulness.
Are you tempted to say, "Those Israelites were certainly a sorry band of sinners!"??? The psalmist told the truth! and we must be truthful as we take an introspective look! Is your personal history one of obedience and dedication, then disobedience and ultimately establishment of an idol in your life, then repentence and confession...and so the vicious cycle goes????
The purpose of the psalm is not to condemn Israel, but to extol the Lord for His lognsuffering and mercy toward His people. Praise the LORD for His longsuffering in our lives!!!
Before the psalmist looked back on the failures of the people or looked around at the ruins of the kingdom, he looked UP and gave thanks to God!!! "even when we are unfaithful, He is faithful, He cannot demy Himself." The psalmist also looked within as he was penitent and confessed his sins and the sins of the people.
To study this psalm is much like witnessing an autopsy...but we will benefit from it if we keep our eyes on the LORD and see His kindness and faithfulness to His sinful people.
Reminders of history: As the Israelites faced the Red Sea ahead and the Egyptian army behind...they had the choice...respond in fear, panic and unbelief...OR
They had witnessed the mighty power of God as He had devastated Egypt with plagues. They were looking back instead of looking up and were walking by sight and not by faith. You would think that the miracle of crossing the Red Sea on dry ground would have assured them for all the trials to come, but they did not take it to heart or understand Goid's ways. What has been your "Red Sea" experience? Do you remember the victory of walking across on the dry ground of His grace????
Those Israelites were spectators at a performance, not participants in a miracle. But are we any different today?
The people were slow to remember God's past deeds but quick to rush ahead and ignore His desires. They grumbled and complained That is the opposite of walking by faith in the promises of God Phil 2:14-15. We must resist the temptation to yield to our fleshly cravings..."I want seasonings, onions, garlic, the niceties of life (in Egypt).
Korah rebelled...he blamed Moses and claimed that the nation needed new leadership (political candidates have been doing this ever since.) Korah and his fellow rebels were not satisfied with their role in life - do you ever experience that? "Lord, you know I am tired of working in the kitchen, or being under this boss, of not having what my neighbor has...and on and on." Pride and selfish ambition have always brough trouble to God's people. Respect for God's leaders is important to the success of the Loird. work. (Heb.13:7,17)
Oh, then do you remember? They didn't like what Moses was doing! yet, when he went up on the mountain and stayed longer than they thought he should, they began to cry for a god they could see. So, they collected the gold jewelry and Aaron molded a calf for the people to see and worship. They rejected the eternal God for a man-made piece of gold that could not see, hear, speak or act!!!
Moses stood for the people. He stood in the gap for them...v.23...are you standing in the gap for someone? Are you interceding - intercessory prayer? Check out the new Loving One Another Through Prayer blog. Pray for your classmates!
Oh, yes, remember the failed entrance into Canaan: Instead of trusting God to give them the land as He promised, they appointed a committee to suvey the land. Israel did not need more facts; they needed to exercise faith!!! Ten spies who gave a majority bad report. That is what happens when we want our own way and refuse to trust the Lord and obey Him.
There is a high cost to willful disobedience to the LORD. His people yielded to their fleshly desires and tasted the wrath of God - more and more demonstration of carnality. Moses, too, as he became proud and angry, took for himself the glory that belonged only to the Lord.
The record goes on as we read the repeated rebellion. After entering Canaan and He gave them victory over the nations, they settled down to enjoy the land and serve the Lord. They were faithful all during the leadership of Joshua and the elders that he selected and trained, but when the THIRD generation came along, they compromised and began to serve the false gods of their defeated enemies. They had "married" Jehovah at Sinai, but now they prostitued themselves to idols and grieved the Lord, inviting His chastening.
PARENTS AND GRANDPARENTS stay on guard! Not only must we teach our children and grandchildren RIGHT, but we must recognize the Source of right consistently. Rules without the Indwelling Ruler are futile although they may appear legimately spiritual on the surface. A nation lapsed into idolatry again and again and the cycle was repeated.
WHAT ABOUT in your life? Do you lapse into idolatry without recognizing the idol? Embrace in your heart and memory and teach it to your children and your descendants:
IDOLATRY IS: any thing, any one that usurps the position of the Lord in your life. Could it be that you "cover your sin with 'fig leaves' rather than the blood of the precious Lamb"?
Blaze the trail for your descendants! Dynamite idolatry from your life every time it comes into your life. Others see our idols...success? position? ministry? money? prestige? a child? children? a relationship? a feeling? food? MY comfort? MY rights? and on and on.
No comments:
Post a Comment