Thursday, January 10,
2013, 5:03 a.m. – the Lord Jesus woke me with the song “I Will Lift My Eyes” playing in my mind. Speak, Lord, your words
to my heart. I read Psalm 119:41-48
(NIV 1984):
May your unfailing
love come to me, O Lord,
your salvation according to your promise;
then I will answer the
one who taunts me,
for I trust in your word.
Do not snatch the word
of truth from my mouth,
for I have put my hope in your laws.
I will always obey
your law,
for ever and ever.
I will walk about in
freedom,
for I have sought out your precepts.
I will speak of your
statutes before kings
and will not be put to shame,
for I delight in your
commands
because I love them.
I lift up my hands to
your commands, which I love,
and I meditate on your decrees.
God’s Love
The psalmist prayed for God’s unfailing love to come to him;
for his salvation, according to God’s promise. We learn in scripture that “God
so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in
him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). That is the crux of
the gospel. In Romans 5:8 we read: “But God demonstrates his own love for us in
this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” And, in Eph. 2:3-5 we
read this about God’s love: “All of us also lived among them at one time,
gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and
thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his
great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even
when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.” Amen!
Jesus Christ, God the Son, came to earth, took on human
flesh, was born as a baby, suffered as we suffer, was tempted as we are tempted,
yet without sin, and he was hung on a cross to die a cruel death, although he
had done no wrong. When he died, our sins died with him, and when he was buried
in the tomb, our sins were buried with him, but when he rose from the grave, he
rose triumphantly over hell, Satan, death and our sin. Amen! Jesus Christ gave
his blood on the cross so that we could go free from the ultimate penalty of
sin (eternal damnation), so we could be free from slavery to sin, and so we could
be free to walk daily in obedience to Christ and to his commands in sweet
fellowship with our Lord.
My Freedom
The psalmist said he would walk about in freedom, for he
sought out God’s precepts. We hear often that Jesus Christ came to set us free.
Yet, what does that mean for us in all practicality? How can what Christ did
for us be appropriated to our lives individually?
In Romans 6:6-7 we read: “For we know that our old self was
crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we
should no longer be slaves to sin— because anyone who has died has been freed
from sin.” So, if we want to be free in Christ Jesus, our old self has to die,
and that will result in us no longer being slaves to (under the control of)
sin. Jesus said: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take
up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose
it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man
to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?” Again, we must
die daily to sin and self if we want to walk in freedom. And, we must follow
our Lord Jesus Christ in obedience to his will for our lives (cf. Eph. 4).
Not only do we die so we can be free from slavery to sin,
but we die to our old way of living according to self and sin so that we can become
slaves to righteousness. And, this is very important that we understand this: “When
you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness” (Ro.
6:20). We can’t serve two masters. If we claim to have fellowship with God and
yet we still walk in darkness (sin), we are liars says 1 John 1:6. We can’t be
under the control of righteousness, and walk in faith, love and purity of heart
if we are still under the control of sin. So, if we want to experience true
freedom in Christ Jesus, our Lord, we must willingly die to (relinquish; abrogate)
our old ways of living according to our fleshly desires, and we must follow our
Lord in obedience. The benefit we reap from this complete change of heart and
mind leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life (see Ro. 6:22).
His Word
The psalmist said he trusted in God’s word, that he would
walk about in freedom because he sought out God’s statutes (his word), and that
he delighted in God’s commands. When we believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and
Savior, by God’s grace and through faith in (repentance and obedience to) Jesus
Christ, we begin to develop a relationship with God just like we would a new
friend or a new companion. The Lord speaks to us in many ways, but the two
primary ways in which he speaks to us is through his word and through his Holy
Spirit who has now come to live within us who obey Christ (see Acts 5:32; Heb.
5:9). So, it is essential for our spiritual growth and our walk in freedom with
our Lord that we are daily in his word, feeding on him, drinking in its truth,
and that we obey fully what we are taught. As well, it is also essential that
we spend time in prayer each day, talking with our Lord, sharing with him what
is on our hearts, confessing our sins, giving thanks and praise to God, and
bringing our requests to him - talking with him, listening to him, and then
obeying him.
My Testimony
The psalmist prayed that God’s word would not be snatched
from his mouth, and he declared that he would speak of God’s statutes before
kings and would not be put to shame, for he delighted in God’s commands.
Awesome! Paul, in Rom. 1:16 said: “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it
is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” As well, Paul
encouraged Timothy to not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, but to join
with him in suffering for the gospel (see 2 Tim. 1:8). And, in 1 Pet. 4:16 we
are encouraged to not be ashamed to suffer as a Christian, but to praise God
that we bear that name. Amen!
Another very important aspect of our walk in freedom is
giving testimony of God’s saving grace to other people. We are the light of the
world, so we should let our light (Jesus Christ; his gospel; our salvation; the
truth of God’s word) shine before men (see Matt 5:13-16), and we should not
hide that light in order to be accepted by people. Also, Jesus Christ
commissioned us, his disciples, to make disciples (of Christ) of all nations,
baptizing them and teaching them to obey all that Christ Jesus has commanded us
(see Matt. 28:19-20). And, he told his disciples that they would receive power after
the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they would be Christ’s witnesses throughout
the world (see Acts 1:8).
We now receive the Holy Spirit of God within us when we come
to faith in Jesus Christ, and thus we should be Christ’s witnesses, and we
should be making disciples for Christ, teaching them to obey Christ’s
commandments. We should not allow the words of God to be snatched from our
lips, but we should continually be speaking forth the gospel of Jesus Christ
and telling others of his great love and his salvation.
My Praise
The psalmist said he would lift up his hands to God’s
commands, which he loved, and he would meditate on all God’s decrees. Oh, that
we would all love the word of the Lord in this way!
Can we honestly say that we love God’s commands and that we
lift our hands and hearts in praise to God for the truths of his word, and mean
it? What we truly love and what we treasure most will be evident by what we
give our time, attention, devotion, heart, emotion, commitment, and service to.
If we say we love God’s word and we lift our hands in praise to our Lord for
his commandments and yet we barely even open our Bibles to see what he says, and
we don’t obey the truths which we read, then it is false praise and a false
confession of love of God’s holy word.
The psalmist said he delighted in God’s commands. Do we? He
trusted (believed in; put his hope in) God’s word. Do we truly? Or, do we trust
more in men’s wisdom and our own resources? He said he always obeyed God’s law.
Do we? – Not with absolute perfection, but is it our goal, and do we purpose in
all that we do to obey all that God teaches us? The psalmist said he sought out
God’s precepts. Do we truly seek God’s word in such a way as to desire to know
his will for our lives and then to do it? And, he said he would speak of God’s
statutes before kings. Do we speak the truths of God’s word to others?
When we seek out God’s truths; when we put our trust in his
word instead of in men or in our own resources and intellect; when we speak of
his statutes even to those in positions of power, rule and authority; and when
we delight in, love, praise, and obey God’s commands, then this is true
freedom, and this is true praise!
I Will Lift My Eyes
/ An Original Work / December 12, 2012
Based off Psalms 121-125
I will lift my eyes
To my Lord Most High.
My help comes from
Him,
Who saved me from sin.
He will not let your
foot slip, and
He who watches will
not sleep.
Our Lord watches over
you, and
Your life He will keep.
I will lift my eyes
To my Lord Most High.
My help comes from
Him,
Who saved me from sin.
I give thanks to Him.
I will lift my eyes
To my God in heav’n.
I look to the Lord.
My sins, He’s
forgiv’n.
Because of His great
love for us,
He made us alive with
Christ.
Through the kindness
of our Savior,
He gave us new life.
I will lift my eyes
To my God in heav’n.
I look to the Lord.
My sins, He’s
forgiv’n.
My home now in heav’n.
Praise be to the Lord,
Who is on our side.
Our help found in Him.
He gives peace within.
Those who trust will
ne’er be shaken.
God will supply all we
need.
Our Lord has done
great things for us.
He’s our friend,
indeed!
Praise be to the Lord,
Who is on our side.
Our help found in Him.
He gives peace within.
I can count on Him.
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