Tuesday, May 23, 2017, 8:26 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “Oh, To Be Like Thee.” Speak, Lord, your
words to my heart. I read Psalm 103
(quoting select vv. NASB).
Bless the Lord
(vv. 1-5)
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And all that is within me, bless His holy name.
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget none of His benefits;
Who pardons all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases;
Who redeems your life from the pit,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion;
Who satisfies your years with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.
On bended knee, in all
humility of spirit, we are to adore, magnify, praise and thank our Lord for all
that he has done for us. God the Father sent his Son Jesus Christ to the earth
to take on human flesh, and to die on a cross for our sins. He who knew no sin
became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God (2 Co. 5:21). Jesus
died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness (1 Pet. 2:24). So, we
must die with him to sin and self so that we can be resurrected with him to
newness of life. Sometimes we, too, will have to accept being treated as though
we have done wrong when we haven’t, and in order to see others come to
salvation from sin.
We need to always remember
all that Jesus Christ did for us. Not only did he become sin for us so that our
sins would die and be buried with him, and not only was he resurrected from the
dead, victorious over sin, Satan and death, but he took our punishment for sin
on him so that we might live with him for eternity. Sometimes, we, too, will be
punished for things we did not do, but if we bear up under unjust suffering,
and keep loving and forgiving our persecutors, we might win their hearts to
Jesus. We must always keep in perspective where we were before Jesus saved us
from our sins so that we don’t lose patience with others who are still bound in
sin’s deceitfulness.
By God’s grace, through
God-given faith in Jesus Christ, we are forgiven our sins, delivered from both
the punishment of and the slavery to sin, and set free to now walk in the
Spirit in Christ’s righteousness and holiness. We were once bound for hell, in
the pit of despair, chained as prisoners to sin, but Jesus set us free! He
turned us from darkness (sin, wickedness) to light (truth, righteousness) and
from the power of Satan to God so that we could be forgiven our sins, and have
a place among those who are sanctified (purified, made righteous, holy) by
faith in Jesus Christ (Acts 26:16-18).
Those Who Fear Him (vv. 11-14)
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear
Him.
As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
Just as a father has compassion on his children,
So the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him.
For He Himself knows our frame;
He is mindful that we are but dust.
Even though Jesus died for
the sins of the world, not everyone is saved from their sins. We have to each
individually believe in him with God-given faith which is divinely persuaded as
to his perfect will for our lives. Since it is God-given faith, and not human
faith which saves us, this faith is in agreement with God regarding our sin,
and it conforms to Christ’s righteousness and holiness through the power and
working of God’s Holy Spirit within our lives. When this takes place, and we
have repented of our sins, in all humility, we are crucified with Christ in
death to sin, and we are resurrected with him to newness of life, created to be
like God in true righteousness and holiness (See: Eph. 4:17-24; Ro. 6:1-23;
Gal. 2:20).
God’s lovingkindness is,
thus, extended towards those who fear him; as well as he has compassion on
those who fear him. He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from
the west. Amen! Yet, this is not talking about being afraid of him, but it is
speaking of treating him with honor, respect, value, obedience, reverence,
submission, devotion, commitment, and loyalty, etc. And, this is about giving
him our love, steadfastness, fidelity (faithfulness), and our worship. And, the
way in which we worship him is by giving our lives to him, as living
sacrifices, holy and pleasing to him, which is our reasonable service of
worship to him – no longer conformed to the ways of this sinful world, but
transformed in mind and heart of the Spirit of God.
We Who Serve Him (vv. 19-22)
The Lord has established His throne in the heavens,
And His sovereignty rules over all.
Bless the Lord, you His angels,
Mighty in strength, who perform His word,
Obeying the voice of His word!
Bless the Lord, all you His hosts,
You who serve Him, doing His will.
Bless the Lord, all you works of His,
In all places of His dominion;
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
Our God is absolutely
sovereign and in control over all he has made. He also has full authority over
all powers in heaven and on earth. It is important that we remember this,
especially when things get pretty bad, at times, or when we are being
persecuted and put to the test for our faith and for our testimonies for Jesus
Christ. There is nothing that escapes his notice, or that he does not have the
power to change according to his will. He created Lucifer knowing he would
rebel, and he let him live, knowing he would tempt Eve to sin against God, and
then that Eve would lead her husband Adam to sin with her. In fact, he created
Adam and Eve knowing full well that they would sin, and that he would have to
banish them from the Garden, and that he would then put a curse on them and on
the earth. But, he had a plan, even from the beginning, that he would send his
Son to die for our sins.
God created angels to be his
servants and messengers, and to give him praise, honor and glory. Yet, his
angels are not his only servants. We who have trusted in Jesus Christ to be
Lord and Savior of our lives are also his servants and messengers, whom he
created for his glory to worship him, and to obey his voice to us, and to do
what his Word teaches us. Jesus died, not just so we might die to sin and live
to righteousness, but also that we might no longer live for ourselves, but for
him who gave his life up for us (2 Co. 5:15). His grace to us is not just so we
can escape hell and have the promise of heaven when we die. His grace, which
brings salvation, teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions,
and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives while we wait for Christ’s
return (Tit. 2:11-14). For, this is why he died, to transform us, not just to save
us.
Oh, to Be Like Thee, Blessed Redeemer
Thomas O. Chisholm / W. J. Kirkpatrick
Oh, to be like Thee! blessèd Redeemer,
This is my constant longing and prayer;
Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s
treasures,
Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.
Oh, to be like Thee! full of
compassion,
Loving, forgiving, tender and kind,
Helping the helpless, cheering the
fainting,
Seeking the wandering sinner to find.
O to be like Thee! lowly in spirit,
Holy and harmless, patient and brave;
Meekly enduring cruel reproaches,
Willing to suffer others to save.
O to be like Thee! while I am pleading,
Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy
love;
Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling,
Fit me for life and Heaven above.
Oh, to be like Thee! Oh, to be like
Thee,
Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;
Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy
fullness;
Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.
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