Psalms 33:8-12 ESV
“Let all the earth fear the Lord;
let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!
For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.
The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
he frustrates the plans of the peoples.
The counsel of the Lord stands forever,
the plans of his heart to all generations.
Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people whom he has chosen as his heritage!”
The fear of the Lord is awe and respect for him. It is
giving him honor and praise. It is obeying his commandments under the New
Covenant. And it is believing his Word to us who are Christ’s followers, and it
is taking his words seriously and acting accordingly. But it seems not many
people today here in America, anyway, are walking in the fear of the Lord. So
many professers of faith in Christ have gone the way of the world, sadly so.
As followers of Jesus Christ we are to get our counsel from
God and from his Word and not from the world. For the world does not have the
mind of Christ. And the world is not interested in whether or not we obey the
Lord. So, be very careful whose counsel you listen to, for even if it comes
from a professing Christian or even from a pastor it does not necessarily mean
that it is godly counsel. It could be worldly counsel.
And we should not put our trust or our hope in the people of
this world or in human governments of the people, either. For, it appears not
many of them are following the Lord Jesus and are leading their people in the
ways of the Lord. So many of them do not have our best interest at heart,
either, but they are following agendas of other people who are not following
God with their lives. And that can be seen by the decisions that they make for
us.
Now I live in the USA, and our government has a pledge of
allegiance to themselves that was taught us baby boomers from kindergarten on
up, both in public schools and in the gatherings of the church. And part of
that pledge says, “One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice
for all.” But that doesn’t make any of it true just because the pledge says it,
for actions speak louder than words. So, our allegiance needs to be to God
alone.
Psalms 33:18-22 ESV
“Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him,
on those who hope in his steadfast love,
that he may deliver their soul from death
and keep them alive in famine.
Our soul waits for the Lord;
he is our help and our shield.
For our heart is glad in him,
because we trust in his holy name.
Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us,
even as we hope in you.”
It is not enough just to give lip service to God by
professing to believe in Jesus Christ. We must be crucified with Christ in
death to sin and raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no
longer living as slaves to sin but now as slaves to God and to his
righteousness. For this is what it means to fear the Lord. It means to take him
at his word and to put his word into daily practice in our lives, under the New
Covenant.
And if we are those of genuine faith in Jesus Christ, and if
we are walking in his ways, and not in sin, then he is our help and our shield
in times of difficulty and trials and tribulations and persecutions. He will
give us the wisdom and the courage we need to combat the enemy’s attacks
against us, and he will give us the strength to persevere against all
opposition. So we never have reason to fear what our enemies might do to us.
So, we need to make the Lord our trust, and we need to trust
in his Word, and then we need to test everyone else against the teachings of
Christ and of his NT apostles before we follow what other humans are telling
us. But we need to read the Scriptures in their context, for many people are
quoting the Scriptures out of context and are making them say what the
Scriptures do not teach in context. And not everyone is who he claims to be.
My Sheep
An Original Work / June 24, 2012
Based off John 10:1-18 NIV
My sheep hear me.
They know me.
They listen to my
voice and obey.
I call them and lead
them.
They know my voice,
so they follow me.
They will never
follow strangers.
They will run away
from them.
The voice of a
stranger they know not;
They do not follow
him.
So, I tell you the
truth that
I am the gate, so
you enter in.
Whoever does enter
Will find
forgiveness and will be saved.
Nonetheless whoever
enters
Not by the gate;
other way,
He is the thief and
a robber.
Listen not, the
sheep to him.
Oh, I am the Good
Shepherd,
Who laid his own
life down for the sheep.
I know them. They
know me.
They will live with
me eternally.
The thief only comes
to steal and
Kill and to destroy
the church.
I have come to give
you life that
You may have it to
the full…
They know my voice,
so they follow me.
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