I am reading in Psalms 105 which teaches me, again, that all God’s promises have conditions. And this is why it is critical that we read of his promises in their full context to where we can see the conditions for those promises to be fulfilled. For, yes, God did make a covenant with Abraham and his seed, but we read in the New Testament that the seed is Jesus Christ. But, yes, it included Abraham’s offspring, but it all culminates in Jesus Christ.
And Psalms 105 details for us the history of God’s people of the Old Covenant and how he sent Joseph to Egypt ahead of a famine to prepare the way for the Lord to rescue his people from the famine, and then how he sent Moses, his servant, and Aaron, whom he had chosen to rescue his people from the tyranny and oppression they were faced with in Egypt. And then how the Lord cared for his people during their time in the wilderness.
But during the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness the majority of those who were his people rebelled against the Lord. And with most of them God was not pleased, so they were overthrown in the wilderness. They died and did not enter into God’s eternal rest. And these things were written down for us as examples that we might not desire evil as they did. We are not to be idolaters, revelers, sexually immoral, and those who grumble against the Lord and who put Christ to the test via rebellion and disobedience to God.
“So he brought his people out with joy,
his chosen ones with singing.
And he gave them the lands of the nations,
and they took possession of the fruit of the peoples' toil,
that they might keep his statutes
and observe his laws.
Praise the Lord!” (Psalms 105:43-45 ESV)
But only a remnant of those who left Egypt and who wandered in the wilderness for 40 years got to go into the Promised Land, the land that God had promised to Abraham and to his offspring. Why? Because the majority of them did not obey the Lord. And because when God established that covenant with Abraham he said, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations.” “So that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.” Conditions!!
[Genesis 17:7-9; Genesis 18:19; Romans 2:28-29; Romans 9:4-8; Galatians 3:16,26-29; Galatians 4:22-31; Ephesians 2:11-22; Ephesians 3:6; 1 John 2:22; John 8:18-19,38-47; Jude 1:5; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-16]
So, who then got to be recipients of the promise that God made to Abraham? Only his chosen ones who obeyed his commands and who did what he said to do. All the rest, the ones who rebelled against him, did not get to go into the Promised Land, for they would not obey the Lord. And then look at what this says about those who did get to enter the Promised Land. He gave them the lands of the nations that they might keep (obey) his statutes and observe (obey) his commands.
And the same rules apply in the New Testament. We have to obey our Lord and his commandments to us if we want to enter into our promised land (heaven). For if sin is what we obey, and not righteousness, and not moral purity, uprightness, honesty, faithfulness, and all of God’s moral laws given to us who profess faith in Jesus Christ, we will die in our wilderness, and heaven will not be our eternal destiny. So we need to take this to heart. All God’s promises have conditions, the main one being obedience to him.
[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-24; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-11; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:23-31; 1 Co 10:1-22; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]
As the Deer
By Martin J. Nystrom
Based off Psalm 42:1
As the deer panteth for the water
So my soul longeth after You
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You
You alone are my strength, my shield
To You alone may my spirit yield
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZv3jzOTE70
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