Know that the Lord is God

We Are His Sheep

“Know that the Lord, he is God!

    It is he who made us, and we are his;

    we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.” (Psalms 100:3 ESV)

We need to know that the Lord is God, not just intellectually, but deep down in the depths of our hearts and souls. So we must walk in the fear of the Lord. What this means is that we must give God all the honor, respect, value, submission, obedience and surrender which he so deserves. And we must take his word seriously and do what it says. For to know that he is God means we treat him as though he is truly LORD of our lives. Thus, we don’t give our lives over to the “gods” of this world, to serve, worship and honor them. But our lives are surrendered to the Lord Jesus, instead.

For when anything in our lives takes God’s rightful place as Master of our lives, and God begins to take a back seat to our entertainment, sports, possessions, careers, houses, friends, patriotism, socialization with other humans, lust, and/or any sinful passions and desires, etc., then we are no longer walking in the fear of the Lord, but we are returning to walking according to the flesh. And, then we are not acting according to true knowledge that the Lord truly is God, our creator, sustainer, Savior, sanctifier, healer and coming King.

So, what does it mean to belong to God, and that we are his? What does it mean to be his sheep? Well, for me, the first passage of scripture that came to mind was John 10:27: “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” So many people like to quote the next verse independent of verse 27. Vs. 28 says: “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.” Yet many people like to apply this to all who make a profession of faith in Jesus Christ regardless of how they live, but then they are giving them a false hope of salvation from sin.

Yet, that promise is dependent on v. 27 being true in the believer’s life. We must be ones who truly listen to God, not just with our ears, but with our hearts and minds. We must pay attention to what he says, taking it into account, and then act upon what we have heard via obedience to what his word says, which means we then follow him in obedience wherever he leads us or calls us, or to whatever he asks us to do. We may not do this perfectly, but we should do it consistently and as a matter of life course. For what we obey, in practice, determines where we will spend eternity (Romans 6:16).

Enter His Gates

“Enter his gates with thanksgiving,

    and his courts with praise!

    Give thanks to him; bless his name!” (Psalms 100:4 ESV)

Also in John 10 we read that Jesus is the gate through which we enter into eternal life. He is the only way, truth and life by which we gain access to heaven, to the Father, into fellowship with God/Christ, and into the body of Christ, the church. As well, we read in Matthew 7:13-14 that we are to “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” 

So, not only is Jesus the gate that leads to eternal life with God, but this gate is narrow. So, what does that mean? “Narrow,” in this sense, has to do with the straight paths John the Baptist was to make for the Lord in preparing the way for him. John’s message was one of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Jesus taught the same message, and so did the apostles after him. “Straight” means “honest, law-abiding, upright, trustworthy,” etc. Thus, we must die with Christ to sin and now live to his righteousness.

The narrow gate thus has to do with the means by which we gain access to life with Christ and we are born of the Spirit of God, and we become part of his family (his household). Truly it is by God’s grace, and through faith, that we are able to enter through this gate (See Ephesians 2:8-10), but this faith is realized or proved genuine via us turning from sin, being born of the Spirit, and turning to walk in faithful obedience to Christ and to his teachings (instructions). 

And God’s grace, which is bringing us salvation, trains us to renounce (say “NO!” to) ungodliness and worldly passions (lusts) and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives while we wait for our Lord’s return. For Jesus Christ gave himself up for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works (Titus 2:11-14) So we are to live our lives in the power of his Spirit within us, and for the praise, honor and glory of God.

[Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; Romans 2:6-8; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Corinthians 5:15; Galatians 5:16-21; Galatians 6:7-8; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 10:23-31; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10]   

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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