It’s a new day, and a new morning. As always we have more reasons to thank God, than to complain.
We will always be able to thank God for His faithfulness, knowing that through Christ, nothing can ever separate us from His love.
We will always be able to thank God – we’re always able to thank our Father, because we know that He is for us, and not against us.
We thank our Father, because by the words of Christ, and by His finished work, He has guaranteed that it is our Father who runs to us to restore us, versus seeing us from afar and watching us in contempt.
By the words of Christ, and by His finished work, He has guaranteed that it is our Father who leaves the party and chases us down, versus ignoring our frustrations and pain, waiting for us to come back inside.
Oh, for the great and glorious Creator of the universe, for the eternal, infinite Maker of time and space to humble Himself – how ridiculous, yet how confounding! How unimaginable, how impossible to perceive, yet how overwhelming; This ultimate demonstration of grace is, indeed, overwhelming!
Indeed, we give You thanks, Father! What else can we really do, but to respond in humility, and in prayer, and in praise?
Blessed be the name of the Lord!
He is worthy to be praised and adored!
So we lift up holy hands in one accord,
singing, ‘Blessed be the name, blessed be the name,
blessed be the name of the Lord!’
We’re thankful for the usual, general reminder of God’s faithfulness, as projected and expressed in Psalm 17; We’re also thankful for the reminder of one particular aspect to our salvation through Jesus Christ – looking through Proverb 17 in the light of the finished work of Christ had us appreciate our being made new creations, and more than our being in possession of Wisdom, we have the mind of Christ.
More than our being given options to think, or a greater perspective on how to use the knowledge and intelligence we possess – We have the mind of Christ, which emphasizes that we do our thinking in His presence, as He is always with us: We think as He thinks, and He thinks as we think.
With all this in mind, we move on with today, March 18 – going through parts of Psalm 18 that will ‘jump out‘ at this particular time.
Psalm 18:1-6
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, the servant of the LORD, who addressed the words of this song to the LORD on the day when the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. He said:
1 I love you, O LORD, my strength.
2 The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
As David was delivered from his enemies, so we also rejoice, proclaiming that our God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) is our Strength. That’s right – more than merely giving us power, He Himself is our strength, our ability to make things happen.
He does not stop at giving us refuge; No, friends, we revel and rejoice in the Lord, for He Himself is our Rock and our Shield; He is our Stronghold.
And He does not stop at ensuring that our bodies are stable (on a Rock), (shield)ed, and safe (as in a Stronghold); He puts our minds at ease, for though we may hear the threats and roars of the enemy, even when we are inside the gates, well, our Father surrounds us with songs of deliverance, serving as our Horn of Salvation – He takes us into safety, and He soothes us with His salvation!
3 I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies.
4 The cords of death encompassed me; the torrents of destruction assailed me;
5 the cords of Sheol entangled me; the snares of death confronted me.
6 In my distress I called upon the LORD; to my God I cried for help.
From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears.
First, take note of how much David spoke of the threats to his life… and then, behold the intricacy and the elaboration behind how our Lord saved him. Four verses, versus 38(!) verses… behold the glorious salvation of the Lord.
7 Then the earth reeled and rocked; the foundations also of the mountains trembled and quaked, because he was angry.
8 Smoke went up from his nostrils, and devouring fire from his mouth; glowing coals flamed forth from him.
9 He bowed the heavens and came down; thick darkness was under his feet.
10 He rode on a cherub and flew; he came swiftly on the wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him, thick clouds dark with water.
12 Out of the brightness before him hailstones and coals of fire broke through his clouds.
13 The LORD also thundered in the heavens, and the Most High uttered his voice, hailstones and coals of fire.
14 And he sent out his arrows and scattered them; he flashed forth lightnings and routed them.
15 Then the channels of the sea were seen, and the foundations of the world were laid bare at your rebuke, O LORD, at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.
Our Father shakes the earth and the heavens, responding from the heavens with hailstones, arrows, lightning and coals of fire!
16 He sent from on high, he took me; he drew me out of many waters.
17 He rescued me from my strong enemy and from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me.
18 They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the LORD was my support.
19 He brought me out into a broad place; he rescued me, because he delighted in me.
In His great glory, He rescues us from the deeps, delivers us from the strong and mighty who commit themselves as our enemies who hate us; Even in our days of sorrow and calamity, even when we are confronted and they do their worst, the Truth still remains – Our God is as our Father, our Support who delights in us; He rescues us, taking us away from our enemies, bringing us into a broad place to move freely.
20 The LORD dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me.
21 For I have kept the ways of the LORD, and have not wickedly departed from my God.
22 For all his rules were before me, and his statutes I did not put away from me.
23 I was blameless before him, and I kept myself from my guilt.
24 So the LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.
We give thanks to the Lord, for we are able to take in and claim favor as David did; He revels in the glory of the Lord and in His complete and full salvation unto him because of his faithfulness and righteousness… But we enjoy the presence of the Lord ourselves, not by our obedience, but by Christ’s – expressed through His birth, death, resurrection and ascension. We have made the conscious decision to take refuge in Him, and to abide in Him – so, therefore, He abides in us.
According to the righteousness of Christ proclaimed unto us, He has dealt graciously with us, rewarding us accordingly. Christ has cleansed us, and He serves as our living Word – not merely before us, but alive in us.
25 With the merciful you show yourself merciful; with the blameless man you show yourself blameless;
26 with the purified you show yourself pure; and with the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous.
27 For you save a humble people, but the haughty eyes you bring down.
28 For it is you who light my lamp; the LORD my God lightens my darkness.
Oh, thank You so much, Father! For, indeed, we are humbled by Your grace and glory, demonstrated upon us and into us through Christ! As Christ was merciful to us, as He has purified us, so You are merciful and pure to us.
Thank You, Father, for You have humbled us by Your light!
29 For by you I can run against a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall.
30 This God—his way is perfect; the word of the LORD proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.
31 For who is God, but the LORD? And who is a rock, except our God?—
32 the God who equipped me with strength and made my way blameless.
33 He made my feet like the feet of a deer and set me secure on the heights.
34 He trains my hands for war, so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
35 You have given me the shield of your salvation, and your right hand supported me, and your gentleness made me great.
36 You gave a wide place for my steps under me, and my feet did not slip.
Thank You, Father, for Your grace and glory upon us, through Christ – by the reconciliation which He has guaranteed, not only have we received Your mercy and blamelessness; We have received power from on high – to move swiftly, decisively.
You have equipped us accordingly, strengthening our hands and arms for conflict; and, at the same time that You have made us capable for attack, You have also equipped us for defense; You have given us the shield of Your salvation (so all aspects of us are protected), Your right hand upholds us… and, for us to ponder on and to appreciate layer after layer… ‘Your gentleness has made us great‘
37 I pursued my enemies and overtook them, and did not turn back till they were consumed.
38 I thrust them through, so that they were not able to rise; they fell under my feet.
39 For you equipped me with strength for the battle; you made those who rise against me sink under me.
40 You made my enemies turn their backs to me, and those who hated me I destroyed.
41 They cried for help, but there was none to save; they cried to the LORD, but he did not answer them.
42 I beat them fine as dust before the wind; I cast them out like the mire of the streets.
43 You delivered me from strife with the people; you made me the head of the nations; people whom I had not known served me.
44 As soon as they heard of me they obeyed me; foreigners came cringing to me.
45 Foreigners lost heart and came trembling out of their fortresses.
Psalm 18:7-45
Finally, Father, we give You thanks and praise – For through Your Son, Jesus, we have received Salvation – and through this Word we have seen how great a salvation this is: In Your absolute glory and infinite power, You deliver our entire beings from danger, You equip us for attack and defense… and, here, You have delivered us from the wicked and merciless who call themselves our enemies – We are safe, because You have delivered them into our hands.
Father, we thank You for these aspects of our Salvation, and we ask that You continue to work in and through us, that we would continue to go forth and conquer, being salt and light to this world, giving thanks as it is always Your will for us to give thanks.
Father, continue to minister to us today, in all we are facing, in all we are experiencing; Surround us with songs of deliverance, strengthen us as only You can, and continue to give us peace beyond understanding. We continue to call out to You, knowing that You hear us, You care for us… and You respond.
To You, Father, be all the glory and praise and thanks, now and forever. Amen, amen, amen.
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