Saturday, December 09
In God We Trust
Psalm 111:7-10
7 The works of His hands are verity and justice; All His precepts are sure.
8 They stand fast forever and ever, And are done in truth and uprightness.
9 He has sent redemption to His people; He has commanded His covenant forever: Holy and awesome is His name.
10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever.
Today, I am calling our pastor’s chat, “In God We Trust”. I just checked to make sure, but on our United States currency you can find these words still stamped on them, “In God We Trust”. In a day and age when it is hard to know who to trust because of the apparent lies and deceitfulness of our culture and government, it is wonderful to know that we have a God of the Bible that we can put our trust in.
Remember that Psalms 111 and 112 were most likely written by some Levite after the Babylonian captivity. Life was not easy for the Jewish remnant that returned to Jerusalem after their exile in Babylon to reestablish the nation and to rebuild the temple and the walls of Jerusalem. Their neighbors were often hostile, the Persian officials were not always cooperative, and the economic situation was difficult. In this time of great discouragement, the psalmist wanted to assure them that Jehovah was able to take care of them.
The psalmist of Psalm 111 encouraged them in verse 1 to praise the Lord anyway. In verses 2-6, he reminded them of the great and awesome works of God! Now, in verses 7-9, he exhorts them to take the time to look into God’s Word and rely on it. And finally in verse 10, he tells them to fear the LORD and be willing to obey His Commandments.
From the works of God it was an easy transition to the Word of God, for it is God's Word that brought all things into being and that keeps things together (Psalm 33:6-11). God gave His law to His people so that they might enjoy His blessings. His righteousness is forever (v. 3), but so are His covenants (vv. 5, 9) and His precepts (v. 8). God's Word is trustworthy, and we can rely on it. His precepts are given in love and His promises never fail.
As for the covenant He made with Israel, He has been faithful to keep it even when Israel was not faithful to obey it. If we obey His Word, He is faithful to bless; if we disobey, He is just to chasten us in love. As the people of God, we bear His name and want to glorify His name in all that we say and do. "Holy and awesome is his name," To the Jewish people, God's name was so awesome that they would not speak the name "Jehovah" but substituted "Adonai" lest they would inadvertently blaspheme His holy name. Would that God's people today had such reverence for the name of the Lord!
The awesomeness of God's name leads to the importance of fearing the Lord and obeying His will. The fear of the Lord is a topic mentioned frequently in Scripture, especially in the book of Proverbs. It is not the slavish fear of a criminal before a judge but the loving and reverential fear of a child for his or her parents. If we want to understand God's works and God's Word, we must maintain this reverential fear of the Lord, for this attitude is the basis for receiving spiritual wisdom and understanding. (See Job 28:28; Prov. 1:7 and 9:10.) The word "beginning" means "the principal part," and without this we are unprepared to learn God's truth. But fearing the Lord leads to obeying the Lord, and obedience is important to spiritual understanding (John 7:17).
Remember the old hymn says, “Trust and obey, there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey! Yes, my friend, today you can still “Trust in God”!
God bless!