Today, Thursday February 09
“In Your Light We See Light”
Psalm 36:9-12
“For with You is the fountain of life; In Your light we see light. O continue Your lovingkindness to those who know You, And Your righteousness to the upright in heart.
Let not the foot of pride come upon me, And let not the hand of the wicked drive me away. There the doers of iniquity have fallen; They have been thrust down and cannot rise.
Psalm 36 begins with David looking at the corruption of the human heart and no doubt is discouraged (vv. 1-4).
But then he looks up and sees the wonderful heart of God full of mercy, faithfulness, righteousness, justice, and lovingkindness and he is greatly encouraged. Today, we can’t help but see and even feel the wickedness and evil all around us in America and the world. In some way we all suffer from the consequences of the corruption of the human heart that often gets reflected in and released through human government.
David said that the “words of the mouths of the wicked are lies and deceit, and they cease to be wise and do good” (v. 3). At least four times in Proverbs (4:5, 25; 19:5, 9), in the ESV translation, it says they “breath out lies”. In other words, it gets so bad that they can’t open their mouths without lying! The Apostle Paul in Romans 1 tells how this happens. “Because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man--and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. (Romans 1:21-25).
My friend, I’m afraid this is exactly what has happened in our land today! So, what can we do? We can do what David did! He remembered the lovingkindness and mercy of the LORD, and when he did the light came on and he could see the true light. That true light is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ! John the Apostle saw this Light with his own eyes and said in John 1:4-9, “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it…… That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.”
In 1 John 1:1-5, John says it again this way: “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life-- the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us…This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.”
I love Psalm 119:105: “Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.” Instead of listening to and walking in the lies of the world and the evil one, we walk in the light of God’s Word and it keeps us from stumbling over anything under our feet in our immediate decisions, and shines down the path of our life to always show us the way we should go. Hallelujah!!!!! In His Light we see light and enjoy life!
What a privilege it is to be God's children! We are resting safely under His wings, feasting joyfully at His table, drinking abundantly from His river, and walking confidently in His light! In response to these blessings David prayed that the Lord would continue His blessings on His people (v. 10) and one day judge the wicked (vv. 11-12).
God will continue to bless us if we love Him, get to know Him better, and walk in obedience to His will. David knew that the enemy was subtle and that he dared not become overconfident, so he prayed for the Lord's protection from their hands and feet. He didn't want to be knocked down and trampled upon and forced to leave his own land. By faith, David looked ahead and saw the enemies of the Lord completely defeated, and in this confidence, he continued to serve the Lord.
Today, may the Lord help us to do the same!
God bless!