REVERENCE

“And now, LORD, You are God, and have promised this goodness to Your servant (1 Chron. 17:26 NKJV).

David wanted to build a temple, but God said no. Instead, God said his son would build the temple. David did not complain or pout, but humbly bow before God in respectful submission. It was a noble response to God’s refusal. Our verse today is part of David’s response to God’s refusal. David’s response demonstrates reverence for God in the way he speaks of the person of God, the promises of God, and the position before God.

Person of God - “Lord, You are God.” The word “Lord” refers to “Jehovah” or “Yahweh.” This was God’s covenant name as given to the Israelites. Here, David is acknowledging that God is God. He therefore had the right to decide who does what, when, where, and how. When we complain about God’s will, we are saying we do not want God to be God or to have the final word. But if we are going to give due reverence to God, we must honor Him as God. His wisdom and will must be acknowledged as supreme.

Promises of God - “God . . . have promised this goodness.” God promised David that his seed would sit on the throne of Israel. Here David is referring to that promise. So, instead of fussing about not being able to build the temple, David focuses on the promises of God and rejoices in them. We need to do the same. The Bible is full of wonderful promises from God. Therefore, when God says no to some desire, we should not fuss or fret. Instead we need to focus on the promises of God. This will cause rejoicing instead of discontentment.

Position before God - “Your servant.” Like Moses and Paul, our position before God is that of a servant. Being God’s servants’ means we must submit to His commands and do His bidding. We are all servants – we either serve sin or the Sovereign (Rom. 6:22). Wise men will choose to serve the Sovereign God. Serving God is a great privilege and honor. It beats any position this world can offer.

(Adapted from Butler Daily Bible Reading NT)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“The man who bows the lowest in the presence of God stands the straightest in the presence of sin!”

Anonymous

Word Study

Be diligent

In 2 Peter 1:15 we read, “And I will also be diligent that at any time after my departure you will be able to call these things to mind” (NASB).

Be diligent is the Greek word spoudazo (σπουδάζω = spoo-dad'-zo). The word means to use speed, to make effort, be prompt or earnest, endeavor, labor, study. It carries the idea of giving maximum effort, do your best, spare no effort, hurry on, be eager! Spoudazo speaks of intensity of purpose followed by intensity of effort and concentration toward the realization of that purpose.

In Classical Greek spoudazo is used of doing something hastily, of being serious about something, of being busy at doing something, of paying attention to a person, of being zealous, and of being eager. In the Septuagint the word means to hurry. In the New Testament spoudazo can mean do quickly. However, the most common meaning is to do one’s best.

Here in our verse, Peter is saying I will be in a hurry, I will make haste, be in earnest, concentrate my energy on the goal of stirring you up. Peter knew that he would soon die, so he wanted to take care of his spiritual responsibilities before it was too late. You and I do not know when we will die, so we had better start being diligent today!

Prophecies Fulfilled by Jesus

Old Testament Prophecy – That He would be scourged and spat upon (Isa. 50:6)

New Testament Fulfillment – Matt. 26:67; 27:26

Bible Facts

The Bible compares the number of stars with the number of grains of sand on the seashore (Gen. 22:17; Heb. 11:12). Interestingly enough, gross estimates of the number of sand grains are comparable to the estimated number of stars in the universe.

Bible Quiz

What sin did Jesus say “will not be forgiven?”

**Answer to last week’s trivia: I am called Rufus and I am proud to say that my dad helped Jesus carry His cross to Calvary. Do you know the name of my privileged father? Simon of Cyrene (Mark 15:21.)

That’s in the Bible

"Writing on the wall”

“Suddenly the fingers of a man’s hand emerged and began writing opposite the lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace, and the king saw the back of the hand that did the writing!” (Dan. 5:5 NASB).

You can just imagine the big party that was being thrown by King Belshazzar. Everyone was drinking from vessels from the Hebrew Temple – they were living it up and getting drunk. Suddenly, a hand appears out of nowhere and starts writing on the wall. It was a message to the king that his life had been judged and was found quite lacking. According to the Bible, the king was so scared his knees started shaking. The phrase “writing on the wall” refers to the inevitable, unfortunate circumstances that await an individual. When the individual recognizes what’s about to happen, he sees “the writing on the wall.” Employees about to lose their jobs often say, “I saw the handwriting on the wall.” As Christians, we need keep our eyes and ears open for what the Lord is saying to us.

Did You Know – Christian History

Samuel Medley was born June 23, 1728 in Chestnut, England. He was an English Baptist minister and hymn-writer. He was educated by his maternal grandfather, and at 14 was apprenticed to an oilman in the city of London. Three years of this was enough for young Medley, so in 1755 he escaped from his agreement by enlisting in the Royal Navy.

After being severely wounded, Medley was discharged from the Navy late in 1759. It was while recovering from his injuries that Medley was converted to Christianity after reading a sermon by pastor and hymn writer, Isaac Watts. For a few years, he operated a school. Then Pastor Dr. Andrew Gifford urged him to enter the Baptist ministry. By 1772, Medley was preaching in Liverpool. He took a real interest in the souls of seamen and adapted his preaching to them. His methods were lively and soon his meeting-house could not hold all the people who crowded in to hear him. It was enlarged, but even that only solved the problem only temporarily; a new building had to be constructed.

Medley wrote many hymns, the best known are “I Know that My Redeemer Lives,” “Awake, My Soul, to Joyful Lays,” and “O Could I Speak the Matchless Worth.” After a painful illness Medley died on July 17, 1799. His hymns appeared in various magazines and a collection of poems were gathered by his daughter after his death.

A Little Humor

A mother and her young son returned from the grocery store and began putting away the groceries. The boy opened the box of animal crackers and spread them all over the table. “What are you doing?” his mother asked. “The box says not to eat them if the seal is broken” the boy explained. “I’m looking for the seal.”

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“Many who are well prepared for a rainy day are not prepared for eternity!”