TESTIMONY ABOUT GOD

“The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoices, and with my song I will praise Him" (Psalm 28:7 NKJV).

Here in our verse, the Psalmist is giving a great testimony about God. He speaks of help from God, happiness from God, and hymn for God.

Help from God – “The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped.” This statement speaks of both the character of the help and the claiming of the help. The character of the help concerns our strength and shield. In addition to strength to act, the Lord protects us from our enemies. The helps us in every area. Concerning the claiming of the help, this requires faith; ‘heart’ faith. Many folks have ‘mouth’ faith, i.e. they can talk about faith. Some folks even have ‘head’ faith, i.e. they know about faith. However, it is ‘heart’ faith that’s important; this is the faith that is actually trusting God.

Happiness from God - “I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoices.” Here we have both the cause of happiness and character of happiness. The cause of the happiness is help from God. He always satisfies and never disappoints. Much of the help we get from man does not satisfy, but God’s help always does. The character of the happiness is seen in the word “greatly.” When God blesses, He blesses His people “greatly.”

Hymn for God – “With my song will I praise Him.” The blessings of God should produce the finest of music. The psalmist praises God for the pleasure, the joy that has come to him by having God be his power and protection. The song is a psalm which do indeed praise God. This is a lot better than so many of today’s songs which praise men more than God.

(Adapted from Butler Daily Bible Reading)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“A heart of praise and love shows others just what Jesus can do in the lives of men!”

Anonymous

Word Study

Disappointed (put to shame)

In Rom. 9:33 we read, “As it is written: Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense, and whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame” (NKJV).

Disappointed (put to shame) is the Greek word kataischunō (καταισχύνω = kat-ahee-skhoo'-no). It is made up of two words: “kata” which means down, but is also an intensifier, and “aischunō” which means to shame. Kataischunō primarily means to put to shame, to humiliate, to disgrace and to disappoint or to frustrate one’s hope. It is to fail to meet the expectation or hope of, to hinder from the possession or enjoyment of that which was intended, to prevent the fulfilment of a plan.

In the Septuagint kataischunō means to be ashamed or to shame. Interestingly enough, the Lord is usually the One causing shame. And the shame to which sinners come is God’s judgment. In the New Testament kataischunō also means to be ashamed or to shame.

For some Christians, the thought of public confession of Christ might arouse fears of shame, but the opposite is true. Our confession of Him on earth leads to His confession of us in heaven. Ours is a hope that will never be disappointed. Those who have Christian faith and hope will not experience shame (Rom. 5:5; 10:11). On the other hand, the wise of this age will be put to shame (1 Cor. 1:27).

Prophecies Fulfilled by Jesus

Old Testament Prophecy –God promised to be a Father to Lord Jesus, and in turn He would be the Son (1 Chron. 17:13; Psalm 2:7)

New Testament Fulfillment – Heb. 1:5

Bible Facts

Jesus is the English transliteration of the Greek name Iesus. Joshua is the English transliteration of the Hebrew name Yeshuah. Both Jesus and Joshua mean Yahweh saves or Jehovah is salvation. The name Jesus appears in the Bible more than 900 times.

Bible Quiz

How did the angel Gabriel encouraged Mary after telling her that she would become pregnant with a son?

**Answer to last week’s trivia: Where was Zechariah when the angel Gabriel appeared to him? In the temple (Luke 1:8-22).

That’s in the Bible

"Slow to anger”

"They refused to obey, and they were not mindful of Your wonders that You did among them. But they hardened their necks, and in their rebellion they appointed a leader to return to their bondage. But You are God, ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, abundant in kindness, and did not forsake them” (Neh. 9:7 KJV).

“Slow to anger” - The expression “slow to anger” carries the idea of a good temperament; even keeled. Here in our verse, Nehemiah is telling us how the nation of Israel responded to all that God had done for them: they refused to bow to His authority, listen to His Word, or obey His will. In spite of Israel’s sinfulness, God did not forsake them in the wilderness. He could have let them perish in the wilderness and would have been justified in so doing. Instead, He was ready to forgive them when they confessed their sins, repented, and turned back to Him. The love, mercy and patience of God is beyond human comprehension.

Stories of Favorite Christmas Carols

Go Tell It on the Mountain

This song about sharing the good news of Jesus’ incarnation on the first Christmas shows that you always have something to celebrate, even in the midst of difficult circumstances. Slaves in 19th century America sang it together while they were working – often in difficult conditions. Their lives in slavery were full of challenges. Yet despite their plight, they celebrated the fact that Jesus loved them and came to Earth to offer them salvation. Singing this Christmas carol can lift your spirits, too, by directing your focus toward Jesus’ great love that transcends any type of difficulty.

A Little Humor

The nativity play was going as planned and Joseph and Mary were going from house to house knocking on the doors and asking it there was any room for them. As they continued to get “no room” answers a little voice called from the back “YOU SHOULD HAVE BOOKED!” bringing the house down.

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“The only thing that is improved by breaking is the sinner’s heart!”