Psalm 115:15

Psalm 115:15

May the Lord bless you

As we saw, when meditating upon verses earlier in the Psalm, the fundamental foundation of faith is the simple belief that the Lord God is our Creator and Maker. Not only that, but He is Creator and Maker of the whole universe, the heavens and the earth were all made by Him. Anyone struggling with that truth is going to have a tough time trying to absorb and align themselves with everything else we know about God. There are many Christians today who are willing to embrace the concept of a spiritual being who is light and love, but to acknowledge that He is the towering genius who made all things is too much for them to handle. The effect is a limp and weak faith that constantly questions and tries to rationalise, whereas the Lord asks us to bow down before Him and to humble ourselves, trust in His Word and learn dependence on the One who made all things. What a joy this position gives us, the questions are answered, the alternatives are not worth considering, the enormity of our God fills us with wonder and excitement, and He is worthy of our obeisance, our respect and adulation. 

The verse before us today is addressed to all who accept this reality and who bow before the Lord their God and Maker. For them there is a prayer, “May you be blessed by the Lord.” To understand this word “bless” we need to go back to the original Hebrew word which is “barakh.” The English word for bless is a bit abstract and bland, in Hebrew it means that someone kneels down to help us and make themselves available to us. Can you imagine the Lord doing that for us? But that is what it means, that God blesses us by providing for us, even serving us so that we in return will submit to Him and worship Him.

So, today “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine upon you, and be gracious unto you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you His peace.” Numbers 6:24-26.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Psalm 106:13

Psalm 106:13 Do not forget We need to remember that Israel’s relationship with the Lord God was based on His laws and their obedience. It was possible for them to live lives that were highly blessed, that incorporated the provision of God in every tiny detail of their national and individual existence. God was prepared to give them everything they needed, He would provide food and water for them and their flocks. He would guide them on their journey. He would protect them from their enemies. He would inspire and direct their leaders. He would keep them from the heat of the sun and the terrors of the desert night. He would take them to the land that He had promised, in double quick time. There was no reason why they could not be in situ in just a few months. Everything they could possibly need was His to provide and He was willing to sacrifice anything to see them gratefully settled in Canaan.  There was just one snag, it all depended upon their obedience and faithfulness. God insisted
Read more

Psalm 51:4

Psalm 51:4 Deliberate sin In Genesis 20 we read the story of Abimelek and Abraham. The latter had passed off his wife Sarah as his sister and Abimelek had taken her with a view to her becoming his wife. The relationship was not consummated, and the Lord used a dream to reveal to Abimelek just what was going on. The insulted king pleaded innocence,  “I have done this with a clear conscience and clean hands ” he said, to the Lord. And God agreed,  “Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me.”  This is a big subject but there is clearly a difference between sinful intentions and deeds where the participant knows that he/she is doing wrong, and those occasions where an action is carried out in innocence.  David knew all along that every detail of his relationship with Bathsheba was sinful, as were his actions in the cover-up. Therefore, he sinned against the Lord God and broke the commandments which said that  “You shall not commit adul
Read more

Psalm 57:8

Psalm 57:8 Awake my soul! This verse calls on three different elements to wake up! It follows on from the previous statement that David intends to sing and make music. We can imagine him opening his eyes one morning and all is silent and dark. The first birds have not yet started to sing, and the eastern sky is not yet pink. In contrast to the days of despair and defeat David is ready for this day and he is going to celebrate. He may be living in a gloomy, dank cave but hope is at hand, God is with him and he will triumph over his enemies. Maybe some of his companions got a shock that morning as their leader launched his early morning praise assault on the kingdoms of darkness! ·        Awake my soul. ·        Awake, harp and lyre. ·        Awake – the dawn. Sometimes we have to address the inner man and let our minds take control of our emotions and our desires. The negatives can be defeated, the whispering doubts can be silenced, the tide of fear and trepidation can be driven back. A
Read more