September 18, 2017
Psalm 27:7, 8
(All Scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated)
We saw how in the Bible people sought Jesus’ feet, the hem of His robe, and His hands! But in Psalm 27:7 and 8 God sets us straight concerning what we should be seeking:
Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice! Have mercy also upon me,
and answer me. When You said, “Seek My face,” my heart said to You,
“Your face, LORD, I will seek.”
For to seek His face, we are to seek His whole person – His way, His will, His works, His wonders, and His Word! Concerning His way, we looked at two verses that describe the way of the Lord (see Proverbs 10:29 and Matthew 3:1-3). Then we began to explore Scriptures that reveal His will – and we went through five such Scriptures (see Matthew 8:14; John 4:34; 6:40; II Corinthians 8:3-5; and Galatians 1:3 & 4). There are nine more concerning His will, and these 14 total do not exhaust…His revealed will!
• …His will – continues to be revealed in the following nine passages:
✞ Ephesians 5:17, 18 – “…do not be unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is….do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit….” Be filled with the Holy Spirit to the extent that you are controlled by Him – as alcohol consumed to dissipation will harmfully control a person.
✞ Ephesians 6:5-7 – Applying this to employees and employers of today: “Servants, be obedient to them who are your masters….in sincerity of heart, as to Christ; not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; with good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men….” As it is written in Ecclesiastes 9:10 and Colossians 3:23: “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might….do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men.”
✞ Colossians 4:12 – “…that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.” God’s will is that we become more and more like Jesus – perfect and complete! (See Romans 8:29; II Corinthians 3:18; Colossians 3:10).
✞ I Thessalonians 4:3, 7 – “For this is the will of God, your sanctification….For God did not called us to uncleanness, but in holiness.” Plainly spoken! (See John 17:17; Hebrews 12:14).
✞ I Thessalonians 5:18 – “In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” We are to give thanks, not because everything that touches our lives is pleasant and/or feels good, but because God is doing a mighty work in and through us in everything! (See also Ephesians 5:20).
✞ I Timothy 2:3, 4 – “…God our Savior…desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” Notice: God not only wants people to be saved, but to grow up in godliness and holiness, becoming more and more like His Son! (See Ephesians 4:11-16).
✞ I Peter 2:15 – “…this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men….” The world will try to smear our reputation – and so denigrate the name of Jesus! God wants us to so live our lives that any such accusation will be baseless!
✞ I Peter 4:19 – “…let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator.” Suffering – trials, testings, etc. – can be according to the will or God ! They are allowed in our lives to help us to grow more and more like Him! (See Romans 5:3-5; James 1:2-4).
✞ II Peter 3:9 – “The Lord is…not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” This Scripture – with I Timothy 2:3 and 4 above – tells us that we can and should pray for the lost! And when we do, we can be confident God will hear us and answer! (See I John 3:22; 5:14, 15).
There are certainly more Scripture passages that directly or indirectly show us God’s will. But I hope these listed will serve as an impetus for you to study the subject for yourself.
• …His works – In I Chronicles 16 (see also Psalm 105), verses 8 and 9, David praised the Lord: “Oh, give thanks to the LORD! Call upon His name; make known His deeds among the peoples! Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him; talk of all His wondrous works!” The Jews kept their history alive by talking of all His marvelous works!
✡ The foundation of the nation of Israel was based on the marvelous work of the Passover! Every year the feast of Passover (see Numbers 9:2, 3) was kept to remind the Hebrew people that “…the LORD…passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when He struck the Egyptians and delivered our households.” (Exodus 12:27).
✡ God miraculously provided for the Israelites during their 40 years in the wilderness!
▸ Deliverance – “By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians, attempting to do so, were drowned.” (Hebrews 11:29).
▸ Food – “‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread; and you shall know that I am the LORD your God.’ So it was that quails came up at evening and covered the camp, and in the morning the dew lay all around the camp. And when the layer of dew lifted, there on the surface of the wilderness, was a small round substance…Manna.” (Exodus 16:12, 13, 31).
▸ Clothes – “Your garments did not wear out on you, nor did your foot swell these forty years.” (Deuteronomy 8:4).
✡ Victory over the Canaanites – “By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days.” (Hebrews 11:30).
This is just a brief sampling of all God’s marvelous works! It would take weeks and many blogs to do a complete study. But we will continue with His wonders and His Word in Wednesday’s blog.