PART 2: - PRECEPTS FOR LIFE...THE PEACEFUL, JOYFUL LIFE

In Psalm 19:8, the praise continues with the Psalmist (King David) saying “The precepts of the Lord are right, making the heart glad, the command of the Lord is radiant, making the eyes light up.”

What are the “precepts of the Lord” and why would they give us peace, joy and contentment in our souls?  

First of all, this is one thing only a truly converted child of God (i.e. born again) can comprehend. The reason is that the empowering and enlightening agent is the Holy Spirit of God.  To understand what the precepts of the Lord are, is the key to a different level of thinking which the unsaved do no possess. The precepts are the statutes, laws, decrees and commands of God. We know what those are.

They are not just the ten commandments but the decrees of the Lord which encompass love, mercy, compassion and living a lifestyle which is both pleasing to the Lord, while not offending others. The bible tells us that while some things may be lawful, as regards food and drink etc. not everything is profitable. If something causes someone else to stumble, that thing is an anathema. Why would be want to diminish our testimony by going into a liquor store, buying a bottle of Jack Daniels and a case of Budweiser just as our next door neighbor is driving by, to whom we are trying to witness?

The precepts of the Lord is more than just those which concern loving God and your fellow man. God gave us these to save us from ourselves, as well as to protect His Glorious Name. Committing adultery not just destroys marriages and families, it has the capability to ruin the health of the participants, the children of those families who are now scared for life, once sin is discovered and lead to drug abuse, sin, and depression. Obeying God’s commands to stay faithful to Him and our spouses, gives us peace and harmony in our homes and brings contentment to the nth degree. Stealing robs not just the victim, but it robs the soul, and tarnishes the Name of the Lord. Lying, cheating, coveting and more....are violations, for sure against other people that can have legal as well as ethical repercussions. Not doing those things is optimum and should never be part of our nature or thinking.

These commands and commandments are not to keep us from having fun. They are keep us from harming ourselves! Read all the decrees in the New Testament from the Apostle Paul, in many places, and see why the Lord put them there. It is for us to have a joyful and as pure a life as we can.

God’s Word is pure! His Commandments are pure because He is as Pure as His Word. When He says in 1 Thessalonians 5:13b and following: “Be at peace among yourselves…..admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all (verse 14). Then He says “do not repay evil with evil….”(15).  “Rejoice always  (16). Pray without ceasing (17). Give thanks in call circumstances (18). Do not quench the Spirit (19). Abstain from every form of evil (22)……He says all of this so that our “whole spirit, soul and body will be kept blameless at the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ (23).

All of this put together, as Psalm 19:8b says, for “enlightening of the eyes”! In the great big Heart of God, what He saying here, is that the eyes of our own spiritual hearts, will see the beauty, joy and comfort of the Lord in the darkness which exists out there in the unsaved evil world.

What an amazing loving God. He cares so much for us, He gave us what the world sees as rules, but we see as the roadmap, to a truly peaceful and joyful life, while we journey here on earth. Hallelujah, what a Savior!

Christian Standard Bible (CSB)

The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.

SPEAK LIFE: LESSON 8 - PRAY IN JESUS' NAME. Part 3

Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be made full. (John 16:24)

We have heard the following many times, and have even said or thought the same ourselves that "God does not hear me, care about me or answer my prayers". This statement is not true at all, in light of Scripture and the protocols of Abba Father, Who hears all His Children and processes in His own time and according to His own holy Will!. 

CONDITIONAL:
It is understood that we are positioned to be praying to the Father, in Jesus' Name through our adoption as His sons and daughters (based on John 1:12). Therefore, we are authorized to approach the Throne of Grace for His Grace, Favor and Mercy in all things, according to His purposes. This key verse in our journey to understanding the "Power Prayer Life" from John 16:24, gives us the condition. This condition is similar to a math equation: if you add one plus one, you will get two!

It is this simple, ask IN FAITH (knowing that God only hears the prayers of the righteous, and those asking for His forgiveness and salvation) and thou shalt receive. Therefore, this equals peace, joy, contentment and victory in Jesus! To fully grasp this what this joy really is, please understand that praying in the Name of Jesus is not a chant, mantra or formula for yours or mine own selfish pursuits, but a powerful and humbling realization and acknowledgement that we are nothing, can do nothing and deserve nothing UNLESS we are in the Presence of the Name above All Names! This is the true conditional status of the intercessors, prayer warriors and just plain old Christian like you or I who pray daily (or several times per day) to the Father!

In My name - means just that! It means we are praying as directly commissioned by Him, to seek His presence and intervention for our prayer requests. Please do not neglect or misunderstand what this truly is. This is the Creator of ALL things, paying direct and close attention to seemingly insignificant people like us! Who am I that the King would bleed and die for (as they song says) and then when He returns to His throne after the Ascension, send His Spirit to live in those He saves.....THEN LISTENS TO OUR PRAYERS??!! Who are we indeed? Blessed and more fortunate than we can ever imagine is the response!

Your joy may be made full - This is truly an amazing statement by God the Son! He simply says "ask in My Name....and your joy will be complete"! The true meaning of this is both amazing and even unfathomable. The original word "Joy" here is "chara" or "xara" and means, in essence, that the awareness of the Heavenly Favor of God will be so present in your own spirit that the resulting joy and exuberance in your spirit will want to cause you to leap, jump and dance for joy in your heart. It exemplifies the presence of God's goodness in the life of the Christian which, if the Christian is properly submitted and committed to the Will of Christ, will burst forth and show all over his/her countenance.  This, my friends, is the condition we find ourselves if we are prayerful obedient servants who seek the very Face and Presence of the Master, as much as we can, during each day!

GOD'S RESPONSE:
Does God owe us a response? In general, God owes us nothing, but because of Jesus' Sacrifice on the Cross, He has given us everything and that includes access to the Throne through prayer! He has promised us, when we pray like this, in the Name of His Son? Yes He does and those promises can ALL be found in His literal, inerrant and Holy Word. 

He says in John 15:16 "You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you." Regardless of anything else, that very fact - that GOD HIMSELF CHOSE US. This means everything and like any good parent, the Father listens to and responds to us!

The Bible also says in 1 John 5:14 "This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us." After knowing that our Father has chosen us, how can we help NOT having confidence? The wonderful thing about being saved and called a child of Christ is we inherit eternity. An upcoming post will discuss what eternity really means - past, present and future. 

This inheritance is more than just the blessed hope of living in anticipation of a future heaven. It is about living in the NOW, with confidence (as the verse tells us), that we can appropriate every aspect of our lives to His safe keeping as no one cares for as God does! Praying in the Name of Jesus is not just a stock ending to a prayer we are supposed to "say" or "mumble" like some pagan mantra. It is the sole and exclusive privilege of the blood-bought son or daughter of Christ, and thus God the Father, who knows the Heart of the Father and how He loves us. It is therefore, this love, which compels us to boldly approach the Throne of Grace, in Jesus' Strong and Powerful Almighty Name, in humility and but with confident hope - that He would do what He said He would. Amen. 

COVETING OR CONTENTMENT?

THE TENTH COMMANDMENT

Exodus 20:17

More and more, in these horrible and troubled times, we see normally measured people falling for an unsavory public conversation, which deliberately violates God's Tenth Commandment. Class Warfare is that of which I speak. But it is more than just this tactic, which is as old as the French Revolution, Karl Marx and every philosophy along these lines.

When one group of people, try to get those who consider themselves victimized by dire economic conditions, by telling them that "if it were not for the guy down the street who has a better car or more money in the bank than you", it is conscious violation of God's Law. However, when we take it upon ourselves to look at the guy next door, who just bought a boat to enjoy the town lake, and envy him, instead of being happy he was able to do that, we are just as guilty as some godless politician who engages in class warfare.

To want and desire what another has is as old a sin as jealousy and lust. Not many are able to satisfied with the blessings Almighty God, in His Wisdom, has given us. How we need to look at this is from God's perspective. When we, who call ourselves Christians, follow the world in hot pursuit of the latest cars, ipads, vacations, snazzy clothes and more, they become our idols! Yes, they do! Immediately, we have just broken the first commandment because we have told Holy God that these material passing things are more important than Him!

Even worse is when we see the guy across the street with his new jet-skis or ride-on mower...or listen to his pampered wife boast of her latest spa visit which enhances her outward appearance...when we see and hear of all of this, the natural tendency is to long to have those things, as well!  If you can work harder and save and not neglect the kids and still have time to worship the Lord daily, well, go right ahead. But if we dwell on what the other guy has and are not grateful for what we have, we dishonor Father.

That job we have - God gave it to us. You and I may have applied for it along with 50 other people, but Who led the employer to hire us?
That home we live in - God gave it to us. If we allowed Him to select the home for us, He will provide for its operation. My wife and I had less than two weeks in 2001 to find a home as our starter home had finally sold, by Divine Intervention. After frantic searches and exploration of several homes shown us by a local realtor, we were on the verge several times of settling...just to meet a deadline. We were returning home, after a long afternoon of open houses, when I took the wrong turn into a neighborhood while looking for Walnut Street, in order to head home. 

Realizing that I was lost in a subdivision, which I had never been in, I decided to turn around using a driveway.  As soon as I pulled into the driveway, I saw the "FOR SALE BY OWNER" sign and a phone number! We called the owner who showed us the four bedroom home (which really needed some "love and attention"). The kids loved the backyard! Eleven years later, we love our home which has had some serious updating and renovating! OH, HOW I LOVE JESUS!!!

We know how we got here. Why would we want somebody else's home over ours? I have been passed over in many aspects of life, but realized long ago that everything happens for a reason in my life. I have complete confidence and trust in the God Who gave me life. When we covet and long for what belongs to someone else, we are telling God that He made a mistake. 

What we should do is not just mind our own business, but do a gut-check to see what we are mastered by.  Are we mastered by owning "things" or are we mastered by the Master - Christ? Are we full of ambition and can't get ahead or are we full of a drive to serve Jesus and see souls brought into the Kingdom more than anything else? 

So, who is your master - your roving eye or the Lord Who infills your spirit with peace, joy and contentment? Just asking.....

(image by google)