“We give thanks to you, O God, we give thanks, for your Name is near; men tell of your wonderful deeds.”
– Psalm 75:1
Hi James and Ellen,
Do you like to do things with or be around a kid – or a guy or gal, who is egotistical or arrogant? Do you like to do things with or be around a kid – or a guy or gal, who is boastful or bigheaded? Do you like to do things with or be around a kid – or a guy or gal, who is negative or judgmental? Psalm 75 was scribed by Asaph. Asaph – in this psalm song that he scribed, reassures God’s specially chosen guys and gals – the Israelite people group guys and gals, that God is always ready to intervene against any malicious, menacing world power – such as at this time the Assyrian nation, who might be getting ready to try to overrun them. Asaph introduces his psalm song with words of thanksgiving and he ends his psalm song with words of praise. Asaph scribed the stanzas’ words of his psalm song in a way that allows for interchanges between God’s specially chosen guys and gals who had come together in the city of Jerusalem for the purpose of worshipping in the temple of God that was in the city of Jerusalem and the Levi tribal clan guys who were in the choir that sang psalm songs in the temple of God. Some of the stanzas in this psalm song that Asaph scribed contain encouraging words that are spoken by a watchful Heavenly Father to His fearful specially chosen guys and gals. The other stanzas contain triumphant responses from God’s specially chosen guys and gals to their caring Heavenly Father. God through this psalm song that He – as God the Spirit, breathed on Asaph to scribe lets His specially chosen guys and gals know that He will never fail to call to account the arrogant, the evil powers, the wicked and the foolish for their sinful actions, that He will never fail to judge – that He will judge in His appointed time, and that He will one day cut the defiant vigor and strength ‘horns’ off the world’s strongholds, evil forces, self-centered and thoughtless. God’s specially chosen guys and gals through this psalm song that God – as God the Spirit, breathed on Asaph to scribe has them telling their Heavenly Father that they have been convinced that He will one day judge the arrogant, prideful guys and gals who have impugned them, that He will one day bring down the judgmental, demeaning guys and gals who have exalted themselves over them and that He will one day pour out a full cup of foaming wine – that has been mixed with spices, over the guys and gals who are living on planet Earth who have maintained malicious, nefarious lifestyles directed against guys, gals and kids who have personally come to know Him.
Your grandpaa last month was in Guatemala with ten high school students. These ten high school students went to Guatemala on a four week long Adventures in Missions Ambassador ministry team trip that your grandpaa led as the A leader. The ten high school students who were in Guatemala on an Ambassador ministry team trip last month with your grandpaa are all vibrant Christ-followers. These ten high school students while in Guatemala were exposed to a society, culture and religious norms that have been influenced by decades of trying to find ways to appease Satan’s spirit world. The beliefs of Guatemala’s indigenous guys and gals are centered around inanimate things that are given prescribed offerings in a false hope that these lifeless objects will generate wealth, bring about a pregnancy, cause healing, etc. Christ-follower guys, gals and kids everywhere need to be very aware of the fact that there are proactive enemies who are living among them who want to undermine them in hopes of destroying their faith testimony. Guys, gals and kids who are not Christ-followers are being egged on by the invisible forces of powers and principalities that are controlled by Satan and by Satan’s vast army of evil spirits to do whatever they can to disparage Christ-follower guys, gals and kids. Christ-followers are guys, gals and kids who have heard and who understand the words of verse 1, “We give thanks to you, O God, we give thanks, for your Name is near; men tell of your wonderful deeds.” Non-Christ-followers are guys, gals and kids who refuse to accept and internalize as truth the life changing stories and miraculous wonders that are told by Christ-follower guys, gal and kids. Your grandpaa believes that some of these guys, gals and kids – until the day of their predestined salvation, has their ears muted, eyes blinded, minds closed and hearts sealed by God from ever being able to experience the joy and hope of being giving the unmerited gift of eternal life – which takes place when a guy, gal or kids accepts what took place when an incarnate man – Jesus Christ, suffered and died after being brutally hung on and cruelly nailed to a cross resulting in His shed blood becoming the ransom payment for their sins.
Believing – whether it is in an inanimate object or in what took place with Jesus Christ, will lead to actions that affirm what is believed. Faith is believing in something unseen – which is something that a non-Christ-follower guy or gal often does just as well as a Christ-follower guy or gal when a non-Christ-follower guy or gal makes a sacrifice on a rock altar of a bird or food or . . . to an inert wood, clay, metal or rock image. All a Christ-follower guy, gal or kid needs to do to delight God is to offer his or her body as a living sacrifice to God so that He can use it to bring glory to His name and for the sake of establishing His kingdom on planet Earth. God’s specially chosen guys and gals grasped this truth as the ever-prevailing evil on planet Earth bore down on them. Have you grasped that truth?
Psalm 75 (1008)