- araratchurch
- Jul 22
- 2 min read
“But as for me, I will come into Your house in the multitude of Your mercy; In fear of You I will worship toward Your holy temple. For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous; With favor You will surround him as with a shield.”
Psalms 5:7, 12 NKJV
For many years of his life my father was a very physically powerful man. He was one who would do seemingly ill-advised things like tying a refrigerator on his back and carrying it up a hill. His large hands had an iron grip. And if he grabbed hold of something, it was not likely to prevail against him.
I was in awe of my father and I always felt safe if he was near. On the rare occasion that I needed correction, just one word or look from my father brought me to immediate tears. So, I never needed him to lay a hand on me in discipline. On the other hand, I never was afraid that he would hurt me; I knew he would only ever do good things to/for me.
Because of my relationship with my father, I am stymied when I hear pastors, teachers, and so on, minimizing the fear of the Lord, sometimes actually presenting it as something we should never have!
Now, we need not fear the Lord as someone who is at cross-purposes with Him. Rather, we walk in reverential fear and awe of His mighty power, overwhelmed by His awesome presence.
In today’s opening scripture, we see a portion of Psalms 5. In this psalm David is contrasting himself with those who do not fear the Lord, those who are living wickedly.
“For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, Nor shall evil dwell with You. The boastful shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all workers of iniquity.”
Psalms 5:4-5 NKJV
He reflects on the great mercy of the Lord through which he is allowed to come into the Lord’s presence. However, when David goes into the presence of the Lord, he does so with great fear.
The fear David expresses for the Lord is reverential fear, the awe of knowing the fathomless measure of His power and might.
Not just here, but in other psalms we see the cause-effect relationship between the fear of the Lord and the favor of the Lord. For example:
“The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him, And delivers them. Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him.”
Psalms 34:7, 9 NKJV
Just like a wonderful father, our Lord protects, keeps, and shows favor to those who walk in fear of Him. Additionally, I doubt if those who have no fear of the Lord have ever really known Him.
For today let us know and understand what David knew:
The fear of the Lord and the favor of the Lord are inextricably connected.
Peace to you.
Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!
- araratchurch
- Jul 21
- 4 min read
“Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have relieved me in my distress; Have mercy on me, and hear my prayer. How long, O you sons of men, Will you turn my glory to shame? How long will you love worthlessness And seek falsehood? Selah But know that the Lord has set apart for Himself him who is godly; The Lord will hear when I call to Him. Be angry, and do not sin. Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still. Selah”
Psalms 4:1-4 NKJV
I guess you could say that I was a dramatic child. I felt deeply and responded intensely. Often, I found that my reaction to abusive behavior was dismissed as being the result of being “overly sensitive.” In retrospect, as a mature adult, I can truthfully say that whereas some things might have hit me harder than others, to a great extent, my reaction was just a raw emotional response to very hurtful behavior accompanied by deceit. And, when hurtful behavior is accompanied by deceitful behavior, it can add to the perception that one is “overly sensitive.”
As an adult, I have been frustrated at times with how gullible some people are to deceitful people, failing to “catch” people who throw stones and hide their hands. Yes, I sometimes wonder at the human tendency to love a lie.
Now please understand, I know that there has always been deceit in the world. Deceit is nothing new. Indeed, the first couple fell victim to deceit.
“When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the Lord God walking about in the garden. So they hid from the Lord God among the trees. Then the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” He replied, “I heard you walking in the garden, so I hid. I was afraid because I was naked.” “Who told you that you were naked?” the Lord God asked. “Have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?” The man replied, “It was the woman you gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it.” Then the Lord God asked the woman, “What have you done?” “The serpent deceived me,” she replied. “That’s why I ate it.””
Genesis 3:8-13 NLT
The Apostle Paul spoke of deceit being a major factor in how the Antichrist will operate in the Last Days before the coming of Jesus Christ.
“This man will come to do the work of Satan with counterfeit power and signs and miracles. He will use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them. So God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies. Then they will be condemned for enjoying evil rather than believing the truth.”
2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 NLT
Since we are living in the Last Days before the return of Jesus, the world system has ratcheted up the level of deceit such that many now no longer even know where to look for the truth. Even trusted sources of truth—like the legacy media—have been corrupted. And, make no mistake, with the increase of AI, finding the truth will become even harder for those who are not grounded in Jesus Christ.
Through deceit, I have seen people’s characters impugned, lives shattered, and people’s rights totally disregarded. Deceit has even destabilized countries and ushered in oppressive leadership.
Truly, those who seek after righteousness, trying—by the help of God—to live justly, can become overwhelmed with deceit and wickedness being performed with seeming impunity, whether in personal interactions or in global affairs.
In today’s selection from Psalms, we see David dealing with this very topic of weaponized deceit. That is, deceit used to cause harm and/or gain control. David begins by approaching the Lord with recognition of all the times the Lord has come to his aid. He is confident that the Lord will help him even as he expresses his frustration with those who are lying against him with seeming impunity. He wonders—as we often do—at those who willfully, not only embrace deceit, but seek after it and love it. But notice, he ends with self-reflection and basically a “note to self” to not meet deceit with sinful behavior wrought out of anger.
Let me save you from entering into a fool’s errand. Trying to fight against deceit with counter accusations and anger, does not generally work. People who have loved lies so long that the devil has blinded them, will often resist the truth with great zeal.
Allow me to encourage you to just continue to live and speak the truth. And, whether your concern is about what’s going on on the world stage, or in your personal life, do as David did: Take your frustration over deceitful behavior to the Lord. Allow your trust in the Lord’s judgement and justice to keep you from stumbling over the deceitful behavior of others.
For today let us know and understand what David knew:
The Lord is never deceived. He will bring justice.
Peace to you.
Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!
- araratchurch
- Jul 18
- 3 min read
100 “I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustained me.”
Psalms 3:5 NKJV
I remember that when I was a child, I sometimes dreaded for night to come. You see, if I had been scared by something during the day, I could put it out of my mind. But it seemed with the stillness of the night, it would come back to me, manifesting in bad dreams and restless sleep. Sadly, for many people, troubled sleep doesn’t end with childhood.
I remember my mother saying that when she went to bed at night, all of her fears would come back to her mind, and then she would worry. Why? Because during the day she was busy with her responsibilities and the clamor of life. But the stillness of the night, without all those distractions, allowed that nagging fear to manifest itself.
When inquiring about someone’s worst fear(s), the question is often asked: “What keeps you up at night?” Apparently, sleep disturbed by worry is ubiquitous.
Doing a cursory look into the cost of insomnia, I found that it adds nearly 100 billion dollars per year to the cost of the healthcare system in the United States. Imagine the cost worldwide! But, the potential monetary drain pales in comparison to the drain on productivity—and on a personal level—to one’s own sense of well-being. Now, whereas this is all factually true, it should not be true for the child of God.
In today’s opening passage, we see David expressing the fact that he can rest in peace, rest with confidence, knowing that although he is asleep, the Lord is awake, watching over him. David also expresses his ability to rest in the Lord elsewhere in his psalms such as we see here:
“I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.”
Psalms 4:8 NKJV
As well, this confidence to be able to rest in peace is echoed in two of the songs of ascent. (Psalms 120 - 134 are considered “songs of ascent,” apparently sung as worshipers climbed the hill towards Jerusalem, or on other pilgrimages.)
One of these psalms is credited to David’s son, Solomon.
“Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, To sit up late, To eat the bread of sorrows; For so He gives His beloved sleep.”
Psalms 127:1-2 NKJV (Solomon)
Solomon reveals that restful sleep is a gift from the Lord to His beloved.
In this song of ascent, we hear the assurance of God’s never-blinking, watchful eye:
“He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.”
Psalms 121:3-4 NKJV
The Lord once spoke to me that there are two dangerous mindsets. One is that of “sufficiency outside of God.” Surprisingly, the other is “insufficiency in God.” Now, we readily recognize that going it on our own, acting according to our own will and understanding, is very dangerous. However, we may fail to understand how dangerous it is to be in Christ and still are fearful and unbelieving.
Of course, many people, even Christians, struggle with laying aside the troubles of the day as they lie down to sleep. But if we truly believe—as did David—that the Lord is our Shepherd, then we should also believe that He leads us into the green pastures of His provision, care, and keeping. If He is not with us, we have every reason to worry. But, if He is with us, we have every reason to have confidence that He is taking care of us as He has promised!
Child of God, the sentiment to “rest in peace,” should not be reserved for the dead. They have either attained eternal peace or eternal distress. However, we who are living, desperately need to rest in peace now by remembering that the Lord is watching over us.
As part of the Lord’s dear flock, we don’t find peace by counting sheep. Rather, we find our peace and rest by looking at our wonderful Shepherd.
For today let us know and understand what David knew:
If the Lord is with you, you can REST IN PEACE!
Peace to you.
Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!