2018 Dec 30 Psalm 30, 3John 1
2018 Dec 30 Psalm 30, 3John 1
Hello, and a warm welcome to one and all! Let's consider some verses from Psalm 30 to start with, verses 1-5:
"1 I will exalt you, O Jehovah, for you have lifted me up; You did not let my enemies rejoice over me. 2 O Jehovah my God, I cried to you for help, and you healed me. 3 O Jehovah, you have lifted me up from the Grave. You kept me alive; you spared me from sinking into the pit. 4 Sing praises to Jehovah, you his loyal ones, Give thanks to his holy name; 5 Because being under his anger is only for a moment, But being in his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may come in the evening, but in the morning, there is a joyful cry."
Psalm 30:1 Have you at times been moved to exalt Jehovah for his powerful support in your life? If you choose to love Jehovah as one of his dedicated servants, you should expect to experience at least occasional opposition. "In fact," 2Timothy 3:12 says, "all those desiring to live with godly devotion in association with Christ Jesus will also be persecuted." Yet, we can endure, proving faithful to God, and experience His faithful support and blessing on our loyal Christian course. (1Cori 10:13). The reward is great, and the joy we can experience along the way may well be worth the price of admission! True love for God, Christ, our beloved marriage partner, and neighbor is among our Christian aims and blessings.
Psalm 30:2 We may have become broken spiritually, even in spite of sincere efforts to please God, due perhaps due to a wayward course before having "accurate knowledge" of some important area of Christianity. (Ephes 4:13). Yet, with our continued sincerity in pleasing Him and earnest appeal to Jehovah for aid, we can receive of Jehovah's healing power.
Psalm 30:3-5 Before learning the truth about God one may have been heading for "the Grave." Without having God in his or her life, one can make many poor decisions leading to unhappiness and trouble, sometimes even resulting in untimely death. If this one was thinking of throwing all caution to the wind, violating his or her conscience to an extreme, he or she may well have sunk into "the pit," without much hope of recovery. But the ransom sacrifice of Christ has tremendous power, with the assistance of God in His wisdom, to lift one "up from the Grave!" We must realize one carries wounds from sinful decisions, often hurting others by a poor example that could stumble them away from receiving eternal life. May we long to maintain a positive, encouraging example for others, that as many as possible may live in true peace and happiness eternally. We may thus be moved by Jehovah's love for us, to give Him thanks and sing His praises. We may have wept over past error, perhaps having disappointed or even angered Jehovah by our actions. But sincerely accepting the truth of God, letting it adjust our thinking and decisions, often brings a "joyful cry" as Jehovah's blessing is on our efforts to please Him.
3John 1:1-4 greets Gaius, one "walking in the truth." Brothers came to John and bore witness about Gaius' sincerity in serving God and following Christ, causing John to rejoice "very much." May we likewise rejoice to see others faithfully serving God, refusing to violate their Bible-trained Christian conscience. John's encouraging words read this way: "1 The older man to Gaʹius, the beloved, whom I truly love. 2 Beloved one, I pray that in all things you continue to prosper and enjoy good health, just as you are now prospering. 3 For I rejoiced very much when brothers came and bore witness about the truth you hold, as you go on walking in the truth. 4 No greater joy do I have than this: that I should hear that my children go on walking in the truth." John had developed a close bond of brotherly affection for Gaius, calling him "beloved one" in verses 2 and 5. May our sincere Christian "obedience to the truth," purifying us and bringing about true unity, in time allow for genuine "brotherly affection" in the truth. As Peter encouraged at 1Peter 1:22, "Now that you have purified yourselves by your obedience to the truth with unhypocritical brotherly affection as the result, love one another intensely from the heart."
Find Life and See
Between Winchester, Virginia, and hopefully, Washington D.C., having confidence that our thankful trust in God will not fail to inspire us to the peace He has purposed via His Kingdom!
