Him Who Justifies the Ungodly…

 What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh? 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. 3 For what does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." 4 Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. 5 But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness,—Romans 4:1-5

Romans 4 was part of my Thru the Bible reading plan this morning.  Verse 5 was my favorite because in it Paul gave me a new description of God:

"Him who justifies the ungodly."

Our God does not wait for us to become godly, or righteous on our own apart from Him, before welcoming us into His family. Because of our faith in Jesus, God justifies us in spite of our sinfulness. How gracious!  How AWESOME.  Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!  

Reminds me of the God Who Stays, a song by Matthew West.

You're the God who stays

You're the God who stays

You're the one who runs in my direction

When the whole world walks away

You're the God who stands

With wide open arms

And You tell me nothing I have ever done can separate my heart

From the God who stays

My shame can't separate

My guilt can't separate

My past can't separate

I'm Yours forever

My sin can't separate

My scars can't separate

My failures can't separate

I'm Yours forever

No enemy can separate

No power of hell can take away

Your love for me will never change

I'm Yours forever

From Everlasting to Everlasting, You are God…

 1 I cry out to the LORD with my voice;

With my voice to the LORD I make my supplication.

2 I pour out my complaint before Him;

I declare before Him my trouble.

3 When my spirit was overwhelmed within me,

Then You knew my path.

In the way in which I walk

They have secretly set a snare for me.

4 Look on my right hand and see,

For there is no one who acknowledges me;

Refuge has failed me;

No one cares for my soul.

5 I cried out to You, O LORD:

I said, "You are my refuge,

My portion in the land of the living.

6 Attend to my cry,

For I am brought very low;

Deliver me from my persecutors,

For they are stronger than I.

7 Bring my soul out of prison,

That I may praise Your name;

The righteous shall surround me,

For You shall deal bountifully with me."—Psalm 142

In the midst of trial and trouble, I have found that no greater comfort can be found than in praying through the word of God...especially through the Psalms.  This particular psalm was written when David was in a cave hiding from Saul and his minions.  Now I have never prayed from the depths and the darkness of a cave, but I have been in some very dark places physically, emotionally and spiritually and prayer ALWAYS makes my night season light about me.  Praying brings my soul out of its prison and enlightens my eyes to see my God’s good and sovereign hand on my life. 

This effect of prayer on my heart and my mind doesn’t last forever, nor does it usually  change my circumstances, but it does change me a little more each and every time I lift up my empty and helpless hands to Him.  Prayer for me rights my thinking and makes room for the Spirit of God to transform me more and more into His image. As I behold Him and turn my heart upside down before Him...leaving all of what is poured out in His capable hands...my heart is lightened and my countenance changes. Joy mixed with relief fills my heart, because I remember that I am not sufficient. My God wants to relieve me of my burdens.  He wants me to bring them to Him always. 

What a gift we have in being able to come boldly to His throne of grace to obtain mercy and grace to help in our time of need.  God is for us...He is on our side...He fights for us.  We stand in His grace and favor...He WILL deal bountifully with us.  There is so much in life that is just too big and too hard for me.  My heart can be overwhelmed so easily.  How wonderful to know that He knows my path and the way in which I walk.  My God can and will handle all that comes my way.  I can trust Him in my good times, but I can especially trust Him when my heart is brought low or when refuge has failed me and like the psalmist, I feel that no one cares for my soul.  Oh Lord, I have trusted in Your mercy...Your unfailing, grace giving and never changing love, and I am helped.  

Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations.

2 Before the mountains were brought forth,

Or ever You had formed the earth and the world,

Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.—Psalm 90:1-2

O Give Thanks..Psalm 107

 O give thanks to the LORD, for He is good;

For His mercy (compassion and lovingkindness) endure forever!—Psalm 107:1 

Such good advice!  Praise the Lord!  BECAUSE no matter what is happening in our lives or in the world…

The LORD is good!  His compassion and lovingkindness toward us as believers endures forever.  

Beloved…the Lord is our joy! 

Read thru Psalm 107 and let the tears of relief and joy flow.  The Lord is on our side. He is merciful…He is kind. He hears the cries of those who belong to Him. He dwells in us and His Presence goes before us. We stand forever in His favor and are destined for glory. 

The Lord is my strength and my song and He has become my salvation. 

Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices;

My flesh also will rest in hope.

10 For You will not leave my soul in Sheol,

Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.

11 You will show me the path of life;

In Your presence is fullness of joy;

At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.—Psalm 16:9-11

Looking Back and Seeing the Good Hand of God…

Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?—Romans 2:4

BLB

Despise - to contemn, despise, disdain, think little or nothing of

Goodness - moral goodness, integrity, benignity, kindness

Forbearance - self-restraint, i.e. tolerance:

Longsuffering - patience, endurance, constancy, steadfastness, perseverance, forbearance, longsuffering, slowness in avenging wrongs

Believers Bible Commentary:  

—judgment of God is according to truth

—judgment of God is inescapable unless we repent

—judgment of God is sometimes delayed  (vs 4)

I have loved this verse from my very first reading because it caused me look back to the road I traveled to repentance. It made me see that it truly was His goodness, His forbearance, and His long-suffering toward me that led me to repentance.  1 Peter 3:9 says this:

“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.”

I am so glad the Lord was patient with me...looking back I can see His providential hand on my life...protecting and preserving me while leading me to Himself with cords of kindness. ❤️

For the Hope of Israel I am Bound…

 For this reason therefore I have called for you, to see you and speak with you, because for the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain."—Acts 28:20

Pauls chains were in Christ...the hope of Israel.  He was bound because of his belief in Israel’s Messiah. Simeon in Luke Chapter 2 calls the Messiah, the Consolation of Israel.  Of all of the titles for Christ I think this one is my favorite.  The word “consolation” always brings the sweet picture to my mind of a child receiving and finding comfort and solace on his mother’s lap. Jesus is truly my consolation in every way...He is the One who dries my tears and in whose lap I find solace.  No matter what I might be facing in my daily circumstances, His Presence in my heart is its rejoicing.  There are no words for the comfort He brings and no measure for the peace He provides me moment by moment. I can lose everything...but Jesus is my stay.  He does not change.  He is the same...yesterday, today and forever.  He comforts me as I walk through this vale of tears, guides me with His counsel and will receive me in glory.  

My heart breaks for God’s chosen people as I read this chapter...for the irony of it all.  Israel rejects their Consolation...the One they had been waiting for forever...year in and year out.  The One whose word they had studied. The One who had answered the cry of their hearts time and again. The One who was their Comfort. The One whose very word predicted their rejection.  The One to whom they had sacrificed...the One who was their God and who desired to be their God forever.  

Verse 17 begins Paul’s sixth and final defense to the Jews in regard to the charges against him. He draws his day long defense to a close with these words from Isaiah.  

 "The Holy Spirit spoke rightly through Isaiah the prophet to our fathers, 

"saying, 

'Go to this people and say:

"Hearing you will hear, and shall not understand;

And seeing you will see, and not perceive;

27 For the hearts of this people have grown dull.

Their ears are hard of hearing,

And their eyes they have closed,

Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears,

Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,

So that I should heal them." 

28  "Therefore let it be known to you that the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will hear it!"

Verse 24 tells us that some were persuaded but others disbelieved.  For the Jews who heard Paul’s defense and disbelieved, this prophecy from Isaiah was fulfilled.  Jesus’ lament in Matthew 23 echoed in my ears as I read it.  

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!  See, your house is left to you desolate.

For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'" 

God wasn’t looking for religious externalities.  God was looking for a heart that was tender and broken...a heart that trembled at His word.  A heart that desired to worship Him in spirit and in truth. Oh Father, give me this kind of heart always!  

Thus says the LORD: "Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool; what is the house that you would build for me, and what is the place of my rest? All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the LORD. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.  (Isaiah 66:1-2 ESV)

Hear the word of the LORD, you who tremble at his word: "Your brothers who hate you and cast you out for my name's sake have said, 'Let the LORD be glorified, that we may see your joy'; but it is they who shall be put to shame.  (Isaiah 66:5, ESV)

Jesus answered him, "If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. (John 14:23, ESV)

But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such to worship Him”—John 4:23

Do Not Sorrow, For the Joy of the Lord is Your Strength…

 9 And Nehemiah, who was the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn nor weep.” For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the Law.  10 Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

As Ezra read the people the word of God their hearts rightly became grieved over their sin for with the knowledge of the law comes the knowledge of sin. The word of God often has this same effect on my own heart for the very same reason…it shows me my sin. But here is the thing.  God doesn’t leave us in our sorrow and grief. He forgives us!  His word wounds us to bring the conviction of sin to our hearts that will lead us to repentance. 

The people of God could have joy even in the midst of sorrow because God had provided a way of return.  Ezra’s words reminded them that yes, God punishes sin, but He also blesses obedience.  Their God was/is merciful. He had not left them in their sin or utterly destroyed them as a nation. This day was holy to the Lord because the reading of the word had brought conviction of sin and new life in Him. (Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God) The nation could move forward with God, once again, at the center.

Beloved…Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. God provides a way of return! His mercies are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness!  

We are NEVER without recourse when we sin.  Prior to salvation my heart would often think after I had sinned, that there was no way back...I had gone too far...God could never forgive me.  Tragically, I used these thoughts to sin even more because I had already gone beyond (in my view) the point of no return.  

Today, when I sin my heart sorrows, but not as one who has no hope.  I rejoice as the people of Israel did, because God has provided me with a way back into fellowship with Him.  God has accepted His Son’s propitiation!  Jesus’ perfect life, death and resurrection has made me free from the law of sin and death. My sins...past, present and future are forgiven!  I am alive to God. The life I now live, I live unto Him!  I still struggle in my flesh but praise God, sin no longer has dominion over me.   When I bring my heart to Him for cleansing, there is sorrow, but there is also much joy in the Holy Spirit. As a believer in Jesus, I stand justified before God.  I LIVE in His grace!  His mercy surrounds me. 

Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!

For His mercy endures forever.—Psalm 136:1

“The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes” (Ps. 19:8). 

“Your testimonies I have taken as a heritage forever, for they are the rejoicing of my heart” (Ps. 119:111).

1 Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands!

2 Serve the LORD with gladness;

Come before His presence with singing.

3 Know that the LORD, He is God;

It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;

We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,

And into His courts with praise.

Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

5 For the LORD is good;

His mercy is everlasting,

And His truth endures to all generations.—Psalm 100:1-5

Blessed are the people who know the joyful sound!

They walk, O LORD, in the light of Your countenance.

16 In Your name they rejoice all day long,

And in Your righteousness they are exalted.

17 For You are the glory of their strength,

And in Your favor our horn is exalted.

18 For our shield belongs to the LORD,

And our king to the Holy One of Israel.—Psalm 89:15-18

On Remembering Truth…Psalm 89

 I will sing of the mercies of the LORD forever;

With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations.

2 For I have said, “Mercy shall be built up forever;

Your faithfulness You shall establish in the very heavens.”

3 “I have made a covenant with My chosen,

I have sworn to My servant David:

4 ‘Your seed I will establish forever,

And build up your throne to all generations.’ ” Selah

5 And the heavens will praise Your wonders, O LORD;

Your faithfulness also in the assembly of the saints.

6 For who in the heavens can be compared to the LORD?

Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the LORD?

7 God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints,

And to be held in reverence by all those around Him.

8 O LORD God of hosts,

Who is mighty like You, O LORD?

Your faithfulness also surrounds You.

9 You rule the raging of the sea;

When its waves rise, You still them.

10 You have broken Rahab in pieces, as one who is slain;

You have scattered Your enemies with Your mighty arm.

11 The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours;

The world and all its fullness, You have founded them.

12 The north and the south, You have created them;

Tabor and Hermon rejoice in Your name.

13 You have a mighty arm;

Strong is Your hand, and high is Your right hand.

14 Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne;

Mercy and truth go before Your face.

15 Blessed are the people who know the joyful sound!

They walk, O LORD, in the light of Your countenance.

16 In Your name they rejoice all day long,

And in Your righteousness they are exalted.

17 For You are the glory of their strength,

And in Your favor our horn is exalted.

18 For our shield belongs to the LORD,

And our king to the Holy One of Israel.

19 Then You spoke in a vision to Your holy one,fn

And said: “I have given help to one who is mighty;

I have exalted one chosen from the people.

20 I have found My servant David;

With My holy oil I have anointed him,

21 With whom My hand shall be established;

Also My arm shall strengthen him.

22 The enemy shall not outwit him,

Nor the son of wickedness afflict him.

23 I will beat down his foes before his face,

And plague those who hate him.

24 “But My faithfulness and My mercy shall be with him,

And in My name his horn shall be exalted.

25 Also I will set his hand over the sea,

And his right hand over the rivers.

26 He shall cry to Me, ‘You are my Father,

My God, and the rock of my salvation.’

27 Also I will make him My firstborn,

The highest of the kings of the earth.

28 My mercy I will keep for him forever,

And My covenant shall stand firm with him.

29 His seed also I will make to endure forever,

And his throne as the days of heaven.

30 “If his sons forsake My law

And do not walk in My judgments,

31 If they break My statutes

And do not keep My commandments,

32 Then I will punish their transgression with the rod,

And their iniquity with stripes.

33 Nevertheless My lovingkindness I will not utterly take from him,

Nor allow My faithfulness to fail.

34 My covenant I will not break,

Nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips.

35 Once I have sworn by My holiness;

I will not lie to David:

36 His seed shall endure forever,

And his throne as the sun before Me;

37 It shall be established forever like the moon,

Even like the faithful witness in the sky.” Selah

38 But You have cast off and abhorred,

You have been furious with Your anointed.

39 You have renounced the covenant of Your servant;

You have profaned his crown by casting it to the ground.

40 You have broken down all his hedges;

You have brought his strongholds to ruin.

41 All who pass by the way plunder him;

He is a reproach to his neighbors.

42 You have exalted the right hand of his adversaries;

You have made all his enemies rejoice.

43 You have also turned back the edge of his sword,

And have not sustained him in the battle.

44 You have made his glory cease,

And cast his throne down to the ground.

45 The days of his youth You have shortened;

You have covered him with shame. Selah

46 How long, LORD?

Will You hide Yourself forever?

Will Your wrath burn like fire?

47 Remember how short my time is;

For what futility have You created all the children of men?

48 What man can live and not see death?

Can he deliver his life from the power of the grave? Selah

49 Lord, where are Your former lovingkindnesses,

Which You swore to David in Your truth?

50 Remember, Lord, the reproach of Your servants--

How I bear in my bosom the reproach of all the many peoples,

51 With which Your enemies have reproached, O LORD,

With which they have reproached the footsteps of Your anointed.

52 Blessed be the LORD forevermore!

Amen and Amen.—Psalm 89

This psalm really resonated with me this morning.  In verses 1-37 David speaks what He knows to be true about God and praises Him for His care of His people.  He reminds us (himself) that God’s promises are sure and that His truth stands forever.  Forever, O Lord, You word is settled in heaven.  He changes not and no one can oppose Him.  It is good for me to do the same when the evil reality of the world in front of me threatens to overwhelm my heart.

Underlying all that is happening in our world today is my faith in the ONE whose mercies don’t come to an end and whose truth is everlasting.  The truth of His word is my comfort in affliction and the anchor of my soul.   As the saying goes, I don’t know the future, but I am intimately acquainted with the ONE who holds all of it in His sovereign hand.  I am His and He is mine.  He knows me and my soul follows close behind Him.  He has given me eternal life...I will never perish and neither shall any man pluck me out of His hand.  He is greater than ALL.  

My day to day expectations may be thwarted and disappointed, but my faith and hope in my God is sure and brings me deep comfort in all that I face.  I am more than a conqueror through Him who loves me...for I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us (ME) from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. The joy of the Lord is my strength.  The Psalmist began with praise and ended with the same.  I will do likewise...

Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!

"For who has known the mind of the LORD?

Or who has become His counselor?"

"Or who has first given to Him

And it shall be repaid to him?"

For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.—Romans 11:33-36

Oh, how blessed is the man who places his trust in Him!  

Pray…Watch…Work

 Life lesson from Nehemiah for me...

Pray...Watch...Work

Nevertheless we made our prayer to our God, and because of them we set a watch against them day and night.—Nehemiah 4:9

So we built the wall, and the entire wall was joined together up to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.—Nehemiah 4:6

"Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."—Matt 26:41

for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.—Phil 2:13

Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen—Hebrews 13:20-21

Nehemiah…A Man of Prayer

 So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.— Nehemiah 1:4

Then the king said to me, "What do you request?" So I prayed to the God of heaven.—Nehemiah 2:4

Nehemiah was a leader, he was a mover and a shaker but what I see most in the life of Nehemiah is that he was a man of prayer. 

Reading through Ch 1, verses 5-11 tells me that Nehemiah had a genuine, active and dependent relationship with his God. The content of his prayer tells me that they sprung from a heart that truly believed God is who He says He is.  I love that!   I so want to emulate the relationship Nehemiah fostered with God!  I want my prayers to come from a heart that believes God.  I want My Father in heaven to be the first person I think about when I awake and the last person on my heart as I drop off to sleep.  I want an awareness of His Presence continually so that my calling on Him becomes as natural as breathing.

Believing with Nehemiah that:

The LORD IS...

merciful and gracious,
Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.
9 He will not always strive with us,
Nor will He keep His anger forever.
10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
Nor punished us according to our iniquities.
11 For as the heavens are high above the earth,
So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
12 As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
13 As a father pities his children,
So the LORD pities those who fear Him.
14 For He knows our frame;
He remembers that we are dust.
15 As for man, his days are like grass;
As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.
16 For the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
And its place remembers it no more.fn
17 But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting
On those who fear Him,
And His righteousness to children's children,
18 To such as keep His covenant,
And to those who remember His commandments to do them.—Ps 103:8-18