For God So Loved.....YOU!!!!
Psalm 109:21-31
21 But you, Sovereign Lord,
help me for your name’s sake;
out of the goodness of your love, deliver me.
22 For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is wounded within me.
23 I fade away like an evening shadow;
I am shaken off like a locust.
24 My knees give way from fasting;
my body is thin and gaunt.
25 I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
when they see me, they shake their heads.
26 Help me, Lord my God;
save me according to your unfailing love.
27 Let them know that it is your hand,
that you, Lord, have done it.
28 While they curse, may you bless;
may those who attack me be put to shame,
but may your servant rejoice.
29 May my accusers be clothed with disgrace
and wrapped in shame as in a cloak.
30 With my mouth I will greatly extol the Lord;
in the great throng of worshipers I will praise him.
31 For he stands at the right hand of the needy,
to save their lives from those who would condemn them.
Reflection: Here again today we have King David crying out to God against an oppressor that is causing him not only trouble on the outside but also internally. David is wasting away in body, but also his spirit is wounded by the curses his enemies are heaping upon him. In verse 28, he says “while they curse may you bless”. It reminds us that men’s curses are impotent; while God’s blessings are omnipotent
As David cries out for God’s mercy, he does not prescribe to God what he should do for him, but refers himself to his wisdom: “Lord, do for me what seems good in thy eyes” (Matthew Henry). David ends this psalm with a commitment to praise God despite all of the bad things that are happening in his life. We see the great faith of King David, and his great reliance on the Lord in his suffering, which is a foretaste of our Lord’s great reliance on the Father in His suffering.
Where are you suffering today? Is it from without or within? Either way imitate King David’s resolve to rely on God’s blessings even in bad times, and His mercy which will both help you and give God glory. For it is easy to praise God when things are going well, but to praise God when things are not so well gives God great glory to His name and will not be forgotten when we return to be with God.
1 Samuel 16:14-17:31
David and Goliath
17 Now the Philistines gathered their forces for war and assembled at Sokoh in Judah. They pitched camp at Ephes Dammim, between Sokoh and Azekah. 2 Saul and the Israelites assembled and camped in the Valley of Elah and drew up their battle line to meet the Philistines. 3 The Philistines occupied one hill and the Israelites another, with the valley between them. 4 A champion named Goliath, who was from Gath, came out of the Philistine camp. His height was six cubits and a span. 5 He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor of bronze weighing five thousand shekels 6 on his legs he wore bronze greaves, and a bronze javelin was slung on his back. 7 His spear shaft was like a weaver’s rod, and its iron point weighed six hundred shekels. His shield bearer went ahead of him. 8 Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, “Why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him come down to me. 9 If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects and serve us.” 10 Then the Philistine said, “This day I defy the armies of Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each other.” 11 On hearing the Philistine’s words, Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified. 12 Now David was the son of an Ephrathite named Jesse, who was from Bethlehem in Judah. Jesse had eight sons, and in Saul’s time he was very old. 13 Jesse’s three oldest sons had followed Saul to the war: The firstborn was Eliab; the second, Abinadab; and the third, Shammah. 14 David was the youngest. The three oldest followed Saul, 15 but David went back and forth from Saul to tend his father’s sheep at Bethlehem. 16 For forty days the Philistine came forward every morning and evening and took his stand. 17 Now Jesse said to his son David, “Take this ephah of roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread for your brothers and hurry to their camp. 18 Take along these ten cheeses to the commander of their unit. See how your brothers are and bring back some assurance from them. 19 They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the Valley of Elah, fighting against the Philistines.” 20 Early in the morning David left the flock in the care of a shepherd, loaded up and set out, as Jesse had directed. He reached the camp as the army was going out to its battle positions, shouting the war cry. 21 Israel and the Philistines were drawing up their lines facing each other. 22 David left his things with the keeper of supplies, ran to the battle lines and asked his brothers how they were. 23 As he was talking with them, Goliath, the Philistine champion from Gath, stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance, and David heard it. 24 Whenever the Israelites saw the man, they all fled from him in great fear. 25 Now the Israelites had been saying, “Do you see how this man keeps coming out? He comes out to defy Israel. The king will give great wealth to the man who kills him. He will also give him his daughter in marriage and will exempt his family from taxes in Israel.” 26 David asked the men standing near him, “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?” 27 They repeated to him what they had been saying and told him, “This is what will be done for the man who kills him.” 28 When Eliab, David’s oldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, “Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle.” 29 “Now what have I done?” said David. “Can’t I even speak?” 30 He then turned away to someone else and brought up the same matter, and the men answered him as before. 31 What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him.
Reflection: Today we learn of one of the great stories in all of Israel’s history about young David who meets the fearsome and huge Goliath. As the Israelites lined up for battle against their enemy the Philistines, Goliath taunted them day and night for 40 days. Saul and the men shrunk in fear every time he appeared. David, the youngest of Jesse’s sons, was the one who stayed home to watch the sheep and from time to time brought some cheese and bread to fortify the men. Well it just so happened David was with the men when Goliath began his usual taunt. When David heard it he was shocked that this man would mock the armies of the living God. Notice David was focused on God’s honor not the size of the giant. Apparently there was a bounty on Goliath’s head and whoever slayed Goliath would get the king’s daughter and a lot of money (and no taxes!!). When David’s oldest brother saw David inquiring of the matter he scolded him and basically told him to stick to tending the sheep back on the farm. But Saul had already seen the power of God in David’s music which healed him of a spirit of depression so he called for him. We’ll see tomorrow what this young shepherd boy who was more concerned with the glory of God than the size of the giant can do!
John 3:16-26
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.
Reflection: Here we the most quoted most publicized most memorized verse in all the bible. If someone knew only one bible verse this would probably be it. In it we have the whole Gospel story of Good News summarized in one sentence. “God so loved the world (literally cosmos) that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” We see the great motivation for the Father to send the Son was love. God loves the world and everything and everyone in it. We remember that God declared in the Creation story with each day, “It was good!!” But we also saw evil came into the world and corrupted God’s good Creation, and even the people began to love things/idos more than God.
But God’s plan to redeem or buy back all that was good out of His love centered in sending His one and only Son. And then the key verse “whoever believes in Him”. At the heart of our faith is believing in Jesus. This can often get reduced to a proposition, “If you believe in Jesus you will go to heaven.” And while this is true, it can often water down the meaning of the phrase. In those days “belief” was not just head knowledge, but a whole life proposition. To believe in something was not just intellectual but with all you were body, mind and soul. We know from other passages that God’s Holy Spirit is the one that leads us to belief, and through belief we are born again and become a new person and become part of God’s family. Importantly there is no condemnation in Christ. God did not come to condemn the world but to save it. Yet, we also see the reality in this verse that some will choose not to believe. Great theologians differ on whether this is a pure human choice to reject, or whether some are predestined to not believe by God. On either side of the equation it poses issues, but the reality is some believe and some don’t. When God gave us free will so we would not be robots, there became a chance that one would use free will to reject God. Fortunately by God’s grace, His Spirit also is at work opening the eyes of unbelievers to accept this free gift. So you see we can never take credit for belief, it is a gift of God through faith which He grants to us. But for those who have accepted this free gift, the rest of our lives can be lived out of thanksgiving for this great and indescribable gift of God’s one and only Son, that whoever should believe should not perish but have eternal life.
Do you know that you believe and have eternal life? If not hear the Good News and allow the Holy Spirit to lead you faith in Jesus Christ, it is God’s greatest gift to you if you receive it! Your life will never be the same!
Therefore I will allot him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he poured out himself to death. Isaiah 53:12
Christ says, “All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” Matthew 11:27
You are Lord over all, O Christ! We know you are the only begotten, sent to show us the Father. Without you we would forever wander. All praise to you who gave himself for us by the will of God in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
21 But you, Sovereign Lord,
help me for your name’s sake;
out of the goodness of your love, deliver me.
22 For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is wounded within me.
23 I fade away like an evening shadow;
I am shaken off like a locust.
24 My knees give way from fasting;
my body is thin and gaunt.
25 I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
when they see me, they shake their heads.
26 Help me, Lord my God;
save me according to your unfailing love.
27 Let them know that it is your hand,
that you, Lord, have done it.
28 While they curse, may you bless;
may those who attack me be put to shame,
but may your servant rejoice.
29 May my accusers be clothed with disgrace
and wrapped in shame as in a cloak.
30 With my mouth I will greatly extol the Lord;
in the great throng of worshipers I will praise him.
31 For he stands at the right hand of the needy,
to save their lives from those who would condemn them.
Reflection: Here again today we have King David crying out to God against an oppressor that is causing him not only trouble on the outside but also internally. David is wasting away in body, but also his spirit is wounded by the curses his enemies are heaping upon him. In verse 28, he says “while they curse may you bless”. It reminds us that men’s curses are impotent; while God’s blessings are omnipotent
As David cries out for God’s mercy, he does not prescribe to God what he should do for him, but refers himself to his wisdom: “Lord, do for me what seems good in thy eyes” (Matthew Henry). David ends this psalm with a commitment to praise God despite all of the bad things that are happening in his life. We see the great faith of King David, and his great reliance on the Lord in his suffering, which is a foretaste of our Lord’s great reliance on the Father in His suffering.
Where are you suffering today? Is it from without or within? Either way imitate King David’s resolve to rely on God’s blessings even in bad times, and His mercy which will both help you and give God glory. For it is easy to praise God when things are going well, but to praise God when things are not so well gives God great glory to His name and will not be forgotten when we return to be with God.
1 Samuel 16:14-17:31
David and Goliath
17 Now the Philistines gathered their forces for war and assembled at Sokoh in Judah. They pitched camp at Ephes Dammim, between Sokoh and Azekah. 2 Saul and the Israelites assembled and camped in the Valley of Elah and drew up their battle line to meet the Philistines. 3 The Philistines occupied one hill and the Israelites another, with the valley between them. 4 A champion named Goliath, who was from Gath, came out of the Philistine camp. His height was six cubits and a span. 5 He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor of bronze weighing five thousand shekels 6 on his legs he wore bronze greaves, and a bronze javelin was slung on his back. 7 His spear shaft was like a weaver’s rod, and its iron point weighed six hundred shekels. His shield bearer went ahead of him. 8 Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, “Why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him come down to me. 9 If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects and serve us.” 10 Then the Philistine said, “This day I defy the armies of Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each other.” 11 On hearing the Philistine’s words, Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified. 12 Now David was the son of an Ephrathite named Jesse, who was from Bethlehem in Judah. Jesse had eight sons, and in Saul’s time he was very old. 13 Jesse’s three oldest sons had followed Saul to the war: The firstborn was Eliab; the second, Abinadab; and the third, Shammah. 14 David was the youngest. The three oldest followed Saul, 15 but David went back and forth from Saul to tend his father’s sheep at Bethlehem. 16 For forty days the Philistine came forward every morning and evening and took his stand. 17 Now Jesse said to his son David, “Take this ephah of roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread for your brothers and hurry to their camp. 18 Take along these ten cheeses to the commander of their unit. See how your brothers are and bring back some assurance from them. 19 They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the Valley of Elah, fighting against the Philistines.” 20 Early in the morning David left the flock in the care of a shepherd, loaded up and set out, as Jesse had directed. He reached the camp as the army was going out to its battle positions, shouting the war cry. 21 Israel and the Philistines were drawing up their lines facing each other. 22 David left his things with the keeper of supplies, ran to the battle lines and asked his brothers how they were. 23 As he was talking with them, Goliath, the Philistine champion from Gath, stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance, and David heard it. 24 Whenever the Israelites saw the man, they all fled from him in great fear. 25 Now the Israelites had been saying, “Do you see how this man keeps coming out? He comes out to defy Israel. The king will give great wealth to the man who kills him. He will also give him his daughter in marriage and will exempt his family from taxes in Israel.” 26 David asked the men standing near him, “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?” 27 They repeated to him what they had been saying and told him, “This is what will be done for the man who kills him.” 28 When Eliab, David’s oldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, “Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle.” 29 “Now what have I done?” said David. “Can’t I even speak?” 30 He then turned away to someone else and brought up the same matter, and the men answered him as before. 31 What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him.
Reflection: Today we learn of one of the great stories in all of Israel’s history about young David who meets the fearsome and huge Goliath. As the Israelites lined up for battle against their enemy the Philistines, Goliath taunted them day and night for 40 days. Saul and the men shrunk in fear every time he appeared. David, the youngest of Jesse’s sons, was the one who stayed home to watch the sheep and from time to time brought some cheese and bread to fortify the men. Well it just so happened David was with the men when Goliath began his usual taunt. When David heard it he was shocked that this man would mock the armies of the living God. Notice David was focused on God’s honor not the size of the giant. Apparently there was a bounty on Goliath’s head and whoever slayed Goliath would get the king’s daughter and a lot of money (and no taxes!!). When David’s oldest brother saw David inquiring of the matter he scolded him and basically told him to stick to tending the sheep back on the farm. But Saul had already seen the power of God in David’s music which healed him of a spirit of depression so he called for him. We’ll see tomorrow what this young shepherd boy who was more concerned with the glory of God than the size of the giant can do!
John 3:16-26
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.
Reflection: Here we the most quoted most publicized most memorized verse in all the bible. If someone knew only one bible verse this would probably be it. In it we have the whole Gospel story of Good News summarized in one sentence. “God so loved the world (literally cosmos) that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” We see the great motivation for the Father to send the Son was love. God loves the world and everything and everyone in it. We remember that God declared in the Creation story with each day, “It was good!!” But we also saw evil came into the world and corrupted God’s good Creation, and even the people began to love things/idos more than God.
But God’s plan to redeem or buy back all that was good out of His love centered in sending His one and only Son. And then the key verse “whoever believes in Him”. At the heart of our faith is believing in Jesus. This can often get reduced to a proposition, “If you believe in Jesus you will go to heaven.” And while this is true, it can often water down the meaning of the phrase. In those days “belief” was not just head knowledge, but a whole life proposition. To believe in something was not just intellectual but with all you were body, mind and soul. We know from other passages that God’s Holy Spirit is the one that leads us to belief, and through belief we are born again and become a new person and become part of God’s family. Importantly there is no condemnation in Christ. God did not come to condemn the world but to save it. Yet, we also see the reality in this verse that some will choose not to believe. Great theologians differ on whether this is a pure human choice to reject, or whether some are predestined to not believe by God. On either side of the equation it poses issues, but the reality is some believe and some don’t. When God gave us free will so we would not be robots, there became a chance that one would use free will to reject God. Fortunately by God’s grace, His Spirit also is at work opening the eyes of unbelievers to accept this free gift. So you see we can never take credit for belief, it is a gift of God through faith which He grants to us. But for those who have accepted this free gift, the rest of our lives can be lived out of thanksgiving for this great and indescribable gift of God’s one and only Son, that whoever should believe should not perish but have eternal life.
Do you know that you believe and have eternal life? If not hear the Good News and allow the Holy Spirit to lead you faith in Jesus Christ, it is God’s greatest gift to you if you receive it! Your life will never be the same!
Therefore I will allot him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he poured out himself to death. Isaiah 53:12
Christ says, “All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” Matthew 11:27
You are Lord over all, O Christ! We know you are the only begotten, sent to show us the Father. Without you we would forever wander. All praise to you who gave himself for us by the will of God in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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