Trust in the Lord and do what is right! Settle in the land and maintain your integrity! Then you will take delight in the Lord, and he will answer your prayers. Note the four commands in this verse: (1) “Trust in the Lord”; (2) “do what is right!”; (3) “Settle in the land”; (4) “maintain your integrity!” When we do these, we take delight in the Lord,...
Continue ReadingMay those who desire my vindication shout for joy and rejoice! May they continually say, “May the Lord be praised, for he wants his servant to be secure.” The reason a follower of the Lord will be vindicated is that “he wants his servant to be secure.” Isaiah writes: “‘no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. ...
Continue ReadingThe Lord pays attention to the godly and hears their cry for help. The godly can count on two great truths: (1) “The Lord pays attention to the godly” and (2) “The Lord…hears [the godly] cry for help. “O Lord, listen! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, hear and act! For your sake, O my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name” (Dani...
Continue ReadingTaste and see that the Lord is good! How happy is the one who takes shelter in him! The psalmist recommends that we “Taste and see that the Lord is good!” He then gives us a response: “How happy is the one who takes shelter in Him!” “When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God Almighty” (Jerem...
Continue ReadingThis oppressed man cried out and the Lord heard; he saved him from all his troubles. The Lord’s angel camps around the Lord’s loyal followers and delivers them. The “oppressed man cried out and the Lord heard,” saving the man from “all his troubles.” The Lord’s response is immediate. Why? “The Lord’s angel camps around the Lord’s loy...
Continue ReadingThose who look to him for help are happy; their faces are not ashamed. Those who look to the Lord for help are: (1) “happy” and (2) “their faces are not ashamed.” “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditate...
Continue ReadingMagnify the Lord with me! Let’s praise his name together! The commands this morning are as follows: (1) “Magnify the Lord with me!” and (2) “Let’s praise his name together!” “And Mary said: ‘My soul exalts [makes great] the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior” (Luke 1:46, 47 NASB). “Sing joyfully to the LORD, you righteou...
Continue ReadingLook, the Lord takes notice of his loyal followers, those who wait for him to demonstrate his faithfulness. This verse challenges us to “look” to see two things: (1) “the Lord takes notice of his loyal followers” and (2) “the Lord takes notice of…those who wait for him [with the purpose] to demonstrate his faithfulness.” “Then the LORD said to Satan,...
Continue ReadingThe Lord’s decisions stand forever; his plans abide throughout the ages. Our verse today tells us that: (1) “The Lord’s decisions stand forever,” and (2) “The Lord’s…plans abide throughout the ages.” “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails” (Proverbs 19:21 NIV). “And I give ete...
Continue ReadingRejoice in the Lord and be happy, you who are godly! Shout for joy, all you who are morally upright! This verse contains two commands: (1) “you who are godly…Rejoice in the Lord and be happy,” and (2) “you who are morally upright…Shout for joy.” Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields prod...
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