Proclaiming His Love in the Morning and His Faithfulness at Night (Psalm 92:1-15)

How can we make music in the morning and at night? Is it just an ideal thing or a really possible one? If possible, how may we do it? Is it not what we really are wanting to do? Praising the Lord and making music to his name, the Most High, proclaiming his love in the morning and his faithfulness at night. How wonderful would it be to praise the Lord for his love in the morning and for his faithfulness at night? That would be awesome and is what we are really in want. The problem is how to do it. We know that we are not doing most of our times. Instead, we are constantly anxious and occupied with a lot of busyness in our daily lives from morning till night. How are easily distracted from a life of prayer! We experience full of troubles and worries today and surely they will be coming tomorrow. There are so many things either tiny, moderate, or big to take care of everyday. Vacation is good. But it still does not rule out the daily worries and troubles. It seems having freedom, even a glimpse of it, but it is not true freedom at all. What is worse is that there are all kinds of unjust and evil practices going on in our midst. Outcry from all corners of the world are intensely increasing and growing higher, wider and deeper. That is our real experience. We have to deal with reality of our lives. So, it seems we are torn in two, just as Paul describes, “For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.  Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.” (Romans 7:18-20) We do not want to be in such a position of being worried and consciously uneasy. We know that it is not right to go on and on. Rather, we really want to be like what the Psalmist says, making music to him and proclaiming his love in the morning and his faithfulness at night. Now the Psalmist is going to through the process of how to do that.

“It is good to praise the Lord and make music to your name, O Most High,

proclaiming your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night,

to the music of the ten-stringed lyre and the melody of the harp.

For you make me glad by your deeds, Lord; I sing for joy at what your hands have done.

How great are your works, Lord, how profound your thoughts!

Senseless people do not know, fools do not understand,

that though the wicked spring up like grass and all evildoers flourish, they will be destroyed forever.

But you, Lord, are forever exalted. For surely your enemies, Lord,

surely your enemies will perish; all evildoers will be scattered.

You have exalted my horn like that of a wild ox; fine oils have been poured on me.

My eyes have seen the defeat of my adversaries; my ears have heard the rout of my wicked foes.

The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;

planted in the house of the  Lord , they will flourish in the courts of our God.

They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green,

proclaiming, ‘The  Lord  is upright; he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.’” (Psalm 92:1-15)

Firstly, observe carefully the deeds of the Lord and what his hands have done. Measure how great are his works and how profound his thoughts. Only senseless people and fools do not know and understand. What they do not know and understand is that though the wicked spring up like grass and all evildoers flourish, they will be destroyed forever. God is the Lord and the Creator of all things, visible and invisible. He spoke and the universe is made in its majesty and magnificence. Vastness and limitlessness are his deeds. His hands designed, chiseled, carved, shaped, and fashioned what it is as it is. Billions of billions of stars and galaxies are told to run its due courses without fail. He made it and hold it together so that everything is in order and harmony. “The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:15-17) The Creator God also made man in his image and in his likeness. Even if man has lost and fallen by listening to the twisted and wicked voice of the devil, God still loved man that he sent the Son Jesus Christ and whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. The Son of God, Christ whom the Father sent was crucified on a cross like a criminal in our place. The Son had no sin but was made to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21). We cannot fathom the mystery of Christ that God the Father put his own Son under such a circumstance, even to the crucifixion of cross. Why did God do that? God is forever love. Yes, he is love before and after the fall of man. It does not mean that God does not keep and maintain justice. “And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.’” (Genesis 2:16-17) His love is not letting go as if nothing happened, but taking long-suffering because he is love yesterday and today and forever. Instead of punishing man who disobeyed him, he bore the sin of the world in his body and shed his blood and died. He saved us once for all and will be delivering us from evil forever.

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!” (Romans 5:8-10)

Christ did not die in vain. Prophet Isaiah says, “As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:10-11) Whosoever believes in the Son Jesus Christ will not perish but have eternal life. He demonstrated his love such a way that he offered himself as the ransom sacrifice for the sins of the world. Love suffers long and is kind. God suffers long to bring the fallen race back to himself through the Son Jesus Christ. Manifested in public and in history and in the hillside of Golgotha, the long-suffering love of God. Senseless and foolish are those do not see and understand the deeds and hands of God for it is heartily and wholeheartedly told and shown again and again. More than that, the sufferings of Christ is present and real in our daily experience of sufferings and troubles in the midst. Christ died once for all, which means we died to our sins with him. Now, every time we fail and trespass, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ comes and intervenes and even penetrates our hearts, offering abundant grace which surpasses our guilt and pains. “The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 5:20-21) Our sins and failures can never outpace the grace and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is abundant and overflowing enough to cover our condemning hearts for God is bigger than our hearts and knows all things (1 John 3:20). So, we have boldness and confidence in Christ that we may stand in the holy presence of God, even before the throne of grace for there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1). All we are asked to do to confess our sins in contrite and broken spirit and he is just and faithful that he forgives and cleanses us from all unrighteousness with the blood of Christ (1 John 1:9).

In the end, the enemy will be destroyed. Surely, there will be the Day of the Lord coming. People are not our enemy but the devil is. He is a liar and the father of all lie and a murderer. He is the accuser of humanity all time. He is doing all kinds of wicked things, like demoralizing, dehumanizing, disheartening, depressing humanity at any moment relentlessly. We are the victims of the devil’s scheme and lie. But soon he will be condemned and punished by the Lord. He has already been condemned by the Lord because he rebelled against the Holy One (John 16:11). The accuser will receive the due punishment and be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur forever. And God will exalt the righteous who endured the trials and persecutions of the world. He will reward those who stand firm on the foundation of Christ Jesus to the end. “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6) There will be the Day of the Lord when all evil things done even in the name of religion will receive the due penalty by the righteous Judge of all things.

“My eyes have seen the defeat of my adversaries; my ears have heard the rout of my wicked foes.

The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;

planted in the house of the  Lord , they will flourish in the courts of our God.

They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green,

proclaiming, ‘The  Lord  is upright; he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.’” (Psalm 92:11-15)

That is why we make music to praise the Lord in the morning and at night and forever, proclaiming his love and his faithfulness. What God says is true and will be fulfilled because he is truthful and faithful in keeping his promises. Once we were the enemies of God, yet he loved us by sending his Son Jesus Christ to redeem and free us from the slavery of dark and evil forces. “All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.  As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,  made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.  And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.” (Ephesians 2:1-7) How much more will he love us in Christ if he loved us while we were still enemies? Boundlessly forever he loves, gives, protects, embraces all of his children in the Son Jesus Christ. Amen.

2017. 11. 30.

© 2011-2017 David Lee Ministries – All Rights Reserved.

He Is My Refuge and My Fortress, My God (Psalm 91:1-16)

We are living in a dangerous territory. Are we not? Dangers are lurking in our midst. Storms, hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, volcano explosions, tsunamis, wild fires, winds, floods are hurting the land and human lives in a greater scale. Murder, kidnapping, human trafficking, robbery, cheating, stealing, rape, all sorts of abuse, discrimination, misdemeanor are breaking apart families, neighbors, and communities. Jealousy, hatred, revenge, sexual immorality, orgies, drunkenness, drug additions, factions, divisions are driving humans into despair, loneliness, brokenness, emptiness, sorrow, pain, and even many death. Accidents, all kinds of diseases, broken relationships shock and tremor humans to be so vulnerable and inappropriate. Failure, impotence, inability, inappropriateness are choking and swallowing our lives—vitality, excitements, and expectations. To where should we run in order to find shelter and rest? Is there such a thing or place to rush for? It is not the world, which always gives birth to disappointment and discontent though it seems promising much to deliver something. Money, success, achievement, promotion, and even entertainment are always failing to meet the ever demanding desires, resulting in wanting more and more. Those things cannot keep up with our urges and longings for we are not supposed to settle for less. The answer is God and his Son Jesus Christ. God is our Father who is willing and wanting to give whatever we ask. The Psalmist has found the answer in God and confessed, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God.” In the midst of all troubles and heartaches, we may say in the morning and in the evening, “The Lord is my refuge and my fortress, my God.”  

“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High

will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress,

my God, in whom I trust.’ Surely he will save you

from the fowler’s snare

and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers,

and under his wings you will find refuge;

his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night,

nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,

nor the plague that destroys at midday. A thousand may fall at your side,

ten thousand at your right hand,

but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes

and see the punishment of the wicked. If you say, ‘The LORD is my refuge,’

and you make the Most High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you,

no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you

to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands,

so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread on the lion and the cobra;

you will trample the great lion and the serpent. ‘Because he loves me,’ says the LORD, ‘I will rescue him;

I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him;

I will be with him in trouble,

I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him

and show him my salvation.’” (Psalm 91:1-16)

We cry out at the incident just happened in a small town in the south where many have been fallen down by gunshots during the church service in the Sunday morning. Where was God? Why did he not stop this tragedy? This is not a new question but old one. Human beings have long been perplexed and bewildered by the evil activities which often involve mass killings and ruins of innocent lives. It is a honest plea and cry of humanity. Where can we find all the answers? Our God is the answer and he is willing to explain what we need to know. The Psalmist says, “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’” How could he come to this point of peace and rest? It is through the understanding of God who he is and what he is and what he is doing in our midst. A proverb says, “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings.” (Proverb 25:2)

First and foremost of all, we shall not forget that we are under God’s protection and his unchanging love. We will not be surviving even a second without his faithful loving care and protection from the evil one. What does cause humans to suffer in misery and unceasing sorrow? It is the wrath of God. No one can escape from the fierce wrath of the Lord. “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness.” (Romans 1:18) It is invisibly manifested and yet visibly observed and seen in our midst. In the heavenly places, there is a rebel who resists and disobeys the Lord of hosts. He is the devil who is a liar and the father of lie and murderer. He is like a lion roaring and roaming around, looking for a prey to devour. He is an accuser of humanity, demoralizing and dispiriting his victims to the maximum degree. The Psalmist knows how much we humans are vulnerable and helpless in defending ourselves from the liar and accuser. The fowler’s snare, the deadly pestilence, the terror of night, and the arrow are the weapons of the evil one. The attack is coming from all side anytime and anywhere for the devil is invisible and cunning. We are really under the devil’s ongoing assault. No one would survive if not protected by God the Almighty who is restraining the evil in his hands. “For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way.” (2 Thessalonians 2:7) So, what the Psalmist says is true. “A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.” (Psalm 91:7)

That much and beyond our imagination and language, we are under the devil’s relentless attack. If not protected and defended by the Lord, we would have been already destroyed and no more. The Lord is our shield and rampart, refuge and fortress. The Lord is our God. He is our side. “Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.” (Psalm 91:4-6) We do not see yet the wicked one punished and condemned but will be sooner and quicker than we think. As a matter of fact, the devil has been already condemned and cursed by the Almighty God. “So the Lord  God said to the serpent, ‘Because you have done this, “Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring  and hers; he will crush  your head, and you will strike his heel.”’” (Genesis 3:14-15) The moment of winning he thinks is that of utter failure as demonstrated in the cross of Calvary where our Lord Jesus Christ died and rose again from the dead on the third day according to the words of truth. No power and authority and dominion in heaven and on earth are equal to that of the Lord God who raised the Son Jesus Christ from the dead on the third day as promised. In him, we are secure and safe for he is our refuge and shelter forever.

“You will only observe with your eyes

and see the punishment of the wicked. If you say, ‘The LORD is my refuge,’

and you make the Most High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you,

no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you

to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands,

so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread on the lion and the cobra;

you will trample the great lion and the serpent.” (Psalm 91:8-13)

Why is our Lord loving us so much so that he cannot but protecting and defending us from the evil one? Because he is love. “‘Because he loves me,’ says the LORD, ‘I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.’” (Psalm 91:14-16) While we were still enemies, God demonstrated his love by sending his Son just as the Law and the Prophets prophesied and promised. “For God so loved the world that he gave his Son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) God never stops loving man who has been made in his image and in his likeness. He still loves the fallen race who have been deceived and blinded by the dark forces of evil. He loves mankind in a way that we may see and hear the light and the truth in the Savior Jesus Christ. The Son is the image of God manifested in our midst, speaking the truth and embracing the weak and the poor and the blind in his eternal love and care.

“The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:15-17)

God loves man because he knows that they are the victim of the invisible forces of evil. He is merciful and compassionate that he cares and protects his children with the fatherly loving heart. “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” (Psalm 23:4) Our enemy is not neighbors and foreigners but the prince of this world, the devil. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12) The devil is cunning and crafty and as strong as Leviathan and Behemoth. No human can compete with the creature who has rebelled against God. He is the father of all lies and a murderer. He is invisible and lurking in the darkness, constantly accusing man like us out of nowhere and shooting the flaming arrows callously and ruthlessly. But the devil is yet under the rule and authority of the Lord God. We shall never forget the fact that the devil is a creature made by God, so he cannot work on his own but only in the boundary and limit set by the Lord. He is not rivaling or matching with the Lord. He shudders at the Lord (James 2:19).

God knows how to protect and defend us from the evil one. What God doesn’t do is to block the devil in entirety. Rather, God allows him to work around with his wits in our lives. Only under the precise prescriptions and terms though. There is a limit and boundary that the devil cannot pass because he is under the authority of the Lord like manifested in the case of Job. In fact, God allows for us to learn the very important lesson that through which we may learn and see what we really are before the invisible Creator God. The most difficult lesson for man to learn is to know what we are and how much we have been fallen from God. It is difficult to accept that we have nothing to be credited for righteousness. Our God is gradually teaching and leading us to break into our stubborn hearts and see the unbelievable thing in us, the wicked and sinful nature, even pride. The Scripture calls it the flesh. We can’t help with this monster but always succumb to it, even the believers. “For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.  For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.” (Romans 7:18-19) We cannot but crying out as Paul does, “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?” (Romans 7:24) This is the point our God wants us to be, where we stand before the Creator God and the Lord of all with complete bankruptcy. So, allowing the devil in our midst to work around with his best wits is from God’s love and faithfulness. When we reach the spot or moment in our lives, there is a mighty help available, the resurrection power of God through our Lord Jesus Christ. “Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:25a) Our Lord never fail to deliver us from evil even when we are tempted and offer a way out, Jesus Christ through whom we believe in God. He is our refuge and shelter now and forevermore. Amen.

“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted  beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted,  he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13)

                2017. 11. 12.

© 2011-2017 David Lee Ministries – All Rights Reserved.