(Psalm 81:1-16) Sing for joy to God our strength;
Shout joyfully to the God of Jacob.2 Raise a song, strike the tambourine,
The sweet sounding lyre with the harp.
3 Blow the trumpet at the new moon,
At the full moon, on our feast day.
4 For it is a statute for Israel,
An ordinance of the God of Jacob.
5 He established it as a testimony in Joseph
When he went throughout the land of Egypt.
I heard a language I did not know:
6 “I relieved his shoulder of the burden,
His hands were freed from the basket.
7 You called in trouble and I rescued you;
I answered you in the hiding place of thunder;
I put you to the test at the waters of Meribah. Selah
8 Hear, My people, and I will admonish you;
Israel, if you would listen to Me!
9 There shall be no strange god among you;
Nor shall you worship a foreign god.
10 I, the Lord, am your God,
Who brought you up from the land of Egypt;
Open your mouth wide and I will fill it.
11 “But My people did not listen to My voice,
And Israel did not obey Me.
12 So I gave them over to the stubbornness of their heart,
To walk by their own plans.
13 Oh that My people would listen to Me,
That Israel would walk in My ways!
14 I would quickly subdue their enemies
And turn My hand against their adversaries.
15 Those who hate the Lord would pretend to obey Him,
And their time of punishment would be forever.
16 But I would feed you with the finest of the wheat,
And with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
God wants to help and bless Israel, all they have to do as a nation is listen and hear the Lord, and walk in His will. Prophecy shows that this will only happen by the end of the Tribulation, and then Jesus will return to earth, take them into the Millennium and fulfill all of their covenants.
Meanwhile, God wants to save, help and bless - anyone - who listens, hears and puts their faith in the Lord and walks in His will. It's not that we have to be obedient first and then He will save us. It is actually impossible for us to do that. God just asks that we make Him our personal Lord and Savior, and then He will help us walk in His ways and give peace and fulfillment to our lives. The Lord is our strength!!!
In all of this, it should inspire us to sing to the Lord! It isn't so strange. Think about how the secular world has millions of anthems and love songs which are written to give honor to some close personal relationship - of a person who is loving, caring, strong, faithful and not afraid of challenging and encouraging their loved ones... But instead of looking to a fallible person or country for our strength and guidance, we choose to look to the infallible Lord and Savior and give Him all the honor and glory!
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