The way of the Lord is a refuge for the righteous, but it is ruin for those who
do evil. ~Proverbs 10:29
Lord, who may dwell in Your sanctuary? Who may live in Your holy hill? He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from his heart and has no slander on his tongue, who does his neighbor no wrong and casts no slur on his fellow man, who despises a vile man but honors those who fear the Lord, who keeps his oath even when it hurts, who lends his money without usury and does not accept a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things will never be shaken. ~Psalm 15
Imagine trying to walk the walk of the righteous as described here in Psalm 15, in your own power. It could easily be your ruin. Living out the righteous way in your own strength is the way of the religious. The Pharisees of Jesus’ day tried it and it ruined them for eternity.
In the Proverb today, we are actually talking about only one path, the way of the Lord. Whether it is a blessing to you, or a curse, is a heart issue. In Psalm 15, David basically asks, “Who may enter your presence, Lord?” Remember that the Lord had charged His people while they were still wandering in the wilderness “to be holy, because He is Holy.” He wants His children to look like Him and enjoy His presence. Then, in Psalm 15, David lists the kinds of things that the Lord is looking for in His children.
We determine our attitude. Are we grateful to have ideas about how to please our heavenly Father? Are we eager to do them because they will please Him so that they are a kind of refuge for us, because they will allow us to draw close to Him for protection? Or, are they burdensome to us, a bunch of rules and regulations that we’ll do if we must, but we’d rather not? In truth, if that is your attitude, you may not want to bother, because if you choose to follow the rules and regulations to gain favor with God, your actions may create within you a false sense of security that will ruin you in the end. But if you want to follow the rules and regs, but also admit your failure, humbly admit to God that you need his help and mercy, and receive his gracious forgiveness, you’ll be ok.
When David wrote this Psalm, even those who truly loved the Lord and had a desire to please Him in every way, struggled with the ability to do so. We need to be so grateful for the Holy Spirit that dwells in us, since Jesus has returned to heaven, to help us in our desire. Those who are religious do not want the Holy Spirit’s help, thinking that they can fulfill the law on their own. In their pride, they want to draw closer to God, which we know cannot be done. This is again, their ruin. Those of us who lean on God’s Holy Spirit as our refuge and strength will be guided into the correct paths and behaviors He desires from us.
Here is a simple test. Today is Sunday. Are you thinking about going to church today? Will you go because you have too, or because you want too? Or, if you decide you must stay home because of the virus, will that make you happy or sad? Are you looking forward to drawing closer to Him and His people; worship, prayer and learning more about Him through His Word? Or, are you looking forward to getting it over with so that you can get on with the exciting plans that you have for the rest of the day? Ruin or refuge. Your choice!
Prayer: Lord, I know the real reason I love You is because of how you showed Your love through Jesus on the cross. It’s truly amazing that You love me because I sure wasn’t much good before I met You! And that love is what I am responding to when I say I want to live to please You because I am so grateful for grace and salvation. If I have clean hands and a pure heart now, it is only because You washed them. Thanks for that too. I have such good news to share with others who need to know how much You love them. Send me Lord, in Jesus’ name, amen.
Song: East to West
Lord, who may dwell in Your sanctuary? Who may live in Your holy hill? He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from his heart and has no slander on his tongue, who does his neighbor no wrong and casts no slur on his fellow man, who despises a vile man but honors those who fear the Lord, who keeps his oath even when it hurts, who lends his money without usury and does not accept a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things will never be shaken. ~Psalm 15
Imagine trying to walk the walk of the righteous as described here in Psalm 15, in your own power. It could easily be your ruin. Living out the righteous way in your own strength is the way of the religious. The Pharisees of Jesus’ day tried it and it ruined them for eternity.
In the Proverb today, we are actually talking about only one path, the way of the Lord. Whether it is a blessing to you, or a curse, is a heart issue. In Psalm 15, David basically asks, “Who may enter your presence, Lord?” Remember that the Lord had charged His people while they were still wandering in the wilderness “to be holy, because He is Holy.” He wants His children to look like Him and enjoy His presence. Then, in Psalm 15, David lists the kinds of things that the Lord is looking for in His children.
We determine our attitude. Are we grateful to have ideas about how to please our heavenly Father? Are we eager to do them because they will please Him so that they are a kind of refuge for us, because they will allow us to draw close to Him for protection? Or, are they burdensome to us, a bunch of rules and regulations that we’ll do if we must, but we’d rather not? In truth, if that is your attitude, you may not want to bother, because if you choose to follow the rules and regulations to gain favor with God, your actions may create within you a false sense of security that will ruin you in the end. But if you want to follow the rules and regs, but also admit your failure, humbly admit to God that you need his help and mercy, and receive his gracious forgiveness, you’ll be ok.
When David wrote this Psalm, even those who truly loved the Lord and had a desire to please Him in every way, struggled with the ability to do so. We need to be so grateful for the Holy Spirit that dwells in us, since Jesus has returned to heaven, to help us in our desire. Those who are religious do not want the Holy Spirit’s help, thinking that they can fulfill the law on their own. In their pride, they want to draw closer to God, which we know cannot be done. This is again, their ruin. Those of us who lean on God’s Holy Spirit as our refuge and strength will be guided into the correct paths and behaviors He desires from us.
Here is a simple test. Today is Sunday. Are you thinking about going to church today? Will you go because you have too, or because you want too? Or, if you decide you must stay home because of the virus, will that make you happy or sad? Are you looking forward to drawing closer to Him and His people; worship, prayer and learning more about Him through His Word? Or, are you looking forward to getting it over with so that you can get on with the exciting plans that you have for the rest of the day? Ruin or refuge. Your choice!
Prayer: Lord, I know the real reason I love You is because of how you showed Your love through Jesus on the cross. It’s truly amazing that You love me because I sure wasn’t much good before I met You! And that love is what I am responding to when I say I want to live to please You because I am so grateful for grace and salvation. If I have clean hands and a pure heart now, it is only because You washed them. Thanks for that too. I have such good news to share with others who need to know how much You love them. Send me Lord, in Jesus’ name, amen.
Song: East to West
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