Monday, November 10, 2014

THE PSALMS – A JOURNEY IN WORSHIP AND FAITH - November 10, 2014 - Day 90 - Psalm 90


It is a well known fact of survival that most people when lost in the woods without a compass and the ability to use it will wander in a circle ending back right at the place they started. In a dangerous survival scenario this can kill you. As Christians we are not left to wander this earth lost and without direction. God has given us a compass and the instructions on to navigate with it. The Bible is our compass and the Holy Spirit is our teacher and personal guide. But if we do not have the faith to trust His Word and His Spirit then we will wander aimlessly. Psalm 90 was written by Moses and reminds us of the perils of trusting our own perception instead of obeying God by faith. If you do not recall the story open your Bible to Numbers 13 and start reading. Psalm 90 is an excellent reminder to us of who God is and what He is to us.

Psalm 90:1
BOOK FOUR A PRAYER OF MOSES, THE MAN OF GOD. Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations.

God is where we need to dwell. The Hebrew word used for dwelling place speaks of a den. For animals it is their sanctuary. It protects from the elements and from the enemy. It is a warm place to eat, sleep, and to find comfort from the outside world. In our homes the den is the place to gather when we just want all that plus fellowship and relaxation.

Psalm 90:2
Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

Our dwelling place does not change He is eternal.

Psalm 90:3
You return man to dust and say, "Return, O children of man!"

To those who are Christ’s, death is not the end; it is the beginning. Like the resurrection of Christ, we, too are raised from the dead to eternal life with God.

Psalm 90:4
For a thousand years in your sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as a watch in the night.

Time is a trap for us. It enslaves us and it controls us. Sometimes it fools us into thinking God is slow to answer and slow to bring justice. He is not. But our clock is different than His. God is moving; we just have the wrong time perspective.

Psalm 90:5-7
You sweep them away as with a flood; they are like a dream, like grass that is renewed in the morning: in the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers. For we are brought to an end by your anger; by your wrath we are dismayed.

There is judgment for sin. Moses knew that. First he saw judgment upon the pharaoh and his men. Later Moses experienced God’s judgment on himself and his people as their lack of faith prevented them from entering the Promised Land. Only those who were under 20 years old got to cross the river.

Psalm 90:8-9
You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence. For all our days pass away under your wrath; we bring our years to an end like a sigh.

No one gets away with sin. No one. God knows everything we try and hide from the world.

Psalm 90:10-11
The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty; yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away. Who considers the power of your anger, and your wrath according to the fear of you?

Our lives here are short. They are filled with much trouble. We do best to have a healthy fear of God.

Psalm 90:12
So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.

We spend much of our youth being educated. We must seek His truth and understand the brevity of this life.

Psalm 90:13-15
Return, O LORD! How long? Have pity on your servants! Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, and for as many years as we have seen evil.

This was the cry of Moses. It is the cry we must make as we seek Christ and we become born again. God wants us to grow closer to Him through our trials.

Psalm 90:16-17
Let your work be shown to your servants, and your glorious power to their children. Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!

Christ has redeemed me. Has He redeemed you? If so then we need to pray that we become His servants. We need to die to self and let our hands be His. Praise God for His mercy for because of it we need not wander the wilderness one more day. Cross the river friends. You no longer need to wander.  May the favor of the Lord be upon you.

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