Psalm 74 is another Psalm that begins with crying out to God because of problems and troubles, then remembers Who God is. The psalmist recounts all of the things the enemy has done and then, in verses 12-17, he suddenly begins reminding himself Who God is and what He has already done:
12Yet God is my King of old, working salvation in the midst of the earth.13
You did divide the [Red] Sea by Your might; You broke the heads of the [Egyptian] dragons in the waters.
14You crushed the heads of Leviathan (Egypt); You did give him as food for the creatures inhabiting the wilderness.
15You did cleave open [the rock bringing forth] fountains and streams; You dried up mighty, ever-flowing rivers (the Jordan).
16The day is Yours, the night also is Yours; You have established the [starry] light and the sun.
17You have fixed all the borders of the earth [the divisions of land and sea and of the nations]; You have made summer and winter.
This passage starts with "God", the Hebrew "`Elohiym", which is a plural form of a word for Deity or God and refers to the Godhead: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. "Is" is a filler word, put in by the translators to try to make it more readable. What he is actually doing is addressing God: "God, my King of 'old'", Hebrew "qedem", which means: ancient, from of old, before time, "working "salvation", the Hebrew "yeshuw`ah", which means: salvation, deliverance, welfare, prosperity, victory, "in the midst of the earth, You did......" and then proceeds to list many things that God had done previously to benefit His people. We should learn from the psalmist to come to God FIRST when tests, trials and tribulations come. We need to get into His presence right away and begin to rehearse all the good things He has already done in our lives, including all of the past victories over the enemy! That will give the Holy Spirit something to work with in us! He can then bring the Word we have heard back to our remembrance so we can proceed in faith and in the promises of the Word with confidence that the God Who did it before, will surely deliver us again! AMEN!
In Romans 2 there are two verses I want to look at today. The first is verse 11:
11For there is no respect of persons with God.
This is the King James Version. The Amplified Bible is even clearer:
11For God shows no partiality [undue favor or unfairness; with Him one man is not different from another].
I love that verse! It tells me that God honors His Word and all Who are doers of that Word. There is no bribing God! He favors none but His own over those who reject Him and His Word. Of His own, God does not play favorites, but makes His Word available for all to obey. Those who do will reap the results of doing things God's way and those who don't will have to be satisfied with the results of their choices. What a GOOD God we have!
The next verse I want to look at is verse 29:
29But he is a Jew who is one inwardly, and [true] circumcision is of the heart, a spiritual and not a literal [matter]. His praise is not from men but from God.
A true Jew is one who operates in faith in God and His Word. Circumcision was an outward sign of an inward commitment to serve God. Abraham became a true spiritual Jew when he believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness (Romans 4:3). That is what our Heavenly Father is looking for today! True spiritual "Jews" who will love His Word, trust his Word, live His Word and obey His Word. Obedience to the Word is the ultimate statement that God is our first priority! Obey God and BE a "True Jew"!
In Leviticus 18-19 we see more of God's instructions to Moses for the people. Remember, as you read these, that everything that God told the people NOT to do was to keep them in a place of protection, provision and safety. In the same way, everything He told them TO DO was to get them in position to receive all the good that He planned for them. He is still doing the same for us today! We have it so much better than they did, though, because we have the Spirit of God living IN us to teach us the Word and give us the strength and ability to obey the Word! Hallelujah for a better covenant!
Shalom in Him!
