Scripture – Psalm 77:5-15 and Psalm 103
I want to ask two questions – “What is
God’s promise to us?”...and, “What should our song be?”
It has to begin with the
words of Jesus himself in Luke 14:1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in
God, trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so,
I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And, if I
go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me”.
Let’s add to that – 1st Thes. 4:14 – “We
believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring
with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s own
word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of
the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord
himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the
arch-angel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise
first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up
together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be
with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words.” …God
remembers His promise!
Then we read in 2 Peter 3:2 “Dear friends,
this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders
to stimulate you to wholesome thinking. I want you to recall the words spoken
in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Savior. First
of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing
and following their own evil desires. They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he
promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the
beginning of creation.” But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s
word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By
these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same
word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the
day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. But do not forget this one
thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a
thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as
some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish,
but everyone to come to repentance.” In all that is going on in us, around us,
to us, and through us, don’t forget God remembers His promise.In Psalm 77:7-15 David thinks about a time in his life when he thought “Will the Lord reject forever? Will he never show his favor again? Has his unfailing love vanished forever? Has his promise failed for all time? Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has he in anger withheld his compassion?” But then in verse 11 he says “I will remember the deeds of the LORD; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds. Your ways, O God, are holy. What god is so great as our God? You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples. With your mighty arm you redeemed your people, the descendants of Jacob and Joseph.”
We are about to enter the year 2014…Will our song be “Will the Lord reject us forever? Will he ever show His favor again? Has His promise failed for all time? Is He really, ever coming back?” Or, will our song continue to be “Praise the Lord O my soul! And all that is within me bless His Holy name!” Will God remember His Word? His promise? The record of scripture; my faith; my knowledge; and my experience give a resounding - Yes! I don’t need an angel to appear; I don’t need the stars to fall from the sky or any other miraculous sign; I have all that I need in the Christmas story and fulfilled prophecy from God’s Word for my faith to be certain that God will remember His promise.
Hear these words from Psalm 103 that I think ought to be “our song” this Christmas – “Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; Praise the LORD, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word. Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts, you his servants who do his will. Praise the LORD, all his works everywhere in his dominion. Praise the LORD, O my soul”!!!
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