Read the Bible: Psalm 102

 
 

LORD, hear my prayer;
let my cry for help come before you.
2 Do not hide your face from me in my day of trouble.
Listen closely to me;
answer me quickly when I call.

…

12 But you, LORD, are enthroned forever;
your fame endures to all generations.
13 You will rise up and have compassion on Zion,
for it is time to show favor to her —
the appointed time has come.
14 For your servants take delight in its stones
and favor its dust.

15 Then the nations will fear the name of the LORD,
and all the kings of the earth your glory,
16 for the LORD will rebuild Zion;
he will appear in his glory.
17 He will pay attention to the prayer of the destitute
and will not despise their prayer.

18 This will be written for a later generation,
and a people who have not yet been created will praise the LORD:
19 He looked down from his holy heights —
the LORD gazed out from heaven to earth —
20 to hear a prisoner’s groaning,
to set free those condemned to die,
21 so that they might declare
the name of the LORD in Zion
and his praise in Jerusalem
22 when peoples and kingdoms are assembled
to serve the LORD.

Psalms 102:1-2, 12-22 (CSB)

Read all of Psalm 102 using the link below.

 

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Read the Bible: Psalm 101

 
 

I will sing of faithful love and justice;
I will sing praise to you, LORD.
2 I will pay attention to the way of integrity.
When will you come to me?
I will live with a heart of integrity in my house.
3 I will not let anything worthless guide me.
I hate the practice of transgression;
it will not cling to me.
4 A devious heart will be far from me;
I will not be involved with evil.

5 I will destroy anyone
who secretly slanders his neighbor;
I cannot tolerate anyone
with haughty eyes or an arrogant heart.
6 My eyes favor the faithful of the land
so that they may sit down with me.
The one who follows the way of integrity
may serve me.
7 No one who acts deceitfully
will live in my palace;
the one who tells lies
will not be retained here to guide me.
8 Every morning I will destroy
all the wicked of the land,
wiping out all evildoers from the LORD’s city.

Psalms 101:1-8 (CSB)

 

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Read the Bible: Psalm 100

 
 

Let the whole earth shout triumphantly to the LORD!
2 Serve the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
3 Acknowledge that the LORD is God.
He made us, and we are his —
his people, the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him and bless his name.
5 For the LORD is good, and his faithful love endures forever;
his faithfulness, through all generations.

Psalms 100:1-5 (CSB)

 

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Read the Bible: Psalm 99

 
 

The LORD reigns! Let the peoples tremble.
He is enthroned between the cherubim.
Let the earth quake.
2 The LORD is great in Zion;
he is exalted above all the peoples.
3 Let them praise your great
and awe-inspiring name.
He is holy.

4 The mighty King loves justice.
You have established fairness;
you have administered justice
and righteousness in Jacob.
5 Exalt the LORD our God;
bow in worship at his footstool.
He is holy.

6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests;
Samuel also was among those calling on his name.
They called to the LORD and he answered them.
7 He spoke to them in a pillar of cloud;
they kept his decrees and the statutes he gave them.
8 LORD our God, you answered them.
You were a forgiving God to them,
but an avenger of their sinful actions.

9 Exalt the LORD our God;
bow in worship at his holy mountain,
for the Lord our God is holy.

Psalms 99:1-9 (CSB)

 

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Sunday School is for All Ages!

 
 

“As the crow flies,” there was a straighter, quicker route from Egypt to Canaan, the land of Promise. But in Exodus 13, we read that God intentionally led the people along a much longer, circuitous route.

When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them along the road to the land of the Philistines, even though it was nearby; for God said, “The people will change their minds and return to Egypt if they face war.” So he led the people around toward the Red Sea along the road of the wilderness. And the Israelites left the land of Egypt in battle formation (Exodus 13:18-19).

In leading them away from the Philistines, God leads Israel into a militarily unsustainable position. He backs them into a corner in the wilderness, because He knows that at the first sign of trouble, they will return to Egyptian bondage, if they are able. To keep His flock from being scattered, God hems them in.

God also knows that Pharaoh still has his eyes on Israel. God knows the hardness of Pharaoh’s heart and He knows that Pharaoh will pursue. Just as He did throughout the duration of ten plagues, God promised to reveal Himself through His works to the Egyptians who “will know that I am the LORD” (Exodus 14:4).

As wild as it sounds, Israel’s entrapment was for their good and for God’s glory. Israel’s vulnerability and weakness was to become a means of grace by which Israel and Egypt alike could know the LORD as God.

I wonder if we’re willing to follow God into weakness, into wilderness places that make absolutely no sense, trusting that He has a redeeming work in mind? In a day when so many are grasping for worldly power and position, are we willing to live our lives yielded to the One who numbers our days and orders our steps (Psalm 37:23; Proverbs 16:9; Proverbs 20:24; Jeremiah 10:23)? If the calling is placed upon us, do we have enough faith to simply stand still and see the LORD’s salvation?

Sunday School for all ages begins weekly at 9:45 AM. All are warmly welcome.

 

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Read the Bible: Psalm 98

 
 

Sing a new song to the LORD,
for he has performed wonders;
his right hand and holy arm
have won him victory.
2 The LORD has made his victory known;
he has revealed his righteousness
in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered his love
and faithfulness to the house of Israel;
all the ends of the earth
have seen our God’s victory.

4 Let the whole earth shout to the LORD;
be jubilant, shout for joy, and sing.
5 Sing to the LORD with the lyre,
with the lyre and melodious song.
6 With trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn
shout triumphantly
in the presence of the LORD, our King.

7 Let the sea and all that fills it,
the world and those who live in it, resound.
8 Let the rivers clap their hands;
let the mountains shout together for joy
9 before the LORD,
for he is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world righteously
and the peoples fairly.

Psalms 98:1-9 (CSB)

 

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