85 Seconds to Midnight - Doomsday Clock
Tuesday, February 3, 2026
Deitei-me e dormi; Eu acordei; pois o Senhor me sustentou. - Salmo 3
Salmo 3 – Um Salmo de David quando fugiu de Absalão, seu filho
Comentários
Dennis Edwards
Acredita-se que a
palavra “salmo” significa em hebraico “cantar louvores” ou “melodia de louvor”.
Uma vez que “salmo” também sugere a ideia de vestir, decorar ou adornar, um
salmo deveria ser um cântico de louvor a Deus, onde as palavras deveriam ser
graciosas e a música bem executada.
Salmo 3:1-2 Senhor, como aumentaram os que me
perturbam! Muitos são os que se levantam contra mim. Muitos há que dizem da
minha alma: Não há ajuda para ele em Deus. Selá.
David está a
clamar a Deus num dos Seus momentos de aflição, quando Absalão se levantou
contra ele na tentativa de O destruir e tomar para Si o Reino. O salmo pode
também ser visto como profético do sofrimento de Cristo, quando Ele entra no
seu momento de Paixão e o mundo religioso e secular se levanta contra Ele.
Talvez ainda esteja por cumprir nos últimos dias, quando o poder do anticristo
e da ilegalidade for libertado contra os verdadeiros crentes durante aqueles
três anos e meio de grande tribulação, que parecem estar a aproximar-se lenta
mas seguramente no horizonte.
Salmo 3:3 Mas tu, Senhor, és um escudo para mim;
minha glória e o exaltador da minha cabeça.
David clamou ao
Senhor ao deixar Jerusalém e ir para o deserto, ao escapar das mãos do seu
filho, Absalão. Jesus, da mesma forma, enquanto suava sangue de angústia,
clamou a Deus no Getsémani, e os anjos vieram e ministraram-Lhe, e
fortaleceram-n’O para a batalha que estava para vir. Finalmente, quando um
grupo de homens e oficiais vem dos príncipes dos sacerdotes e dos fariseus com
armas para capturar Jesus, Jesus vai ao seu encontro. Ele diz-lhes: “A quem
procurais?” Respondem: “Jesus de Nazaré”. Quando Jesus responde: “Eu sou Ele”,
eles recuam e caem por terra, João 18:3-6. Tal era o poder do Espírito
Santo que O estava a ungir naquele momento. Vimos mártires como Joana D’Arc e
Martinho Lutero, e outros, vacilarem na sua fé sob acusação, mas depois, depois
de passarem tempo com Deus, renovarem o compromisso e regressarem com uma fé
inabalável e cheia de glória. Não amaram as suas vidas até à morte.
Salmo 3:4 Com a minha voz clamei ao Senhor, e desde
o seu santo monte me ouviu. Selá.
O Apóstolo Paulo
explica na sua epístola aos Filipenses que, uma vez que lançamos as nossas
preocupações sobre o Senhor através da oração e da súplica com ações de graças,
Deus responde dando-nos uma paz sobrenatural que excede todo o entendimento
humano, Filipenses 4: 6-7.
Salmo 3:5 Deitei-me e dormi; Eu acordei; pois o
Senhor me sustentou.
Podemos
deitar-nos a dormir e em paz, porque sabemos que o Senhor nos está a manter em
segurança. Ele não dorme nem adormece. Ele preserva-nos de todo o mal. Ele
preserva a nossa alma. Ele observa a nossa saída e entrada. Por isso, podemos
dormir sem medo. Provérbios 3 traz um comentário interessante sobre o assunto.
Provérbios
3:21-26 "Filho meu,
não deixes que eles (a minha lei e os meus mandamentos) se afastem dos teus
olhos: guarda a boa sabedoria e o bom senso: assim, eles serão vida para a tua
alma, e graça para o seu pescoço. Então deves andar em segurança no teu
caminho, e o teu pé não tropeçará. Quando te deitares, não terás medo; . Porque
o Senhor será a tua confiança e impedirá que o teu pé seja preso.
Provérbio 3 dá um exemplo de confiança, porque a confiança e a confiança são frutos de viver uma vida em relação com Deus e com a Sua palavra. Podemos descansar sem olharmos com medo para o julgamento, porque temos permanecido na Sua palavra e a Sua palavra tem permanecido em nós. Por isso, não tememos, porque sabemos que Deus está connosco. É Ele que nos fortalece, que nos ajuda, que nos sustenta com a destra da Sua justiça, Isaías 41:10.
Se não consegue
dormir à noite, talvez Deus queira que se levante e clame por Ele em oração.
Talvez haja alguma desobediência na sua vida e precise de refletir sobre o
caminho que está a seguir. Talvez Deus queira falar consigo. Crie o hábito de
rezar e/ou ler a Bíblia nos momentos em que o sono lhe foge. Em breve estará a
dormir bem, à medida que aprofunda e fortalece a sua relação com o Senhor. Mas
se não, e ainda tem dificuldade em dormir, não se preocupe. Em tudo dai graças.
Considere isto uma bênção de Deus para si e veja como pode resgatar o tempo
extra que Ele lhe está a dar.
Salmo 3:6 Não terei medo de dez milhares de pessoas
que se colocaram contra mim em redor.
Quando temos um
relacionamento pessoal profundo com Deus, podemos ir até Ele em oração
desesperada durante momentos de agitação física e emocional e ter total
confiança de que Ele está no controlo. “Manterás em perfeita paz aquele cuja
mente permaneceu em ti porque confia em ti”, Isaías 26:3. Assim, vemos
David, como protótipo de Jesus, e ambos demonstraram uma extraordinária calma
perante os seus inimigos.
Salmo 3:7 Levanta-te, Senhor; salva-me, ó meu Deus;
pois feriste na face todos os meus inimigos; Partiste os dentes dos ímpios.
David viu Deus
surgir em sua defesa e na defesa de Israel, o jovem Estado-nação. Jesus sabia
que chegaria o tempo em que também Ele esmagaria todos os Seus inimigos debaixo
dos Seus pés. Devemos, também, cumprir as promessas de Deus face à perseguição
mundial predita que aconteceria nos últimos dias do Anticristo.
Salmo 3:8 A salvação pertence ao Senhor: a tua
bênção está sobre o teu povo. Selá.
Por isso, não
temeremos aqueles que podem matar o corpo, mas não são capazes de matar a alma.
Temeremos e adoraremos Aquele que é capaz de lançar o corpo e a alma no
inferno. “Ouçamos a conclusão de todo o assunto: Temei a Deus e guardai os Seus
mandamentos: pois este é todo o dever do homem. Porque Deus trará a julgamento
toda a obra, até tudo o que está oculto, seja bom, seja mau”, Eclesiastes
12:13-14.
Deuteronómio
28:1-2 E acontecerá que,
se ouvires diligentemente a voz do Senhor teu Deus, para guardares e cumprires
todos os Seus mandamentos que hoje te ordeno, o Senhor teu Deus te estabelecerá
nas alturas, acima de todas as nações da terra. E todas estas bênçãos virão sobre
ti e te alcançarão, se deres ouvidos à voz do Senhor teu Deus.
As bênçãos de
Deus são condicionais. Jesus disse: “Procurai primeiro o reino de Deus e a Sua
justiça; e todas estas coisas (ou bênçãos) vos serão acrescentadas”, Mateus
6:33.
Salomão escreveu:
“A bênção do Senhor enriquece, e Ele não acrescenta tristeza alguma”, Provérbios
10:22. Se deixarmos que Deus aumente as nossas bênçãos e não lutarmos por
elas com as nossas próprias forças, mas deixarmos que Ele nos abençoe; Ele
abençoar-nos-á sem a tristeza e o conflito que experimentaremos ao tentar obter
as bênçãos através do braço da carne.
Jesus disse: “O
espírito vivifica (ou vivifica), a carne para nada aproveita”. O apóstolo João
acrescentou: “Porque tudo o que há no mundo, a concupiscência da carne, a
concupiscência dos olhos e a soberba da vida não vêm do Pai, mas do mundo. E o
mundo passa e a sua concupiscência;
O apóstolo Paulo
acrescenta: “Andai no Espírito e não satisfareis os desejos da carne. Porque a
carne cobiça contra o Espírito, e o Espírito contra a carne;
Gostaria de
acrescentar mais um ponto sobre “A Sua bênção está sobre o Seu povo”. O
apóstolo Paulo, no seu escrito aos Gálatas, escreveu: “Para que a bênção de
Abraão descesse sobre os gentios, por meio de Jesus Cristo; para que possamos
receber a promessa do Espírito pela fé”, Gálatas 3:14. E continua: “Pois
todos vós sois filhos de Deus pela fé em Cristo Jesus. Pois todos vós que
fostes batizados em Cristo vos revestistes de Cristo. Não existe judeu nem
grego, não existe escravo nem livre, não existe homem nem mulher; pois todos
vós sois um em Cristo Jesus. E se sois de Cristo, então sois descendência de
Abraão e herdeiros segundo a promessa”, Gálatas 3:26-29.
Em Romanos, Paulo
disse algo semelhante. “Pois não é judeu (membro da semente escolhida de Deus),
que o é exteriormente; nem é aquela circuncisão, que é exteriormente na carne:
mas é um judeu, que o é interiormente, e a circuncisão é a do coração, no espírito,
e não na letra; cujo louvor não vem dos homens, mas de Deus”, Romanos
2:28-29.
A bênção de Deus
esteve e está sobre aqueles que crêem. "Pois o que diz a Escritura? Abraão
creu em Deus, e isso lhe foi imputado como justiça", Romanos 4:3 e
Génesis 15:6. “Porque a promessa de que seria herdeiro do mundo não foi
feita a Abraão, nem à sua descendência, por meio da lei, mas por meio da
justiça da fé”, Romanos 4:13. “Mas sem fé é impossível agradar-Lhe;
porque é necessário que aquele que se aproxima de Deus creia que Ele existe e
que é galardoador daqueles que O buscam diligentemente”, Hebreus 11:6.
“Porque pela
graça sois salvos, por meio da fé; e isso não vem de vós; “Mas a todos quantos
O receberam, deu-lhes o poder de se tornarem filhos de Deus, sim, aos que crêem
no Seu nome”, João 1:12. “Quem acredita no Filho tem a vida eterna; e
quem não acredita no Filho não verá a vida; mas a ira de Deus permanece sobre
ele”, João 3:36. “Crê no Senhor Jesus Cristo e serás salvo, tu e a tua
casa”, Atos 16:31. “Senhor, eu creio, tira a minha incredulidade”,
Marcos 9:24. Em nome de Jesus oramos.
Originalmente publicado 03-01-2025.
God Will Repay
A compilation
Audio length: 12:39
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“Everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life.”—Matthew 19:29
Sacrifice isn’t convenient. It never is. But God still calls us to it. How does Jesus influence us to sacrifice? What’s the appeal? How does He persuade us? The answer is clear: Reward. Real, eternal, abundant reward. …
This is the principle: When you sacrifice, for the sake of Jesus and the Gospel, you will be richly rewarded, and your reward will be real, eternal, and abundant. …
An error that our culture spreads is the idea that serving others is good because it makes us feel good. Our culture is largely secular, so people don’t commonly talk about serving God and receiving a real, eternal, abundant reward. Instead, they talk about how being a “good” person makes us feel good.
Sometimes Christians believe this error, and they lose perspective on why they are sacrificing and what they are sacrificing for. Inevitably, this leads to apathy, going through the motions, and eventually, burnout. … Jesus doesn’t offer some lame promise about feeling good about yourself when you do good things. He promises a real, eternal, abundant reward.
Our sacrifice—if it’s done to honor Jesus—is never wasted. God honors our faithfulness, and Jesus promises a real, eternal, abundant reward.—Ryan McCoskey1
Eternal dividends
If we could learn to look at people and situations the way God does and then act accordingly, how differently we would do things! Just about everyone has heard the biblical maxim, “It’s more blessed to give than to receive.”2 Most of us agree in principle, but it’s often a case of easier said than done.
What we need to remember is that God never expects us to do anything He knows we can’t without His help. He wouldn’t tell us to love unselfishly if He weren’t right there with us to help us do just that. This is where faith comes in. If we really believe what He tells us, we act on it—even if it’s contrary to our natural reasoning or the way the world around us operates. And when we do, we reap the innumerable and incomparable rewards God has reserved for those who love unselfishly.
It may not pay off immediately or in dollars and cents, but you won’t be sorry. Sooner or later God will more than make it up to you! Even the seeming sacrifices aren’t sacrifices. They’re investments that will someday pay big dividends.—Author unknown
His promise
“Peter began to say to Him, ‘Behold, we have left everything and followed You.’ Jesus said, ‘Truly I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or farms, for My sake and for the gospel’s sake, but that he will receive a hundred times as much now in the present age, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and farms, along with persecutions; and in the age to come, eternal life.’”—Mark 10:28–30
Whether or not the Lord chooses to return exactly what we have given up for His sake, Jesus promises to reward us “a hundred times”—an unimaginable profit.
What have you given up in order to obey the Lord? Don’t grow bitter if you have yet to see its payoff. Trust and take God at His Word; the reward will be far greater than anything you can imagine. Though you may not recognize the reward on this side of heaven, you will fully realize it with eternity’s perspective.
Is God asking you to let go of something or someone important in your life? Whether it is a career, living close to family, an important relationship, a means of income, a hobby, or a place of security, there is no need or desire sacrificed for which the Lord is not able to provide, perhaps in ways you have never thought of before.
Since the day I walked out the door of my dream college, following the Lord has required many more sacrifices. ... But every step of the way, God has blessed me beyond measure. I have never regretted my decision to walk away from my filmmaking ambitions in order to follow Jesus. I joyfully resonate with these words from the old hymn, “Jesus I My Cross Have Taken”:
Perish every fond ambition, all I’ve sought, or hoped, or known. But how rich is my condition! God and Heaven are still my own.
In the end, no matter what we have sacrificed for Jesus, the cost cannot surpass the benefits of what He has promised “in the age to come”3: eternity in His presence, where all of our needs and desires will be fully met in Christ.—Lauren Rushiti4
Choosing the recompense of the reward
Moses, who had as a babe been drawn from the bulrushes by Pharaoh’s daughter, was reared in her father’s palace. There was such wealth and every luxury. But when he came of age he had to come face to face with the king, who challenged him to make a choice. He was a Hebrew, not an Egyptian, and Pharaoh demanded that he declare himself now. Would he cast his lot with his alien mother and be true to Egypt and wear the crown of the pharaohs? Or would he choose his own people? What a crisis hour it was for this young man Moses!
If he chooses to be one of the Hebrew people, he must forget all the comfort and luxury he has always had, wear the hated garb of the slave, and renounce forever the only mother he’d ever known, Pharaoh’s daughter. But he chose, as God’s Word says, “rather to suffer affliction with the children of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season.”5
These pleasures of sin spoken of here in the Bible were more tempting than appears by this mere statement, because Egypt at that time was the most attractive spot on earth. Her granaries were bursting with grain and the wealth of the world poured into her treasury.
From the possessions of the mightiest empire on earth Moses would have to take on slavery. But he was far-sighted and had this willingness to sacrifice for the future gain; “he had respect unto the recompense of the reward.”6 In other words, he knew that the pleasures of sin were only for a moment, and the future recompense of God’s reward was for all eternity.
He believed that without God’s favor, a millionaire is only a pauper. It was said of Christ, “though he was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor,”7 and this was the choice that Moses had to make, which entailed poverty and suffering and terrible humiliation. But he chose to be the least of God’s children without an earthly crown and wear a diadem forever in the life to come. So he took a stand with God’s children that he might stand with them before the eternal King over there.
Second Peter 1:9 speaks of a people who are blind and cannot see afar off. So many are like that today when they make their choices; they can see only the present. They sell out the future for the present. So many are blind spiritually to the great recompense of reward that God has! They have spiritual near-sightedness of the soul.
Standing with Moses on the steps of the palace, it looks like a foolish choice. But standing on the steps of the throne of God over there, as Moses looks back, what a wise, what a glorious choice it was! He became one of the world’s greatest leaders. He led a strange band of people on a long journey, and what a story it is! His name has gone down in history and his influence reaches to this very day.
“Myopia” is a Greek word that means nearsightedness. You can have spiritual myopia to where you’re not farsighted—you’re living mostly for the present and you don’t keep your heart and eyes on the great recompense of reward. The Lord says if we suffer with Him, we shall also reign with Him.8
Are there pleasures of any kind that are blinding you to that farsighted vision of the great recompense He has promised? The realities of eternity are pleasures forevermore. God who loves you has made great plans for you and for your life. Are you making your choice for the things that matter eternally?
Better to sacrifice now, dearly beloved, and then glory afterward. God loves you and God has planned so very much for you. Live in His Word. Trust Him to work it all out for your good and His glory.—Virginia Brandt Berg
Published on Anchor March 2022. Read by Gabriel Garcia Valdivieso.
Music by John Listen.
The Daily Voice - February 3 - Jesus learned obedience through the things that He suffered
Though He were a Son, yet learned He obedience by the things
that He suffered - Hebrews 5:8
Jesus learned obedience through the things that He suffered.
Meditate on that for a moment. The Son of God learned obedience through submitting
Himself completely to the will of the Father. He endured the suffering for the
joy that was set before Him of bringing humanity redemption from their sins.
In Gethsemane, He cried out to the Father saying, “Father, if
Thou be willing, remove this cup from Me, nevertheless not My will, but Thine
be done,” Luke 22:42. But the Father didn’t remove the cup of suffering, and
Jesus died a sinner’s death for you and me. The suffering was His pathway to
glory.
Hebrews 12:2b (He) endured the cross, … and is set down on
the right hand of the throne of God.
Apostle Paul tells us we should strive to have our minds
conformed to the mind of Christ.
Philippians 2:5-6 Let this mind be in you, which was also in
Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form (or nature) of God, thought it not robbery
to be equal with God:
Jesus was constantly affirming that He and the Father were one.
He could do nothing without the Father. Jesus claimed He could forgive sins
like the Father. He claimed that He would sit at the right hand of the Father.
He claimed he would come in the clouds of heaven which is imagery usually used
only for Jehovah God, or God the Father.
Philippians 2:7 But (Jesus) made Himself of no reputation,
and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
Apostle Paul is telling us, that if we desire to have the
mind of Christ, we should seek to be like Jesus. We should not seek for reputation
or fame. We should rather humbly serve others, as Jesus has said. He that is
greatest among you shall be your servant, Matthew 23:11.
Philippians 2:8 And being found in the fashion as a man, He
humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Jesus humbled Himself and became obedient unto death.
Apostle Paul tells us we should put on Christ’s mind. We should follow Jesus’
example of humble obedience to the will of God, even in the face of extreme
suffering and death.
Because Jesus was willing to suffer the death of the cross, God has highly exalted Him.
Philippians 2:9 Wherefore God also has highly exalted Him,
and given Him a name which is above every name.
Jesus learned obedience through the things He suffered.
Through suffering and death, He has defeated the devil and death. He has opened
the door to eternal life to all that believe on Him.
Hebrews 2:14-15 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers
of flesh and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the same, that
through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the
devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime
subject to bondage.
1 John 3:8b For this purpose the Son of God was manifested,
that He might destroy the works of the Devil.
Jesus has suffered, died, and rose again. As many as receive
Him to them gives He the power to become the sons of God, even to them that
believe on His name. Believe on the Lord Jesus today.
Link to a study on Psalm 33
Psalm 33 - Blessed Is the Nation Whose God Is the Lord
Psalm 33 with Commentaries
by Dennis Edwards
In some eight manuscripts Psalm 32 and Psalm
33 are found as one continuous psalm. Some scholars therefore consider it the
second part of Psalm 32, or an amplification of the last verse where we
find, “Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice you righteous: and shout for joy all
you that are upright in heart.” Some of the earlier psalms seem to be in pairs, where the idea of one psalm is continued in the next, as is found in Psalm 9
and 10. The fact that Psalm 33 has 22 verses, which is equal to the number of letters
in the Hebrew alphabet, makes for regarding it as a complete composition.
[Burgh, William de; A Commentary on the Book of Psalms, Dublin, 1860, page
312.]
33:1-2 Rejoice
in the Lord, O you
righteous: for praise is comely (or appropriate) for the
upright. Praise the Lord with
harp: sing unto Him with the psaltery and an instrument of ten strings.
A recurrent theme in the Psalms
is the importance of thankfulness and praise in our relationship with God.
Evangelist Nick Vujicic, who has no arms or legs, says, he has never met a
thankful man who was bitter, or a bitter man who was thankful. It’s one or the
other. We see Apostle Paul writing, “Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I
say, rejoice,” Philippians 4:4. In Colossians he writes,
Colossians 4:15-17 “And let
the peace of God rule in your hearts,…and be thankful. Let the word of Christ
dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in
psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the
Lord. And whatsoever you do in word or in deed, do all in the name of the Lord
Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him.”
In Ephesians he gives
a similar message:
Ephesians 5:18-20 “And be
not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; speaking
to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making
melody in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God
and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Psalm 33:3 Sing
unto Him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise.
In the book of Revelation,
we find the four beasts and the twenty-four elders falling down and singing a
new song when the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, the Lamb slain
from the foundation of the world, opens the little book and looses the seven
seals, Revelation 5:5.
Revelation 5:9-10 “And they
sung a new song, saying, You are worthy to take the book, and to open the seals
thereof: for you were slain, and have redeemed us to our God by your blood out
of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; and has made us unto our
God kings and priests; and we shall reign on the earth.”
Later, when the 144,000
tribulation saints arrive in the heavenlies, they also sing a new song.
Revelation 14:2-3 “And I
heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a
great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps; and
they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beast,
and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and
four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.”
Psalm 33:4 For the
word of the Lord is
right; and all His works are done in truth.
God’s word is right, and God’s word is true. Throughout the Old
Testament we find that God is true to His word.
Psalm 119:160 “Your word is true from the
beginning: and everyone of Your righteous judgments endures forever.”
Numbers 23:19 “God is not a man, that He
should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent: has He said, and
shall He not do it? Or has He spoken, and shall He not make it good?”
Joshua 23:14b “Not one thing has failed of
all the good things which the Lord your God spoke concerning you; all are come
to pass unto you, and not one thing has failed thereof.”
Isaiah 34:16 “Seek you out of the book of
the Lord, and read: no one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate: for
My mouth it has commanded, and His Spirit it has gathered them.”
In the New Testament, Jesus calls Himself, “The way, the
truth, and the life,” John 14:6. He says if we continue in His
words, we would know the truth, and the truth would make us free, John 8:31-32.
Just before His death, He said He was going to the Father, but He would send
the Holy Spirit, which would lead and guide us into all truth, John 16:13.
Apostle Paul admonishes us that the greatest spiritual gift is
love, and that love rejoices in the truth, 1 Corinthians 13:6. He tells
us we should speak the truth in love, Ephesians 4:15.
Psalm 33:5-9 He (God) loves
righteousness and judgment: the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord. By the
word of the Lord were
the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. He
gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap: He lays up the
depth in storehouses. Let all
the earth fear the Lord: let
all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. For He spoke, and
it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.
In Genesis 1, we see that God spoke the world into
existence and it was good. In John 1, we find the Word was in the
beginning with God and by the Word all things were made, “and without Him was
not anything made that was made,” John 1:1-3. That Word was later made
flesh, and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth, John 1:14. His name
was Jesus Christ, the only begotten of the Father.
The New Testament epistles give us the same idea.
Colossians 1:16-17 “For
by Him (Jesus) were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in
earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or
principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him: and He
is before all things, and by Him all things consist.”
Hebrews 1:1-3 “God, who at different times
and various manners spoke in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, has in
these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all
things, by whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory,
and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of
His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand
of the Majesty on high.”
Psalm 33:10-11 The Lord brings the
counsel of the heathen to nought: He makes the
devices of the people of none effect. The
counsel of the Lord stands for
ever, the thoughts of His heart to all
generations.
Similarly in the Proverbs we read,
Proverbs 19:21 “There are many devices in a
man’s heart; nevertheless, the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand.”
Eventually the Lord will rule for a thousand years and then for
eternity. What God has said shall be done. Jesus said, “Heaven and earth shall
pass away, but My words shall not pass away,” Matthew 24:35.
Isaiah 14:27 “For the Lord of hosts has
purposed, and who will disannul it? And His hand is stretched out, and who
shall turn it back?”
Psalm 33:12 Blessed
is the nation whose God is the Lord; and
the people whom He has chosen for his own inheritance.
As Apostle Paul has explained in his epistle to the Galatians,
“And if you be Christ’s, then are you Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to
the promise,” Galatians 3:29. He also wrote, “The Spirit itself bears
witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. And if children, then
heirs, heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ,” Romans 8:16-17a.
All that believe and obey Jesus Christ are the nation of God, no
matter in whatever nation on earth they may exist. We are the children of
promise, like Isaac, not the children of the flesh, like Ishmael. As Paul has clarified,
“They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God:
but the children of the promise are counted for the seed,” Romans 9:8.
God’s spirit is calling all mankind to repent and come into the
true Shepherd’s fold. All mankind, each and every person is called in some way.
Jesus said, “Many are called, but few are chosen,” Matthew 22:14. So few
choose His way, “because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way, which
leads to life, and few there be that find it,” Matthew 7:14.
Psalm 33:13-15 The Lord looks from
heaven; He beholds all the sons of men. From the
place of His habitation, He looks upon
all the inhabitants of the earth. He
fashions their hearts alike; He
considers all their works.
God is watching. For that reason, “The fear of the Lord is the
beginning of knowledge,” Proverbs 1:7.
Psalm 33:16-19 There is
no king saved by the multitude of a host: a mighty man is not delivered by much
strength. A horse is a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver any
by his great strength. Behold,
the eye of the Lord is
upon them that fear Him, upon them that hope
in His mercy; To
deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.
God is our true strength, our refuge, our protector, our saviour. “It
is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man,” Psalm 118:8,
the middle verse of the Bible. It is better to trust in the Lord, than to put
confidence in anything else to protect and save us. Our obedience to God is our
best protection from evil.
Psalm 33:20-22 Our soul
waits for the Lord: He is our
help and our shield. For our
heart shall rejoice in Him, because we have
trusted in His holy name. Let Your mercy,
O Lord, be upon us, according
as we hope in You.
Prayer: Lord, You are our shield and our helper in time of
need. We look to You to lead and guide us in the way wherein You would have us
walk. You are our hope, help us follow You closely. Let Your mercy and truth
guide us and keep us in the path You have for us. Protect us from the snares of
the evil one. Be with our loved ones. May You draw them close to You day by
day. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.
Originally published February 3, 2025 Link to The Daily Voice - February 3
