September 5, 2006 - Psalms 146-147 and I Corinthians 15:1-28
Is your heart filled with praise for the Lord this morning? I pray that it is filled to over flowing, because of all of the general blessings of God and the specific blessings He has given just for you in your life. If it wasn't for the blessings of the Lord, I would not even be alive, so I will join with the psalmist and praise the Lord "while I live."
Psalm 146 deals more with the general blessings of God. God is so good to keep truth forever, to give freedom, to give food, to raise those who are bowed down, and to relieve the fatherless and the widow. I know we all have seen these blessings over and over, but do we stop to praise Him for them? We should praise Him for His general blessings every day. Then, Psalm 147 is speaking more about the specific blessings of God. It refers to how God builds up Jerusalem, takes pleasure in those who fear Him, strengthens the bars of your gates, fills you with the finest wheat, and gives judgments others have not known. Do you stop to consider all of the very special blessings that God had crafted just for you and your life situation? I hope you do, and I hope you give Him all of the praise and thanks. It will cause you to rejoice in the Lord and to be glad, instead of being so stressed and negative.
I Corinthians 15 is the resurrection chapter of the Bible. Evidently, some were teaching that the dead would not be raised, so Paul had to correct them. He had to remind them of the Gospel which saves us. What is the Gospel? It is that Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He rose again the third day. When a indivduals place their trust in Christ for dying and rising again for them, the Gospel is the power of God for saving them from their sins. Therefore, it is essential that Christ rose. If Christ rose, then, there is a resurrection of the dead. We can know that He will raise us up, too. He was the first fruits, so we would know He would do the same for us. We must do all we can do to serve the Lord and to tell others the Gospel while we are alive, but our ultimate sure hope is that we will live with Him in heaven for eternity. What a blessing! What a hope to energize our praise and our service. Let's give Him all of the praise for saving us and sustaining us each day. He is worthy of all of our praise!
Tomorrow, I intend to read Psalms 148-150 and I Corinthians 15:29-58.
Psalm 146 deals more with the general blessings of God. God is so good to keep truth forever, to give freedom, to give food, to raise those who are bowed down, and to relieve the fatherless and the widow. I know we all have seen these blessings over and over, but do we stop to praise Him for them? We should praise Him for His general blessings every day. Then, Psalm 147 is speaking more about the specific blessings of God. It refers to how God builds up Jerusalem, takes pleasure in those who fear Him, strengthens the bars of your gates, fills you with the finest wheat, and gives judgments others have not known. Do you stop to consider all of the very special blessings that God had crafted just for you and your life situation? I hope you do, and I hope you give Him all of the praise and thanks. It will cause you to rejoice in the Lord and to be glad, instead of being so stressed and negative.
I Corinthians 15 is the resurrection chapter of the Bible. Evidently, some were teaching that the dead would not be raised, so Paul had to correct them. He had to remind them of the Gospel which saves us. What is the Gospel? It is that Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He rose again the third day. When a indivduals place their trust in Christ for dying and rising again for them, the Gospel is the power of God for saving them from their sins. Therefore, it is essential that Christ rose. If Christ rose, then, there is a resurrection of the dead. We can know that He will raise us up, too. He was the first fruits, so we would know He would do the same for us. We must do all we can do to serve the Lord and to tell others the Gospel while we are alive, but our ultimate sure hope is that we will live with Him in heaven for eternity. What a blessing! What a hope to energize our praise and our service. Let's give Him all of the praise for saving us and sustaining us each day. He is worthy of all of our praise!
Tomorrow, I intend to read Psalms 148-150 and I Corinthians 15:29-58.