Blog Archives - Created through Him

Created Through Him

For thine is the kingdom

5/31/2012

10 Wherefore David blessed the Lord before all the congregation: and David said, Blessed be thou, Lord God of Israel our father, for ever and ever. 11 Thine, O Lord is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all (1Chronicles 29:10-11).

In this passage David is praising God and acknowledging God’s sovereignty. David uses words like greatness, power, and majesty to describe the essence of God’s sovereignty. God is the exalted head of all of creation. The words that David uses in this passage paint a picture of a God that is to be worshiped. Worship is the proper response to God and His sovereignty. Worship is also submission. Since God’s sovereignty is total, our submission in worship should be total as well.

Additionally, these words from David are in the form of a benediction. A benediction we use as part of the Lord’s prayer. For thine is the kingdom, and power, and glory forever.

Fear of the Lord

5/30/2012

25 For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised: he also is to be feared above all gods. 26 For all the gods of the people are idols: but the Lord made the heavens (1 Chronicles 16:25-26).

God is sovereign because He is the Creator. As the Creator, He should be praised and feared. It may seem counter-intuitive, but when we fear God, we actually praise Him. This is true because the fear of the Lord allows us to understand the relationship between the Creator and the created. That relationship is one in which God is totally sovereign. This sovereignty should extend into our daily lives and should be evident in how we act.

The Lord will not forsake

5/29/2012

21 And turn ye not aside: for then should ye go after vain things, which cannot profit nor deliver; for they are vain. 22 For the Lord will not forsake his people for his great name's sake: because it hath pleased the Lord to make you his people (1 Samuel 12:21-22).

God’s sovereignty is very reassuring. God will never forsake us and therefore we should not worry. When we worry, we are not trusting God. The main reason that God does not forsake us is because of His promises. He cannot violate what He has promised. Given that God is faithful, we have an obligation to avoid becoming vain in either our thoughts or actions. Vanity causes us to seek all kinds of destructive and unimportant things. Therefore, we should seek the important things in life and trust in the promises of God.

Rule of God

5/28/2012

22 Then the men of Israel said unto Gideon, Rule thou over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy son's son also: for thou hast delivered us from the hand of Midian. 23 And Gideon said unto them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you: the Lord shall rule over you (Judges 8:22-23).

Gideon was reminding the people that they were to be ruled by God. God as the sovereign God of all creation is the source of power and government. When we seek the governance of God, we will submit to God’s plan. It is God’s plan that leads to life. When we follow after our own ways, our own ideas of leadership, our own ‘kings’, we fail to follow the one true God. It makes a difference whether the gods of this world, or the God of all creation rule our lives. May the Lord rule over you.

Hardened hearts

5/27/2012

20 For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts, that they should come against Israel in battle, that he might destroy them utterly, and that they might have no favour, but that he might destroy them, as the Lord commanded Moses (Josuha 11:20).

When God exercises His sovereignty it does not always conform to what we may think is fair. After all, if God hardens a heart of an individual, they really have no chance on their own to make things right. Seems unfair, doesn’t it? This is where we come face-to-face with the holiness of God. God is holy and His justice proceeds from who He is. Remember the name of God: I AM (Yahweh). God sees past, present and future, simultaneously. He is God and we are not. There is something to consider here, we often think we want God to be just, but we may want to be careful in what we wish. We should really beg God for His mercy, since none of us can withstand His holy justice on our own. And that is the point, when hearts are hardened; they are hardened due to unbelief. God lets them have it their way. We, on the other hand, should not want to have it our way but rather to depend on God and His mercy. Rest assured, that God in His sovereignty, will be merciful to those who call upon His holy name.

God in heaven and the the earth beneath

5/26/2012

10 For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. 11 And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the Lord your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath (Joshua 2:10-11).

This conversation is between Rahab and Joshua. Rahab had a sordid past, but we know from this passage that she appears to have turned to God. She acknowledges God as being sovereign over all of Creation. She also clearly fears God, and was convicted of her sin. Through fear and trembling, the acknowledgment of God as sovereign in the presence of the conviction of personal sin is a statement of faith. Rehab, through faith, began to act as a believer. The realization of the sovereignty of God leads to surrender on the part of the believer. This is saving faith.

Ownership

5/25/2012

6 Do ye thus requite the Lord, O foolish people and unwise? Is not he thy father that hath bought thee? Hath he not made thee, and established thee? (Deuteronomy 32:6).

God’s sovereignty is based on His authority. The authority of God is over all that He created. God created us and therefore He has dominion over us. An interesting point here is that since God as an extension of His authority establishes us, we are owned by God. We are therefore, in many respects, not our own. This has profound ethical and moral connotations. We only have dominion over what God has declared as being under our dominion. We often think of our bodies and minds as being under our dominion. But this is not so, we are God’s. He made us and established us. We should therefore submit our bodies and minds to God. We often seem to get it backwards and desire God to submit to our thoughts, and we think that we own our bodies. God certainly does allow us to choose, but we should choose in accordance with His will, not our own. It is a matter of ownership.

Holy people

5/24/2012

19 And to make thee high above all nations which he hath made, in praise, and in name, and in honour; and that thou mayest be an holy people unto the Lord thy God, as he hath spoken (Deuteronomy 26:19).

When God exercises His sovereignty to raise people or nations up, He does so for the purpose of setting apart a people for Himself. The people are then to be holy. Holiness is needed so that individuals can come into the presence of God. God is holy and therefore we must be made holy in order to be in relationship with God. Verse 19 is a decree of God, “he hath spoken”. When God speaks, whatever is spoken occurs. The God that called the Universe into existence, also calls on us to be a holy people unto the Lord.

Grace

5/23/2012

2 For thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God, and the Lord hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth (Deuteronomy 14:2).

The choices of God are a direct reflection of His sovereignty. He is sovereign and therefore He chooses. The previous may seem like a circular statement, but the implication of sovereignty is that choices are the responsibility of the Sovereign. God selects and chooses according to His will and purposes. This means that God’s selection is really not based on merit, but rather upon grace. Grace is a result of God’s sovereign choices. Grace is therefore literally imparted to the God’s people. God’s people cannot earn grace but are simply recipients of it. The God that chooses is gracious.

The rain of heaven

5/22/2012

10 For the land, whither thou goest in to possess it, is not as the land of Egypt, from whence ye came out, where thou sowedst thy seed, and wateredst it with thy foot, as a garden of herbs: 11 But the land, whither ye go to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of heaven: 12 A land which the Lord thy God careth for: the eyes of the Lord thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year even unto the end of the year (Deuteronomy 11:10-12).

God’s sovereignty results in our care. The care of God is total and without equal. The term rain of heaven is great term. The rain of heaven is a representation of Christ. He nourishes our lives and souls. It is like night and day, the difference between wondering in the desert apart from Christ, and being in a lush green paradise in the presence of God. When God, through Christ, cares for us, He does so permanently. Verse 12 states that His eyes are upon us from the beginning to the end. This is good news, the good news of the blessing of the rain of heaven.

Created Through Him