The different between being foolish & a Fool

Psalm 53

“The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity; there is none who does good.  God looks down from heaven on the children of man to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all fallen away; together, they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one.

 Have those who work evil no knowledge, who eat up my people as they eat bread, and do not call upon God?  There they are, in great terror, where there is no terror!  For God scatters the bones of him who encamps against you; you put them to shame, for God has rejected them. Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!  When God restores the fortunes of his people, let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.”

Some of the smartest and most learned people of our day have said in their hearts, “There is no God.”  I have often stated that such people are brilliant by the world’s standards but have no wisdom and do not want a moral authority over them.  That is very much in keeping with Scripture. “They are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity; there is none who does good,” God calls such people fools!

You’re Not that kind of person, you believe in God, you attend church, are involved in a small group, and read your Bible at least once a day. But do you seek after God?  God made each of us for a purpose, I cannot fill your purpose, nor can you fill mine, so would it not be wise to seek after God and know the reason you are taking up space on planet earth?  I’m 77 years young, and I’ve been asking, searching, seeking and rereading “The Purpose Driven Life” by Rick Warren, to make sure I’m about my Father’s business.

The Psalmist asks this question; “Have those who work evil have no knowledge,” and it’s simple when it comes to Truth, they are stupid, for Jesus has told us I am “Truth.”  Open your eyes and observe the world you live in it is full of fear of the unknown, who is going to steal from me, who is going to hurt me, we do not live by chance, but under the hand of the Mighty Creator.  And He has told us to cast all our cares on Him, for He cares for us.  So, rejoice and be glad!

Many a person who is a follower of Christ, at times do foolish things, but God is clear that a Fool is one that says there is no God.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Treacherous Tongue!

Psalm 52

“Why brag about evil, you hero!  God’s faithful love is constant.  Like a sharpened razor, your tongue devises destruction, working treachery. You love evil instead of good, lying instead of speaking truthfully. Selah

You love any words that destroy, you treacherous tongue!

This is why God will bring you down forever.  He will take you, ripping you out of your tent; He will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah

The righteous will look on with awe and will ridicule him: “Here is the man who would not make God his refuge, but trusted in the abundance of his riches,
taking refuge in his destructive behavior.”

 But I am like a flourishing olive tree in the house of God; I trust in God’s faithful love forever and ever. I will praise You forever for what You have done.
In the presence of Your faithful people, I will put my hope in Your name, for it is good.”

A little history is always helpful; this psalm is about Doeg the Edomite, one of Saul’s chief herdsmen, informing Saul that David had gone to Ahimelech's house.  David got the priest to help him by giving him bread and the sword of Goliath, but David was not truthful with the priest, this is what he told him about the priest and why he was alone.  The account is in 1 Samuel 21:2, “David answered Ahimelek the priest, “The king sent me on a mission and said to me, ‘No one is to know anything about the mission I am sending you on.’ As for my men, I have told them to meet me at a certain place.” He also lied to the priest about the sword that was used to kill Goliath.

Now David was not the only one that lied, we have this account of Doeg telling Saul something he did not witness, but we have learned how powerful and destructive are half-truths by watching the Congress of The U.S.A.  When the guards of Saul refused to kill the priest and his family, Saul turned to Doeg, and he not only killed 85 priests but women and children.  Then he bragged about what he had done. 

Maybe Doeg the Edomite would have been wise to have heard this word from Jeremiah 9:23-24, “Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches,  but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things, I delight, declares the Lord.”

What do we know about the Edomites, they were from Esau?  He was the brother of Jacob who gave up his birthright?  They were always enemies of Israel and he took great pleasure in killing the people of Nob.  What we are not told is how he died, but I would not for all the power and money of this world want to take his place in judgment.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Do you have a Nathan in your life?

Psalm 51: 1-19

“Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!  For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.  Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment.  Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin, did my mother conceive me.  Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being, and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.  Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.  Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice.  Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.  Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.  Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.  Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you. Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, O God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.  O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.  For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.  Do good to Zion in your good pleasure; build up the walls of Jerusalem; then will you delight in right sacrifices, in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings; then bulls will be offered on your altar.”

Do you have a Nathan in your life, if not who is going to confront you about the acts of sin in your life?  Maybe a better question is, do you have a Bathsheba in your life, who you are lusting for or may be involved with?  David believed he had covered his tracks, but Nathan will not be fooled any more than  God will by your deceptive acts.

Maybe a better question would be when confronted by your Nathan, will you have an arrogant heart, or will you be like David and be broken before God?  If you’re a religious person, working to earn forgiveness by giving money or doing some act of service, you need to park on verses 10-12, ^“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.  Cast me not away from your presence and take not your Holy Spirit from me.  Restore to me the joy of your salvation and uphold me with a willing spirit.”

Now I have no doubt the Holy Spirit spoke into your life if you are serious about hearing Him, and now go to verses 16-17, “For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Hound of Heaven

As I read this doing some research on the "Hound of Heaven" I wanted to share 
once again how big is our God, with each of you.
 

The "Hound of Heaven"

Related Media

The Hound of Heaven and a Young Russian Agnostic

Andrea Wolfe, on staff with the CoMission office in Raleigh, North Carolina tells the following story:

In the 1930's Stalin ordered a purge of all Bibles and all believers. In Stavropol, Russia, this order was carried out with vengeance. Thousands of Bibles were confiscated, and multitudes of believers were sent to the gulags-prison camps-where most died, unjustly condemned as "enemies of the state."

The CoMission once sent a team to Stavropol. The city's history wasn't known at that time. But when the team was having difficulty getting Bibles shipped from Moscow, someone mentioned the existence of a warehouse outside of town where these confiscated Bibles had been stored since Stalin's day.

After the team had prayed extensively, one member finally mustered up the courage to go to the warehouse and ask the officials if the Bibles were still there. Sure enough, they were. Then the CoMissioners asked if the Bibles could be removed and distributed again to the people of Stavropol. The answer was "Yes!"

The next day the CoMission team returned with a truck and several Russian people to help load the Bibles. One helper was a young man-a skeptical, hostile agnostic collegian who had come only for the day's wages. As they were loading Bibles, one team member noticed that the young man had disappeared. Eventually they found him in a corner of the warehouse, weeping.

He had slipped away hoping to take a Bible for himself. What he did not know was that he was being pursued by the "Hound of Heaven." What he found shook him to the core.

The inside page of the Bible he picked up had the handwritten signature of his own grandmother. It had been her personal Bible. Out of the thousands of Bibles still left in that warehouse, he stole the very one belonging to his grandmother-a woman, who throughout her entire life, was persecuted for her faith.

No wonder he was weeping-God had powerfully and yet tenderly made Himself known to this young man.¹ Such was his divinely appointed meeting with the sovereign Lord of the universe, the "Hound of Heaven" who had tracked him down to that very warehouse! Remember Jeremiah's words: "`Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see him?' declares the Lord. `Do not I fill both heaven and earth?' declares the Lord." (Jer 23:24).

True Worship or Lip Service?

Psalm 50:16-23

“But to the wicked God says: “What right have you to recite my statutes or take my covenant on your lips?  For you hate discipline, and you cast my words behind you.  If you see a thief, you are pleased with him, and you keep company with adulterers. “You give your mouth free rein for evil, and your tongue frames deceit.  You sit and speak against your brother; you slander your own mother's son.  These things you have done, and I have been silent; you thought that I was one like yourself.  But now I rebuke you and lay the charge before you. “Mark this, then, you who forget God, lest I tear you apart, and there be none to deliver!  The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; to one who orders his way rightly, I will show the salvation of God!”

Lip service, but not true worship, God is speaking to His people called by His name, that is whom God is addressing in the Scripture above, and this thought came into my mind, have I not been that way with my Lord?  The Scripture above should bring to mind what the apostle Paul instructed us in 2 Corinthian 13:5, “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith.  Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you? –unless indeed, you fail to meet the test!”

Could it be you and I need many reminders of who God is and 1 Samuel 16:7, is such a Scripture?  God is talking with His prophet Samuel about picking a king for Israel, and these are God’s words.  “ But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” 

It somehow you think your performance for God is like teaching fourth graders in Awana or teaching youth that have no desire to listen or being a pastor, is earning points with God, think again.  These Jewish people were into performance, and they could have put to shame the religious person of our day.  In Psalm 51:17, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”  And back to 1 Samuel 15:2, “But Samuel declared: "Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, obedience is better than sacrifice, and attentiveness is better than the fat of rams.”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The difference between Religion & Christianity

Psalm 50:7-15

 “Hear, O my people, and I will speak; O Israel, I will testify against you.  I am God, your God.  Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you; your burnt offerings are continually before me.  I will not accept a bull from your house or goats from your folds.  For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills.  I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is mine.  “If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are mine.  Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?  Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform your vows to the Most High, and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.”

Many years have passed since I read the difference between religion and Christianity.  Religion is all about “do,” what can I do for God?  Christianity is all about “done,” what God has done for us, by sending His only Son Jesus Christ the Messiah to pay for our sins.  Jesus said as He was dying, it is finished, and what He meant was death was conquered, He had overcome the grave, for He rose and was seen by more than 5000, before departing earth to be at the right hand of His Father.  He defeated sin and paid our full price the Father required to have a relationship with Him.  Now the ball is in your court, will you accept the gift of Salvation and Redemption?

Are will you take the route of religion, do you understand that was what the nation of Israel was doing, and they were trying to earn God’s favor?  As a people, they were willing to do as commanded by Moses and give God an offering, but they were not ready to give Him themselves.  Many a person who goes by the title Christian has no plans to present himself or herself to God’s purpose for life on planet earth.  But if you want to have fellowship with the Father, you must desire a life of obedience to the Father, then you will fulfill the purposes that God had in mind when he made you.

My personal walk with the Lord had been a failure until I learned to tell God from my heart, I can’t live the Christ life, and I’ve come to understand only Jesus did it correctly.  Dear Jesus, you can do it all in and through me, so I give up and am submitting my desires and will to You.  I still have a long way to go, but I can do all things through Christ.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

A Heart act or a Religious act?

Psalm 50:1-6

“The Mighty One, God the Lord, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting.  Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth.  Our God comes; he does not keep silence; before him is a devouring fire, around him a mighty tempest.  He calls to the heavens above and to the earth that he may judge his people: “Gather to me, my faithful ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!”  The heavens declare his righteousness, for God himself is judge! Selah”

The thing all of us earth critters seem to have in common is we stay busy; I did not say we are productive but active.  One lady started a business called “White Spaces” it is all about looking for enjoyment and taking time to reflect in your busy schedule.  Often a pastor or teacher will give you a plan for taking a few minutes before the beginning of your day to read a few verses in the Bible.  But, is that a heart act or a religious act?  For years I would read a Proverbs and a Psalm each morning before starting my day, that is unless I had to grab an early plane or be at a customer’s office or when meeting before work with other men to have prayer and Bible Study.  I believe the Holy Spirit has pointed out to me it was a religious act on my part and not a desire to answer the summons of “The Mighty One, God the Lord.”

Take a breath, and set your mind on this, our Big God is calling all the people of the earth each day to have fellowship with Him.  Now it matters not who you are; God is obvious in His word that He has given us the power to set our minds, you will find that in Colossians 3:2.  Why do we not do so, because of the tyranny of the urgent, Charles E. Hummel has given some great information on this in a small little book with that title?

Now let us explore Colossians 3:2, “Set your minds on what is above, not on what is on the earth.”  Why do we not do so, after asking myself that for many years, I came up with the answer, we are ignorant of what God calls success.  From a child, we were told that success would come if we applied ourselves, worked hard, and got an excellent education. That’s all good, but is it the key to what God has planned for your life?  

I often read Os Hillman's devotion, and the other day he touched on the subject of success, let me share.  “The definition of success. Success is fulfilling the complete purpose for which God made you. It has nothing to do with wealth, accomplishments, stature in life or standard of living. It has to do with living a life of obedience to the Father. And when we live a life of obedience to the Father, we will fulfill the purposes that God had in mind when he made you and me. That is really the definition of success. Success is fulfilling the complete purpose for which God made you. It has nothing to do with wealth, accomplishments, stature in life or standard of living. It has to do with living a life of obedience to the Father. And when we live a life of obedience to the Father, we will fulfill the purposes that God had in mind when he made you and me.”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Your Stuff stay on Planet Earth

Psalm 49:10-20

“For he sees that even the wise die; the fool and the stupid alike must perish and leave their wealth to others.  Their graves are their homes forever,
their dwelling places to all generations, though they called lands by their own names.   Man in his pomp will not remain; he is like the beasts that perish.  This is the path of those who have foolish confidence, yet after them, people approve of their boasts. Selah
 Like sheep, they are appointed for Sheol; death shall be their shepherd, and the upright shall rule over them in the morning.  Their form shall be consumed in Sheol, with no place to dwell.  But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol, for he will receive me. Selah

 Be not afraid when a man becomes rich, when the glory of his house increases.
For when he dies he will carry nothing away; his glory will not go down after him.
For though, while he lives, he counts himself blessed—and though you get praise when you do well for yourself— his soul will go to the generation of his fathers, who will never again see light.  Man in his pomp yet without understanding is like the beasts that perish.”

My first mentor, we will call him Jack, he was called dry hole jack in the oil business and the first 19 holes he put in the ground were dry; no oil or gas to make a well.  On number 20 he sold three quarters to investors and made a hit that made Jack a very rich man.  It was later after much success and coming to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ at age 43, that my first mentor began to invest in ministry all over the world.  Jack was very wise and set up a trust so that God’s work would continue after he left.  What he never counted on was the greed of his family, whom he had given so much, and one being a lawyer went to each of these ministries and told them he would make sure they got ten cents on the dollar of what was given to them, and if they resisted the family would take them to court and take it all.

It is my understanding that the ministries, many in third world countries had no resources to fight the family and accepted the deal.  I did not keep up with this family, and they may have enjoyed Jack’s hard work, but I’m willing to bet the farm they did not find favor in God’s sight.

One thing is very true, no one leaves this earth with anything, and often what one has worked so hard to give to a child or grandchildren are gone as soon as it in their hands.  I have found that only true riches are found in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and as we said in sales, the F.A.B. is “Peace in the presence of evil in this sinful world.  If you did not read the Scripture and give thought to what you read, you are not a very smart person.

From our Back Porch,

Bob Rice 

What Counts in this Life?

Psalm 49:1-9

“Hear this, all peoples! Give ear, all inhabitants of the world, low and high, rich and poor together!  My mouth shall speak wisdom; the meditation of my heart shall be understanding.  I will incline my ear to a proverb; I will solve my riddle to the music of the lyre.  Why should I fear in times of trouble, when the iniquity of those who cheat me surrounds me, those who trust in their wealth and boast of the abundance of their riches?  Truly no man can ransom another, or give to God the price of his life, for the ransom of their life, is costly and can never suffice, that he should live on forever and never see the pit.”

The sons of Korah were the gatekeepers at the Temple and led out in the praises of God; in Chapter 48:1a, we see them leading the people in worship by proclaiming, “Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised in the city of our God!”

As we visit chapter 49, it is the message to the Church.  Yes, always, but so much more it is to all people of the world, and that means red, yellow, black, and white.  But the Psalmist goes even further; it matters not your finances, it is also for the rich and the poor alike, the ruling class, or the lowest of people.

The Psalmist asks a question it seems to himself, why should I fear, and in chapter 47, we spent a lot of time on fear, the fear of man.  But it is only God we should fear, for man can only kill us, but Jesus tells us God has the power to send us to an eternal hell. We must never forget the Scripture tells us that only a fool will say there is no God.

Who is it that wants you to fear?  Many that want you to buy a product, I call them want creators, they make all kinds of promises about how it will enrich your life, have you fell for this trap?  God designs us to be loved, and often we follow our fleshly desires wanting to earn someone’s love or acceptance and yet Jesus has told us He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and He wants you also to find in Him life, truth, and the way to the Father.

My prayer is that you will not be fooled or deceived by a religion that tells you for the right amount of money they can bargain with God for the soul of a sinner to keep them out of hell, or to a better place than hell.  That is counter to this Scripture, in fact, Jesus leaves no wiggle room for what is required to be in right standing with a Holy God in John 14:6.  Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”   

When it comes to God, your wealth and your status in life mean nothing, only what you do with Jesus!  Any religion that teaches anything else is not of God, but man.  No one can bypass the Cross and the finished work of Jesus, God’s only Son.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Understanding the word Love

Psalm 47:1-9

“Clap your hands, all peoples!  Shout to God with loud songs of joy!
 For the Lord, the Most High is to be feared, a great king over all the earth. He subdued peoples under us, and nations under our feet.  He chose our heritage for us, the pride of Jacob whom he loves. Selah   God has gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet.  Sing praises to God, sing praises!  Sing praises to our King, sing praises!  For God is the King of all the earth; sing praises with a psalms!  God reigns over the nations; God sits on his holy throne. The princes of the peoples gather as the people of the God of Abraham.  For the shields of the earth belong to God; he is highly exalted!”

I exalted you, is not a word used often and maybe one should ask why?  I have never told a man in my 77 years on planet earth you are exalted above all others, not my dad who I loved and respected, not any of the pastors, or athletes I’ve known, why?  It’s a word set aside for only one, God is the only one I’m to exalt. 

Why then should God the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, be given such a title?  Let’s begin with an exceptional, word “Love” we were designed with a need to be loved, take a baby and show it no love and there is a good chance it will die.  But you and I need love, and we also need to show love.  I’m not talking about the kind a sixteen-year-old tells a young girl he has for her in the back seat of his car, no his desire is to get his needs met at her expense, that is not love.

What is love?  Shall we see what Scripture tells us about the subject of “Love”?  “ Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.  Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.  In this, the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him.  In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.   Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.  No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is perfected in us.” (1John 4:7-12)

When I set out to write this paper, my mind was set on the many attributes of God, but as I began with Love, and God is Love, and the gift of Jesus is the greatest gift humanity has ever seen, God alone is to be feared and exalted!

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

A Help in times of Trouble

Psalm 46

Psalm 46 has eleven verses, and it spoke to me in two areas; “God is my refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”  That is the central theme, but I would like us to examine verses two and three.  “Therefore, we will not fear though the earth give way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though the waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling.

For fear to work, one has to believe the source of that fear can do them harm.  I hope you understand that fear is a great sales tool; it can also be a motivator but not a good one.  I ask Google, and they took me to a site called “The Daily EGG,” a very helpful article about how fear is used to sell you and me in many areas of life.  I will only use a tiny part of the paper; “Let’s review before we take a look at some examples of fear in marketing and advertising. To use fear to drive someone to action you must prove the following to the consumer,

1. You are likely to be affected
2. When it affects you, it will be painful
3. You have the ability to avoid this pain

Let’s be clear, marketers will find it very difficult to manufacture a fear that doesn’t exist.  The right approach is to point out a fear that already exists, empathize with that fear, and then remove the threat with your solution.”

As a person who spent 41 years of his life in sales, let me share one example I used in the corner office of a Plant Manager in the chemical and oil business.  This question, what keeps you awake at night?  It was always the same answer, downtime.  Each hour a plant is down, it can cost a fantastic amount of money, and with our technology we could give them some better sleeping time.

This has been my measuring device, how often is it advertised, take gold, for example, it is always marketed on fear, the crash is coming.  I could fill this paper with an example of how fear is sold in every area of life, but let me ask this question, one I’ve often ask of myself; if God is my refuge and strength, why worry, will He not always be present in times of trouble?

Over 80 times, the word fear is used in the Bible; let’s look at what God said to the Prophet Isaiah and told him to share it with us.  You will find it in Isaiah 43:1-7, and I’m sharing only verse 1 b, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.”  Has the blood of Jesus redeemed you?  If so, you are God’s child, and Jesus told us to cast our cares on Him, for He cares for us.  And now verse seven, “everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”  That all who have bowed a knee to the Lord Jesus Christ and received the grace of the finished work of the cross and looks to our Lord who has risen and sits at the right hand of God. 

I will close with this word from Jesus found in Luke 12:4-5, “I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. ⁵ But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after your body has been killed, has authority to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you; fear him.”  Now let us be abundantly clear on what Jesus is saying for Scripture is very clear that hell was designed for the devil and his angels, not man.  But it is your choice, and you can choose to receive the gift of the cross and the victory over death, sin, and the grave through the blood of Jesus, or you can choose hell.  Many terrific people by the world standard choose to reject Christ and go on doing what they had done, but a Holy God states our good work is as filthy rags in his sight.  I’ve even heard a foolish person say if my dogs are not going to heaven, I do not want to go, but I learned in my eight-grade biology class that we are all of the animal classification, but the teacher said what makes us different is we have a soul.  She would be fired today for making that statement.  I already knew that because my parents made sure we understood what God did, and one can find that in Genesis 1:26-27.  ^“Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

A Leaders Prayer

Psalm 25:19-22

“Consider how many are my foes, and with what violent hatred they hate me.  Oh, guard my soul, and deliver me!  Let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in you.   May integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait for you?   Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles.”

If you are listening or reading anything from the USA media, you understand that they have an agenda to destroy President Trump, and they are not big on truth, for when you hate someone, you cannot be objective.  One wonders if like King David, this might be our President’s prayer? 

As I pray this day for my President, I ask the Lord to build a hedge around him and his family, protect and guard his soul, and give him victory over his many enemies in all areas of his life.  I pray that our President will understand his only refuge is in Christ, who loves him and wants to bless his leadership.  I pray that he will not lean on his own understanding but look to Jesus for direction through the many minefields that are set for him.

I do find it of interest that the more they attack our President, the better he does in the polls.  Maybe the people of the USA are getting sick of the arrogance and childlikeness of the democrat party, and those in DC that believe they are a law to themselves.  Maybe it is time to put some of these people who have broken our laws into prison.

Now let me be clear, I often wish that President Trump would go to the Lord, and not attack back, but maybe he has not yet learned that our Lord will fight for him.  But who am I to be his judge, for we are instructed to “Judge not, lest you be judged?”  You may say you just judged the many in the press and the Democrat party, and I do not believe I did, their actions have been evident to anyone with an open mind.

But on this one prayer of David about Israel and it is also my prayer for Israel, and I believe our President would agree.  But I also would pray that Christian people would awake and pray, to bring us back to be a people who fear God’s judgment and want to obey Him and receive His blessings.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

A Love Song

Psalm 45

Psalm 45 is a Jewish love song in my HCSB version is titled “A Royal Wedding Song,” and in the ESV, it is titled “Your Throne, O God, is Forever.”  It may read a little different than a love song from Elvis Presley, like “It’s Now or Never” or Frank Sinatra — “It Had to Be You“ or what about the great Bing Crosby “To See You Is To Love You” 1952?

So shall we explore some of the parts of this song in Psalm 45, it was common practice in ancient times to compose songs to or in honor of the king.  As we look at verses one through five, we see the King honored; “My heart is stirred by a noble theme as I recite my verses for the king; my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer. You are the most excellent of men, and your lips have been anointed with grace since God has blessed you forever. Gird your sword on your side, you mighty one; clothe yourself with splendor and majesty.  In your majesty ride forth victoriously in the cause of truth, humility, and justice; let your right hand achieve awesome deeds.  Let your sharp arrows pierce the hearts of the king’s enemies; let the nations fall beneath your feet.”

The HCSB notes make clear this is being written for a Jewish king, for all others were not interested in truth, and justice and humility were seen only by those kings as a weakness.  Not much has changed! 

Often the people of Israel saw the King as God’s anointed, and oil was a sign of blessing from God.  God alone is Holy and just, and He honors those who love justice and hate evil.  I’m often thankful for wise men that give us insight, and verses 10-11 are such for me.  The young lady was leaving parents and friends to become the bride of the king, so her loyalty must change from parents to the king.

Now that brings to mind what happens to all who come into a personal relationship with Jesus, He is the bridegroom, and we are His bride, so should we not listen and pay attention and consider forgetting your people, and your father's house, and let Jesus become your only authority.  His love will sustain us in a fallen and evil world that does not desire truth, justice, or humility.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The Lord - my place of Refuge

Psalms 7:1-7

Lord my God, I take refuge in you; save and deliver me from all who pursue me, or they will tear me apart like a lion and rip me to pieces with no one to rescue me.   Lord my God, if I have done this and there is guilt on my hands— if I have repaid my ally with evil or without cause have robbed my foe— then let my enemy pursue and overtake me; let him trample my life to the ground and make me sleep in the dust.  Arise, Lord, in your anger; rise up against the rage of my enemies.  Awake, my God; decree justice.   Let the assembled peoples gather around you, while you sit enthroned over them on high.

Jesus speaks to all who will listen, telling us who wants to harm us, who our real enemy is, but then He explains very clearly why He came to Planet Earth to take on the form of a man, you will find this in John 10:10.  “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”  The thief is only one of his names, Satan also goes by the devil, and he is not all knowing.  He does not know your thoughts, but he does have the ability to talk to you, and his voice sounds like yours.  So often the followers of Christ have ideas that come into our mind and we take ownership of them.  They sound like this, you are so much better than these people, you deserve better than _________, and you fill in the blank.  It may be a job, your wife, church, or family.  A follower of Christ needs to stop and ask where did that thought come from?  Or the thief may tell you, you are a loser, have no worth to anyone and the world would be better off without you.  I ask once more this question, is that coming from Jesus?  The answer is a big no!  It is coming from the one who is the deceiver, and his end goal is to destroy you.

One would be wise to cry out to the Father as David did, make sure you are taking refuge in the Lord, knowing you are no match for this enemy, but Jesus is, for He gained victory over him when He shed his blood on the cross as a covering for sin.  Yes, Satan was defeated at the Cross and he knows his time is short, so he is after you and all that you hold dear.

Did you notice that David has searched his soul?  We are told in 2 Corinthians 13:5-6, these words from the apostle Paul.  “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!  I hope you will find out that we have not failed the test.”  

The prayer of every follower of Christ should be 2 Corinthians 13:5-6, for the enemy is very real and has his sights on you and your family, so run to Jesus!   Arise, Lord, in your anger; rise up against the rage of my enemies.  Awake, my God; decree justice.    My prayer for you and me is that we awake to our need to run to the Father and ask that He fight our battle against this evil enemy that is always trying to destroy us, and the body of Christ, His Church.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice