Psalm 107:23-43
“Today let’s look at verses 33-43, He turns rivers into a desert, springs of water into thirsty ground, a fruitful land into a salty waste, because of the evil of its inhabitants. He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water. And there he lets the hungry dwell, and they establish a city to live in; they sow fields and plant vineyards and get a fruitful yield. By his blessing, they multiply greatly, and he does not let their livestock diminish. When they are diminished and brought low through oppression, evil, and sorrow, he pours contempt on princes and makes them wander in trackless wastes; but he raises up the needy out of affliction and makes their families like flocks. The upright see it and are glad, and all wickedness shuts its mouth. Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord.”
God is not needy in any way, but He enjoys the praise of His People, let me give a small part of what John Piper wrote on the subject matter. “The question is not whether God delights in his children. He does. The question is twofold: One, what is it about us that he delights in? And two, why does he tell us that he delights in us? What effect does he want it to have? (When I say “God,” I mean all that God is for us in Christ. I mean the triune, Christian God.)” The two things John stated were; First, notice some of the texts that speak of God’s delight in his people and his praise of them.
· Zephaniah 3:17, “The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness.”
· Psalm 147:11, “The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love.”
· Romans 2:29, “But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God.”
At root, what God delights in about us is that we delight in him.
John used many more verses, but my goal is not to republish his paper but to bring attention to his teaching on this subject. The second part of the question. To answer our questions above, we also need to see the truth that God commands us to delight in him.
· Romans 5:2, “Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God
Psalm 37:4, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
I hope you will give thought to verse 43, “Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord.”
My prayer for Jan and I is that we would give more thought to our Father and Lord’s steadfast love and allow it to flow out of our lives into those we come in contact with.
From the Back Porch,
Bob Rice
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