Psalms
1 – 2
“Blessing” … “Prosperity” … and OUR Nation Today.
Psalm 1:1 opens with an important message to everyone:
God’s
blessings follow you and await you at every turn:
when
you don’t follow the advice of those who delight in wicked schemes,
When you avoid sin’s highway,
when
judgment and sarcasm beckon you, but you refuse.
Unfortunately in today’s world we define
“blessing” different than what God may have in mind. Today we define “blessing”
as prosperity and maybe health, but mostly a fat payday. We have gotten sucked
into the Prosperity Gospel where if we “give it all” we will be “rewarded”
beyond our imagination. Matthew 21:22 says we will get whatever we ask in
Jesus’ name and that gets taken out of context often.
Sure the story in Matthew 19, Mark 10 and
Luke 18 tells the story of a rich man not “letting go” of his riches. Is this a
story about money being evil or that we should give everything? One sermon I
heard suggested the “unwritten story” story of this was how much God would have
blessed him if the rich man would have let everything go. We need to accept the “blessing” if it comes
to us as a massive windfall or a layoff that will allow one to get caught up.
The key understand what a blessing may be, is understanding that initially the
blessing may seem like a crisis.
Psalm 2:1 made me think of the USA today:
You are
wondering: What has provoked the nations to embrace anger and chaos?
Why
are the people making plans to pursue their own vacant and empty greatness?
Have we embraced anger and chaos in this
nation today? People today are definitely pursuing their vacant and empty
greatness in riches and “blessings”. More and more we are pursuing selfish
desires and not God. Maybe these two Psalms are telling us something that we
should change our direction quickly? I know I get caught up in the more and the
“blessings” that God will provide while not be content with what is happening
now. I know I lose focus on God when I get in this mode. I am in my third
“blessed” layoff and am trying to determine if I understand why this is
happening. Maybe I need to remain focused on God AND focus on my job. I need to
stay away from distractions and keep focus on everything in my life and ensure
the focus remains Godly.
Finally, is Psalm 2:12 talking about Jesus
or some other “son” of God:
Bow down before
God’s son.
If
you don’t, you will face His anger and retribution,
And you won’t stand a chance.
For
it doesn’t take long to kindle royal wrath,
But blessings
await all who trust in Him.
They
will find God a gentle refuge.
God is asking us to bow before Jesus BEFORE
Jesus walked the earth. Jesus’ existed before with God, since he is God and
therefore we always should honor him. The “trinity” is difficult to understand
in the “physical” world we live in, but when you study the QUANTUM world it
becomes inherently obvious. If we understand God as “energy” and not an old guy
in the clouds, this all becomes easy to understand. To really delve into this
it would require a book, so stay tuned;-)