“THE KIND OF PEOPLE GOD BLESSES” SCRIPTURE TEXT: PSALM 15:1-5… Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? Who shall dwell in thy holy hill?He that walketh uprightly, speaketh the truth in his heart. He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbor, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbor. In whose eyes a vile person is contemned: but he honoreth them that fear the Lord. he that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not. He that putteth not out his money to usury nor taketh reward against the innocent? He that doeth these things shall never be moved. What I do want to talk about today is the kind of people God blesses that will determine and guarantee your success in this life and your salvation. Its a very, very big thing about God that should not be discounted and something that should be greatly appreciated and even followed. That is what Ill be talking about today because if God would not be this way, we would not have hope. Because of this quality, we do have hope and it fuels our faith because we will always know that God will be this way and that God will react this way and that God is going to be reliable in this particular aspect. Every Christian should desire the abundance of God’s blessings upon their life. Friends, every believer are blest but not all have equal blessing on their life and service. Many today are saved but they are not committed to the Lord. As a result they are not experiencing the full blessing of God upon their life. Peter reminds us in 1 Peter 3:10-12—“For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.” In Psalms 15-16 the Bible shows us THE KIND OF PEOPLE GOD BLESSES. A question is asked in Psalm 15:1 that should be considered by every Christian—“Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill?” This question causes us to pause and consider our standing before the Lord and in His service. It causes us to think about our role in the Church. Are we a help or a hindrance to the ministry of this Church? When we tell people that we are a member of Lovers of God Christians Network does our life’s witness draw them or drive them away? The question here today is, “Are you the kind of person of whom God can pour His blessings upon?” Note three things with me THE KIND OF PEOPLE GOD BLESSES are: (1) HONEST IN THEIR DEALINGS PSALM 15:1-5—“Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill? He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbor, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbor. In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he honoreth them that fear the LORD. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not. He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doeth these things shall never be moved.” A. INTEGRITY IN CHARACTER. The psalmist begins to show us the character of the one that is able to abide in the Lord’s tabernacle and dwell in His holy hill. It is the person “Who sets God before his eyes, takes his word for the rule of his conduct, considers himself a sojourner on earth, and is continually walking to the kingdom of God. He acts according to the perfections of God’s law; he has respect to all its parts, and feels the weight and importance of all its injunctions.” Integrity is all but a forgotten word in our world today. We see little, if any, integrity in our politicians, preachers, professors, and parents today. The lack of moral character has been come a real issue in the last few years. We see very few today “…that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart.” Hereto; Characters are achieved — not received. They grow out of the substance of the man’s soul. They are not put on as a beggar might put on a stolen coat. They mature like fruit from the vital fluids of the tree. This is a sign of their genuineness; they grow with use. A false limb wears out, wastes, with use. A natural limb grows stronger and better with use. Character is an achievement. THE KIND OF PEOPLE GOD BLESSES are ones who are true and not people of pretense. They do not say one thing and mean something else. Neither their walk nor their talk betrays what they say they are! B. INSISTENT IN CONVICTIONS. They live by their convictions. They allow the Bible to be their guide. They do not glorify and honor evil or evildoersbut they honor those who fear the LORD. These are: • STABLE PEOPLE. They are “no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness…” (Ephesians 4:14). They know what they believe and why they believe what they believe! Someone has said, “He who believes is strong, he who doubts is weak. Strong convictions precede great actions.” - Anonymous (Bible Illustrator for Windows. Version 3.0f. Copyright 1990-1998. Parsons Technology, Inc. All Rights Reserved). • SETTLED PEOPLE. I want you to notice the last part of v5—“…He that doeth these things shall never be moved.” This speaks of being settled. It implies that a person’s life is fixed to a firm foundation. If any people should be stable people and settled people it should be the Lord’s people! We are founded upon the ROCK, the Lord Jesus Christ. Circumstances may appear to wreck our lives and Gods plans, but God is not helpless among the ruins. Our broken lives are not lost or useless. Gods love is still working. He comes in and takes the calamity and uses it victoriously, working out his wonderful plan of love. (Eric Liddell in Disciplines of the Christian Life. Christianity Today, Vol. 38, no. 9). THE KIND OF PEOPLE GOD BLESSES are HONEST IN THEIR DEALINGS and also… (2) HEARTY IN THEIR DEVOTIONS PSALM 16:7—“I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons.” *THERE IS A: A. HUNGER FOR THE WORD. The psalmist says here—“I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel…”. Every Christian should have a hunger for the Word of God. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus said—“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” (Matthew 5:6). Friend, how hungry are you for the Word of God? Some seem to expect the Word of God to hit them like a jolt of adrenaline each time they read or study it. Although the jolt may hit us periodically, the benefits of the Word of God act more like vitamins. People who regularly take vitamins do so because of their long-term benefits, not because every time they swallow one of the pills, they feel new strength surging through their bodies. They have developed a habit of consistently taking vitamins because they have been told that, in the long haul, vitamin supplements are going to have a beneficial effect on their physical health, resistance to disease, and general well-being. The same is true of reading the Bible. At times it will have a sudden and intense impact on us. However, the real value lies in the cumulative effects that long-term exposure to Gods Word will bring to our lives. B. HUNGER FOR HIS WILL. Friends, it does us little good to read and study God’s Word if we are unwilling to put into practice what we have learned. Through the Word and our understanding of it our will should be conformed to the will of God! Friends, there is NO substitute for seeking and doing the will of God! It is said that the Christian writer C.S. Lewis was approached by someone who wanted to compromise his walk with the Lord: a little sin here and there, a little worldliness. He felt that the Lord must surely forget the sin if he was a fairly good Christian; after all, a little sin isnt so bad, is it, if everything else were okay? C.S. Lewis answered by saying: No clever arrangement of bad eggs ever made a good omelet. THE KIND OF PEOPLE GOD BLESSES are HONEST IN THEIR DEALINGS, HEARTY IN THEIR DEVOTIONS and lastly… (3) HUMBLE IN THEIR DESIRES PSALM 16:8-9, 11—“I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope… Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” A. THE RIGHT PERSPECTIVE IN LIFE (vv. 8-9). The psalmist had the right perspective in his life—“I have set the LORD always before me…”. Friend, can you say that tonight? What exactly does this mean? It means that we always keep the glory of the Father and His purpose constantly in view. Friends, God did not save us so that we could do our own will but that we do His will for our lives! Nothing should divert us from His purpose. Nothing should prevent us from fulfilling His will! Having the right perspective in life does two things: • IT KEEPS US HUMBLE. God uses broken things. It takes broken soil to produce a crop, broken clouds to produce rain, broken grain to give bread and broken bread to give strength. It is the broken alabaster box that gives forth perfume. It is the broken Peter, weeping bitterly, who returns to greater power than ever. • IT KEEPS US HOLY. A holy life will produce the deepest impression. Lighthouses blow no horns; they only shine. -- Dwight Lyman Moody (1837-1899). If we are not humble we can not be holy! B. THE RIGHT PURPOSE IN LIFE (v11). The right purpose in life is not only to see “the path of life” but to follow it because in the presence of the Lord JOY is found! The Psalmist here wrote—“…in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” In this world sorrow is our lot, but in heaven there is joy, a fullness of joy; our pleasures here are for a moment, but those at God’s right hand are pleasures for evermore. FOOTNOTE: Friend, let me ask you the question that I asked when I began, “Are you the kind of person of whom God can pour His blessings upon?” the kind of people god blesses are honest in their dealings, hearty in their devotions, and humble in their desires. Friend, can that be said of you?...May the God of peace Himself will visit you and lift you above all limitations and beyond the proverbial sky. Again, reaching where God resides is easy by His power, “Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.” (KJV) Psalm 24:3-4; staying power to remain there is a challenge to us all “Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill? He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart.” (KJV) Psalm 15:1-2. When you now chose to dwell in unity with brethren and work in the vineyard, you should experience the profits of anointing like David. Amen.
Posted on: Mon, 07 Jul 2014 14:42:01 +0000
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