you have become the righteousness of God

 Psalm 130:1–8 (ESV):  

1  Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord! 

 2  O Lord, hear my voice! 

  Let your ears be attentive 

to the voice of my pleas for mercy! 

 3  If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, 

O Lord, who could stand? 

 4  But with you there is forgiveness, 

that you may be feared. 

 5  I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, 

and in his word I hope; 

 6  my soul waits for the Lord 

more than watchmen for the morning, 

more than watchmen for the morning. 

 7  O Israel, hope in the Lord! 

For with the Lord there is steadfast love, 

and with him is plentiful redemption. 

 8  And he will redeem Israel 

from all his iniquities. 

Aren’t you grateful God does not keep an account of all of your wrongs?! For ‘who could stand’ if He did? 

Only Jesus has the right to stand before God if The Lord ‘should mark iniquities’. For Jesus is the only one, ever, to have never sinned. The only way that you or I can talk to, stand before and have relationship with God is because of Jesus. There would have been no hope for you without the sacrifice of Jesus life to atone for all the wrongs you have committed. So thank God for Jesus! You can now stand before God as if you had never sinned, as if you were indeed Jesus, because when you surrender your life to God and accept the love and sacrifice of Jesus, who put to death all sin, God sees Jesus. ‘For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.’ (2 Corinthians 5:21) You can know forgiveness and hope because you have ‘become the righteousness of God’ through Jesus - isn’t that incredible?!

God’s great kindness, love and sacrifice of being torn away from his only son, leads to your complete forgiveness. You may have times when you feel wretched, blemished, dirty or bad. Do not believe those feelings. Instead, learn to hope in God’s Word (v5). All throughout the Bible, God has been correcting, guiding, and forgiving people. He will forgive you too if you ask Him and trust in His son’s purity which wipes away all wrongdoing. You do not have to carry the load of sin or shame, you can say to yourself,  'with you there is forgiveness' so ‘in his word i hope’. Let God’s Word have more influence in your heart and mind than your own thoughts of who you are, so that your fears of not being good enough, of being bad or a perpetual sinner are put ot death as Jesus was. You can hope in God's Word, and you can know forgiveness.

To know this forgiveness and really accept it, this psalmist recognises it takes patience and commitment. For they write, ‘my soul waits for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word i hope’. You have to wait for the fullness of forgiveness to seep into your heart and mind. It is such great news that radically transforms you, that it takes time to change your perception of who you really are. In order to know the freedom of forgiveness wait for His hope to live in you as your mind is transformed to seeing who you are due to Jesus. 

When you have wronged someone and apologised, the relief of being forgiven by them and given another chance is huge. The power of the words that show you are forgiven break off pain and despair, and bring restoration, relief and joy. Now, think about this; you have offended and wronged God countless times, yet He still chooses to forgive you! You can still approach Him and say sorry, He is not fed up of hearing it. For the reality is when you accepted that Jesus died for all your sins, he died for ALL your sins, therefore you are forgiven. You are even righteous in God’s eyes, just like Jesus is!

 1 Peter 3:18 says; ‘For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit’. Your unrighteousness has been exchanged for righteousness. All that bad stuff that you see in you can be put to death - are you letting go of it? Jesus has already put it to death, and God doesn’t see it anymore, so why do you? You do not need to live carrying around sin and shame - it is not yours to carry - you gave it all to Jesus when you first trusted and believed him. You have the right and permission to live and believe that you are righteous! You can ‘hope in the Lord’ and know His ‘steadfast love’ and ‘plentiful redemption’. For you live in the days when God has redeemed all of mankind ‘from all his iniquities’ and you have 'become the righteousness of God'.

What do you do when you're worried?

 Psalm 119:145–152 (ESV): 

Qoph

 145  With my whole heart I cry; answer me, O Lord! 

I will keep your statutes. 

 146  I call to you; save me, 

that I may observe your testimonies. 

 147  I rise before dawn and cry for help; 

I hope in your words. 

 148  My eyes are awake before the watches of the night, 

that I may meditate on your promise. 

 149  Hear my voice according to your steadfast love; 

O Lord, according to your justice give me life. 

 150  They draw near who persecute me with evil purpose; 

they are far from your law. 

 151  But you are near, O Lord, 

and all your commandments are true. 

 152  Long have I known from your testimonies 

that you have founded them forever.

When you have sleepless nights because you are enduring a time of distress, what do you do? Do you spend the time as this psalmist does and meditate on God’s Word?! Or do you allow the worries and stress to overcome your mind, filling it with more stress and worry? 

The inclination to worry has not changed throughout the World’s history, from ancient times to current days people get sick due to stress and worry. Therefore you need to know how to handle it. This author had figured out a God-honouring way to deal with it, and in the New Testament, Paul gives us a practical way to handle any concerns. For he instructs us to ‘take every thought captive to obey Christ’! (2 Corinthians 10:5). This is how you effectively handle distress and concerns. 

When you are experiencing stress, what do you focus on? Is it worse case scenario, with fears deepening, or are your thoughts obedient to Jesus? Both the writer of this psalm and Paul show that thinking about God and reading His Word are solutions to times of concern. Reading Scripture, and pondering on the nature of God and all that Jesus has done whilst ensuring that you remain obedient will help you. Meditate on God’s promises (v148), keep reminding yourself of the truth so that whenever the worries and fears attempt to sneak back in you can fight back. Retrain your brain to think of God first not fear first - take every thought captive. Taking something captive is forceful and intentional. It does not happen by chance, and you need to keep working at it. 

In the book of Corinthians, Paul goes onto say that by taking your thoughts captive, ‘we destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God’. Do you want to destroy what the enemy is trying to build? You have the power to do that by adjusting your mindset. Take charge of what you think about, you can help what your mind focuses on. You can take your thoughts captive to obey Christ. Instead of spending time pacing around or allowing your mind to whirl during sleepless hours, read God’s Word, listen to Scripture, recall His promises, meditate on His promises, and consider Christ. Do the hard work of retraining your brain, to transform your thoughts from those of worry to those of God-honouring confidence and peace. 

Psalm 119:153–160 (ESV): 

Resh

 153  Look on my affliction and deliver me, 

for I do not forget your law. 

 154  Plead my cause and redeem me; 

give me life according to your promise! 

 155  Salvation is far from the wicked, 

for they do not seek your statutes. 

 156  Great is your mercy, O Lord; 

give me life according to your rules. 

 157  Many are my persecutors and my adversaries, 

but I do not swerve from your testimonies. 

 158  I look at the faithless with disgust, 

because they do not keep your commands. 

 159  Consider how I love your precepts! 

Give me life according to your steadfast love. 

 160  The sum of your word is truth, 

and every one of your righteous rules endures forever. 

Do you know that you have one who pleads your cause and redeems you? The same One also gives you life! in 1 John 2:1, John confirms this, ‘My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.’ So, no matter what the situation, whether it is a matter of oppression, persecution, the wrongdoing of others, or even your own sinful behaviour, you have every right to plead your cause for redemption! 

Jesus is your advocate, and he will always advocate for you no matter if the situation or pain you are in is your own fault or not. You have the right and permission to ask for forgiveness and freedom. For Jesus Christ the righteous died for every sin, so that he could show you how great the mercy of God is! Therefore never be afraid to approach your Father in heaven to plead your cause and redeem you (v154).

Your persecutors and adversaries may be many, but think about how big God is, how many are His heavenly hosts and how He has delivered and redeemed His people before. Find out the stories in the Bible that can strengthen you, and trust that God is the same now as He was then. God can turn your life around - are you trusting that He will? Approach God today and plead your cause, even if you feel like you are the one who has messed up, or even if you have asked hundreds of times before. God is listening, God is forgiving, and God is redeeming. 

You don’t need to be afraid, you don’t need to live disgusted or disappointed with yourself for Jesus, your advocate, has stepped in for you. He has put to death all that separates you from God. Therefore you can ask God to, ‘Give me life according to your steadfast love’. You can know forgiveness and appreciate a relationship with God, for great is His mercy (v156). This is only possible because you have an advocate through Jesus Christ the righteous - don’t forget it!

ALL people

 Psalm 68:28–35 (ESV):  

28  Summon your power, O God, 

the power, O God, by which you have worked for us. 

29  Because of your temple at Jerusalem 

kings shall bear gifts to you. 

30  Rebuke the beasts that dwell among the reeds, 

the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples. 

Trample underfoot those who lust after tribute; 

scatter the peoples who delight in war. 

31  Nobles shall come from Egypt; 

Cush shall hasten to stretch out her hands to God. 

32  O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God; 

sing praises to the Lord, Selah 

33  to him who rides in the heavens, the ancient heavens; 

behold, he sends out his voice, his mighty voice. 

34  Ascribe power to God, 

whose majesty is over Israel, 

and whose power is in the skies. 

35  Awesome is God from his sanctuary; 

the God of Israel—he is the one who gives power and strength to his people. 

Blessed be God! 

The glory, beauty, power and magnificence of God is now celebrated all across the world! Once, Israel were the chosen nation, the people God led through the wilderness into the promised land. Now, all people flock to God. We are living in the days that this psalm foretold! When; kings, nobles, young and old, people from war torn countries, previous enemies and even those deemed wicked can ‘ascribe power to God’ and ‘sing praises to the Lord’. These days were prophesied and hoped for, and the people of Israel saw glimpses of what it could be like, but they could not see the fullness of what it meant for 'kingdoms of. the earth' to. be praising God. 

We have the privilege of living in the days when this is happening, when the good news that we can be forgiven and free from sin when we believe in and follow Jesus, is available to all people. Every person, no matter how lofty or lowly, no matter their language or culture, how old or young, where they are from or what they have done - all people can be forgiven, restored and brought into the family of God! What a joy it should be to each of us to live in such times. These are the days foretold in the Bible! We can eat together, sing together, enter a place of praise together and see salvation in all people. The gospel is for every man, woman and child, freely available with the great news that each one can have a relationship with God if they want it!

When I look at the group of people that i worship with, i see such beautiful variety, this was not something that the Israelites at the time of the psalm would have experienced. They were all one nation, all Israelites, (with very few exceptions like Rahab and Caleb), who journeyed together, lived together and worshipped God together. So when they heard scripture say things like, ‘kingdoms of the earth, sing to God’, I wonder what they imagined. It must have seemed impossible, that even those who God told them were enemies, would one day have access to praise Him. That worship would come from ‘his people’ could mean anyone, not just the Jews. It must have seemed inspiring, confusing and pretty impossible. Impossible in the sight of man anyway. Yet this was something the Israelites were being shown again and again through scripture, that God had a different plan. Although in their day, they alone were His people, a day was coming when God’s people would come from all nations! Wow! 

When God speaks, at the time, it does not always make sense or seem possible, but holding onto His words is important, as our situation in this context proves. The nation of Israel were told things like the fact that one day worshippers would be from all nations. Thankfully, it is documented so that we can see and be witnesses to the fact that God keeps His word. For now, anyone and everyone can worship God and be considered His people - joined through the love, forgiveness, compassion, and might of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. Not only that, but we are also made family through him - we are now brothers and sisters to a vast people group, greater than the nation of Israel! How could those Israelites of Old  Testament times imagine that?

This shows that God’s plan is always greater than we can understand. God does ‘far more than we can ask or imagine’ (Ephesians 3:20). Even when He has told us what He will do, it is hard for us to comprehend it as it is beyond our ability to visualise. Those living in Old Testament times had a hope, an idea and a vision of what faith in God would look like, but it was blurry and exciting and not something that could easily be grasped or fully understood. We too, live with such things. There are things that we know and see in part, but one day will see fully (1 Corinthians 13:12). We have no idea what the future holds. You can listen to and hear from God, be given something of His vision and hear prophecies, but you do not know what the fullness of His promises look like. They are far greater than you can suppose, because God is just so big and awesome His imagination outstrips yours! Just know, that when God speaks, He will do it and do it brilliantly.

Does death scare you?

 Many people are scared of death. It is the ending of this life. I have heard it said, 'there's one sure thing about life, death'! We all will experience it, more of us will die than have children, or get married or gain a career - yet we spend far more time planning and preparing for these things than for the one certain thing that will happen to us all. 

The reality is - you will die. What are you doing to prepare for it? Are you ready for your life to end? Does death scare you? 

What happens when you die; is it a void? non-existence? is there anything afterwards?  So many unknown can lead to people feeling frightened about dying. But, you don't need to be afraid - You can actually have hope beyond the grave, not just in leaving a legacy behind you, but a real hope and joy in what lies ahead when your days in this world finish.  

The Bible says us;

“Death is swallowed up in victory.” 

*55*“O death, where is your victory? 

O death, where is your sting?” 

*56*The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. *57*But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 

 (1 Corinthians 15:54-57)

Death doesn't have to feel like a frightening future, it has lost it's power, it has been transformed from a terrifying unknown into a victory. instead of bearing a 'sting', it brings hope. 

We kind of have to read these verses in reverse to help us understand them - the victory comes because of the Son of God, Jesus. He has given us victory over death because he lived a pure life, and died a tortuous death to get rid of our sin. All that stuff you and I have done wrong deserves a punishment, it needs to be made up for, and God knew we couldn't do enough to make up for it, so His Son did it for us. 

Jesus, strangely, overcame the power od death through dying! Well, that was part of it - the death sorted out the repayment for our wrongs. the fact that Jesus came back to life - that defeated death! Jesus is the Son of God, and God is immortal therefore he couldn't stay dead. Therefore, the scary, unknown mystery of death was destroyed. 

For all of those who believe and trust in Jesus, death should not be a scary thing. Death doesn't even sting anymore! Death is not an inconvenience, a source of worry or fear, but a victory! 

Jesus has promised that those who live for God will have a greater future after this life ends. He tells us that his followers will one day join him in heaven. Not only that, but there are eternal rewards awaiting them and a home prepared! Jesus tries to encourage us that there is something far greater than any treasure, any fame or fortune of this Earth to look forward to - the doorway to it is death. 

This doesn't mean that we should all be trying to die - Jesus tells us that God knows the number of our days as well as the amount of hairs on our heads, but Jesus speaks about this to assure you and I that death is ok. He came back to show us that it doesn't all end with Earthly death - he lived after the grave, and you will too - are you preparing to live with him? Are you going to be victorious in you death knowing that you'll be with Jesus? or do you really have something to be scared of - an eternity without God?