Ready for Battle? | Psalm 7:10–13

10          My shield is with God,
            who saves the upright in heart.
11           God is a righteous judge,
            and a God who feels indignation every day.
12          If a man does not repent, God will whet his sword;
            he has bent and readied his bow;
13          he has prepared for him his deadly weapons,
            making his arrows fiery shafts.

What fearsome language!  The Lord of all creation readies Himself for battle.  All those who hate the God Most High face a grave fate.  God doesn’t sin (miss the mark)—His arrows fire true.  His sword doesn’t dull.  And as the KJV translates v. 11, “God is angry with the wicked every day.”  How blissful the ignorant sinner, unaware of the coming nightmare!

The Lord battles His enemies with a variety of weapons.  For instance, God providentially allows violence to befall these men of violence (v. 16).  When Christ sets up His kingdom, we read of a more literal application: “From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty” (Rv 19:15).  

The Lord knows the hearts of men.  David says that God “saves the upright in heart” (v. 10).  God recognizes true worship.  For instance, consider 2 Chronicles 29:34—“But the priests were too few and could not flay all the burnt offerings, so until other priests had consecrated themselves, their brothers the Levites helped them, until the work was finished—for the Levites were more upright in heart than the priests in consecrating themselves.”  There, we see that God knows who is genuine of heart and who is not, and He defends and punishes accordingly.


The Lord shows mercy to the penitent.  Hope remains, for verse 12 begins the battle language with the condition that the wicked does not repent.  Consider that David, innocent of the slander of this psalm but certainly a sinner, says, “My shield is with God.”  The Lord doesn’t take delight in the destruction of the wicked (Ez 33:11), and He will relent from disaster (Jon 4:2).  When Christ came, He came preaching repentance (Mk 1:15).  In light of all of this, repent of your sin and believe the gospel today.

Popular posts from this blog

RE: "Pastor Dayna Muldoon EXPOSED"

Image
It enough to make your heart ache.  "Pastor" Dayna Muldoon  has been pitching her tent in Florida, and like Todd Bentley before , false claims to miracles, healing, and prophecies litter her campsites. This video of a Calvary Chapel pastor exposing her as a false prophet has been appearing in various places, and its been uploaded to YouTube multiple times.  Even Todd Friel got animated about this , and nothing gets him hyper. Here's the deal: Muldoon set up her tent-meetings right down the road from Calvary Chapel St. Petersburg , peeking the interests of many attending the church.  When they listened to the message she presented, however, they found it not to be the Gospel, but instead the typical narcissistic message of health and blessings from God. This is coming from a Calvary Chapel crew, folks that are typically non-cessationists themselves.  Many churches, including this particular Calvary Chapel , host after-glow services where one expects similar claims
Click to read more...

Was Rebekah a child when she married Isaac?

Did Isaac marry a three-year-old?  If you've never pondered this question, it's because nothing in the straightforward reading of the text would suggest that Rebekah was a toddler or that their marriage was arranged. Even so, a couple of verses out of context could be used by skeptics to prove anything.  While perusing the web for a related topic, however, I found a thread stating that the Bible isn't against the raping of children .  The cited evidence was this issue, the claim being that Isaac engaged in pedophilia. The question comes from the fact that Genesis 22:23 announces the birth of Rebekah after the binding of Isaac.  Tradition states that Isaac was then thirty-seven, and Scripture says that the two wed when Isaac was forty (Gn 25:20).  Hence, Isaac robbed the cradle. The whole theory is fraught with assumptions, the primary being that Scripture never records a age marker for Rebekah.  Further complicating the matter, however, is Jewish tradition, which spe
Click to read more...

MacArthur: Calvinism in a Nutshell

Image
From YouTube: Calvinism (Also know by Doctrines of Grace or Reformed theology) John MacArthur use Romans 8:28-30 as main text. The five points of calvinism are Total depravity (total inability), Unconditional election, Limited atonement (Also called particular redemption or definite atonement), Irresistible grace (also called efficacious grace), and Perseverance of the saints. Full sermon http://www.gty.org/resources/sermons/90-427 Romans 8:28, "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren. And these whom He predestined, He also called. And these whom He called, He also justified. And these whom He justified, He also glorified."
Click to read more...