Sunday, October 08, 2006

A Prosperous Life - Lesson 7 - Meditation

Psalm 1:1-3, ‘Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.’

Day and night
Not seldom and slightly,
but diligently, and constantly.

Meditate in it,
to read it by day,
and think upon it by night.

This person takes a text and carries it with them all day long;
and in the night reflect upon that same Word of God.
In the day of prosperity they sing psalms out of the Word of God,
and in the night of their affliction
they comfort themselves with promises out of the same book.

Our supreme devotion to God is not only our duty,
but it is for our safety,
it is for our prosperity,
and it is for our happiness.

Psalm 119:55, ‘I have remembered thy name, O LORD, in the night, and have kept thy law.’

Can we make a prayer like that?
Or so we offer up all our apologies, reasons and excuses for our behavior,
Then ask God to do for us what we want?





Joshua 1:7, ‘Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest.’

Be strong and courageous,
It’s easier to walk righteously when we are strong than when
We are focused on our struggles
And a little down on ourselves.

Then it says ‘…observe to do according to ALL the law…’
‘99% loyalty is 100% disloyalty.’


Joshua 1:8, ‘This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.’

The word prosperous here means ‘do wisely.’
So to me that means if I am walking wisely then thou shalt have good success.
So why am I complaining?
We can’t live up to the law,
Sounds like our success is totally up to His Grace.





Joshua 1:9, ‘Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.’

How does that verse comfort you?





Psalm 119:11, ‘Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.’

If God's word is carved in our hearts,
we will be more able to resist the assaults of the enemy:
and therefore we should desire God to instruct us daily more and more in it.
If God's word is only in our Bible,
and not also in our heart,
we may soon and easily be surprised when we once again
sin the sin the same sin against Him.

What advice can you give us here?





Psalm 119:14-16, ‘I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies, as much as in all riches. I will meditate in thy precepts, and have respect unto thy ways. I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word.’

We should keep our eyes upon God's steps;
setting the example of his Savior before our eyes,
going where He would go, and nowhere else;
doing what He would do, and nothing else;
keeping the company that He would keep, and none else;
and doing every thing in reference to the final judgment.

‘…meditate in thy precepts…’
meditate frequently on God's words, works, and ways-
and especially on his grace when dealing towards us.

Or do we say, ‘Not this again, I already read this verse?’





Psalm 119:35, ‘Make me to go in the path of thy commandments; for therein do I delight.’

Make me…
I’m not strong enough…
Wouldn’t it be easier if He forced us?





Psalm 119:92, ‘Unless thy law had been my delights, I should then have perished in mine affliction.’

Had we not had the consolations of the Lord,
we should long ago have died of a broken heart.

How does the Lord’s word console you?





Psalm 119:97-99, ‘O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day. Thou through thy commandments hast made me wiser than mine enemies: for they are ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation.’

If we are going to God direct in prayer,
To Him direct in his word,
And listening to Him directly in our heart,
Why do we need to get everyone else’s opinion?





1Timothy 4:15, ‘Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all.’

True meditation is no other than faith, hope, love, joy, melted down together,
… by the fire of God's Holy Spirit;
and offered up to God in secret.

‘…and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.’
Matthew 6:6

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