Psalms 107:10

Psalms 107:10 says, Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron;  We can either live in the light of God's word with freedom from sin and death, or we will be bound in the darkness.  Verse eleven adds, Because they rebelled against the words of God, and contemned the counsel of the most High:  The people who were imprisoned by the darkness were those who had rebelled against God.  Anytime people rebel against God, then they live in spiritual darkness.  Verse twelve states, Therefore he brought down their heart with labour; they fell down, and there was none to help.  Instead of living with the blessings of God, the people of Isreal were brought down to labor with no one to help them. When we turn away from God, we lose His protection and blessings spiritually, no matter what is happening in our life.  We should always obey God as followers of Christ, and then we will always have His protection and His blessings.  Verse thirteen adds, Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses.  This was a cycle with the people of Isreal.  God would deliver them, they would obey Him for awhile and be a blessed and powerful nation, then they would turn away from Him, be defeated and downtrodden, then call out to Him again and He would deliver them once more.  As Christians, God has delivered us once and for all time, so we need to avoid times when we are not faithful to Him.  Verse fourteen continues, He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder.  God had delivered them from the darkness of sin and the shadow of death, just as He has us today as followers of Christ.  Verse fifteen declares, Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!  This is what we as Christians should do every day.  We are to tell the world of the goodness of God as we praise His holy name.  Verse sixteen adds, For he hath broken the gates of brass, and cut the bars of iron in sunder.  Just as God had removed the physical restraints from the people of Israel then, He has removed the spiritual restraints from us today as followers of Christ.  Verse seventeen says, Fools because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, are afflicted.  Fools, those who do not believe in God, are afflicted spiritually because of their sin.  Verse eighteen adds, Their soul abhorreth all manner of meat; and they draw near unto the gates of death.  I believe that the meat referred to is the meat of God's word, which the lost of the world abhor, and this leads them to a spiritual death if they do not change and accept the salvation made available by Christ.  Verse nineteen continues, Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses.  If people quit being foolish and honestly cry out to God in their distress, He has already made  salvation available.  All anyone has to do to be saved is to put their faith in Jesus Christ.  Verse twenty concludes, He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.  God's word, though it wouldn't happen until later, was Jesus Christ coming to die for the sins of everyone. All we have to do is put our faith in Him as our personal Savior and Lord. 

Psalms 107:1

Psalms 107:1 says, O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.  As David told the people of Israel then, we as followers of Christ, should give thanks to God daily because His mercy endures forever.  God is not arbitrarily merciful to His people, but is merciful forever.  Verse two adds, Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;  This could have referred to being physically redeemed from the enemy, but as Christians it has a deeper meaning of being redeemed from our spiritual enemies.  Verse three continues, And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south.  Just as God gathered His people together then, one day Jesus Christ is going to return and gather those that have put their faith in Him from all over the world. Verse four states, They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no city to dwell in.  The wandering in the wilderness was because of the rebellion against and lack of faith in God even after He delivered them from Egypt.  If we begin to question God or even rebel against Him, we will find ourselves wandering in a spiritual wilderness.  Just as the people of Israel were still God's chosen people in the wilderness, if we have put our faith in Jesus Christ we are still a part of God's people, but we may lose so much of the joy of our salvation if we are wandering in a spiritual wilderness.  Verse five adds, Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them.  There in the wilderness, the souls of the people fainted on them because they were hungry and thirsty because they doubted God.  We may find ourselves spiritually hungry and thirsty and ready to have our soul ready to faint if we begin to question God or defy His will. Verse six declares, Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses.  When the people of Isreal called out to God, He delivered them from their distress.  We should not wait until we are in distress to call out to God, but should call out to Him and follow His leadership daily to avoid getting into spiritual distress.  Verse seven adds, And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation.  God led the people of Isreal forth into the right way so they might go to the city of habitation.  As Christians, God leads us forth into the right way so that we may one day enter the city of habitation, our heavenly home.  Verse eight says, Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!  As David stated, it would be so wonderful if all people would praise the LORD for His goodness, but the best we can do as followers of Christ is to make sure that we praise Him.  Verse nine adds, For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.  If we have accepted Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, He will satisfy the longing of our soul and fill our hungry soul with gladness as long as we are obedient to His word.

Psalms 106:39

Psalms 106:39 says, Thus were they defiled with their own works, and went a whoring with their own inventions.  The people of Isreal were defiled by their own works when they started chasing other gods.  So will we be as Christians if we do so today.  Verse forty adds, Therefore was the wrath of the LORD kindled against his people, insomuch that he abhorred his own inheritance.  God's wrath was kindled against His inheritance, Isreal, so much that He abhorred them.  They had become God's people by name only and not by faith.  As followers of Christ, we cannot do whatever we please and believe that God has to accept it.  Just because we have everlasting salvation does not mean that our actions cannot cause God to be angry with us.  Verse forty-one continues, And he gave them into the hand of the heathen; and they that hated them ruled over them.  Isreal was defeated without God's protection, and so may we be in the world today.  Verse forty-two states, Their enemies also oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their hand.  The people of Israel were made slaves by those who defeated them.  If we as Christians stop living in obedience to God by our faith, then we place ourselves in a position to be living under the slavery of sin once more.  Verse forty-three declares, Many times did he deliver them; but they provoked him with their counsel, and were brought low for their iniquity.  Though God delivered the people of Isreal many times and they rebelled against Him again and again, He delivers us once and for all time if we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Verse forty-four adds, Nevertheless he regarded their affliction, when he heard their cry:  God allowed the people of Israel to be defeated and afflicted because of their lack of faithfulness, but He still heard them when they cried out to Him in faith.  God never leaves His people, though too often they leave Him and suffer for it.  Still, He is always but a prayer away.  Verse forty-five states, And he remembered for them his covenant, and repented according to the multitude of his mercies.  God remembered the people of Israel because of the covenant He had made with them, and He will remember us because of the covenant He makes with us when we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Verse forty-six adds, He made them also to be pitied of all those that carried them captives.  God caused those who held them captive to have pity for the people of Israel.  Verse forty-seven says, Save us, O LORD our God, and gather us from among the heathen, to give thanks unto thy holy name, and to triumph in thy praise.  The people of Isreal called on God to deliver them so that they could praise His name.  Often, if we find ourselves in a bad situation of our own making, we may call out to God to deliver us with the promise that we will praise His name.  Verse forty-eight adds, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting: and let all the people say, Amen. Praise ye the LORD.  This should be our message to the world today as Christians. 

Psalms 106:24

Psalms 106:24 says, Yea, they despised the pleasant land, they believed not his word:  After God had given the people of Israej a pleasant land, they despised it and did not believe His word.  When God blesses us with something good, we cannot afford to despise it and not believe in His word because we want more or something different. Verse twenty-five adds, But murmured in their tents, and hearkened not unto the voice of the LORD.  We, as followers of Christ, often murmur about life and fail to listen to God's voice.  Verse twenty-six states, Therefore he lifted up his hand against them, to overthrow them in the wilderness: God did not let them continue to complain and not listen without consequences.  They were still His chosen people, but they lost some of the benefits of being so.  As Christians, we are forever God's people, but if we fail to listen to Him and murmur against Him, we may suffer consequences from our lack of faith or obedience.  Verse twenty-seven adds, To overthrow their seed also among the nations, and to scatter them in the lands.  The people of Isreal were scattered into other nations after they were defeated militarily.  They were not successful by their own power, but by the power of God.  We as followers of Christ are not successful by our own power, but by the power of God.  Verse twenty-eight declares, They joined themselves also unto Baalpeor, and ate the sacrifices of the dead.  The people of Israel worshipped other gods and participated in their religious practices.  We cannot allow anything to become a source of worship today other than Jesus Christ.  Verse twenty-nine adds, Thus they provoked him to anger with their inventions: and the plague brake in upon them.  Because of their inventions of other gods, a plague broke out on the people of Israel.  Verse thirty says, Then stood up Phinehas, and executed judgment: and so the plague was stayed.  Phinehas stood up and executed the judgment of God, and the plague was stayed.  We need to be like Phinehas today and stand up against anything that is contrary to God's word.  Verse thirty-one continues, And that was counted unto him for righteousness unto all generations for evermore.  When Phinehas took a stand for God, it was counted for righteousness to him forevermore.  When we put our faith in Jesus Christ it is counted as righteousness to us forevermore, and we should always stand for Him.  Verse thirty-two states, They angered him also at the waters of strife, so that it went ill with Moses for their sakes:  The murmuring of the people caused Moses to act in anger and this led to him being denied entrance into the promised land.  We cannot allow the actions of others to cause us to act in ways that would not be in accordance with God's will, even though if we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord we will always be granted access to rhe promised land, or heaven, itself.  Verse thirty-three adds, Because they provoked his spirit, so that he spake unadvisedly with his lips.  When Moses' spirit was provoked, he spoke unadvisedly, which is why we are told to always control our tongue.  Verse thirty-four says, They did not destroy the nations, concerning whom the LORD commanded them:  The people of Isreal did not destroy the people in the land who worshipped other gods as God had instructed them to do.  When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, we must destroy all other idols in our life. Verse thirty-five adds, But were mingled among the heathen, and learned their works.  Instead of destroying the people in the land that God gave them, the people of Israel intermingled with them and learned their ways.  We cannot intermingle our relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ with any other religious practices.  Verse thirty-six continues, And they served their idols: which were a snare unto them.  The people of Israel, God's chosen people, worshipped idols and it was a snare to them, as it will be for us as Christians today if we allow it to happen.  Verse thirty-seven states, Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils,  The people of Israel even got so far away from God's teachings that they sacrificed their sons and daughters to devils.  Today, many people sacrifice their unborn sons and daughters to the God of pleasure or self desires, and claim that it is not against God's law, but they will one day find out how wrong they are.  Verse thirty-eight adds, And shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the land was polluted with blood.  We pollute the land today when we sacrifice our sons and daughters, even the unborn ones, to any god.

Psalms 106:13

Psalms 106:13 says, They soon forgat his works; they waited not for his counsel:  Even though God delivered the people of Israel from Egypt with a lot of riches, they soon forget what He had done for them.  We as followers of Christ who are made spiritually rich by God must never forget that fact.  Verse fourteen adds, But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tempted God in the desert.  The people lustted after more than God was providing them with, and we may too often do the same thing.  They tempted God's patience, and so will we if we lust after the things ofvthe world and are not satisfied with His provision for us.  Verse fifteen continues, And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul.  God gave them what they wanted physically, but that lead to a leanness of the soul.  God may bless us with material things because of our lust for them, but this may also bring a leanness to our soul.  Verse sixteen states, They envied Moses also in the camp, and Aaron the saint of the LORD.  The rest of the people became envious of Moses and Aaron, God's chosen leader and spokesman.  We cannot afford to become envious of those who are called to be God's ministers today, nor of anyone else in some position within the church.  Verse seventeen adds, The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan, and covered the company of Abiram.  This was a reminder of what happened in the past to those who attempted to take over the government God had put in place.  The earth swallowed them up.  Verse eighteen continues, And a fire was kindled in their company; the flame burned up the wicked.  Those that followed them in their rebellion were consumed by fire. We need to realize that as followers of Christ there are still consequences if we start to chase after the things of this world instead of being content to follow God.  We do not lose our salvation, but all our works may be burned up when God's judgment comes.  Verse nineteen declares, They made a calf in Horeb, and worshipped the molten image.  The people of Israel, God's chosen people, made a golden calf to worship.  We cannot allow anything to become something that we worship more than God.  Verse twenty adds, Thus they changed their glory into the similitude of an ox that eateth grass.  When the people of Israel worshipped the golden calf, they changed themselves from people living under the glory of God to nothing more spiritually than an ox themselves.  Verse twenty-one continues, They forgat God their saviour, which had done great things in Egypt;  God was their Savior Who had done great things in Egypt to secure their freedom, and they forgot Him.  As followers of Christ, we cannot forget our Savior and the great work that God did to enable us to be freed from the power of sin.  Verse twenty-two concludes, Wondrous works in the land of Ham, and terrible things by the Red sea.  Once more, the people of Israel were reminded of what God did for them when bringing them out of Egypt.  We should always remember and share with others what God has done for us by providing us with the free gift of salvation, if we should choose to accept it.  Verse twenty-three states, Therefore he said that he would destroy them, had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach, to turn away his wrath, lest he should destroy them.  God determined to destroy them all, but Moses stood in the breach to earnestly pray to God that He wouldn't, and the people were saved from God's immediate destruction.  We need to be willing to stand in the gap before God today and pray that He does not destroy all the lost people of the world.  This is what is going to happen when Christ returns, and I believe that we too often are wanting this more than we want them to come to Christ for salvation. 

Psalms 106:1

Psalms 106:1 says, Praise ye the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.  David called on the people of Israel to give thanks to God because He is good and His mercy endures forever.  As Christians, we should do the same.  Verse two asks, Who can utter the mighty acts of the LORD? who can shew forth all his praise?  We really are incapable of telling everything that God has done.  What we can do though is tell people of His gospel message.  Verse three adds, Blessed are they that keep judgment, and he that doeth righteousness at all times.  We may not be able to tell of all that God has done, but as followers of Christ we can keep God's commandments and live under the righteousness of Christ.  Verse four states, Remember me, O LORD, with the favour that thou bearest unto thy people: O visit me with thy salvation;  Like David, we want God to remember us and visit us with His salvation.  Otherwise, nothing else matters.  Verse five adds, That I may see the good of thy chosen, that I may rejoice in the gladness of thy nation, that I may glory with thine inheritance.  Only if we have accepted salvation by putting our faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord can we rejoice with other Christians, those who make up God's nation.  Verse six continues, We have sinned with our fathers, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly.  Like David said then, we are all guilty of sin and have done wickedly in the sight of God.  Verse seven says, Our fathers understood not thy wonders in Egypt; they remembered not the multitude of thy mercies; but provoked him at the sea, even at the Red sea.  David said that the older people of Israel had forgotten God's deliverance of them from Egypt.  We as followers of Christ cannot forget His deliverance of us from the power of sin and death, and we cannot stop sharing the gospel, otherwise it will not be shared.  Verse eight adds, Nevertheless he saved them for his name’s sake, that he might make his mighty power to be known.  God saved the people of Israel for a purpose, and that was so that they could make His name known in the world.  God saves us for a purpose as well, and not just for our benefit alone.  We as Christians have a responsibility to make the gospel known to the world, as well as the greatness of God.  Verse nine continues, He rebuked the Red sea also, and it was dried up: so he led them through the depths, as through the wilderness.  David reminded the people of Israel about what God had done to deliver them from Egypt, and we as followers of Christ must always remember and share with others what God has done by granting us salvation.  Verse ten declares, And he saved them from the hand of him that hated them, and redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.  God saved the people of Israel from all their enemies, just as He does for us spiritually today.  Nothing can ever separate us from God's goodness but a lack of faith on our part.  Verse eleven adds, And the waters covered their enemies: there was not one of them left.  The enemies of Israel when they left Egypt were drowned by God.  Some people say that it wasn't really a sea that the people of Israel departed Egypt through, but a marshy area, but it would be an even greater miracle if the Egptian army drowned in a marshy area.  We need to learn to simply accept God's word without any attempt to explain His miraculous works as anything less.  Verse twelve continues, Then believed they his words; they sang his praise.  David said that after God delivered them from Egypt that the people of Israel believed His word, and as followers of Christ, delivered by our faith in Him, we must believe the word of God. 

 I will pause from Psalms today to wish everyone a happy New Year.  We cannot know what the new year holds in store for us, but we can be certain Who holds the new year, and that is God.  Whatever last year brought, both good and bad, is now gone, so we need to let go of it as we move into a new year, hopefully with hope and not despair.  Some things seem to be about the same, like the pandemic, some seem worse, like the supply chain, but God is still in charge of the ultimate outcome.  As followers of Christ, we need to choose to rejoice in the Lord everyday, no matter what that day brings.  God has a purpose for us as Christians, so let's not get so caught up in the world and its problems that we forget that fact.  Happy New Year, and to God be the glory.