Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Psalm 134:3 " May The Lord bless you from Zion, He who made heaven and earth".   May The Lord, the Creator of  heaven and earth, our great and infinite, loving God, do well for you.   Matthew Henry tells us that we are being taught here to desire God's blessings.  To be truly happy can only come from His blessing upon us.  We are to desire His blessing for ourselves and to extend that prayer for others.  The blessings from Zion are spiritual blessings, not material ones.  Seek the true blessings that only God can provide by His mighty hand and from His great and amazing Love.
The psalmist blesses those who serve The Lord during the night. Those who are faithful servants in the house of the Lord.  We are to pray God's blessing upon those who are doing the work of ministry. That God would pour out His mercy and love, His grace and peace, His every benefit on them - pastors and teachers, missionaries and evangelists, lamp lighters and flame keepers, guards and servants.  May The Lord bless you today!

Titus
Paul opens every letter with the word of blessing, asking God's grace and peace for the reader.   He always introduces himself as the servant of God and of The Lord Jesus Christ, coming in His Name.
Paul's emphasis in this book is sound doctrine and good works.  Titus is to focus on the Truth of God's Word which will result in godliness and fruitfulness in the lives of the believers.  There is a distinct contrast made between those who truly know God and those who simply profess to know Him.
True followers of Christ are:  hospitable, sensible, loving what is good, just, devout, self-controlled, faithful to the Word, temperate, dignified, sound in faith, love, and perseverance, reverent in behavior, teachers of good, pure, kind, well-pleasing in their work,  engaged in good deeds, meeting pressing needs,  " showing all good faith that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect" (2:10b).
Those who do not truly know God, pretend believers, are exposed by their deeds:  they are self-willed, quick tempered, quarrelsome, rebellious, empty talkers, deceivers, detestable, disobedient, worthless for good deeds, factious, foolish, and caught up in disputes.  They have not been transformed by the Truth, but remain "foolish.. disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts, and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another." (3:3).
The difference between what we were as unbelievers and what we become as true believers is found in  2: 11-14 and 3:4-7  "For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus; who gave Himself for us that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds."  and  "But when the kindness of God our Savior and his love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that being justified by His grace we might be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life."
Oh Great and Wonderful Father, thank You for Your blessing on us, for salvation, for Grace.  May we "adorn" our faith with good deeds, done from hearts of love and obedience, by the power of Your Holy Spirit, to the praise and glory of our Lord and Savior and to You, our Heavenly Father, full grace and glory. Amen

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