He has shown His people the power of His works, giving them the lands of other nations. The works of His hands are faithful and just; all His precepts are trustworthy. They are steadfast for ever and ever, done in faithfulness and uprightness. He provided redemption for His people; He has commanded His covenant forever - Holy and Awesome is His name. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who practice it have good understanding. To Him belongs eternal praise. (Psalm 111:6-10)
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Our world is full of inconsistency and unfaithfulness. Our town is full of inconsistency and unfaithfulness. Our home is full of inconsistency and unfaithfulness. And our heart is full of inconsistency and unfaithfulness.
Humans are - as I like to call it - flaky and sketchy.
We say one thing, yet do another. We speak faith, yet walk in doubt. We commit here, yet falter there.
But where our faithfulness temporarily fails, God's faithfulness eternally prevails. (yes...that rhymed...get over it.)
Today's passage shines light on both the Lord's complete consistency towards us and on our necessary response to Him in return.
You see, unlike humanity, the Lord displays something unheard of: His works and His words are eternally consistent.
In fact, what God has done shall never be undone. "The works of His hands are faithful and just...He has provided redemption for His people" (v. 7; 9).
Unlike a marriage that ends in divorce, unlike an earthly father that loves one day and leaves the next, unlike a treatment that began to work then ended shorty after, and unlike a friendship that was one day betrayed... What God does - what He gives, pardons; redeems; changes; renews - shall never end.
He will never "stop loving," He will never walk away, He will never stop treating our inner diseases, and He will never betray.
When God saves, He saves indefinitely; for eternity. And that action will never be undone. Our salvation - our friendship with Him - will never be undone.
He is constant and unchanging. He is firm and trusting.
But there is more: What God has said shall never be unsaid. "All His precepts are trustworthy...He has commanded His covenant forever" (v. 7; 9).
Unlike the world's empty promises, unlike the shifting and hidden agenda of your co-workers, unlike the spoken commitment that was never followed through, and unlike our unstable inconsistencies... What God says - what He speaks over us; promises to us; testifies about us - will never change.
When He promises heaven, we get heaven. When He speaks a "blessed and perfect" plan for your life, nothing that you do will ever change it. And when He testifies that you are clean, righteous, and redeemed, you will always and forever be clean, righteous, and redeemed.
All of His commandments are sure; they are forever. He has spoken and it will be - whether we doubt it or not.
Because of this, "Holy and Awesome is His name" (v. 9). And the consistency of His words and works should spur us to a response.
We should see His faithfulness, notice how different it is when compared to our unfaithfulness, and fear - or revere - His name (praise it, be in "holy awe" towards Him and His ways).
And as the psalmist wrote, This "fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who practice it have good understanding" (v. 10).
It is with wisdom and good understanding that our works and words can be consistent with God's works and words.
Yes, we tend to always fall back into sketchiness and an overall flaky behavior. But if we want to slowly rid ourselves of these habits, we must start by recognizing God's faithfulness and letting it shape our own.
The holy awe of the Lord is what brings us to reciprocate His consistency.
So today, I challenge you to grow in wisdom and good understanding so that your works - your actions and reactions - along with your words - your promises and commitments - will be as faithful as our LORD's.
Thank you for joining us today! We would love to hear your thoughts and feedback! Feel free to comment it in today's Instagram post! You can find it here: Instagram.com/DeclareGlory
Blessings,
Greg, Declare Glory
