Sunday, May 17, 2015
Hope Is Not Lost
In the last few days in conversations with several people it seemed as if they had lost hope. As I thought about that this morning, I reflected on the scriptures we read yesterday at fellowship. There is a secret place of the Most High that is a place of protection and safety for us.
Psalms 91:1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
The secret place is walking in Yahuah’s (Lord’s) commandments. He makes this point many times in the scriptures. It is a place where Yahuah (Lord) cares for us in every way.
Leviticus 26:1 Ye shall make you no idols nor graven image, neither rear you up a standing image, neither shall ye set up any image of stone in your land, to bow down unto it: for I am the Lord your God.
2 Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the Lord.
3 If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them;
4 Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.
5 And your threshing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and ye shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely.
6 And I will give peace in the land, and ye shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid: and I will rid evil beasts out of the land, neither shall the sword go through your land.
7 And ye shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword.
8 And five of you shall chase an hundred, and an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.
9 For I will have respect unto you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, and establish my covenant with you.
We get blessing upon blessing and can put our hope in God. But He also says when we will feel terror.
Leviticus 26:14 But if ye will not hearken unto me, and will not do all these commandments;
15 And if ye shall despise my statutes, or if your soul abhor my judgments, so that ye will not do all my commandments, but that ye break my covenant:
16 I also will do this unto you; I will even appoint over you terror, consumption, and the burning ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrow of heart: and ye shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it.
Yahuah (Lord) allows us to feel terror when we step away from the secret place. But if we return to Him, He restores our soul and raises us up. This is what God has for us, as a loving Father. He wants us to continue to move forward with Him. He wants us to be His people and walk in His ways. And when we do not, He wants us to repent and turn to Him to be restored. The good news of the scriptures is just that. Our Father has a way for us to walk. When we stray from it, we have a Messiah that bled and died that we might find forgiveness, being restored again to our Father. If we will believe in and trust in our Father, Yahuah (Lord) our God, then we can have hope.
Prayer
Father, we exalt You. We long for Your kingdom, and for You to be King here on this earth. Praise the name Yahuah! Send us Your overwhelming provision today. Forgive us our sins. Heal us, for truly our hearts have been wounded. We have all at some point gone astray from Your commands. Help us to return to You. Deliver us from the evil of this world. Deliver us from those that would steal what You have provided. Stretch out Your arm and deliver us today with a strong hand. Show Yourself strong on our behalf that all men might know that You alone have done these things, and that you alone are Yahuah (Lord) our God. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.