OUR FATHER WHOSE LAW IS PERFECT

From Psalm 19

The law of the Lord is perfect, able to restore.

His decrees make the simple wise, His decrees are sure

The precepts of God give joy to the heart, They are always right

His commands are radiant, they fill our eyes with light

They are more precious than gold,  pure gold; they are so sweet to me, like honey for my soul

The fear of the Lord is pure, forever will endure

His judgements are right and just, they are ever fair

They are more precious than gold,  pure gold; they are so sweet to me, like honey for my soul

OUR LORD MADE HIS GLORY VISIBLE TO HIS PEOPLE 

Leviticus chapter 9 verses 3 - 4 says this;

Then say to the Israelites: Take a male goat for a sin offering, a calf and a lamb—both a year old and without defect—for a burnt offering, and an ox and a ram for a fellowship offering to sacrifice before the Lord, together with a grain offering mixed with olive oil. For today the Lord will appear to you.’”

This passage prescribes to the children of Israel to take a goat, a calf and a lamb for a burnt offering. They were also to take an ox and a ram for a fellowship offering along with a grain offering mixed with olive oil.

They were to do this because the Lord was going to appear to them that day.

Aaron and his sons and the children of Israel did as they were commanded by Moses by presenting the offerings and sacrificing them to the Lord as the law required.

When they completed the sacrifices, the Lord appeared to them as recorded in Leviticus chapter 9 verses 23 - 24;

Moses and Aaron then went into the tent of meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people; and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown.

Amen.

78

OUR FATHER WHOSE MESSAGE OF SALVATION IS REJECTED AT GREAT PERIL

In the book of Luke chapter 10 verse 14, the Lord Jesus, while sending 72 followers out to preach the good news of the Kingdom, said this;

But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.

This verse is a sobering pronouncement on the fates of the towns of Chorazin and Bethsaida.

For, as Luke chapter 10 verse 9 says;

“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 

Tyre and Sidon, having had no miracles performed in their midst, did reject the message of the kingdom of God but the Lord Jesus said that if the miracles that had been performed in Chorazin and Bethsaida had been performed there, they would have humbly and profoundly repented and turned from their ways. 

In contrast, the towns of Chorazin and Bethsaida, having had miracles performed within them, still ignored the message of the kingdom and this marked them for greater judgement than what was slated for Tyre and Sidon.

The severity of judgement for rejecting the 72 followers of Jesus is because the message of the kingdom, carried by the followers of Jesus, was a  message from the Lord Jesus and the message from the Lord was sent from God the Father and thus Luke chapter 10 verse 16 says;

“Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; but whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me.”

Amen.

21

OUR FATHER WHO LOOKS FOR SEEKERS OF TRUTH

A change was made to this essay to correct the identity of the "I" in the passage from 'The Lord' to 'Jeremiah'.

Red signifies removed text

Blue signifies added text

_____________________________

The book of Jeremiah chapter 5 verse 4 captures the words of Jeremiah after searching Jerusalem for any who dealt honestly and sought truth and finding none.;

I thought, “These are only the poor; they are foolish, for they do not know the way of the Lord, the requirements of their God.

Here, the prophet Jeremiah records his response (the Lord's response) when the Lord told him to  search through Jerusalem seeking anyone who dealt honestly and sought truth but he found instead a people who swore falsely.

They had rejected correction and turned their faces to stone and refused to repent.

At first, as captured in our verse, it appeared that the people in the lower strata of the society were the ones who conducted themselves so poorly due to ignorance of the ways of God.

However, the next verse says this;

So I will go to the leaders and speak to them; surely they know the way of the Lord, the requirements of their God.”

But with one accord they too had broken off the yoke and torn off the bonds.

Jeremiah then (The Lord) went to the elite of the land who had the advantage of being educated  but instead, it was found that the leaders of the people had themselves also broken off the practice of adhering to moral principles and were living completely unrestrained by any requirements of God.

They told each other the lie that the Lord would do nothing and so remained confident that no harm would befall them.

It was for this deception that the judgement of the Lord was declared on them and the prophecy of a foreign nation being brought against them was documented in Jeremiah chapter 5 verse 15 that says;

People of Israel,” declares the Lord, “I am bringing a distant nation against you—an ancient and enduring nation, a people whose language you do not know, whose speech you do not understand.

Amen.

35

Corrected version below;

OUR FATHER QUESTIONS THE IDOL MAKERS

In Isaiah chapter 44 verse 10, the Lord asks this question of the idols being manufactured in the land;

Who shapes a god and casts an idol, which can profit nothing?

The question asked here is what manner of person goes through the effort and expenditure of creating an idol which ultimately, is valueless?

Who goes about to  set the parameters of a deity and then casts an idol to accommodate the so-called god?

What material object of stone or wood could possibly have the properties corresponding to the requirements of a valid deity and maybe even more telling, what nature of deity would find suitable accomodation in an object  made by the hands of men?

The Lord describes the condition of those who  engaged in idol making in verse 20;

Such a person feeds on ashes; a deluded heart misleads him; he cannot save himself, or say, “Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?”

The makers of idols have deluded hearts who don't even have the power to save themselves let alone imbue saving power on idols for others and furthermore, they won't even bring themselves to admit that they are engaged in deception.

The Lord is the only true God and seeking other gods among idols is a fruitless pursuit.

As it says in verse 6;

“This is what the Lord says—Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.

Amen.

29

OUR FATHER WHO GIVES HIS ANGELS CHARGE OVER HIS PEOPLE

Psalm 91 verse 12 says this;

they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

This verse is well known because it was used by Satan for the second temptation of Jesus in Mathew chapter 4 verse 6 which says;

“If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written: “’He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”

The verse records the attempt to get Jesus to presumtuously draw on God's provision in order to validate His claims about Himself by deliberately falling off a high tower and having the angels of God catch Him in mid-air so that He could establish His credentials as being the Son of God to those who witnessed it.

Because there is a recorded promise made by the Father that He would give His angels responsibility for His Son's protection from physical injury, the temptation's cunning is that it disguises itself as a valid utilization of one of  God's written promises.

As well, this verse establishes the ability of angels to effectively reach from their spiritual realm into our corporeal realm to interact with it in a way that could stop a person's fall  by grabbing them with their hands. 

Also established in the verse is that the angels given charge over a person are paying rapt attention to that person at all times to prevent any harm from striking them.

Amen.

13

OUR FATHER WHOSE GLORY IS DECLARED BY THE HEAVENS

Psalm 19 verse 3 says this;

They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them.

The 'they' in this verse refers to the heavens and the skies which declare the glory of the Lord and proclaim the work of His hands.

Day after day, they pour forth speech and night after night they reveal knowledge but, as our verse reveals, this transmission of information is not carried through the medium of words and not even the medium of sound.

Yet, the declaration of the glory of God and the proclamation of work of His hands, continue to go out to all the earth and to the ends of the world.

In silence, information is broadcast across the entire globe and those whose spirits are tuned into the frequency of the broadcasting signal, can pick up the messages and gain knowledge of the things of the heavens.

Diligently inclining our ear to the things of the heaven keeps us attuned to the laws, statutes, precepts, commands, fear and decrees of the Lord.

By these we are warned of our hidden faults we do not know of so that we can seek forgiveness. They also keep our willfull sins from ruling over us. We can then can keep clear of great transgression.

Amen.

31

OUR FATHER WHO RAISES US UP

( From Psalm 41 )

YEA YEA YEA

My enemies say of me

 “When will he ever die"

 "When will his name perish?”

Even my trusted friend,

With  whom I shared my bread

Has turned against me

YEA YEA YEA

Have mercy on me, Lord

And  raise me up again

That none would triumph against me

I know you love me Lord

By your strength you uphold 

And  set me in your presence

YEA YEA YEA

OUR FATHER WHOSE SALVATION COMES OUT OF ZION

( From Psalm 14 )

The Lord looks down from heaven

On all mankind

To see if there are any 

Any who understand,

 That the salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!

When the Lord restores his people,

    let Jacob be glad

 They who never call on the Lord

  Are overwhelmed with dread

For the salvation for Israel will come out of Zion!

OUR FATHER WHO LOVES US LAVISHLY AND HAS MADE US HIS CHILDREN

The book of 1 John chapter 3 verses 1 - 2 says this;

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 

How great is the Father's love for us that he qualified us to be His own children and how great an honor it is for us to be called His children.

So astonishing is our transmorgrification from what we were before into the image of the Lord Jesus, we become members of a different species altogether such that we become unrecognisable to the people in the world.

As the Apostle John says in verse 2, our final state as individual children of God has not yet been revealed but a time will come when we will discover that we have become like Him because at that time, we will  know what we have become and we will also be able to see Him as He really is and we will see that we have become like Christ.

A privilege beyond words.

Amen.

40

OUR FATHER IS OUR LIBERATOR AND OUR SHEPHERD

Isaiah chapter 49 verse 10 describes the Lord's favor upon His people this way;

“They will not hunger or thirst, Nor will the scorching heat or sun strike them down; For He who has compassion on them will lead them And will guide them to springs of water.

In this passage, the Lord is speaking to those who were bound and were captives and to those who were in darkness and blindness.

He instructs them to 'go forth' from their captivity and to emerge from the dark and show themselves.

The Lord says that these people, set free from the bondage of the kingdom of darkness by the Lord's mercy, will be led by the Lord Himself.

Under His guidance, they will not lack food or drink and neither will they be struck by the scorching heat or the sun. The Lord will guide them by springs of water.

This is reminiscent of the first few verses in Psalm chapter 23 which describe the Lord as a shepherd who makes His sheep lie down in green pastures and leads them beside still waters.

The Lord Jesus, in Luke chapter 4 verses18 and 19, officially inaugurating His ministry from a synagogue in His home town, read this passage from Isaiah 61;

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.”

Amen.

25

OUR FATHER WHO RESISTS THE OPPRESSION OF ALL PEOPLE

When the Lord saw the misery and affliction of His people in Egypt, He was moved to action and in the book of Acts chapter 7 verse 34, He said these words to Moses to send Him to Egypt to free them;

I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt; I have heard their groaning and have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.” ’

After the Israelites were freed from Egypt by the Lord, Moses was given this instruction in Exodus chapter 23 verse 9 to teach the people.

“Do not oppress a foreigner; you yourselves know how it feels to be foreigners, because you were foreigners in Egypt.

To oppress someone  is to impose hardship and/or subservience on them especially by means of the unjust use of authority.

This verse cautions the children of Israel not to oppress foreigners in their midst. 

The Israelites, having endured the harsh oppression they were dealt as foreigners in Egypt, would have experience with the physical and psychological pain suffered under oppressive regimes  and as such, the verse instructs them to be cognitive of the vulnerabilities of foreigners and to take care not to oppress them.

Oppression in the physical realm is mirrored in the spiritual realm where the devil oppresses people by imposing physical afflictions, mental anguish and bondage on them.

Even as the Lord Jesus travelled in Judea and Samaria,  He was moved to take action against the oppression imposed by the kingdom of darkness by healing those afflicted. Acts chapter 10 verse 38 says it this way;

“You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.

The Lord our God takes action against oppression of all kinds and enjoins us to share in the work of alleviating oppresion among the people around us. He also instructs us to ensure that we ourselves do not perpetrate oppression against others.

Amen.

40

OUR FATHER WHO UPHOLDS THOSE WHOSE STEPS HE ORDERS

Exodus chapter 21 verses 5 - 6 says this;

“But if the servant declares, ‘I love my master and my wife and children and do not want to go free,’ then his master must take him before the judges. He shall take him to the door or the doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he will be his servant for life.

This passage lays out the template for the position of bond servant in the old covenant  that represented the spiritual bond servant in the spiritual realm that church leaders like the apostle Paul declared themselves to be.

The original prescription for being a bond servant was for a man to declare that he was willing to forfeit the right to his own life and legally bond himself to his master. This intention was formalized by having an awl pierced through the servant's ear against a doorpost.

The spiritual application that this stood for was that followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, having been saved by believing in His death on a cross and trusting that He was able to save them, could opt to forfeit their own lives for the sake of the kingdom of their Lord.

By permantly inclining their ear to hear and obey the voice of the Lord, they would thus become bond servants of the Lord Jesus Christ having forfeited the right to chose their own path but rather, have all their steps directed by the Lord.

In doing this, they will find the blessing of the Lord's delight in them and His assurance that He would uphold them as written of in Psalm chapter 37 verses 23 - 24;

The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, And He delights in his way.

Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; For the Lord upholds him with His hand.

Amen.

OUR FATHER WHO SAVES US AND HAS A PURPOSE FOR US IF WE CAN HEED HIS VOICE

When the children of Israel were released and led out of Egypt, they arrived at the foot of Mount Sinai where the Lord gave Moses a message to speak to them. 

Exodus chapter 19 verse 4 records it this way;

‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. 

The Lord, establishing that the children of Israel, having seen the great signs and wonders that He had done to free them from Egypt and then also to lead them safely through the wilderness, they should have been prepared to obey the Lord so that they could fulfil the purposes that He had for them. Verse 5 and 6 capture the Lord's  offer to the children of Israel;

Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine,  you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’

The Lord conditionally called the children of Israel to be His treasured possesion, a holy nation and a kingdom of priests on the earth if they were willing to obey Him.

Having been saved by the Lord ourselves, in gratitude for what the Lord has done to save us, let us obey His voice in order to fulfil his purposes for our lives.

Amen.

OUR FATHER WHO DELIVERED HIS PEOPLE FROM BONDAGE BY HIS GREAT POWER

During the time of the ten plagues of Egypt, which were signs and wonders designed to persuade Pharaoh to release the Hebrew slaves, it became clear that Pharaoh was able to rationalize the occurences of the plagues of bloody water, frogs, lice, flies, livestock pestilences and bodily boils that had struck Egypt and her people. 

The Lord now commanded Moses to warn Pharaoh that things would get worse as recorded in the book of Exodus chapter 9 verses 13 - 14;

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning, confront Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me, or this time I will send the full force of my plagues against you and against your officials and your people, so you may know that there is no one like me in all the earth.

This passage heightens the stakes against Pharaoh by warning of more severe plagues that would adversely affect Pharaoh himself, his officials and the whole population of Egyptians

This time, the coming plagues would not be  explained away as easily. Hail, locusts, darkness and the deaths of all the first born people and livestock in the land represented an escalation that would be  an existential threat to the kingdom of Egypt.

These strikes against Egypt, it turned out, were so devastating that by the end, Pharaoh unconditionally surrendered and released the Hebrew slaves.

Thus the power of God was known in Egypt and the surrounding nations and they all feared the Hebrew nation as they departed Egypt because of the devastating power of their God.

Amen.

OUR FATHER WHO IS SOVEREIGN OVER ALL NATIONS (95)

Chapter 4 in the book of Daniel is an extraordinary chapter that is the personal testimony written by Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, about his encounter with the Almighty God of Israel.

The chapter starts with the king saying that it was his pleasure to announce to the nations and peoples of every language, the amazing signs and wonders that the Most High God had done for Him. 

He then recounted a frightening night vision that he had while lying in bed and that he had sought the interpretation of the dream  from the magicians, enchanters, astrologers and diviners but they could not solve the mystery.

King Nebuchadnezzar then described how Daniel, also known by the name Beltechazzar,  finally came into his presence and in chapter 4 verse 9, recorded this excerpt of his testimony;

I said, “Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you, and no mystery is too difficult for you. Here is my dream; interpret it for me.

Nebuchadnezzar, in this verse, revealed that  Daniel, a prophet of the God of Israel, was highly regarded among the Babylonians.

Daniel had been elevated to the rank of Chief Magician and it was known that the Spirit of God was in him because there were no mysteries that were not laid bare to him by the Spirit's power.

The king thus confidently entrusted Daniel to interprete the dream for him.

Daniel, knowing that the dream was about the king himself, was greatly perplexed about telling the king what the dream meant but the king encouraged him to speak plainly of its meaning and so Daniel explained that the dream spoke of king's fall from his lofty position in his kingdom  down to being among the animals, drenched in dew and eating hay like an ox. 

Daniel also revealed that the expulsion of Nebuchadnezzar from among humans would be for 7 years and that the Lord would restore his sanity and restore him to his position as king.

It was after the astonishing prophecy came to pass and Nebuchadnezzar was expelled from governance due to insanity and then restored to his throne over his kingdom when he recovered,  that he wrote and widely distributed his testimony of the greatness of the sovereign God whom he called the King of heaven.

The Lord had promoted his prophet Daniel in the land of Babylon and demonstrated the greatness of the power of God through him such that the name of the Lord was glorified before all people.

Amen.

OUR FATHER WHO REIGNS IN GREAT POWER

Psalm 99 verses 1 - 2 says this;

The Lord reigns, let the nations tremble; he sits enthroned between the cherubim, let the earth shake.

Great is the Lord in Zion; he is exalted over all the nations.

This passage captures the awesome majesty of the reigning Lord.

From His throne in Zion, the Lord, seated between the cherubim,  is exalted above all nations. The nations tremble and the earth shakes in His presence.

How great the Lord is.

He is worthy of honor and praise forever.

Amen.

OUR FATHER CHALLENGES THE IDOL MAKERS

In Isaiah chapter 44 verse 10, the Lord asks this question;

Who shapes a god and casts an idol,  which can profit nothing?

Isaiah chapter 44 verse 11 then follows with the response to the question describing the consequenses that would be upon those who deemed it their role to make idols.

People who do that will be put to shame; such craftsmen are only human beings.

Let them all come together and take their stand; they will be brought down to terror and shame.

For mere human beings to presume that they have the power to craft gods out of wood and stone that other people should worship defies common sense.

How could a man imbue an inanimate object with qualities worthy of deification by another person?

The Lord foretells that they will be put to shame. 

He invites these craftsmen to assemble and make a case for themselves and demonstrate the power of the idols they create  but predicts that they will be brought down to terror and shame when their demonstrations fail.

As 1 John chapter 5 verse 21 says;

Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.

OUR FATHER WHOSE NAME IS GLORIFIED 

Psalm 45 verses 3 - 4 says this;

Gird your sword on your side, you mighty one; clothe yourself with splendor and majesty.

In your majesty ride forth victoriously in the cause of truth, humility and justice; let your right hand achieve awesome deeds.

This passage captures some details of a 'most excellent man' who lips have been anointed by grace and who has been blessed by God as recorded in the previous verse.

This man is described as a mighty one clothed in slendor and majesty which points to His royalty and kingship.

His cause is that of truth, humility and justice.

The subject of this passage is a prefiguration of the Lord Jesus. At the end of His first visitation where he existed as a carpenter and a traveling preacher, he suffered and died on a cross. Gaining victory over sin and death,  He  rose from the dead and ascended into heaven to sit on the administrative throne at  right hand of God the Father.

On this throne, splendor and majesty are His regalia while truth, humility and justice are the hallmarks of His kingdom. 

Bless the Lord who reigns forever. 

Amen.

OUR FATHER WHO REACHES OUT FOR US

Isaiah chapter 65 verse 1 ( x chapter 64 verse 13) says this;

“I permitted Myself to be sought by those who did not ask for Me; I permitted Myself to be found by those who did not seek Me.

I said, ‘Here am I, here am I,’ To a nation which did not call on My name.

This verse reveals the bracing reality about the condition of mankind in relation to our creator.

If the Lord did not permit Himself to be sought and to be found, we, as a race, would never have be able to reach Him. 

If the Lord had not gone out of His way to indicate that He was there and who He was, we would have remained completely in the dark about the God who made us.

The very brightest among us may have been able to form a rough idea of the nature of the God from creation but this would have been uncertain and even more contested than it is today.

To our eternal benefit, the God who made us in His image, deliberately set out to make Himself known to those He created even when, in our fallen and rebellious state, we were determined to follow our own ways.

We consorted with false gods and occupied ourselves with the pursuit of fleshly desires but the Lord still called out to us to turn back to Him.

Our God loved us so much that He made the ultimate sacrifice of giving His son unto death in order to pay the ransom for our redemption after we had fallen under the sway of the kingdom of darkness.

Let us believe in the Lord Jesus who was slain so that we, by calling upon Him and trusting in Him, can be saved and  find our God who loves us and reaches out for us.

Amen.

OUR FATHER WHO SETS ASIDE A REMNANT

The Lord permitted himself to be sought and found by a people who were not calling upon His name. The people turned out to be obstinate and  rebellious and  walked in bad paths and were given to pursuing their own thoughts and imaginations.

Isaiah chapter 65 verse 3 describes how brazenly they defied the Lord by sacrificing and burning incense to other gods; 

a people who continually provoke me to my very face, offering sacrifices in gardens and burning incense on altars of brick;

These people carried out rituals among graves, kept unholy vigils in the night and indulged in impure flesh.

The Lord, responding to those who rejected His ways for their own ways, said in Isaiah chapter 65 verse 8;

So I will act on behalf of My servants In order not to destroy all of them.

When a society rebels against the Lord, He sets those who remain faithful to Him apart and they inherit a place set aside for them as Isaiah chapter 65 verse 9 says;

“I will bring forth offspring from Jacob, And an heir of My mountains from Judah;

Even My chosen ones shall inherit it, And My servants will dwell there.

Amen.

 OUR FATHER WHO SETS US FREE

From Psalm 142 

I pour out my heart

I cry aloud to You

I lift my voice for mercy Lord

For what I'm going through

When my spirit grows faint within me

It's you who guards my way

You set me free from my prison Lord

That I may praise your name

 OUR FATHER WHO REMAINS THE SAME

( From Psalm 102 )

You release the captives and those condemed

And so be praised by people not yet created

You remain the same, Your years will never end 

Forever You'll be worshipped in Jerusalem

You Lord are enthroned forever

Your name will be feared by all nations

The kings of the earth Your glory will revere

You will be renown for all generations

OUR FATHER WHO INVITES THE RIGHTEOUS TO DWELL NEAR HIM

Psalm chapter 15 verses 1 - 5 ( x 9 - 11) says this;

Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent? Who may live on your holy mountain?

The one whose walk is blameless, who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from their heart; whose tongue utters no slander, who does no wrong to a neighbor, and casts no slur on others; who despises a vile person but honors those who fear the Lord; who keeps an oath even when it hurts, and does not change their mind; who lends money to the poor without interest; who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these things will never be shaken.

In the 15th Psalm, the psalmist asks the Lord who would be the people who would be residents in His household and who would have homes located on the Lord's holy mountain, Mount Zion. 

The psalmist continues on to list the attributes of those who would be welcomed into heaven to reside in the household of God and dwell on His holy mountain.

They will be those who do what is right and who are honest. These are the people who guard their tongues and do no wrong to those around them.

They avoid those who engage in depravity but give honor to those who submit to God. If they make a vow, they keep it even if upholding the vow hurts them. They refuse to rescind the vow.

They lend money to the poor at no interest and they do not take a bribe to tip the scales against the innocent.

Those who are brought by the Lord to be His close neighbours in heaven are those who cultivate honesty, fairness, generosity, integrity in their lives.

Amen.

OUR FATHER WHO MADE AN ETERNAL SACRIFICE ONCE AND FOR ALL

Hebrews chapter 9 verse 14 says this;

How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! 

This verse describes the efficacy and the excellency of the blood of Christ. The unblemished sacrifice, offered to God by Christ through the eternal Spirit, has the power to cleanse our consciences so that the guilt of our sins in the flesh which lead to death, is washed away and we are able to serve God.

The verse also shows how the once-and-for-all sacrifice far exceeds the sacrifice of goats and bulls and heifers that were prescribed under the old covenant which had to be repeated over and over and even then, only cleansed externally.

The perfection of the sacrifice that Christ made of Himself, in the greater and more perfect eternal tabernacle in heaven, obtained for us eternal redemption.

Christ, having died as a ransom to set free those who committed infractions of the laws enumerated under the old covenant, is the mediator of a new covenant which promises an eternal inheritance to those who are called.

Those cleansed from sins that lead to death, are made alive in Christ so that by their living, they may serve the living God.

Amen.

OUR FATHER WHO HEARD HIS SON'S CALL FOR HELP

Psalm 71 verses 11 - 13 says this;

They say, “God has forsaken him; pursue him and seize him, for no one will rescue him.”

Do not be far from me, my God; come quickly, God, to help me.

May my accusers perish in shame; may those who want to harm me be covered with scorn and disgrace.

This passage, in a parallel narrative to the one David was recording in his Psalm, tells of the travails that our Lord Jesus underwent as agents of darkness conspired against Him.

They scorned the Lord declaring that He had been abandoned by God and they were free to seize Him because there was no one to rescue Him.

The Lord Jesus Christ cried out to His God to help Him quickly as He fell into the hands of His enemies.

The spirits of darkness who presented accusations against Him and planned to injure Him, were judged such that they would be covered with the scorn and disgrace that they tried to heap on the Lord and they were condemned to perish in the same way they attempted to make the Lord Jesus perish.

The Lord prevailed against His enemies.

Amen.

OUR FATHER WHO EXPECTS OATHS AND COVENANTS TO BE HONORED

The king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar,  had invaded Israel and overthrown Jerusalem. He took all the captured leaders of the land back to Babylon.  

Nebuchadnezzar then signed a treaty with an Israelite king whom he installed in Jerusalem to oversee the conquered kingdom of Israel on his behalf.

While Nebudchanezzar was away, the vassal king of Israel decided to break the treaty he had made with him. He plotted to rebel against the Babylonians and throw them off with the help of the Egyptians.

Because of this breaking of a formal treaty, the Lord was against the Israelite king for his actions. The Lord regarded the treaty signed between Babylon and Israel as an oath and covenant between Himself and Babylon and so when Israel broke the covenant, He declared in  Ezekiel chapter 17 verse 19;

“‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: As surely as I live, I will repay him for despising my oath and breaking my covenant. 

The Lord expected Israel to keep its treaty with Babylon because His own name was associated with Israel and He judged Israel severely for failing to keep the signed covenant.

Amen.

OUR FATHER IN WHOM WE HOPE

Psalm 131  ( x verse 4 ) says this;

My heart is not proud, Lord, my eyes are not haughty;

I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me.

But I have calmed and quieted myself, I am like a weaned child with its mother;  like a weaned child I am content.

Israel, put your hope in the Lord both now and forevermore.

The psalmist describes four postures that we should adopt when we approach the Lord.

Firstly, we humble our hearts before the Lord and  we do not look with haughty eyes. The Lord is Himself humble and lowly of heart so it is wise to approach Him with humility.

Secondly, we should not come before the Lord with lofty intellectual notions too great for us but rather we should be simply cogniscent of how great the gift of salvation the Lord undertook to gain for us through the giving of His life on a cross. Simple gratitude before the Lord is fitting.

Thirdly,  we should be calm and content before the Lord. We should be confident in our security  in the Lord and trust in Him such that anxiety and worry do not take root in us.

Forthly, we must permanently hope in the Lord so that all our expectations and all our concerns are laid on Him and we are not led elsewhere seeking fulfillment but rather, always seeing the Lord as our only source and aspiration.

Amen.

OUR FATHER WHO IS OUR REFUGE

From Psalm 91 and Psalm 92

Those who dwell in the shelter of our Lord

Will rest in the shadow of  Almighty God

He is my refuge whom I trust with all my days

For by His angel's He will guard my ways 

The righteous will flourish in the house of the Lord

They will grow like the cedar in the courts of our God

They will  always bear fruit as they proclaim

The Lord is my Rock, there is no wickedness in Him

OUR FATHER WHOM WE PRAISE

( From Psalm 41 )

Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,

From everlasting to everlasting

Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,

Amen and Amen

Blessed are those who give  the poor a hand

The Lord will preserve  them and always deliver them

They are among those called blessed in the land 

Amen and Amen