{"id":3743,"date":"2020-08-20T18:53:49","date_gmt":"2020-08-21T01:53:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/?p=3743"},"modified":"2020-08-20T18:54:06","modified_gmt":"2020-08-21T01:54:06","slug":"hobart-herd-devotionals-psalms-95-97","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/?p=3743","title":{"rendered":"Hobart Herd Devotionals – Psalms 95-97"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Hobart Herd Devotional \u2013 Psalms 95<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

   As we start these 5 straight \u201cEnthronement\nPsalms\u201d, we are reminded of God\u2019s Sovereignty, and the command to worship and\nglorify our God for Who He is.  We do\nthis by entering His presence with thanksgiving and praise that flows from our\nhearts to the Rock of our salvation.(vs. 1-2) \nAs the \u201cKing above all gods\u201d, from the Grand Canyon to Mount Everest, He\nholds it all in His hands.(vs. 3-4).  He\ncreated the seas and dry ground and all of it shows His power and strength.(vs.\n5)  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

   Maybe my favorite verses in this Psalm make\nup the worship chorus that we sing from verses 6-7.  \u201cCome let us worship and bow down, let us\nkneel before the Lord our God our Maker. \nFor He is our God; and we are the people of His pasture, and the sheep\nof His hand.\u201d  We have the picture of our\nGreat Shepherd in John 10 and the description of His sovereign care for His\nsheep.  John 10:27-30, 27  “My sheep hear My voice, and I know\nthem, and they follow Me; 28  and I give\neternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them\nout of My hand. 29  “My Father, who\nhas given {them} to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch {them}\nout of the Father’s hand. 30  “I and\nthe Father are one.”(NAS)  When we\nput our trust in our Great Shepherd, the Father and the Son have us\ncovered.  We of all people should be the\nvoices of worship, praise and thanksgiving, bringing continuous glory to our\nGreat God and Savior!  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

   This Psalm reminds us that to forget our God\nand fail to worship Him in obedient love has huge consequences in our\nlives.  We are reminded of Moses\u2019 and\nIsrael\u2019s wrong thinking and behavior in the trying times in the desert when\nthere was no water.  Israel began to\nmurmur, grumble, and complain that God was not there to care for them.  After all that God had done for them, they\ndid not believe that He would provide the water that was necessary for them to\nsurvive.(Exodus 17)  Moses became so\nangry and frustrated with the peoples response that he disobeyed God and struck\nthe rock instead of speaking to it.  Both\nwere not allowed to enter the Promised Land and wandered the desert for 40\nyears until all those over 20 died.  They\nwere not able to enter the rest of the Lord and enjoy living in God\u2019s land.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

   How did this happen?  From the awesome deliverance from Egypt\nthrough the Red Sea, and the wiping out of the world\u2019s greatest army to protect\nthem, to not being able to enter the Promised Land and wandering for 40 years\nin the desert; God\u2019s people chose to murmur, complain, letting the\ncircumstances control their hearts.  They\nmade a choice to stop worshipping, praising, and glorifying their great God and\nKing and were moved to doubt, fear, anger and murmuring.  I am reminded in verses 7b-8a, <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cToday if ye will hear\nhis voice, Harden not your heart\u201d.  I\nhave a choice everyday to reject hearing His voice and letting the world harden\nmy heart, or celebrating in praise, worship and thanksgiving my glorious\nSovereign King and Savior.  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

   Father, You are my God and King, and You\ndeserve all the praise and thanksgiving my heart can muster in worshipping\nYou.  Help me to listen to Your word and\nnot allow my heart to be hardened by the struggles of this world.  I trust that my Sovereign God is caring and\nkeeping me as my Great Shepherd.  Every\nday I want to bring glory to You!  In\nJesus Name, Amen!  Pastor Rob<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hobart Herd Devotional – Psalms 96<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

   What does it mean to have a new song?  Lamentations 3:21-24, 21 This I recall to my mind, therefore I have\nhope. 22  The LORD’S lovingkindnesss\nindeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. 23 {They} are new every morning; great is Thy faithfulness. 24  “The LORD is my portion,” says my\nsoul, “Therefore I have hope in Him.”(NAS)  I can sing a new song from my heart because I\nhave this hope and faith in my life. \nAnother reason we can sing a new song is because we have the good news\nof His salvation to proclaim every day to all the earth!(vs. 1-2)  We are to make known all of God\u2019s wonderful\ndeeds to all the earth!  We live in an\narea where we can see all around us the splendor and majesty of His creation\nthat He provided for us to enjoy.  Surely\nwe can sing His praise and share with others the greatness of His glory as\n\u201cstrength and beauty are His sanctuary\u201d.(vs. 6) \n<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

   In verses 7-10, we are told that all the\nnations of the world will ascribe to the Lord the glory due His name.  Remember that this is a promise from God\u2019s\nword and will happen.  Philippians\n2:9-11, 9  Therefore also God highly\nexalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,  10  that\nat the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those who are in heaven, and on\nearth, and under the earth, 11<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

and that every tongue\nshould confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.(NAS)  We are to be involved in leading our world to\nrecognizing the greatness of our God by the way we speak and live.  This needs to be a heart attitude that\noverflows with a song of joy to the Lord that the world can see and hear.   The heavens, earth, and all creation will\ndeclare His glory and sing His praise.(vs. 11-12) <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

     Why\ncan we sing this new song?  It is because\nwe have the promise that Jesus is coming again to rule, reign and judge the\nearth with all righteousness and justice.(vs. 13)  Today as we struggle to see anything good\nhappening in our world, may we be reminded to sing a new song of salvation and\nour Lord\u2019s coming again!  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

   Father, it is frustrating to see the\ncondition of our world and their rejection of the Lord.  Thank You for giving us a new song of\nsalvation to share, and the hope of the Lord\u2019s soon return.  May this keep us singing, sharing, and\npraising You until You come again.  In\nJesus Name, Amen!  Pastor Rob<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hobart Herd Devotional \u2013 Psalms 97<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

   At the end of Psalms 96, we have the promise\nof the Lord coming again!  Psalms 97\ncontinues in this light as this Psalm is a vision of the Lord in all His\nSplendor as He returns to reign and judge the earth.  Verse 1 reads as the announcement of His\ncoming, with all the earth and even the furthest islands hearing, seeing and\nrejoicing together.  There will be no one\nthat doesn\u2019t know Who the Lord is, and Why He has come.  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

   In verses 2-9, we have a magnificent\ndescription of the Lord\u2019s return and His affect on every part of creation.  \u201cClouds and thick darkness surround Him;\nrighteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne.\u201d(NAS)  What a magnificent entrance that reveals His\nrighteousness, justice and majesty of His throne.  Fire goes before Him burning His enemies\nbefore Him, lightning lights the way and the earth trembles with mountains\nmelting at His presence.  The wonders of\nthe heavens declare to everyone that the Lord has come in all His glory.(vs.\n3-6)  There will be great shame for all\nwho have rejected God and followed other gods, and great rejoicing by all those\nwho have believed and followed after God!(vs. 7-8)  My favorite verse is verse 9 as this is where\nwe get our worship chorus, Be Exalted, O God. \nThere is no doubt about WHO is our God, and how far above all else our\nLord and Savior truly is.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

   What response should I have to this glorious\npicture of my Savior and King, coming in all His glory, holiness, and\njustice?  I am told to \u201chate evil\u201d, and\ntrust in His preservation, and deliverance of His saints.  I am to live in His light and gladness as a\nrighteous and upright believer.(vs. 10-11) \nPsalms 97:12   Rejoice in the\nLORD, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.(KJV)  I am commanded to rejoice in the Lord always,\nand again I say rejoice!(Philippians 4:4) \nThe promised return of the Lord is my hope and glory as I strive to live\nrighteously and expectantly with rejoicing in His soon return.  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

   Father, the Promised return of the Lord is\nmy blessed hope and joy.  When I get\ncaught up in the every day struggles of this world, may I be reminded to\nrejoice and live in the light of His Glory. \nEven death has no sting as I live and wait patiently to meet Him in the\nsky.  You are my Lord and King, the hope\nand joy of my life!  In Jesus Name,\nAmen!  Pastor Rob    <\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hobart Herd Devotional \u2013 Psalms 95    As we start these 5 straight \u201cEnthronement Psalms\u201d, we are reminded of God\u2019s Sovereignty, and the command to worship and glorify our God for Who He is.  We do this by entering His …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[142],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3743"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3743"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3743\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3744,"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3743\/revisions\/3744"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3743"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3743"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3743"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}