September 29
________________________________________JOYFUL DELIGHT IN GOD’S PRESENCE
“Shall I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of male goats?
14 “Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving and pay your vows to the Most High;
15 Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I shall rescue you, and you will honor Me.”
16 But to the wicked God says, “What right have you to tell of My statutes
And to take My covenant in your mouth? 17 “For you hate discipline,
And you cast My words behind you.18 “When you see a thief, you are pleased with him,
And you associate with adulterers.19 “You let your mouth loose in evil
And your tongue frames deceit.20 “You sit and speak against your brother;
You slander your own mother’s son.21 “These things you have done and I kept silence;
You thought that I was just like you; I will reprove you
and state the case in order before your eyes.22 “Now consider this, you who forget God,
Or I will tear you in pieces, and there will be none to deliver.
23 “He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me;
And to him who orders his way aright I shall show the salvation of God.”
– Psalm 50:13-23
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According to the ESV student study bible, through Psalm 50, the worshipers announce God’s standard for living as part of His covenant people. The God who summons the earth plans to judge His own people. He particularly warns all who presume that the sacrificial system is a way to satisfy God without having a living relationship with Him.
In Psalm 50:7-15, God’s people must realize that He does not depend upon sacrifices in any way since He owns the entire world. God wants His people to offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving and to perform vows, both of which are kinds of peace offering (Lev. 7:11-12, 16). Membership in God’s people is about being welcome in his presence, depending on Him and dealing justly with others.
In verse 16-22, the wicked here are members of the covenant people who despise the privileges and responsibilities of the covenant. The covenant should have connected them with all of God’s people to tell the world of God’s greatness, but instead, they use their tongues for destructive purposes.
Membership in God’s favored people should mean joyful delight in God’s presence and kind life in fellowship with God’s people.
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REFLECTION
• Why is being a Christian and being grumpy inconsistent with God’s word?