19 The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above[a] proclaims his handiwork.
2 Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.
4 Their voice[b] goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
In them he has set a tent for the sun,
5 which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber,
and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
6 Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
and its circuit to the end of them,
and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
7 The law of the Lord is perfect,[c]
reviving the soul;
the testimony of the Lord is sure,
making wise the simple;
8 the precepts of the Lord are right,
rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is pure,
enlightening the eyes;
9 the fear of the Lord is clean,
enduring forever;
the rules[d] of the Lord are true,
and righteous altogether.
10 More to be desired are they than gold,
even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey
and drippings of the honeycomb.
11 Moreover, by them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
12 Who can discern his errors?
Declare me innocent from hidden faults.
13 Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins;
let them not have dominion over me!
Then I shall be blameless,
and innocent of great transgression.
14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable in your sight,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
I love this Psalm, I love all off them, but I especially love this one, because it reminds me not to question God or his Word. His decrees, commands, and promises are good, right true, certain and final. They are the first and last word on any subject. When he says something we better listen and then simply say "OK".
We have no right to argue with God saying things like "Ya but...." or "What about......?" or, "That may have been ok for that time and place, but....." or "I think you're wrong God".
We can see from Scripture, especially the Old Testament, what happens when we do. We become captive to sin and its desires. We fall away from Almighty God. We lose our way. It does us no good to question God's Word. We can complain, as Job did, when we don't know what God's will is, or when something bad is happening to us and we have no clue why. We can, as David did, express our grief, pain, or anger to God and he will listen. But we cannot argue with god when he flat out tells us something.
How would that work at your job? Say your boss tells you to go and do something, and as soon as he tells you, you retort back with, "I don't agree with that", or "I think you're wrong" or "Why would you ask me to do that, it doesn't make any sense?" How long would you have that job? How much more should we listen to and do what God tells us? He is our maker and redeemer!! He controls our very breath! How dare we question God?
Even more, God has our best interests at heart and he is always looking out for us. He wants us to survive and thrive in this world, and he knows just how to do it. He gives us the way to do it. Why wouldn't we listen to the guy who knows everything about everything?
As LCMS (Lutheran Church Missouri Synod) Christians, we believe that the Word of God (the Bible) is inerrant (without error) and infallible (can stand up to any test). We believe that it is ALL God's Word. We believe that it is inspired By God, which means that God breathed into (which is what the word "inspired" means in the Greek) the writers what they were to write word for word. Peter says in 2 Peter 1:21 "For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit."
Let's live in God's Word, listen to him, and submit to His will today!
Prayer: Lord, thank you for giving us your word of truth so we can know your salvation, and be made holy by your Spirit. Amen.
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CALENDAR:
Mon- Martin Luther King Jr. Day. No Confirmation or Family Night
Tues- Quilters 9-2; Bible Study 11:30-12:15; Council Meeting 7pm
Wed- Ladies Aid meeting at noon; Choir 7pm
Thurs- Newsletter deadline
Sat- Basement reserved; worship 5pm (Pastor Grund will be here.)
Sun- Worship 8:30 and 11; Sunday school 9:45; High School youth Bible Study 5pm
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WORSHIP WORKERS:
Acolyte- 8:30- Jack Bunge; 11- Jacob Cluver
Ushers- Marv Hendershot, Don Luebke, Dave Callies, Don Nolte
Altar- Set up- Marilyn Foster, and Sue Ruhl; Clean up- Lois Boeger
Elders- Sat- John Hachtel; 8:30- Jason Cluver; 11- Jim Rahn
Greeters- 8:30- Rob and Julie Schaumberg; 11- Dan and Lisa Rausch
Lay readers- Sat- John Hachtel; 8:30-Jacob Nagel; 11 - Jim Rahn
Sat. Pianist- Molly Hendershot
Organist- Rachel Fisher
Projectionists: Sat- (None, Pastor Grund here) 8:30- Alaina Heitgerd; 11- Zack Hoelscher
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YESTERDAY'S BIBLE QUIZ: What was the pillar of stones called "Jegar Sahadutha" or "Galeed" all about?
45 So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar. 46 And Jacob said to his kinsmen, "Gather stones." And they took stones and made a heap, and they ate there by the heap. 47 Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha,[a] but Jacob called it Galeed.[b] 48 Laban said, "This heap is a witness between you and me today." Therefore he named it Galeed, 49 and Mizpah,[c] for he said, "The Lord watch between you and me, when we are out of one another's sight. 50 If you oppress my daughters, or if you take wives besides my daughters, although no one is with us, see, God is witness between you and me."
