A FLAWLESS FILTER
Opening Prayer
God, speak clearly to me in my reading and reflection on Your Word.
Read Psalm 12
For the director of music. According to sheminith. A psalm of David.
1 Help, Lord, for no one is faithful anymore;
those who are loyal have vanished from the human race.
2 Everyone lies to their neighbor;
they flatter with their lips
but harbor deception in their hearts.
3 May the Lord silence all flattering lips
and every boastful tongue—
4 those who say,
“By our tongues we will prevail;
our own lips will defend us—who is lord over us?”
5 “Because the poor are plundered and the needy groan,
I will now arise,” says the Lord.
“I will protect them from those who malign them.”
6 And the words of the Lord are flawless,
like silver purified in a crucible,
like gold refined seven times.
7 You, Lord, will keep the needy safe
and will protect us forever from the wicked,
8 who freely strut about
when what is vile is honored by the human race.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
What “voices” have spoken to you during the last 24 hours? What messages did they deliver? Which words have you believed?Every day, every hour, perhaps every minute, myriad voices clamor for our attention—the voices of individuals, groups, organizations, media and “experts” of various kinds. With the advent of the Internet and social media, these voices have multiplied and are magnified in our lives.
The psalmist was also exposed to many voices—the voices of falsehood, flattery, deceit (2), boastfulness, rebellion (3), wickedness, evil (7,8)—but also the voice of God, perfect and pure (6).
When countless, and often contradictory, messages bombard us, it’s time to set up filters to help us manage the “information overload” and determine which voices are trustworthy. Intelligence agencies obtain information from various sources. Depending on the trustworthiness of the source, each piece of information is assigned a reliability rating. The psalmist gives God the highest possible reliability rating, for the number seven (6b) signified perfection. God’s words, like precious silver that is perfectly refined, are flawless (6). Despite rampant and unbridled evil (1,2,5a,8), God can always be trusted to protect his people (5b,7).
Apply
What practical steps will you take to screen the voices in your life through the “filter” of God’s Word?
Closing prayer
God, help me to recognize Your voice as I follow You.
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