ON EARTH AS IN HEAVEN
Opening Prayer
My Lord, I delight in You. May my heart’s desire be for You.
Read Psalm 101
Of David. A psalm.
1 I will sing of your love and justice;
to you, Lord, I will sing praise.
2 I will be careful to lead a blameless life—
when will you come to me?
I will conduct the affairs of my house
with a blameless heart.
3 I will not look with approval
on anything that is vile.
I hate what faithless people do;
I will have no part in it.
4 The perverse of heart shall be far from me;
I will have nothing to do with what is evil.
5 Whoever slanders their neighbor in secret,
I will put to silence;
whoever has haughty eyes and a proud heart,
I will not tolerate.
6 My eyes will be on the faithful in the land,
that they may dwell with me;
the one whose walk is blameless
will minister to me.
7 No one who practices deceit
will dwell in my house;
no one who speaks falsely
will stand in my presence.
8 Every morning I will put to silence
all the wicked in the land;
I will cut off every evildoer
from the city of the Lord.
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 are your heart’s desires?David ‘sings,’ delighting in God’s ‘love and justice’ (1). The word rendered ‘love’ (hesed) is frequently translated ‘loyalty’ or ‘steadfast love.’ God remains unfailingly faithful to His covenant, even when His people fail miserably. If hesed is the foundation of the covenant, its hallmark is justice; the priest-king of Hebrews ushers in the messianic reign, which is characterized by justice and peace.
‘Ideals are like the stars: we never reach them, but like the mariners of the sea, we chart our course by them’ (Carl Shurz, https://www. brainyquote.com/quotes/ carl_schurz_389236). God’s covenant love and justice are the high ideals by which David charts his course. He desires to see these qualities mirrored on earth as in heaven, in the kingdom of Israel. David declares his commitment to cultivate integrity in his personal life – himself and his household (2) – and in his public life, where, as king, he is charged with administration of justice in the kingdom (5–8).
David frequently failed to live up to these high ideals (2 Samuel 11). Nevertheless, he delighted in God, desired God’s will, and was wholly dedicated to being ‘a man after His [God’s] own heart’ (1 Samuel 13:14).
Apply
‘God desires to be all you need and all you want’ (Lysa TerKeurst, Finding I Am, LifeWay Press, 2016). Is He the deepest desire of your heart? Is there anything you need to surrender to Him?
Closing prayer
Lord, help me to be a man/woman after Your own heart.
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