Victorious God

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Opening Prayer

Heavenly Father, You are greater than I can imagine, and Your mercy is new every morning. I bless Your name.

Read PSALM 76:1-12

^[1] For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of Asaph. A song. In Judah God is known; his name is great in Israel. ^[2] His tent is in Salem, his dwelling place in Zion. ^[3] There he broke the flashing arrows, the shields and the swords, the weapons of war. Selah ^[4] You are resplendent with light, more majestic than mountains rich with game. ^[5] Valiant men lie plundered, they sleep their last sleep; not one of the warriors can lift his hands. ^[6] At your rebuke, O God of Jacob, both horse and chariot lie still. ^[7] You alone are to be feared. Who can stand before you when you are angry? ^[8] From heaven you pronounced judgment, and the land feared and was quiet- ^[9] when you, O God, rose up to judge, to save all the afflicted of the land. Selah ^[10] Surely your wrath against men brings you praise, and the survivors of your wrath are restrained. ^[11] Make vows to the LORD your God and fulfill them; let all the neighboring lands bring gifts to the One to be feared. ^[12] He breaks the spirit of rulers; he is feared by the kings of the earth.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.

Meditate

“God’s plan for us is not immunity from struggle, but victory through struggle. In this victory we must appropriate what God has already established” (Adrian Rogers).

Think Further

The setting for this psalm is one of deliverance from one of the many enemies who attacked Israel. The psalmist describes a battle scene, in which the decisive intervention of God ensured victory. There is no desire to give the credit to anyone but God himself. God had been in charge. Of course the people knew of God. Was he not the God of their fathers? From childhood they had been brought up on the stirring tales of God’s actions in history. Such knowledge can always remain distant, even second-hand, and the faith behind it orthodox but irrelevant to the demands of daily life. Now things had changed forever. They not only knew about God, they now knew God, for they had seen him at work in their lives. It is a great shift when faith becomes “my faith,” and our experience confirms our belief.

The psalmist encourages God’s people to give God his proper place, for God is worthy to receive our worship. He is not to be trivialized or marginalized. At the start of the week we must make time to see that we have our faith in proper perspective. God is great. He is to be feared, not with a cringing fear but through a proper respect for who he is, and for what he has done. We do not have to fight battles on our own, nor simply rely on our own strength. This particular incident of God at work reflects the bigger picture we have been looking at, of a God who cares about issues of justice and faith. He chooses to dwell among his people, and we should seek his counsel, draw on his strength, and, with courage, face the conflicts of life that are part of the life of faith.

Apply

At church today, go to your seat earlier than usual, and take time to prepare to meet with God, praising God for who he is and all he has done.

Closing prayer

Victorious Lord, help me to realize that because I am in You, the battle has already been won. I am not struggling in my life for victory, but from victory.

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