King James Bible Study – [And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Wednesday, April 24, 2024
Chapters: Psalms Chapters 43-45, 49, 84-85, 87
Message: Health to Our Countenance
Hello My Friend,
I finally got to visit my mom, she has a long way to go, but has some improvement. As I watched her I felt as ease that she had this childlike disposition as she does not need to be worried or stressed out over things that are going on at home. God, certainly has a strange way of putting on that coping mechanism that lets us know that He is near and that we have nothing to worry about. Let me tell you, you can tell a lot about someone by their facial expressions, in fact, it is often our facial expressions that give away what we are really saying or expressing, [Psalms 11:5-7 The LORD trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth. 6 Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup. 7 For the righteous LORD loveth righteousness; his countenance doth behold the upright.]
[Countenance; Literally, the contents of a body; the outline and extent which constitutes the whole figure or external appearance. Appropriately, the human face; the whole form of the face, or system of features; visage. Favor; good will; kindness. Show; resemblance; superficial appearance.] Since God is righteous, whether it be in His mercies, grace, protection, or correction, it is advisable that His people be righteous as well. God, delights in not only our obedience, but in our dependence on Him, and for that reason we can expect His countenance to change from time to time as He watches over us. And yes, God does change His expressions toward us as well as He does the wicked so it is important that we reach out to Him who is the health to our own countenance.
[Psalms 43:1-5 Judge me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation: O deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man. 2 For thou art the God of my strength: why dost thou cast me off? why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy? 3 O send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead me; let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy tabernacles. 4 Then will I go unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy: yea, upon the harp will I praise thee, O God my God. 5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.]
[why dost thou cast me off?] Why do so many Christians walk around like they are defeated as though God has left them? There are mornings when I wake up raring to go, I am focused and ready to start the day, praising God for all His goodness. Then there are mornings when I cannot even lift my head up off the pillow, only to get up and stare at a blank computer screen, with nothing to say to God, except to thank and praise Him for another day. God, is actually okay with that, we do not need elaborate prayers, sometimes the best prayers are just your sincere tears, [Revelation 21:3-5 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.]
Since many of the Psalms were written by David or someone near to him you will see them it between the other chapters that we are reading pertaining to his life and reign as king. Many of them are addressed to Korah or his sons, these were the Levites who were appointed as the musicians. We often put on a great face, or at least, try, but God knows what is deep down inside. The more we feel like we fail, the more we find ourselves asking God why we cannot seem to be getting it right. We read His Word and are reminded of all the miraculous things that He has done and wonder if He is done with us. The psalmist recounts the mercies of God and reminds God’s people how He in ancient times was the light of their countenance.
[Psalms 44:1-8 To the chief Musician for the sons of Korah, Maschil. We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old. 2 How thou didst drive out the heathen with thy hand, and plantedst them; how thou didst afflict the people, and cast them out. 3 For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them: but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favour unto them. 4 Thou art my King, O God: command deliverances for Jacob. 5 Through thee will we push down our enemies: through thy name will we tread them under that rise up against us. 6 For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me. 7 But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us. 8 In God we boast all the day long, and praise thy name for ever. Selah.]
[For they got not the land in possession by their own sword…because thou hadst a favour unto them.] You see, we sometimes forget that God is our will and strength. We always tell ourselves that we can do this in our own strength, but the truth is, we cannot. Christ is our strength. It is only by the grace, meaning the favor of God, that we are saved through our faith in Christ, everything else works the same way. And let me tell you, God does not favor us because we are more righteous than someone else nor because do more work than someone else, we have God’s favor simply because we believe in what He Son has done for us, [Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.]
And I get it, while we are not saved by our works, we do work hard to maintain some kind of morals and dignity, because after all, who wants to really live a life like that. Look at all these fools and how they are destroying the very foundations that our nation was built upon, and getting away with it too, while we are the ones who suffer. It is confusing and we also find ourselves asking God if He is even awake.
[Psalms 44:15-23,26 My confusion is continually before me, and the shame of my face hath covered me, 16 For the voice of him that reproacheth and blasphemeth; by reason of the enemy and avenger. 17 All this is come upon us; yet have we not forgotten thee, neither have we dealt falsely in thy covenant. 18 Our heart is not turned back, neither have our steps declined from thy way; 19 Though thou hast sore broken us in the place of dragons, and covered us with the shadow of death. 20 If we have forgotten the name of our God, or stretched out our hands to a strange god; 21 Shall not God search this out? for he knoweth the secrets of the heart. 22 Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter. 23 Awake, why sleepest thou, O Lord? arise, cast us not off for ever. 26 Arise for our help, and redeem us for thy mercies’ sake.]
[Awake, why sleepest thou, O Lord?] Sometimes it does feel like God is sleeping through our afflictions, that He has had enough and turned His back on us. The truth is, He is not, even when He judged Israel and sent them to Babylon, He was still with them. He actually sent them to Babylon to keep them safe while Israel was being destroyed by all the evil things going on, [Jeremiah 40:2-4 And the captain of the guard took Jeremiah, and said unto him, The LORD thy God hath pronounced this evil upon this place. 3 Now the LORD hath brought it, and done according as he hath said: because ye have sinned against the LORD, and have not obeyed his voice, therefore this thing is come upon you. 4 And now, behold, I loose thee this day from the chains which were upon thine hand. If it seem good unto thee to come with me into Babylon, come; and I will look well unto thee: but if it seem ill unto thee to come with me into Babylon, forbear: behold, all the land is before thee: whither it seemeth good and convenient for thee to go, thither go.]
[we are counted as sheep for the slaughter.] Does this sound familiar? Yes, we are counted as sheep for the laughter because we put our faith and trust in Christ, but cheer up that countenance because we are more than conquerors, [Romans 8:36-39 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. 38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.]
We have nothing to fear, so, stop being afraid to speak up and take a stand for your biblical principles. Do you understand that if you have accepted Christ as your Saviour, that you are a child of the KING? You belong to Jesus, you are anointed, clean, and favored above all the people in the world.
[Psalms 45:1-4 To the chief Musician upon Shoshannim, for the sons of Korah, Maschil, A Song of loves. My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the king: my tongue is the pen of a ready writer. 2 Thou art fairer than the children of men: grace is poured into thy lips: therefore God hath blessed thee for ever. 3 Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty. 4 And in thy majesty ride prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousness; and thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things.]
[and thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things.] God, Himself said as Jesus came up out of the water after being baptized, [Luke 3:22 And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.] It is Jesus who teaches us the way, the truth, and the life, [John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.]
Jesus, who is fully man yet fully God, has been anointed by the Father, with the Holy Ghost, who imparts joy in the Redeemer through the Word, and king to all of those who put their faith and trust in Him.
[Psalms 45:9-11,14-17 Kings’ daughters were among thy honourable women: upon thy right hand did stand the queen in gold of Ophir. 10 Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father’s house; 11 So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty: for he is thy Lord; and worship thou him. 14 She shall be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework: the virgins her companions that follow her shall be brought unto thee. 15 With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought: they shall enter into the king’s palace. 16 Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth. 17 I will make thy name to be remembered in all generations: therefore shall the people praise thee for ever and ever.]
[upon thy right hand did stand the queen in gold of Ophir.] The gold of Ophir is a picture of the rich gifts of mercy which the Christ has bestowed upon His Church. Christ, not only their King, but their Bridegroom as well, [Revelation 19:6-8 And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. 7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. 8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.]
All this is another way of saying that we cannot depend on anyone else over Jesus. God, may use some amazing God fearing people to grow and encourage us in the Lord. He may even use some evil, God hating people to remind us of how much we need God. Just like Jesus had to suffer His cross, we have to suffer our own, but in the end, we can say that we endured all of it through our faith in Christ. I do not care if I am the only one left standing, I rather endure the pain that comes with my faith than the pain that comes without it.
[Psalms 49:1-9 To the chief Musician, A Psalm for the sons of Korah. Hear this, all ye people; give ear, all ye inhabitants of the world: 2 Both low and high, rich and poor, together. 3 My mouth shall speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding. 4 I will incline mine ear to a parable: I will open my dark saying upon the harp. 5 Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil, when the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about? 6 They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; 7 None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him: 8 (For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever:) 9 That he should still live for ever, and not see corruption.]
[the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever:] Let me tell you, when your countenance feels low, keep reminding yourself that you are precious because you belong to Jesus, and one day all of your pains and sorrows will be gone. Those who are trusting in all they have cannot say that. Nothing we have on this earth will last nor can we take with us when we leave it, therefore, our most valuable asset is our soul. We are reminded through of the solemn fact that whether we are rich or poor, we are all going to die, but it is our soul is what Jesus ransomed His own life for.
[Psalms 49:11-15 Their inward thought is, that their houses shall continue for ever, and their dwelling places to all generations; they call their lands after their own names. 12 Nevertheless man being in honour abideth not: he is like the beasts that perish. 13 This their way is their folly: yet their posterity approve their sayings. Selah. 14 Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed on them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; and their beauty shall consume in the grave from their dwelling. 15 But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me. Selah.]
[God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave:] We may not have everything we want, but there is nothing better than being in the presence of Jesus. And when you let go of all the things that weigh down your heart, you will find your countenance changing as you realize that He has been with you all along. And let me tell you, the more I witness and discover in the world, the less I want to be in it and want to run to the only shelter I have on this earth, besides my home, and that is church. We ought to be excited to go to God’s house, which is a great way to cleanse our spirits from the filth of the world.
[Psalms 84:1-5,9-11 To the chief Musician upon Gittith, A Psalm for the sons of Korah. How amiable are thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts! 2 My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God. 3 Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God. 4 Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee. Selah. 5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them. 9 Behold, O God our shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed. 10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness. 11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.]
[My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD:] I think that this is why my husband and I are feeling so lost in this world, while we have been going to church we do not have a church home right now. When the Holy Spirit indwells you you do not want to just sit on the sidelines, you want to be a part of the church, to fellowship with them and serve them. I will say this, there is no better way to pour out your heart to God than at the altar, [Ecclesiastes 7:2-3 It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart. 3 Sorrow is better than laughter: for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better.]
[no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.] Those who know and walk with Christ, have His favor, and even if we have messed up a thousand times a day, He will forgive us a thousand times as long as we are sincere and repentant. Once our soul belongs to Jesus there is no delight in the worldly things as it seeks and craves His presence. And even though we do not lose our salvation, we still seek His mercies all day long.
[Psalms 85:1-2,8-13 To the chief Musician, A Psalm for the sons of Korah. LORD, thou hast been favourable unto thy land: thou hast brought back the captivity of Jacob. 2 Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people, thou hast covered all their sin. Selah. 8 I will hear what God the LORD will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly. 9 Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him; that glory may dwell in our land. 10 Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other. 11 Truth shall spring out of the earth; and righteousness shall look down from heaven. 12 Yea, the LORD shall give that which is good; and our land shall yield her increase. 13 Righteousness shall go before him; and shall set us in the way of his steps.]
[and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly.] We are not given the gift of salvation so that we can keep living in sin. While we are all sinners and sin every day, there is a difference and we need to pay attention to that or we will suffer until we repent. That also includes not forgiving ourselves and punishing ourselves for something that God has already addressed and put aside us Himself. We were redeemed by the blood of Jesus, we are no longer condemned, and delight in us.
[Psalms 87:1-7 A Psalm or Song for the sons of Korah. His foundation is in the holy mountains. 2 The LORD loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob. 3 Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God. Selah. 4 I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon to them that know me: behold Philistia, and Tyre, with Ethiopia; this man was born there. 5 And of Zion it shall be said, This and that man was born in her: and the highest himself shall establish her. 6 The LORD shall count, when he writeth up the people, that this man was born there. Selah. 7 As well the singers as the players on instruments shall be there: all my springs are in thee.]
[I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon] Just like Rahab and those of other nations who trusted the LORD as their Saviour and live to tell about it, we are testimonies of what Christ has done in our lives. When we stand before Jesus, and are granted eternal life with Him, He does so solely upon the fact that we have carried our faith in Him until our dying breath. Even if we only had one minute to believe and accept Him as our Saviour before we die, that is all it takes to receive eternal life. I will tell you this, I know I have failed at many things, the one thing that has never failed is my ministry. I might get weary and fall behind a little, but it continues and I am so blessed because it is God who keeps me faithful, [1 Peter 3:10-12 For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: 11 Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. 12 For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.]
Jesus Christ Revealed/Magnified: [Psalms 44:22 Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter.]
Today’s Prayer: God, It is so easy to express as cheerful countenance when things are going well, but not so much when we are being afflicted. It is the afflictions in life that You allow to not only keep us faithful, but keep us from getting too comfortable in our walk with You. Lord, my soul gets so weary when nothing I do seems to make a difference, I want to run and hide, tempted to walk away and do what I want to do, but it is Your grace that keeps me from doing that. I truly rather be scrubbing floors in Your house than living one day in worlds wealth. Fill me full with Your grace, revive the joy of my salvation, as my hope is in You. Keep my feet walking with You, let me not turn to the right or left, or get complacent. Guide me in the way You will lead me, judge me and try me, and if there is any wicked way in me, take it away, that I might continue to be the Godly testimony of Your amazing grace. I ask these things in Your name, Jesus, Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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