King James Bible Study – [Mark 8:34 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.]
Date: Saturday, May 21, 2022
Chapters: II SAMUEL 22, PSALM 57
Study: He That Searches The Heart
Hello My Friend,
It is not uncommon for the faithful, saved born again Christian to look back to their greatest feats that let them know that God was truly with them. Perhaps the most memorable are when He has gotten them through their most darkest hours. I tell you what, sometimes, that is the only thing that gets you up and out of bed to fight another day, [Psalms 63:5-8 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips: 6 When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches. 7 Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice. 8 My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.]
There is no doubt that when David was running from Absalom when he was trying to take the throne from him that he did not think about the times that God had delivered him from his other enemies, particularly Saul. I am sure when he got back home He praised and thank God a little more than he had in the past. It actually reminded him of the time that he was really running from Saul and wrote this Psalm.
[Psalms 57:1-3,7-11 To the chief Musician, Altaschith, Michtam of David, when he fled from Saul in the cave. Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast. 2 I will cry unto God most high; unto God that performeth all things for me. 3 He shall send from heaven, and save me from the reproach of him that would swallow me up. Selah. God shall send forth his mercy and his truth. 7 My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise. 8 Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early. 9 I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations. 10 For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds. 11 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: let thy glory be above all the earth.]
[My heart is fixed,] There is a lot to be said about the heart because it can be deceitful, but when our heart is fixed, nothing can move it from what we believe, partially when it comes to our faith in Jesus. God, looks way down deep inside us, what is really in our heart, and that is actually why He puts up with all our nonsense. You see, that emotional, superficial side to our heart, the one that is actually guided by our flesh will always lead to destruction, is what God uses to afflict us and bring out what is really deep down in our heart, [Matthew 5:8-12 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. 10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.]
I do not have tot tell you that there is some evil in all of us, if we are angry at someone who hurt us, especially if we have been deceived by them, we can truly do some damage to them. However, those with a pure heart will always find their way back to God before things get too far out of hand. Remember, God afflicted David until He said he was done afflicting him, and then He took care of Absalom. Now, as we return to the reading of 2 Samuel, David takes time to both reflect on how God delivered him out of the hands of Absalom and Saul.
[2 Samuel 22:1-7 And David spake unto the LORD the words of this song in the day that the LORD had delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul: 2 And he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; 3 The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence. 4 I will call on the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies. 5 When the waves of death compassed me, the floods of ungodly men made me afraid; 6 The sorrows of hell compassed me about; the snares of death prevented me; 7 In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried to my God: and he did hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry did enter into his ears.]
[and he did hear my voice out of his temple,] When I was praying this morning, I said to God that I was His temple, and whatever He wanted me to do, I will do it. Sometimes, we get so overwhelmed with affliction that we forget that we do have the Holy Spirit living inside of us, God Himself. That is when we need to take a step back to remind ourselves that no matter what we face, even if we did some things that we were the cause if some of the pain, that God is with us. Of course, we cannot expect God to thrilled with those decisions, but once we come to our senses He it right there with open arms. Watch what David says.
[2 Samuel 22:14-19 The LORD thundered from heaven, and the most High uttered his voice. 15 And he sent out arrows, and scattered them; lightning, and discomfited them. 16 And the channels of the sea appeared, the foundations of the world were discovered, at the rebuking of the LORD, at the blast of the breath of his nostrils. 17 He sent from above, he took me; he drew me out of many waters; 18 He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them that hated me: for they were too strong for me. 19 They prevented me in the day of my calamity: but the LORD was my stay.]
[The LORD thundered from heaven,] We actually had some thunder storms yesterday when I was at work, it was so dark that it looked like it was nighttime. Thank God, that they died down when I left, but there really is no reminder that there is a living God than a thunder storm, then add a tornado to that and you really discover that. I always think of God coming out of tornadoes because that was often when He revealed Himself to His people, and that is when He lets us know that He is with us, [Job 40:6-8 Then answered the LORD unto Job out of the whirlwind, and said, 7 Gird up thy loins now like a man: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me. 8 Wilt thou also disannul my judgment? wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be righteous?]
I can give you countless examples of times when I would be crying out to God about how bad I feel and what have I done only for Him to tell me to stop the pity party and get up, although it was not through a tornado, thank God for that. His mercy definitely endures for His faithful, again, He knows what is deep down in our heart. You know the saying, “You reap what you sow”? Well, that is exactly what God does with us.
[2 Samuel 22:26-32 With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful, and with the upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright. 27 With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the froward thou wilt shew thyself unsavoury. 28 And the afflicted people thou wilt save: but thine eyes are upon the haughty, that thou mayest bring them down. 29 For thou art my lamp, O LORD: and the LORD will lighten my darkness. 30 For by thee I have run through a troop: by my God have I leaped over a wall. 31 As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is tried: he is a buckler to all them that trust in him. 32 For who is God, save the LORD? and who is a rock, save our God?]
[For who is God, save the LORD?] Every Sunday in my Sunday school class I ask my students, What’s another name for God?” I am teaching them that He is, “I Am” We do not need to ask God who He is or why He does things because He is I Am, and it is actually I Am that I Am, [Exodus 3:14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.]
Do not think that God does not want you to ask Him questions or even go as far as proving Him, but there is one thing that we are to never do is question who He is because He is God, and whatever reason He has for doing or allowing something has to do with the fact that His ways and thoughts are so much higher than our own. Remember, what Job said after God asked him so many questions that were impossible for him to answer? [Job 42:2-3 I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee. 3 Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge? therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not.]
[As for God, his way is perfect;] It was also after Job had said that and repented of what was actually self pity, that God had blessed his with twice as much as what had been taken from him from the devil. To the world, God will never be nothing more than a figment that is out to take away their freedoms to do the abominable things they do. Let me tell you though, the strangest thing often happens to God’s faithful, He will put them right in the midst of these people. Why? The greatest blessings come from the biggest trials.
[2 Samuel 22:44-51 Thou also hast delivered me from the strivings of my people, thou hast kept me to be head of the heathen: a people which I knew not shall serve me. 45 Strangers shall submit themselves unto me: as soon as they hear, they shall be obedient unto me. 46 Strangers shall fade away, and they shall be afraid out of their close places. 47 The LORD liveth; and blessed be my rock; and exalted be the God of the rock of my salvation. 48 It is God that avengeth me, and that bringeth down the people under me, 49 And that bringeth me forth from mine enemies: thou also hast lifted me up on high above them that rose up against me: thou hast delivered me from the violent man. 50 Therefore I will give thanks unto thee, O LORD, among the heathen, and I will sing praises unto thy name. 51 He is the tower of salvation for his king: and sheweth mercy to his anointed, unto David, and to his seed for evermore.]
[give thanks unto thee, O LORD, among the heathen,] Yes, God does have a reason for everything, and the trials we face are the biggest blessings as He uses them to perfect us through them. For years I prided myself on the fact that since I dedicated my life to Christ I have not fallen into a life of sin. Through this pandemic, God is teaching me the importance of being humble, and unless I keep my eyes fixed on Him, I will get caught up in a life of sin too. And remember, we can do all things through Christ.
[Romans 8:14-17,27-28 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. 15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. 16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: 17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. 27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. 28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.]
Today’s Prayer: God, Every day I am amazed that no matter how many times I mess up, no matter how much I fail You, Your love is unconditional, You have not forsaken me, and I still have a place with You for eternity. Thank You for Your amazing grace, I am not saved for the good that I have done, but because of my faith in the finished work of Your Son. Thank You God, for everything You do for me, whether times are good or bad, happy or sad, You are always there guiding me in the right direction, and while do not always understand Your purpose, and have no clue why You led me down the path You have me on, I do understand that You are the greatest blessing in my life. The trials in my life have truly brought some of the greatest blessings, the most astounding is that You do work everything out for good. Lord, Lead me and guide me in the ways of Your Son, fill me with Your mercies and grace, teach me to love like He loves, to worship You like He worships You, to obey like He obeys, for You are my LORD, my Rock, my salvation, I live because You live. And I ask these things in Your name, Jesus.. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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