Psalm 91 - Epidemics that strike at noon

Psalm 91 - Study 18 - Epidemics that Strike at Noon 

We read in Psalm 91:6, “You will have no fear of diseases that come in the dark or terrible suffering that comes at noon.” (ERV)

In this study, we will meditate on the part of the verse that speaks about the ‘terrible sufferings that come at noon.’ During this recent pandemic we are cautioned not to venture out of our homes unless absolutely necessary. The reason for this precaution is because there are those who exhibit no symptoms of the disease but could be carriers of the virus. These individuals are referred to as being asymptomatic and when they mingle with others, there is a high probability that they could infect others who are more susceptible because of their low immunity.

We will look at some of the healthy relationships that God has established and try to understand how these could get altered when an outsider intrudes into it. These are like the asymptomatic people whose interaction will affect these hearty relationships that God has established.

The first robust relationship that God ordained was that of a husband and wife. This significant relationship we realize is under much attack these days. The next relationship is that between parents and children. The other one is among siblings. All of the above mentioned are relationships within a family. In the wider circle we have numerous relationships with those in society and in the church. All of these relationship are vulnerable, and we will study to see how we can maintain all of these relationships as God intended for us to do.

The relationship between God, Adam and Eve

We read in Genesis 3:1, Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?’”(ESV)

In the Garden of Eden that God created, there was a beautifully unified relationship between, Adam, Eve and God. There was also the relationship that Adam and Eve enjoyed with each other. Both of these relationships can be compared to the church and the family. As Adam and Eve enjoyed this harmonious relationship with God and themselves, there was an intrusion. The serpent subtly came to Eve and began to sow seeds of doubt in her mind by the questions that he posed to her. The question he challenged her with was, “Did God actually say, ‘you shall not eat of any tree in the garden?’” This question which seemed so sincere to Eve, was actually one that led to the fall of all mankind.

Not only was the serpent the uninvited guest in the garden, he also asked the unnecessary question which Eve got trapped in. Eve should have in reality chased the serpent out of that garden, as she did have the authority to do so. Instead Eve gave heed to the crafty serpent and engaged in conversation with him.

Let me give you some examples from our everyday life. At our work place a colleague may inquire of us as to why our face is downcast, and then probe further to know if there were any issues at home. Sometimes, when a member of the church is confronted by the pastor, a fellow member will feign concern by asking the person concerned if the pastor was harsh in his confrontation or hurt him through a sermon that was preached. When there is an argument in the family, we might have had experience of some nosy neighbors who are curious to find out what actually happened. There are also some mothers who will constantly check with their daughters to see if their son in law is behaving himself and treating her as he should.

Oftentimes these questions or enquiries are basically conversation starters used to engage others in a gossip session. Many of us would encounter these queries in various situations. If one were to analyze these questions thoroughly, we will be bewildered to realize that behind the voice of concern is a hidden agenda that is not meant for our good. It is therefore our duty to evaluate these so called well-meaning interrogations to understand if they are genuine or a cover up to create trouble.

Our families or our churches are like a garden and if each one of us are not wary, we will be ensnared by the cunning craftiness of the enemy whose only intention is disruption of these incredible relationships.

Adam and Eve’s primary responsibility

We read in Genesis 2:15, “Then the LORD God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to cultivate it and guard it.” (GNB)

There were two fundamental responsibilities that God entrusted to man in the Garden of Eden. One was to cultivate the land and guard it. Basically to cultivate would mean to improve what was there so it would flourish and be bountiful. Secondly, man was given the duty to guard what was entrusted to him.

I believe that each one of us have the obligation to enhance and keep safe every relationship that God has entrusted to us. First and foremost, we must acknowledge that every relationship has been committed to us by God Himself. Secondly we must not be negligent but carefully tend these relationships so that they would progress in every way and be safeguarded from all kinds of attacks. To keep our relationships secure means to not allow the enemy to gain entry in any subtle way to destroy these relationships.

It is important that we are discreet in our conversations with others and don’t permit pretentious people to cause a rift in our relationships. We live in a time when communication by phone has become so accessible and inexpensive. While this may be a good thing, there are many who spend the entire day on long unnecessary conversations that are not beneficial. If we are not watchful, like Eve, these harmless conversations will lead to confusion and even cause the breakdown of good relationships.

Eve engaged in an unnecessary conversation

We read in Genesis 3:2,"We may eat the fruit of any tree in the garden," the woman answered.. (GNB)

Adam and Eve were enjoying a cordial and peaceful relationship with each other and were in perfect communion with God. Satan entered that garden with the primary goal to destroy this harmonious relationship. Outwardly the serpent had a wonderful appearance and was appealing in his talk, but in reality he was cunning and filled with evil intentions. He also used the name of God to make his question more beseeching to Eve. Instead of Eve perceiving the evil intention of the serpent, Eve engaged in the conversation and also began to reply him.

We must be wise and discerning to know when we have to respond to someone who questions us. There is a lot of such debates being shared on social media. One person presents a matter, another responds and this sort of dialogue goes on unendingly.

We must understand that Satan is God’s enemy who was shunned by God. He is obsessed with the disease called pride. He is full of sin and crafty in all his ways. The word of God refers to Satan as the thief who comes to steal, kill and destroy.

There are many who use the Lord’s name, but their motives and their life style are not in keeping with God and His word. We know of many who got cheated because of someone’s deceptive talk. Often we give room for people to engross us with their unwholesome talk, and in so doing we will end up losing our peace.

Paul exhorts us in 1 Corinthians 15:33, Be not deceived; "Evil stories corrupt well-disposed minds." (Murdock)

Basically Paul cautions us to assess the kind of things we hear and the company of people we associate with because if we do not we will certainly be corrupted as well.

Be cautious about the tongue

We read in James 3:6, And the tongue is like a fire… (GNB)

I think that is the reason why God has kept the tongue within the confines of our mouth. We all use fire at home and as long as the fire is within limits it is extremely useful. We use it for cooking and many other beneficial things. However, when this fire gets out of control and is burning our roof that becomes totally destructive. We must assess ourselves to see if we are using our tongue to benefit others or misusing it to destroy those around us. If we use our tongue wisely, we will be those who will encourage and build others.

The mistake that Eve committed at the Garden of Eden was to not control her tongue and engage in a conversation with the serpent. In other words she added the fuel or logs to set the fire burning. Words are like fire and if we do not ignite it further by adding wood to it, the fire will most certainly be snuffed out. A good piece of advice would be to not give heed and listen to those who share information with us that is not beneficial to us or puts down others. By so doing we will put an end to the unnecessary complications in relationships.

We read in Proverbs 26:20-21, “Without wood, a fire goes out; without gossip, quarreling stops. Charcoal keeps the embers glowing, wood keeps the fire burning, and troublemakers keep arguments alive.” (GNB)

The above mentioned verse described two kinds of people. One group are those who gossip and the others who are trouble makers. If you have experience with those who gossip they specialize in carrying tales about one person to another. The consequence of having such a relationship with someone is that there will be constant discord and quarrels. The trouble makers are those who are argumentative and will also create disunity wherever they are. These are those people who when they come home or have a conversation on the phone, they have the capacity to change the peace and serenity of the home and cause tumult. Their talk will remove the peace from your heart and replace it with confusion. If we were to evaluate such people we will understand that they have some unresolved issues in themselves and they are transferring that unrest to others. The only way to escape these situations is to guard our mouth and not get entangled in those conversations.

Many families are in turmoil simply because they have permitted some ungodly persons into their homes and their relationships. God must grant us wisdom to discern who these people are and help us to avoid being in close association with them. It is only when we do so will be able to maintain our personal peace and the serenity of our families.

The word of God has recorded the fall of Adam and Eve, detailing the deception that Eve fell for so that we too can be alert. To say it simply all those who enquire after us are not good and so also those who do not ask after us are not bad either. We may gossip about someone to another person thinking that the third person will not know, but the truth that we should be reminded about is that God sees and His ears hear every single one of our conversations. We must decide that we will use our tongues to speak good things that would edify others and will avoid any kind of evil. Our tongues must be used exclusively to build those at our home, at church and we will consciously guard our tongue every day against saying anything that would destroy others.

There may be those who feel that they know their limits and will not allow other people to intrude into their lives. Let us see what happened to Eve.

The consequence of disobedience

We read in Genesis 3:3, “But of the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God said, ‘You must not eat of it and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” (TLV)

If you notice the reply that Eve gave to the Serpent, she added a little and said ‘you must not touch it.’ God instructed them to not eat of the fruit but Eve supplemented it further with her own thoughts.

Strangely when we get into such conversations with those who are out to cause trouble, we too are in danger of falling into the trap to add things that were not said. There are many who are very good at exaggerating any little information they receive to make it sound appealing to their hearers. Let us keep in mind that our families and relationships are God’s precious gift to us. This includes our parents, spouse, children, siblings, relations and those who are part of God’s family, the church as well. The responsibility to guard them safe is ours. Our goal should be to enhance these relationship and build them so they can be strong and unshakable. If we want the Lord to be glorified in our lives and in all our relationships, it is vital that we guard our tongue.

At the beginning of every day, let us seek God’s grace to guard our speech and also be wary of whom we engage in conversations. If we do so our relationships will be robust and they will be greatly enhanced. It is by so doing that we need not fear the assaults that strike us at noon. 

Prayer:

Our loving heavenly Father, we thank You for teaching us to be careful in our conversation.  Help us to avoid unnecessary and ungodly conversations.  We have learnt that we need to guard our tongue in order to escape the assaults that strike at noon.  Help us Lord to discern when people speak to us with wrong intentions so that we can be safe from their influence.  In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ we pray, Amen.

Br. Dixon

Transcribed by Sis. Esther Collins

www.goodnewsfriends.net

No Fear of Pestilence

Psalm 91 - Study 17 - No Fear of Pestilence 

We read in Psalm 91:6,“You will have no fear of diseases that come in the dark or terrible suffering that comes at noon.” (ERV)

We have been studying Psalm 91 in depth and the overriding theme of this Psalm, is that the Lord protects His children from every kind of evil or harm that surrounds them. Interestingly this Psalm seems to include all sorts of dangers that could possibly befall us as humans. The part of the verse that we will study in detail is that ‘we will have no fear of diseases that come in the dark’.

When we are pounded by a pestilence it usually throws normal life out of gear and turn our lives upside down. A few months ago if we went out on the street with a face mask, people would stare at us curiously, but strangely if we were to go out without wearing one today, people would frown on us. Handshakes were a normal way of greeting before this pandemic, but now everyone refrains from it. Our visits to hotels were commonplace, and sitting at crowded tables was totally acceptable. Now, however, we are expected to maintain social distancing at the table, even if we are from the same family. Those who used local buses for their transportation didn’t really care if it was crowded as long as they could find a spot to stand, but now we have regulations that only one person can sit on a seat no matter how long it is. One would have never imagined that in order to buy vegetables, we would have to stand in queue, in circles allotted to us so as to maintain social distancing. A simple act like opening a gate which was mundane has become an ordeal as people are afraid that it could be contaminated with the virus.

Everything that seemed ordinary and banal have become burdensome, and in general there is a sense of fear that engulfs the majority of people. For those who live in the hills travelling to the plains was a simple affair, but now one has to procure a traveler’s pass to leave their town and journey to another city. This is the power and effects of the pandemic that we are challenged with, and it would be good for us to understand where all of these pestilences originated from.

Where did it all begin?

The Garden of Eden

We read in Genesis 3:8,“And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.” (ESV)

Adam and Eve who were the first created human beings, had a glorious time in the Garden of Eden. Whenever the Lord came to the Garden, they had an amazing time of fellowship with Him. In the above mentioned verse we notice that Adam and Eve hid in fear from the presence of God. The reason for this contradictory behavior will be well understood as we read the following verse.

In Genesis 3:12, “The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.”” (ESV)

Until that time, Adam and Eve were in perfect unison with God. However, when they ate the forbidden fruit, the Lord inquired of Adam as to why he did so. Adam has no hesitation to throw the blame on Eve as the one who was instrumental for his disobedience. Not only did Adam attribute his disobedience to his wife, he went further on to indict God as the one who gave Eve to him.

Have you observed in families, whenever there is a problem or conflict, each one wants to blame the other. This blame game has now become global, in that countries have started to blame each other for the outbreak of this pandemic. Just like Adam, there are many who are attributing the cause for this calamity to God. To receive more clarity on this let us study the following verse.

We read in Genesis 3:17, “And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;” (ESV)

By disobeying God, Adam and Eve brought some major consequences to the earth and all of humanity namely, curse, suffering and sadness. All these were the result of the wrong choice that Adam and Eve made when they deliberately chose to disobey God.

It often seems convenient for us as humans who cannot see God, to pass the blame on to Him, not realizing that the fault actually lies with us.

The hatred Cain had for Abel

We read in Genesis 4:8,“Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him.” (ESV)

In this incident recorded in Genesis 4 there is a deep sense of hatred that Cain harbored against his brother Abel that resulted in him being murdered, something that was unheard of until then. The question we need to ponder then is, ‘Was God responsible for this act?’

It is time to introspect and to recognize the fact that much of the troubles that we are challenged with are not from God, or from fellow humans, but because of the wrong choices that we have made. Instead of passing the blame on to others or questioning God for these calamities that we encounter, it is important that we own up to our mistakes.

We might have been following the current news from a huge country like the United States. Many parts of this great country have become like battlefields simply because there is so much of hatred amongst fellow citizens. Hatred never comes from God, but has its roots in the heart of men and women.

What is the reason for such calamities?

We are in a time where there is tremendous advancements in the field of medicine, science and technology. This has made man believe that there is nothing that is beyond his control and that he can achieve anything. From the end of 2019 there is an unseen virus that has threatened the whole of humanity. Strangely, the only thing man has been able to do is to contain the spread of this virus using various measures, but have been unable to find a medicine or cure to combat the same. What is more baffling is that this virus can be destroyed with ordinary soap, but once it enters a person, the struggle to overcome it is an arduous task. I believe that one day we will find a cure to fight this virus, but it will still be too late for the many thousands who lost their lives to the same.

This pandemic is a reminder to humanity that there are loads of challenges that are certainly beyond human control. We may have the capacity to send rockets to Mars, but we must constantly keep in mind that there is a sovereign God who created the heavens and the earth who is above all. If we do not acknowledge Him and give Him the place that is due to Him, we will heap loads of hardships on ourselves. I am not undermining medicine, science or technology but it is an appalling thought that in spite of all the so called progress, mankind is still gripped with fear because of the intensity of this virus. It is to such a situation that the words of the Psalmist in Psalm 91:6 comes to comfort us that we need not fear the diseases that stalk us in darkness. The Psalmist specifies night or darkness, because the darkness signifies a time when we feel helpless.

How can we be free from fear?

If we trust God, obey His word, and live in the Kingdom of God we too will be free from every kind of fear. No matter how many generations may pass, mankind will always have to acknowledge that God is sovereign and that we cannot rely on our own understanding. It is only those who trust in the Almighty God completely, will be rid of all their fears and anxieties.

1. Call unto God

We live in a day and age where people have no time for God or His word. There is a story told of a business man who had such a hectic schedule that the only time he could spare for God was an hour on Sunday. The pastor of the church encouraged him to seek God every day of the week. The business man responded to the pastor that this would be an impossibility because of the enormous responsibilities that he shouldered. A few months later, the same business man was completely transformed. He began to be regular to all weekly bible studies and prayer fellowships. The pastor was initially overjoyed that the man had actually heeded his advice. When the pastor commended the man for this change, the man confessed to the pastor that he had been diagnosed with an incurable illness. The doctor had informed him that he could do nothing and told him that God was his only hope. The man had a huge income, wealth, position and everything from a worldly point of view, but in a time of crisis he understood that all these meant nothing to him.

It is interesting to observe that this pandemic has caused fear and panic among the rich and the poor alike, among those who are in high positions and those who have none.

We read in Jeremiah 33:3, “Call to Me, and I will answer you—I will tell you great and hidden things, which you do not know.” (TLV)

God beckons us to call on Him and in order to do so we must be willing to allot a specific time. The Lord guarantees us that when we call unto Him, He will certainly answer us. With calamities all around us, we need not fear, for the Lord will give heed to our cry, and has also promised to reveal great and hidden things that we do not know of.

2. Set our priorities right

To many people their jobs have taken the precedence in their lives. When the government declared the lockdown suddenly everything fell apart, especially for those who could not work from home, and they suddenly felt incapacitated.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:33,“But first be concerned about God's kingdom and his righteousness, and all of these things will be provided for you as well.”(ISV)

The call of God to us is to be in the Kingdom of God under His Lordship alone. For that to happen God must have the top priority or the first place. This verse encourages us that if we seek God’s Kingdom and His righteousness then everything else will be added to us as well.

As far as our life as children of God is concerned, everything else that pertains to this world, our family, job, wealth, position and all of it should be secondary. If we try to work it out vice versa it just won’t happen. We need to prioritize God, His Kingdom and righteousness over and above everything else that we hold dear in this life. The righteousness of God is the blessed privilege to stand faultless before the throne of God. If we receive God’s righteousness, there will be no need to long for anything else, for everything else will be added to us as well.

3. Trust in God for everything

We read in Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” (ESV)

There are many who depend on their own knowledge and understanding. Here the word of God encourages us to place our trust in the Lord. To trust God means to acknowledge that everything comes from God. It is only when we endorse God in everything that He will make our paths straight. Instead of priding ourselves in the fact that we know everything and we can accomplish things on our own, we are called to trust in God. The whole of humanity prided in this, but today everything is in shambles and stands questionable. If we neglect God and think that we can achieve everything in our own strength and understanding, we will with regret as we realize that this is an impossibility.

In conclusion we are called to do three things today if we want to get rid of all our fears. Firstly, call on the Lord and if you have neglected your time of prayer and reading of the word, you can get back to it. We have the assurance that when we call on the Lord He will definitely answer us. Secondly, everything that we prioritized earlier, our jobs, our families, responsibilities let them always be secondary and may God, His kingdom and His righteousness have preeminence in our lives. When we do so God will take care of all our needs and make everything perfect in His time. Thirdly, instead of depending on our own understanding if we can lean on the Lord and acknowledge Him, He will help us overcome every challenge no matter how great it is.

Like the Psalmist we too should have no fear of the pestilence that strikes us in the dark for we are safe and secure under the shadow of the Almighty God.

Prayer:

Our loving heavenly Father, we thank you for giving us the confidence from Your word that we need not fear the pestilence that is doing its rounds but that we can call out to you, set our priorities right and trust You for everything. I want to submit to Your Lordship.  In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Pastor Dixon

Transcribed by Sis. Esther Collins

www.goodnewsfriends.net