Scripture

If the Lord had not been on our side when people attacked us, they would have swallowed us alive when their anger flared against us…the raging waters would have swept us away.

~Psalm 124:2,3,5 NIV

Quote

“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, and protected.”

~Ronald W. Reagan

Sometimes I preview the next days Psalm before retiring. The other night I looked at and meditated on Psalm 124. The Psalm was shouting to me. I am sure it is related to the grief I feel from the murder of Charlie Kirk. I didn’t follow Charlie personally but I have seen many of his videos since his assassination and not one that I didn’t admire. His death was shocking to say the least but this fire storm after his tradgic death has been appalling. Psalm 124 speak of evil personified in three ways: [1] A raging beast [2] A raging fire and [3] a raging flood.

The Psalmist begins with this confession: If the Lord had not been on our side…they would have swallowed us alive. Using verse 6 {Praise be to the Lord, who has not let us be torn by their teeth} as a spring board, I thought of a lion. In Psalm 22 David said, They gape at Me with their mouths, Like a raging and roaring lion. Peter said, Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. [I Peter 5:8] Evil is a beast, a ferocious beast.

The second metaphor is a fire. A fire out of control rages. The Psalmist said in verse 3, “Their anger flared against us.” In the Geneva Bible it reads “Their anger is kindled against us.” A raging fire flares us. I think it is an apt metaphor to describe what is going on in America, the intense anger of the left has flared up and we have witnessed its rage. The hatred and venom coming from the left is unbelievable. I told a friend just yesterday that I am shocked at the evil in this country. Instead of the flame abating, it seems like every day the fire burns more and more as one person after another celebrates the death of this fine young man. It is absolutely unbelievable, and to think these people label us as being haters.

The third word picture is a raging flood which we know a lot about lately. Flood waters are extremely powerful and can destroy large buildings and anything else in their path. The Psalmist is thinking back to times when Israel was hit by a flood of enemies who had come to destory them. Although they felt overwhelmed, the LORD saved them. In Psalm 124 the Psalmist is giving the LORD credit and praise for Israel’s salvation.

Here is the good news: although countless nations have conspired to destroy Israel, they have all failed and Israel is still with us, PTL. This is not a Jewish thing; it is a God thing. God has preserved them by His power and grace. If it had not been for the LORD’s intervention, Israel would be history. The same can be said about the human race. The flood preserved the Sethites and the human race. The same can be said about me personally, if not for the grace of God, the enemy would have swallowed me whole long ago. Not only am I no match for Satan, I am no match for one of his low ranking demons, not even the incarnate ones that are on TV and the Social Media. I am preserved by my High Protector Jesus Christ and His wonderful grace.

Extra

Bro. James says no rain today and no activity in the gulf. We aren’t going to get any rain to amount to anything until we have activity in the gulf of America. We attended the Danville High home coming parade last night and I kept thinking about the immortal words of Barnard Fife…Its Big! Really Big! You have to see it to believe it. It actually draws more people than the Block Parties back in their heyday. The church parking lot was full plus all the grass on the West side. The school parking lots were also full. Bobby Joe Smith and Linda Owens were the grand Marshalls. I think this is four in row and they keep getting bigger. It is not a good idea to try to get through Danville on homecoming parade night. Any other time, it is a breeze.

LORD willing I will be in Athens most of the day. Dustin Lorace called me yesterday morning around 10:00. He has resigned as Youth Director. They are going back to Temple and continuing their band work. We had a very pleasant conversation. There is no ill will on either side. I do appreciate this young man and I assured him that he and his family had our respect and our prayers. He simply did what he thought was best for both parties and I admire him for doing it.

I hope you have a good Friday and weekend.